Alness

57°40'48"N004°15'28"W

Runway: n/a - floatplane base - water

Alness seaplane base (also known as RAF Alness and RAF Invergord) was a seaplane base 23 kilometers north of Inverness in the north of Scotland.
The airfield was in use since the early 1920s as an RAF test facility for the Flying Boat Development Flight until 22 June 1924. At that time it was known as RAF Invergod. In late September 1938 RAF Invergoed was again being used by RAF Coastal Command units.
209Sqn, 201Sqn and 228Sqn used the base until early October.
209Sqn returned the following summer and remained until October 1939.
201Sqn returned in November 1939 and remained until late in May 1940.
They were joined by 240Sqn (autumn of 1939 and early spring 1940), 210Sqn (from October 1939 until 21 May 1940) and the Seaplane Training Sqn (from September 1939 until somewhere in 1940).
In June 1941 No.4 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit set up at the base with Short Singapores. This OTU provided Flying Boat crews for Coastal Commands No.17 Group, having previously been designated the Flying Boat Training Squadron. From december 1941 they began converting to Shorts Sunderlands and Catalinas.
On 10 february 1943 the station was renamed RAF Alness.
Other units that used the base during World War II were No.6 Air/Sea Rescue Marine Craft Unit (28 March 1942 - 12 August 1943) and No 5 Flying Boat Servicing Unit (25 September 1942 - December 1944).


Five Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) Heinkel He 115 aircraft escaped to Scotland after the fall of Norway. The He115 was a German built torpedo bomber. On 10th April 1940 this particular aircraft carried out an attack on the German cruisers Köln and Lonigsberg. RNoAF officer Lt. Offerdal flew this aircraft to Meikle Ferry, then on to Invergordon. The aircraft is seen being examined by Flt. Lt. Middleton and Flying Off. Fleming of 201Sqn (theinvergordonarchive.org).


Sunderland N9046 earned the Sunderland the nickname 'Flying Porcupine' on a sortie from Invergordon, on 3rd April 1940, when she successfully fought off six German Ju88s (theinvergordonarchive.org).


This RAF Sullom Voe based Catalina (Z2141) sank at its moorings at Invergordon during a gale around 10 November 1941. The wing trailing edges and flying controls were canvas covered. The canvas was destroyed by the battering the aircraft received in the water. The wing and fin would have been removed to enable the aircraft to be transported by road for possible major repair (theinvergordonarchive.org).


Saro Lerwick L7257 of 4(C)OTU sank at its moorings at RAF Invergordon, during the same gale, around 10 November 1941. It is seen here in the process of being retrieved by the men of 56 Maintenance Unit, (56 MU) who were stationed at RAF Longman, Inverness. 50 gallon oil drums were used to lift the aircraft (theinvergordonarchive.org).


A civilianised Sunderland flying boat with the CAA registration (PDF) G-AGHV at its mooring. The aircraft was JM722, a Sunderland that was delivered straight to BOAC in 1943. Possibly BOAC aircrew trained alongside the RAF at Alness. Unfortunately it crashed in March 1946 (theinvergordonarchive.org).

Alness was home to the Coastal Command Flying Instructors School between 16 July and 29 October 1945. No.302 Ferry Training Unit was stationed at the base between 1 july 1945 and 1 April 1946. On 1 july 1946 the base became home to No.1100 Marine Craft Base Unit. No.4 (C)OTU transferred to Pembroke Dock in August 1946. It closed as an airfield in February 1957. Alness remained a RAF unit until 1 April 1986. 


Royal Navy Westland Whirlwind HAS helicopter at Alness, ca. 1966 (time-capsules.co.uk).


RSL 1651 about to be slipped at the RAF Marine Craft Unit (MCU) Alness, Scotland, ca 1966 (time-capsules.co.uk).

When it closed, dozens of Nissen hut bases were reported on the ground, together with a decontamination centre and other buildings still remaining. The site was sold off in the 1990s. A business park was set up at the location and to commemorate the crews of RAF Alness a memorial was erected at the site. SecretScotland reports that most of the facillities disappeared during the construction phase of the business park.
A series of photos was shot at the site in 2008 however.


The RAF Alness memorial.