Killard Point ROTOR radar station
Plinth for a Type 13 height finding radar, which provided height information on aircraft using centimentric radar. The transmitting equipment was housed inside the plinth .
The brick and concrete radar plinth remain in relatively good condition. A concrete plinth remains inside the structure which has a square hole cut in the roof with the steel mount for the radar antenna remaining in-situ
Ulster Radar website at www.ulsterradar.co.uk
The Radar Pages at www.radarpages.co.uk
Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)

The hospital was constructed in 1942 for the US Navy and was composed of over 50 Nissen/Quonset huts. Initially occupied by elements of the 109th (US) Medical batt. (34th US Inf. Div.) it became the 160yh Station Hospital in Sept 1942 with almost 200 beds but this was expanded to 500. The site remains in use by US medial units until August 1944.
The area is heavily overgrown and forested. Concrete footpaths remains in the undergrowth,

Military structure built to facilitate operations at the Q site, likely nissen or other temporary hut.
N Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol. 3, Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (unpublished CBA report)

Ballyhalbert Airfield
The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted.
This section of runway is an eastern remnant of the original main runway. Originally 1,830m long, this section is 283m long with caravans lining its edges.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008)
Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)
Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995)
David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)
Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012)

Toome Airfield
The T2 (‘T’ for transportable) was developed in 1940 to replace Bellman Hangars. They were of a modular design meaning they could be dismantled, moved and reassembled elsewhere. Constructed of steel lattice portal frames and clad in galvanised corrugated iron. The T2 became the standard temporary hangar for the RAF, and over 900 were built during the war. They were considered temporary structures with a limited design life, but many remain on airfields throughout the United Kingdom.
This T2 is owned by Macrete, who manufacture concrete products within the hangar. It retains its original cladding but oddly is not in its original position. This is located on the line of the main runway. Therefore it must have been erected after the base closed. This would be consistent with the design of the T2 which was intended to be portable. Further evidence for the re-erecting of the hangar is the bases of the steel frames, which have been reinforced with concrete buttresses, suggesting the frames were cut at their base before removal for reassembly at the hangars’ current position. It is possible that this hangar is one of the two original sited on the northern end of the airfield. However, an aerial photograph from 1959 shows the two northern hangars removed with no hangar on this site.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008)
Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)
Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995)
John Hughes, Toome’s wartime airfield fifty years ago (Draperstown, 1995)
David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)
Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012)
Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/
WW2NI website at https://www.ww2ni.com/countylderryairfields.htm

Shane's Castle
With the outbreak of war with Germany in 1914, the rapid expansion of the army led to a corresponding expansion of training facilities. A hutted camp was added to the existing training camp at Magilligan. Part of the training of the recruits required them to practice constructing the types of fieldworks found at the front in France and Belgium. By 1915 trench construction formed a major part of the training of recruits, reflection the prevailing methods of warfare on the Western Front.
The site consists of shallow traces of practise trenches, the appear to be sawtooth communication trenches.
The remains are very shallow and ephemeral.
Mark Adkin, The Western Front Companion (London, 2013)
Rory McNeary, Archaeological feature detection using laser scanning at Shane's Castle Park, County Antrim, Ulster Journal of Archaeology, vol. 70,(2011), pp 111-125.
Website
https://frontlineulster.co.uk/randalstown-camp/

Nutts Corner
By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on air-frames and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
Site appears to remain in good condition though largely obscured by dumps of spoils.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008)
Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)
Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995)
David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)
Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012)
Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/
WW2NI website at https://www.ww2ni.com/countylderryairfields.htm

Ormiston House
Ormiston house was requisitioned for war use during WW2 where it was used to accommodate nurses serving the the hospital.

Shallow ramp on which vehicles were driven to allow access to underside for maintenance/inspection.

Cluntoe Airfield
Provided accommodation for airfield personnel. Built post-war on site of WW2 sick quarters.
Only the concrete walls and gable ends remain, heavily overgrown.
John Hughes, Where the wind blows free: a history of the wartime airfield at Cluntoe, (Ardboe, 2003)
Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/
WW2NI website at https://www.ww2ni.com/countytyronepart1.htm

Kirkistown Airfield
During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
On the day of field visit the landowner was in final stages of demolishing the site and removing the hard-core rubble.

