Red Shrimp was an airborne high-bandwidth radar jammer fitted to the Vulcan and Victor . The name was one of the Rainbow Codes , its official name was ARI.18076 , for Airborne Radio Installation.
90-479: Red Shrimp was based on the carcinotron , a new type of vacuum tube introduced in 1953 by the French company Thomson-CSF . The carcinotron produced microwaves across a wide bandwidth and could be tuned as quickly as a single input voltage could be changed. They rapidly swept through all of the frequencies used by enemy radars, hitting their operational frequencies hundreds of times a second. These would be plotted on
180-466: A Varsity aircraft caught fire in one of Hangars and subsequently destroyed 2 other aircraft by setting them ablaze. Low level navigation training took place on the BAC Jet Provost , eventually using the T.5A variant. The Vickers Varsity was phased out in 1976 making No. 6 FTS an all-jet school. RAF Finningley also played host to multi-engine training and operational navigation training again via 6 FTS
270-586: A fairly simple ECM fit, with little more than chaff dispensers and the Orange Putter tail warning receiver from the Canberra and Valiant. Additional equipment could be carried along the side walls of the bomb bay, in a series of up to nine containers. These included the Green Palm VHF voice communications jammer, Indigo Bracket , an early carcinotron-based jammer, and Red Carpet X-band radar jammer. Each system
360-410: A heterodyne local oscillator. The frequency–voltage sensitivity, is given by the relation The oscillation frequency is also sensitive to the beam current (called "frequency pushing"). The current fluctuations at low frequencies are mainly due to the anode voltage supply, and the sensitivity to the anode voltage is given by This sensitivity as compared to the cathode voltage sensitivity, is reduced by
450-453: A hole through a rectangular waveguide and shooting the beam through the hole. The waveguide then goes through two right angle turns, forming a C-shape and crossing the beam again. This basic pattern is repeated along the length of the tube so the waveguide passes across the beam several times, forming a series of S-shapes. The original RF signal enters from what would be the far end of the TWT, where
540-462: A limitation. The Valiant and first Vulcans had a 112 V DC electrical system, although the trials aircraft had a more powerful 240 V AC system. The DC system was not powerful enough to supply active ECM, such as Red Shrimp, and so those aircraft were limited to the radar warning receivers and chaff dispensers. This omission was never upgraded, as the Valiant's service life was so short. From 1958,
630-509: A magnetic field in any nearby conductor. This allows the now-amplified signal to be extracted. In systems like the magnetron or klystron, this is accomplished with another resonant cavity. In the helical designs, this process occurs along the entire length of the tube, reinforcing the original signal in the helical conductor. The "problem" with traditional designs is that they have relatively narrow bandwidths; designs based on resonators will work with signals within 10% or 20% of their design, as this
720-499: A more bulbous tailcone. The end of this was now a hemispherical radome for the Red Steer tail-warning receiver, rather than the pointed cone of the B.1. A large rectangular box-like duct on the starboard side was the cooling air duct for the condenser of the VCCP. The braking parachute was inside a hatch on the top, now visible as an external bulge. The nine sealed and pressurised drums of
810-452: A purely real number in a passband of a lossless structure, varies with frequency. According to Floquet's theorem (see Floquet theory ), the RF electric field E(z,t) can be described at an angular frequency ω, by a sum of an infinity of "spatial or space harmonics" E n where the wave number or propagation constant k n of each harmonic is expressed as z being the direction of propagation, p
900-418: A single frequency defined by the physical dimensions of their resonators, and while the klystron amplified an external signal, it only did so efficiently within a small range of frequencies. Previously, jamming a radar was a complex and time-consuming operation. Operators had to listen for potential frequencies being used, set up one of a bank of amplifiers on that frequency, and then begin broadcasting. When
990-739: A small thimble radome added to the nose, from 1966. During the Falklands War and Operation Black Buck , the Vulcan and its ECM equipment were considered obsolete. Green Palm and Blue Diver at least, although there was still some respect for Red Shrimp. However Red Shrimp was a barrage noise jammer, for which twenty years of countermeasures had developed solutions. The anticipated Argentinian threat of Super Fledermaus , Skyguard AA cannon and Roland were expected to be capable of defeating it, at least at close range. The Vulcans thus borrowed US-made AN/ALQ-101D deflection jammer pods and trained with them over
