And so Cllr Mrs Lynn Little, Mayor of Carterton and the wife of a
former RAF serviceman, cordially invites all residents to attend
the Freedom of the Town ceremony at the Market Square on
Saturday 16th April at 11am. Personnel from RAF BN will be
marching down Black Bourton Road and up the Alvescot Road
onto the Square. Black Bourton and Alvescot Road will be closed
from approximately 10.30am
The Mayor had this to say about why RAF BN are being given
the Freedom of the Town: “Over the last 18 months the close
relationship with Carterton Town Council and RAF BN continues
to develop and goes from strength to strength. The personnel
are integral to our community in supporting our shops and local
businesses. They are also very involved in volunteering not only
for my charity events but also at various organisations in the town
and I hope you agree that this honour is very well deserved. I look
forward to seeing you on the day!”
Following the parade there will be an event on the market square
with live music and a pig roast. There will also be a specially
brewed ale available for sale on the day to mark the occasion.
So bring your flags and banners along and celebrate something
that will make the wonderful bond between Carterton and RAF
BN even stronger.
The RAF BN station was built in 1935 and has been in use since
1937, it is the biggest military air base in the UK and is the home
to all fixed-wing transport aircraft including the Lockheed C-130
Hercules, Boeing C-17 Globemaster III and Airbus A330 MRTT
Voyager as well as the new A400M Atlas.
RAF BN started as a training station in 1937. One of the first
operational squadrons to use the airfield was No. 110 Squadron
RAF which was mainly based at RAF Wattisham but a
detachment used Brize Norton from June 1939. The early 1950s
to the mid-60s saw the United States Air Force take control of
the base before the RAF moved back in 1965. The base has seen
many changes including the repatriation of British personnel
being relocated to Brize Norton on 8th September 2011 following
the closure of RAF Lyneham. To accommodate the repatriation
services, a purpose-built centre has been constructed, and an exit
gate refurbished, formally named the Britannia Gate.