Ebrington Barracks
Block to east with gable facing the parade ground indicated on the 1854 Ordnance Survey Map and labelled ‘store’. Built as part of the original construction of the base in 1841. Extension to the west and second longer gabled building facing parade ground first indicated on 1904 map. Further ‘return’ extension to the west first indicated on 1953 ordnance map. Building continued in use as barrack stores and accommodation until 2003. Noted in Annesley Malley's 2006 survey that structure was also used as library and troop recreation.
HB file for HB01/09/002 T
HM file for Ldy 14:72

Structure erected to accommodate the crew of HAA battery. Precise function unclear.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000)
Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001)
N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

Nutts Corner Airfield
The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted.
The runway remains to approximately 1,100 m in length.Post war the main road to Crumlin was constructed along the centre of the runway leaving long sections of original fabric to either side of the road.
WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

Langford Lodge Airfield
Provided accommodation for troops or civilian employees of Lockheed Corporation
Site appears intact on aerial photos, no access.
Langford Lodge USAAF Station 597 website langfordlodge.webs.com/ WW2NI website www.ww2ni.com/langford-lodge-a-a-f-597

Kilroot Fort
The guard house was the office for the guard detachment and controlled access into and out of the fort. When the site was in care and maintenance it was used as quarters for the site caretaker.
Structure remains in good condition. It retains some original window frames though some have been replaced with modern pvc frames.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1596 (Belfast, 2003)
K.W Maurice-Jones, The history of coast artillery in the British army (London, 1957)
website

This was a 19th century magazine concerted to used as an air raid shelter in 1940-41. Brick screens for chemical toilets were fitted and an exterior blast wall l. All shelter fittings were removed post war. It now houses a toilet block.
Extracts from the Ministry of Finance (Finance Works Division) File

The site was constructed to allow troops to practice small arms such as rifles, pistols and machine guns. Its appears on the Ordnance Survey 4th edition map (1905) as butt with four firing points at 100 yard intervals. The range in its current form was constructed during WW2. It consists of the markers gallery, target house and protective concrete mantlet, a backstop and two firing points at 100 and 200 yards. There may have been a third but this cannot be located given overgrowth of vegetation at the site.
The site is relatively intact, with the markers gallery, target shed, mantlet and backstop intact. Three firing points remain in situ. There are also the remains of some galvanised steel sheds, two are collapsed awhile a third is partially collapsed.

Military structure built to facilitate ATS barracks, exact function unclear
In good condition, the site is now unused and sealed.

Steel-framed general-purpose store
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000)
Richard Doherty, Key to victory: The maiden City in the Second World War (Derry, 1995)
Richard Doherty, 'Escort base' in Ulster Local Studies, Vol 16, No. 1 (1994), pp 31-42.
Website
https://base1europe.com/

Structure built to facilitate operations at the site
Joe O'Loughlin, Catalinas and Sunderlands on Lough Erne, Ireland in World War 2 (2013)
Breege McCusker, Castle Archdale and Fermanagh in World War II (1993)
Website
https://www.ww2ni.com/county-fermanagh-part-2

The magazine is a prefabricated design produced by the Armco International Corporation of Middletown Ohio, and sometimes referred to as Armco huts. Measuring 20' x 50', the structure is a curved steel hut with steel end walls, covered with a layer of earth to provide extra protection, which was then seeded to provide a level of camouflage. Ventilation was provided in the headwall to prevent condensation within the magazine. The magazines at Fincarn were used to store five and three inch naval shells, torpedo warheads, depth charges and small arms ammunition. These were brought to the US navy operating base at Lisahally.
Stencilling remains on the outer face of the head wall. A number (circa eight though there could be more) of contemporary doodles remain to the left and right of the doorway and on the rear wall, which include images of Mickey Mouse, Churchill (possibly), Hitler and unidentified women.
Site is heavily overgrown but largely intact, although one of the doors has fallen off its hinges. A section of the steel head wall is bulging out from the face due to pressure from the soil overburden.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000)
Richard Doherty, Key to victory: The maiden City in the Second World War (Derry, 1995)
Richard Doherty, 'Escort base' in Ulster Local Studies, Vol 16, No. 1 (1994), pp 31-42.
https://www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt2.htm

Colebrooke
Colebrooke was requisitioned by the War Office to accommodate troops during WW2. US troops were billeted there from 1942-1944. Troops from 3rd Batt, 135th Inf Regt (34th (US) Inf Div) initially there but troops from 8th (US) Infantry Div. stationed there from 1943-4.
Site was large camp of barracks and support buildings such as ablutions and mess facilities.

Limavady Airfield
Provided dining facilities for officers.
Site remains in good condition. It is used as an agricultural store
John Quinn, Wings over the Foyle: a history of Limavady Airfield in WWII (Belfast, 1995)
John Quinn and Alan Reilly, Covering the approaches, the war against the U-Boats: Limavady and Ballykelly’s role in the Battle of the Atlantic (Belfast, 1996)
WW2NI website at https://www.ww2ni.com/countylderryairfields.htm

Millisle Airfield
The site was equipped to carry out repairs on a wide range of station equipment.
Structure remains in good condition, It retains the original roof and windows and has been repurposed as a mechanics workshop.
Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012

Coast searchlights were employed with the battery to search and illuminate areas of the lough during night time. They would also have been used to illuminate hostile targets in ,ow light or total darkness. The equipment was housed in a brick and concrete shelter, provided with large windows enabling 180 degree search arc. Cabling providing power entered via ducting in the floor.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: the fortifications of Ulster 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)