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#17330854521191080-447: A well wooded locality 4 miles (6.4 km) southeast of Doncaster was acquired in the summer of 1935. The Doncaster-Lincoln railway line ran a quarter mile to the north and Finningley village lay a similar distance to the east. The flying field covered around 250 acres (100 ha) with the camp area situated to the northwest between Mare Flats Plantation and the A1 ' Great North Road ' (now
1170-465: Is a vacuum tube that is used to generate microwaves up to the terahertz range. Belonging to the traveling-wave tube family, it is an oscillator with a wide electronic tuning range. An electron gun generates an electron beam that interacts with a slow-wave structure. It sustains the oscillations by propagating a traveling wave backwards against the beam. The generated electromagnetic wave power has its group velocity directed oppositely to
1260-518: Is a voltage tunable oscillator, whose voltage tuning rate is directly related to the propagation characteristics of the circuit. The oscillation starts at a frequency where the wave propagating on the circuit is synchronous with the slow space charge wave of the beam. Inherently the BWO is more sensitive than other oscillators to external fluctuations. Nevertheless, its ability to be phase- or frequency-locked has been demonstrated, leading to successful operation as
1350-517: Is a voltage-controlled non-resonant extrapolation of magnetron interaction. Both types are tunable over a wide range of frequencies by varying the accelerating voltage . They can be swept through the band fast enough to be appearing to radiate over all the band at once, which makes them suitable for effective radar jamming , quickly tuning into the radar frequency. Carcinotrons allowed airborne radar jammers to be highly effective. However, frequency-agile radars can hop frequencies fast enough to force
1440-421: Is dependent on a steady stream of electrons from an electron gun that travel down the center of the tube (see adjacent concept diagram ). Surrounding the electron beam is some sort of radio frequency source signal; in the case of the traditional klystron this is a resonant cavity fed with an external signal, whereas in more modern devices there are a series of these cavities or a helical metal wire fed with
1530-401: Is more negative than the cathode, in order to avoid collecting those electrons having gained energy while interacting with the slow-wave space harmonic. The O-type carcinotron , or O-type backward wave oscillator , uses an electron beam longitudinally focused by a magnetic field, and a slow-wave circuit interacting with the beam. A collector collects the beam at the end of the tube. The BWO
1620-451: Is not the case in the BWO, where the electrons pass the signal at right angles and their speed of propagation is independent of that of the input signal. The complex serpentine waveguide places strict limits on the bandwidth of the input signal, such that a standing wave is formed within the guide. But the velocity of the electrons is limited only by the allowable voltages applied to the electron gun, which can be easily and rapidly changed. Thus
1710-412: Is physically built into the resonator design, while the helix designs have a much wider bandwidth , perhaps 100% on either side of the design peak. The BWO is built in a fashion similar to the helical TWT. However, instead of the RF signal propagating in the same (or similar) direction as the electron beam, the original signal travels at right angles to the beam. This is normally accomplished by drilling
1800-430: Is received by the radar station. However, at long range the amount of energy from the original radar broadcast that reaches the aircraft is only a few watts at most, so the carcinotron can overpower them. The system was so powerful that it was found that a carcinotron operating on an aircraft would begin to be effective even before it rose above the radar horizon . As it swept through the frequencies it would broadcast on
1890-654: The A638 ). Five Type C hangars were erected in the usual crescent layout facing the bombing circle, with a fifth directly behind the southernmost of the line. Administration and technical site buildings were immediately to the rear of the hangars. The camp cost £430,000 (equivalent to £36,904,000 in 2023) to build and came under the command of No. 3 Bomber Group , who were headquartered at RAF Andover . The station opened officially on 30 July 1936, however, Nos. 7 and 102 RAF Squadrons did not move in until September 1936 from RAF Worthy Down with Handley Page Heyfords . During
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#17330854521191980-568: The Electronic Counter-Measures (ECM) fitment which would become standard for the V bombers had been developed. Equipment was mounted in a series of sealed cylindrical drums, each weighing around 200 lbs, the limit of what could be manhandled for servicing. These were installed in the tail of the aircraft and slid into place on an overhead trolley rail. A water-glycol cooling system, the Vapour Cycle Cooling Pack (VCCP),
2070-612: The Spadeadam range. As a result, the Black Buck missions left Red Shrimp unused and relied on the Dash 10. From the twenty four B.1A conversions, the Victor had the same EW fit as the Vulcan, with Red Steer, Blue Saga, Green Palm, Blue Diver, Red Shrimp and chaff dispensers. Design studies during the early development of TSR2 recommended the provision of an X-band carcinotron, such as Red Shrimp, in
2160-401: The phase velocity of one space harmonic of the wave is equal to the electron velocity. Both E z and E y components of the RF field are involved in the interaction (E y parallel to the static E field). Electrons which are in a decelerating E z electric field of the slow-wave, lose the potential energy they have in the static electric field E and reach the circuit. The sole electrode
2250-421: The 'technical authorities' – decided to cease their support at the end of the 2015 flying season. Without their support, under Civil Aviation Authority regulations, XH558 is prohibited from flying. Since moving to Doncaster, the Vulcan and Canberra WK163 have been removed from the hangar and have been left outside. Doncaster Council approved construction of a special built hangar for XH558 and WK163 in 2018, but
2340-450: The 18 Squadron Valiants was the magnetron -based US-made AN/APT-16A jammer. This was a much simpler and less capable system, without the frequency agility of the carcinotron devices. The Carpet 4 (ARI 18030, AN/APT-5) spot jammer, had been trialled in Lincolns and also the 18 Squadron Valiants, but it was unreliable and ineffective, so never used. The electrical supply of the Valiant was also
2430-730: The Advanced Navigation Wing. During April 1995, the Tucano Element moved to RAF Topcliffe . RAF Finningley was also home to all initial airman aircrew training ( Air Electronics, Engineer & Loadmaster School RAF ). Finningley was also home to the Yorkshire Universities Air Squadron , that flew the Scottish Aviation Bulldog at the time, as well as Chipmunk T.10s of No. 9 Air Experience Flight . In its last years as an RAF station, Finningley
2520-465: The BWO takes a single input frequency and produces a wide range of output frequencies. The device was originally given the name "carcinotron", after the Greek name for the crayfish , which swim backwards. By simply changing the supply voltage, the device could produce any required frequency across a band that was much larger than any existing microwave amplifier could match - the cavity magnetron worked at
2610-486: The ECM equipment were arranged in two rows within this tail, with access through hatches in the bottom. The Red Shrimp antennae were arranged on panels added between the engines, usually the 3 & 4 engines (starboard). Some aircraft had three on one side, others two and one on each. Blue Diver also used a blade aerial in early years, later wingtip aerials. The Vulcan B.1A was an interim design, converted from B.1 aircraft. ECM
2700-523: The East Coast, in this instance, the heavily industrialised City of Sheffield . Brancroft Farm became a Royal Flying Corps landing ground in 1916. Finningley's participation in RAF Bomber Command 's offensive may have been short but the station played a vital part in finishing crews with operational training for the bombing role. An early pre-war expansion scheme airfield the site, farmland in
2790-649: The HQ was awarded a new standard reflecting its 4,500 human rescues and its 93 peacetime gallantry awards since the end of the Second World War. On 14 January 1992, a new Air Navigation School building was opened, built at a cost of £5.2m. Arguably the most famous of the Finningley's Avro Vulcan Bombers is XH558 . On 1 July 1960 XH558 was the first Vulcan B.2 to enter RAF service and was immediately transferred to No. 230 Operational Conversion Unit at RAF Finningley. XH558
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2880-713: The OTU was disbanded and the Wellingtons removed. The Bomber Command Instructors School had been established at Finningley in December 1944 and this organisation, with a variety of bomber types, saw out the remaining months of the war at this station and did not depart until the spring of 1947. Navigational training was the main objective of No. 6 Flying Training School RAF , first using Vickers Varsity and later Hawker Siddeley Dominie aircraft. Although Finningley passed to RAF Support Command in 1977, its training role continued throughout in
2970-673: The Queen's Silver Jubilee Air Show was held at RAF Finningley, replacing for that year the Battle of Britain Air Show. In 1994 the Ministry of Defence announced the imminent closure of RAF Finningley as part of the Front Line First defence cuts. It closed in 1996, being earmarked for a new prison; however, this plan was dropped and three years later Peel Holdings , a property and transport company, bought
3060-501: The Second World War. Post-war became a Bloodhound surface-to-air missile battery location as part of 94 Squadron . An Avro Lancaster bomber dispersal airfield, taken over by the United States Air Force in 1957. Part is now a commercial airfield, the rest is under industrial use. From 1946 to 1954 a number of different training units were stationed at Finningley with a variety of aircraft types. No. 616 Squadron RAF
3150-472: The Valiant having seen its day, No. 18 Squadron was disbanded. The Vulcan OCU was based at RAF Finningley from June 1961 until December 1969. Handley Page Victor bombers were added to the Finningley scene in later years before RAF Strike Command (the amalgamation of Bomber Command and Fighter Command on 30 April 1968) moved its units out and Training Command took over the station in May 1970. In 1970 there
3240-515: The Wash and, under its control, Finningley squadrons started conversion to the Handley Page Hampden , with Avro Ansons to fill out strength until more of this new type were available from production. The need to establish units devoted to training crews on the new bomber types resulted in the setting up of so-called pool squadrons during the summer of 1939. A revision of this arrangement brought
3330-564: The administrative home of the two squadrons with their bright yellow painted Westland Whirlwind HAR.10, Westland Sea King HAR.3 and Westland Wessex HAR.2 helicopters. All major engineering work was carried out by the Engineering Squadron in Hangar 1. The wing was disbanded on 1 December 1992. The first air display at Finningley was held in September 1945. For two decades RAF Finningley
3420-588: The advancing German forces over France in May 1940. The squadron moved on to RAF Binbrook in July 1940. By August 1940 the critical war situation caused No. 106 to be placed on operational call. Most of its early sorties were to drop mines in the approaches to French Channel ports thought to be harbouring invasion barges. There was still need for a final polish for new Hampden crews and in February 1941 No. 106 left its 'C' Flight at Finningley to continue with this task while
3510-456: The aircraft, or at least the provision of space for one. However budget constraints led to this provision being removed from the formal requirement. Naval / Air Staff Target 830 for future jamming provision was still under consideration at the time the TSR2 project was cancelled. The likelihood was that TSR2 would use pylon-carried external equipment, if the mission required it. Controls for Red Shrimp,
3600-581: The airport was announced in September 2022 with the final passenger flight arriving on 4 November 2022. During the refurbishment of the Royal Flying Corps station at Doncaster in 1915 a decision was taken to move operations temporarily to an air strip at Brancroft Farm south of the Finningley site. This flight of aircraft is thought to have consisted of Royal Aircraft Factory BE.2c fighters of No. 33 Squadron RAF . These fighters were used to intercept Zeppelin bombers approaching Yorkshire cities from
3690-482: The control unit Type 9422, were simple and amounted to little more than switches to turn it on and off, to switch the two automatic operating modes, and to monitor its performance, current draw and temperature. It was controlled by a small panel on the AEO's lower desk, at the right of the rear cockpit (facing the rear). Carcinotron A backward wave oscillator ( BWO ), also called carcinotron or backward wave tube ,
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3780-483: The designated pool squadrons into operational training units and, shortly after war was declared, both the Finningley squadrons moved to RAF Upper Heyford to form one of these organisations. Finningley was to continue in a training role for No. 106 Squadron , which brought its Hampdens from RAF Cottesmore in October. Also classed as a reserve squadron, No. 106 continued the operational training role for No. 5 Group that
3870-776: The direction of motion of the electrons. The output power is coupled out near the electron gun. It has two main subtypes, the M-type ( M-BWO ), the most powerful, and the O-type ( O-BWO ). The output power of the O-type is typically in the range of 1 mW at 1000 GHz to 50 mW at 200 GHz . Carcinotrons are used as powerful and stable microwave sources. Due to the good quality wavefront they produce (see below), they find use as illuminators in terahertz imaging. The backward wave oscillators were demonstrated in 1951, M-type by Bernard Epsztein and O-type by Rudolf Kompfner . The M-type BWO
3960-429: The energy would be extracted. The effect of the signal on the passing beam causes the same velocity modulation effect, but because of the direction of the RF signal and specifics of the waveguide, this modulation travels backward along the beam, instead of forward. This propagation, the slow-wave , reaches the next hole in the folded waveguide just as the same phase of the RF signal does. This causes amplification just like
4050-411: The hope that they would not be known to the jammer in wartime. The carcinotron could still sweep through the entire band, but then it would be broadcasting on the same frequency as the radar only at random times, reducing its effectiveness. The other solution was to add passive receivers that triangulated on the carcinotron broadcasts, allowing the ground stations to produce accurate tracking information on
4140-549: The jammer to use barrage jamming , diluting its output power over a wide band and significantly impairing its efficiency. Carcinotrons are used in research, civilian and military applications. For example, the Czechoslovak Kopac passive sensor and Ramona passive sensor air defense detection systems employed carcinotrons in their receiver systems. All travelling-wave tubes operate in the same general fashion, and differ primarily in details of their construction. The concept
4230-543: The jamming was the Fan Song radar, the target acquisition radar of the S-75 Dvina (NATO: SA-2 Guideline ) surface-to-air missile. The Blue Diver jammers targeted its UHF -band Knife Rest early warning radar . The Red Shrimp antenna was quite small and housed in a downward-pointing hemispherical dome, approximately 6 inches in diameter. These were of dielectric material coloured black or dark grey and unpainted. Their signal
4320-508: The jamming. However, interceptors of the era relied on ground direction to get into range, using ground-based radars. This represented an enormous threat to air defense operations. For ground radars, the threat was eventually solved in two ways. The first was that radars were upgraded to operate on many different frequencies and switch among them randomly from pulse to pulse, a concept now known as frequency agility . Some of these frequencies were never used in peacetime, and highly secret, with
4410-480: The land and transformed it into Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield . The following units were also here at some point: The badge of RAF Finningley, awarded in 1948, showed a Yorkshire Rose on top of a sprig of oak. The rose represented Yorkshire and the oak Nottinghamshire, as the base straddled the border between the two at its southern end. The motto was Usque ad coelum fines , which
4500-438: The location of the jammer and allowing them to be attacked. The needed slow-wave structures must support a radio frequency (RF) electric field with a longitudinal component; the structures are periodic in the direction of the beam and behave like microwave filters with passbands and stopbands. Due to the periodicity of the geometry, the fields are identical from cell to cell except for a constant phase shift Φ. This phase shift,
4590-532: The new 18 Squadron were based at RAF Finningley , South Yorkshire, as was the BCDU. Nick Prager , a Czech-born sergeant with the BCDU in the ECM servicing section of the base, together with his wife Jana, supplied photographs of the ECM manual set to the Czech Intelligence Service . He was arrested for this in 1971, after betrayal by the defector Josef Frolík , and sentenced to 12 years for spying. 230 OCU ,
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#17330854521194680-769: The next decade before RAF activity was terminated. Sister RAF stations of RAF Finningley located in and around Doncaster included: Located at Bawtry Hall in Bawtry this was No 1 Group Bomber Command Headquarters and administration unit. The airfield at RAF Bawtry was operated by RAF Bircotes . RAF Bawtry became the centre of the RAF Meteorological Service and ceased military operations in 1986. A satellite from RAF Finningley operating Avro Ansons, Wellingtons, and Manchesters from No. 25 OTU . Also operating No. 1 Group RAF Bomber Command HQ Communications Flight in support of RAF Bawtry . First opened in 1908 as one of
4770-453: The next year, No. 7 Squadron split into No. 76 and No. 102 similarly divided to produce No. 77 the latter two soon being moved south to RAF Honington . No. 7 Squadron converted to Whitleys in March and April 1938 while No. 76 continued to operate Wellesleys , the type it had been formed to fly. By the end of that year No. 5 Group completed its acquisition of No. 3 Group stations north of
4860-478: The only ECM-equipped Valiants. The initial intention for these aircraft was that they would be used for training UK air defences, simulating a Soviet ECM-using threat. Any idea of a war role for them, as an ECM escort for an attack force of Valiant bombers, developed later. This also required 18 Squadron to start training for the same QRA 'scramble' exercises as the Bomber Command main force. The S band jammer of
4950-413: The order of 100 miles (160 km), the entire radar display would be completely filled with noise, rendering it useless. The concept was so powerful as a jammer that there were serious concerns that ground-based radars were obsolete. Airborne radars had the advantage that they could approach the aircraft carrying the jammer, and, eventually, the huge output from their transmitter would "burn through"
5040-643: The original clusters crossing the A614 road between Finningley village and Bawtry. A single loop-type standing was added to bring the total to 36. Some additional domestic accommodation was provided to cater for a maximum 2,416 males and 435 females. The bomb store was in Finningley Big Wood. The station re-opened for flying in May 1944 when No. 18 OTU returned from RAF Bramcote . By the end of that year requirements for operational training had reduced and in January 1945
5130-417: The original signal; the density of the electrons in the beam matches the relative amplitude of the RF signal in the induction system. The electron current is a function of the details of the gun, and is generally orders of magnitude more powerful than the input RF signal. The result is a signal in the electron beam that is an amplified version of the original RF signal. As the electrons are moving, they induce
5220-546: The oscillator of only 1000–3000 K. Carcinotrón RAF Finningley Royal Air Force Finningley or more simply RAF Finningley is a former Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force station at Finningley , in the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster , South Yorkshire , England . The station straddled the historic county boundaries of both Nottinghamshire and the West Riding of Yorkshire . The station
5310-400: The pitch of the circuit and n an integer. Two examples of slow-wave circuit characteristics are shown, in the ω-k or Brillouin diagram: A periodic structure can support both forward and backward space harmonics, which are not modes of the field, and cannot exist independently, even if a beam can be coupled to only one of them. As the magnitude of the space harmonics decreases rapidly when
5400-509: The previous occupants had started to provide. The squadron also brought a flight of three Fairey battles which were used for target towing at the gunnery range at Skipsea on the Yorkshire coast. During early 1940, Fairey Battles of 98 Squadron were moved to RAF Finningley from RAF Scampton . In June of the same year, No. 12 Squadron , also flying Fairey Battles, came to Finningley to re-arm and re-coup after suffering losses in conflict with
5490-578: The project was cancelled completely in February 2022 as not enough money had been raised to meet the £2.2 million cost. During the 1970s all RAF navigators passed through the Air Navigation School (ANS) of No. 6 Flying Training School (FTS) at RAF Finningley, when the BAe Dominie T.1 s of No. 1 ANS from RAF Stradishall and the Varsities of No. 2 ANS from RAF Gaydon moved there. In 1970,
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#17330854521195580-415: The radar station realized what was happening, they would change their frequencies and the process would begin again. In contrast, the carcinotron could sweep through all the possible frequencies so rapidly that it appeared to be a constant signal on all of the frequencies at once. Typical designs could generate hundreds or low thousands of watts, so at any one frequency, there might be a few watts of power that
5670-454: The radar's plan position indicator , filling it with so many "blips" that the bomber was invisible. Red Shrimp remained operational on the V-bomber fleet through its entire history. Although it was still operational during the Falklands War , it was considered obsolete and not used in combat. Red Shrimp (or ARI 18076) was a wide-coverage jammer for radar between 2.5–3 GHz. This is in what
5760-455: The radar's operating frequency at what were effectively random times, filling the display with random dots any time the antenna was pointed near it, perhaps 3 degrees on either side of the target. There were so many dots that the display simply filled with white noise in that area. As it approached the station, the signal would also begin to appear in the antenna's sidelobes , creating further areas that were blanked out by noise. At close range, on
5850-404: The ratio ω q /ω, where ω q is the angular plasma frequency; this ratio is of the order of a few times 10 . Measurements on submillimeter-wave BWO's (de Graauw et al., 1978) have shown that a signal-to-noise ratio of 120 dB per MHz could be expected in this wavelength range. In heterodyne detection using a BWO as a local oscillator, this figure corresponds to a noise temperature added by
5940-551: The rest of the squadron moved to RAF Coningsby for full offensive operations. While flying from Finningley, six Hampdens had failed to return. In March the former No. 106 "C" Flight metamorphosised into No. 25 OTU, initially continuing to train with Hampdens and Ansons. A few Manchesters arrived in the spring of 1941, and the unit was later bolstered with Wellingtons . Early in 1942 Finningley passed to No. 1 Group and with no further need for Hampdens or Manchesters No. 25 OTU concentrated on Wellingtons, nine of which were lost when
6030-462: The runway. A number of units withdrew in 1954 (including No. 215 ATS) leaving only the Meteors of No. 616 Squadron, Royal Auxiliary Air Force , manned largely by part-time personnel, but their days at Finningley were numbered for in May 1955 the squadron moved to RAF Worksop . The reason was that Finningley was about to be given a new lease of life as a V bomber station. During the next two years work
6120-409: The same signal. As the electrons travel down the tube, they interact with the RF signal. The electrons are attracted to areas with maximum positive bias and repelled from negative areas. This causes the electrons to bunch up as they are repelled or attracted along the length of the tube, a process known as velocity modulation . This process makes the electron beam take on the same general structure as
6210-424: The spring of 1957, No. 101 Squadron was re-formed in October that year to operate Vulcan bombers . A year later No. 18 Squadron RAF with ECM Vickers Valiants was also established at Finningley. In 1961, No. 101 Squadron RAF took its Vulcans to RAF Waddington changing places with the Vulcan training organisation, No. 230 Operational Conversion Unit RAF . It was two years from 101 Sqn leaving that in 1961,
6300-736: The station was called upon to take part in Bomber Command operations. No. 25 OTU was disbanded in February 1943 and in March No. 18 OTU moved in from RAF Bramcote and began using RAF Bircotes and RAF Worksop as satellites. In November the Wellingtons were moved to these satellites as hard runways were to be laid at Finningley. These were put down during the winter of 1943–44, the main, 03–21 being 2,000 yards (1,830 m), 07–25 4,200 feet (1,280 m) and 12–30 4,200 feet (1,280 m). A concrete perimeter track had been laid in The 1942 and asphalt pan-type hardstandings constructed in 1940–41 linked to it, two of
6390-467: The threat was reasonable, but ability to counter it was reduced. Most obviously, the Red Shrimp jammers were mounted on the underside, facing downwards. At low level, they were masked by the same terrain which the aircraft was using to shield itself and so the area over which they could radiate became inconsequentially small. One important advance which was installed was a terrain-following radar (TFR), with
6480-430: The traditional TWT. In a traditional TWT, the speed of propagation of the signal in the induction system has to be similar to that of the electrons in the beam. This is required so that the phase of the signal lines up with the bunched electrons as they pass the inductors. This places limits on the selection of wavelengths the device can amplify, based on the physical construction of the wires or resonant chambers. This
6570-499: The training unit for Vulcan crews, was also based at Finningley from 1961. As it became clear that the new low-level penetration role would involve bombers travelling singly, each bomber would need its own ECM fit. The squadron retained a development and training role for some time, but this could be performed by simpler aircraft, such as Canberras , than the Valiants and so 18 Squadron was disbanded in 1963. The original Vulcan B.1 had
6660-422: The value of n is large, the interaction can be significant only with the fundamental or the first space harmonic. The M-type carcinotron , or M-type backward wave oscillator , uses crossed static electric field E and magnetic field B, similar to the magnetron , for focussing an electron sheet beam drifting perpendicularly to E and B, along a slow-wave circuit, with a velocity E/B. Strong interaction occurs when
6750-644: The world's first airports, it took on biplane fighters during the First World War to combat German Zeppelins and later became a transportation squadron during the Second World War. The runway has now been lost to urban development; however a museum remains. RAF Lindholme was home to the Bomber Command Bombing School (BCBS), later Strike Command Bombing School and Air Navigation School, between 1952 and 1972. An 850-acre (340 ha) bombing range used by No 25 and No 18 OTU at RAF Finningley during
6840-461: Was Mod.1877, repainting from anti-flash white to a two-colour camouflage scheme. The Soviet SA-3 Goa missile was now in service, with its Low Blow radar . This could also be countered by Red Shrimp. Despite the change in role, there was no change in the Vulcan ECM fit. There was little development of this for the next twenty years and it became increasingly less effective. Situational awareness of
6930-475: Was a planned part of the new B.2 aircraft with their extended Phase 2C wing, and although there was great urgency to the delivery of the new B.2 aircraft and the first would arrive before the first B.1A, the simpler conversion would permit thirty ECM-equipped aircraft to enter service more quickly than a similar number of B.2s. After the Nassau Agreement at the end of 1962, Britain's primary nuclear deterrent
7020-437: Was an arson attack on Number 2 Hangar by a serving RAF member. After the hangar was locked and secured at 17:00 he lit a fire under an aircraft with catastrophic results. The hangar was badly damaged, and the perpetrator charged and imprisoned. In January 1976, the headquarters of search and rescue No. 22 Squadron were based at Finningley, with flights detached at Brawdy, Coltishall, Leconfield, Leuchars and Valley. In 1978
7110-494: Was broadcast downwards as a cone of around 45° included angle. Later on, as the aircraft switched to operating at extremely low level, this gave a ground coverage patch barely larger than the aircraft's shadow. The first Red Shrimp fitment was to a Valiant of the Bomber Command Development Unit . The BCDU was a development unit which operated Valiant WP214 from the end of 1955 as a trials aircraft. By mid-1958
7200-472: Was carried out to re-lay and extend the main runway to approximately 3,000 yards (2,700 m). Unit stores for atomic weapons were also constructed to house Green Grass in Yellow Sun , Violet Club and Blue Steel weapons. The airfield became known as the home of the 'V' Bomber after Avro Vulcans , Handley Page Victors and Vickers Valiants had all been stationed at the base. Finningley re-opened in
7290-460: Was described as S band at the time (1 GHz - 3 GHz), but is now termed the D and E frequency bands. It was based on a carcinotron or backward-wave oscillator (BWO) valve. This is a variable frequency voltage-controlled wide-range oscillator. Changing the control voltage, without requiring any mechanical adjustment, could produce a high-power jamming signal which could be adjusted rapidly to jam any radar frequency. The main target for
7380-498: Was designed to be as self-contained as possible, with the minimum of additional installation around the airframe. The Olympus 104 engines at this time had insufficient electrical generating capacity for such an ECM fit and so an internal ram air turbine was fitted, as for the trial Valiant WP214. This Turbo Alternator TGA 30 Mk 1 was mounted internally and driven by an air inlet near the port engine air intake. The Vulcan B.2 and B.1A both used an extended rear fuselage, extended into
7470-552: Was home to 100 Squadron which had moved from RAF Wyton . The squadron's main tasks were as a target facilities flight providing airborne targets for surface-based radar and missile sites, and as a provider of small and agile 'aggressor' aircraft for Dissimilar air combat training (DACT) for UK-based operational aircraft. The RAF Search and Rescue Wing was first formed at RAF Finningley in 1976, when two squadrons, No. 22 Squadron and No. 202 Squadron , came together from RAF Thorney Island and RAF Leconfield . Finningley became
7560-656: Was home to the Battle of Britain Air Display which was the largest one-day airshow event in the country, and a similar show was held in Scotland at RAF Leuchars in Fife on the same day as that at Finningley each year. The aerobatic airshow and the display of military capabilities, such as an Avro Vulcan bomber scramble, became so well known nationally that the show attracted huge crowds and eventually became televised on national TV. In 1977,
7650-613: Was re-formed at Finningley on 31 July 1946 equipped with de Havilland Mosquito NF XXX night fighters which were replaced with Gloster Meteor F.3 day fighters a few months later. On the Monday 11 August 1952, a Meteor F.4 serial number RA376, located at RAF Finningley, and was one of the aircraft used by No. 215 Advanced Flying School RAF (AFS) had just taken off from the airfield for an exercise when it crashed close to Firbeck Hall in Nottinghamshire, approximately 8 miles (13 km) from
7740-715: Was responsible for training all the Royal Air Force multi-engine pilots using twin-turboprop Handley Page Jetstream T.1 aircraft. Later the Jet Provost T.5A aircraft were replaced on 14 August 1993 by the British Aerospace Hawk T.1 aircraft which joined on 10 September 1992 and the Short Tucano T.1 from 6 April 1992. The school operated two new wings from October 1992, these being the Basic Navigation Wing and
7830-579: Was restored to flight by the Vulcan to the Sky Trust and the aircraft was displayed during airshows until the end of 2015. On 29 March 2011 XH558 returned to Doncaster airport and Finningley, and she was once again at her original home. XH558 still resides there now, she remains in operating condition but without a permit to fly. Unfortunately, the three expert companies who were supporting the Vulcan in remaining airborne – BAE Systems , Marshall Aerospace and Defence Group and Rolls-Royce , collectively known as
7920-471: Was to switch to the Royal Navy and the submarine-launched Polaris missile . A combination of this change of role, and the increasing effectiveness of Soviet anti-aircraft missiles at high altitude, led to the V-bomber force being re-tasked from a high-level attack to a high-low-high profile with a low-level approach. The B.1 aircraft were re-tasked from Spring 1963, the B.2s from 1964. Visible evidence for this
8010-525: Was used as a bomber base during the Second World War, then in the early 1950s it had fighters allocated to it. From the late 1950s to the 1970s it was one of the home airfields of the V-bomber force, before becoming a Support Command base and housing the HQ of the Search and Rescue Force. RAF Finningley was decommissioned in 1996. The airfield was developed into an international airport named Doncaster Sheffield Airport , which opened on 28 April 2005. The closure of
8100-483: Was used to cool the equipment, with a large external cooling air intake. An additional AC power system was added to supply enough electrical power. Rather than being engine-driven, this was an air-powered turbo-alternator. From 1958 to 1963 18 Squadron operated as a dedicated ECM squadron, having been formed from the Valiant-equipped C flight of 199 Squadron , which had developed the role post-war. These seven were
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