RAF Aldergrove
The store was constructed to house dangerous liquids and oils which required fire-proof storage. The building stored different material on one of four fireproof cubicles. It stores dirty oil, oil filters, clean container store, a clean oil store, a lubricant store and inflammable store. The final three stores were for dope, acid and carbide.
Site appears intact and in good condition. it is still in use by MoD .
On operational MoD site, Joint Helicopter Command Flying Station Aldergrove.
T. G. Doherty, Ours to hold: RAF Aldergrove at war 1939-1945 (2008)
Airfield Research Group report for surviving structures at RAF Oakington
WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

This was an earth bank erected in front of the #markers gallery to protect the markers from incoming gunfire.
The manltet is mostly intact, however it has slumped into the markers gallery.

The butt is an earthwork and sand traverse/bank used as a bullet catch to stop rounds fired downrange after hitting (or missing) their targets.
Original DHR file
SM 7 Dow 44:64
Philip Orr, Ballykinler camp: The first seven decades, 1900-1969 ((2012)

Bishops Court Airfield
Provided accommodation for officers. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters.
Concrete walled structure, retains asbestos roof, converted into dwelling/holiday homes.

Maghaberry Airfield
The static water tank acted as an emergency supply of water for firefighting. Firefighting pumps would be used to draw water out of the brick and concrete tank.
A square ,30-40cm tall brick enclosure is all that remains

Cherry Valley
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. Type A huts were for officers and consisted of 4 rooms and one for servants. Type B huts were for sergeants and were a single room accommodating 8 men. Those for other ranks or airmen accommodated 12 men in a single room. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides.
Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut serving as barracks.

Structure relating to domestic camps attached to anti-aircraft battery
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001) N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

A camp was established at Breandrum to accommodate the expansion of armed forces in N. Ireland during WW2. The camp housed the 109th (US) Medical Batt. of the 34th (US) Inf. Div. in 1942. During 1943-44 units of the 8th (US) Inf. Div. were billeted here.
Though much of the camp was removed post war, many of the hut bases built within Breandrum Woods remain, though heavily obscured by undergrowth. Five hut bases were located using probing though it is highly likely more remain within the woods.

Grey Point Fort
This provided washing and toilet facilities for troops on duty at the magazine and gun emplacements. The site is protected by a steel door shutters.
Remains in good condition. The amlutions room has been repurposed as a women's lavatory, the latrine retains its original purpose.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1596
Northern Ireland Environment Agency (ndg) Grey Point Fort: A short guide to the fort complex.
K.W Maurice-Jones, The history of coast artillery in the British army (London, 1957)

Campsey Heavy Anti-aircraft Battery
The location of Northern Ireland on the western edge of the United Kingdom suggested that the region may be insulated from the threat of German bombing raids. Plans laid down by the government in London for the defence of Britain and Northern Ireland assumed that air defences in England would protect the province. After the Munich crisis of 1938, A re-evaluation of air defences recommended that Belfast be protected by a single fighter squadron, twenty-four heavy (HAA), and twenty-four light anti-aircraft (LAA) guns. Nevertheless, with the advent of war, Belfast was considered an unlikely target for German raids. Consequently, few guns were committed to the defence of the city and none were supplied to protect the rest of the north. The fall of France in June 1940 brought Northern Ireland well within the range of air attacks from German bases in northern France. Therefore recommendations were made to double the strength of the gun defences in the province, but shortages of equipment meant that on the eve of the air raids on Belfast in the spring of 1941, Belfast was defended by sixteen HAA guns (in four batteries), and six LAA guns. The damage and human toll inflicted by the Luftwaffe raids on the nights of 15 April and 4-5 May was devastating, with over 1,000 people killed and almost half the housing stock of the city rendered uninhabitable. Shocked into action by the appalling loss of life and damage to industry, the anti-aircraft defences were significantly reinforced. Four Gun Defended Areas (GDA) were established; Belfast, Larne, L’Derry and Lough Erne. Twelve HAA batteries surrounded the periphery of Belfast, while seven HAA batteries were built around L’Derry and the Foyle estuary, and two each at Larne and Lough Erne.
HAA batteries were typically armed with four 3.7-inch heavy anti-aircraft guns, which could fire a 28-pound projectile to an effective ceiling of 32,000 feet. The gun crews were directed from the battery command post. The command post provided height, direction and altitude data to the gun pits to enable the gun layers to set the fused to detonate at the correct altitude. Most batteries had a ramp and platform nearby which held the gun laying (GL) radar. A polygonal mat surrounded the GL radar, marking the area of the false datum, which was composed of a wire mesh and was needed to generate a false horizon for the primitive GL radar sets.
Original DHP report
Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001)
N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)
Subterranea Britannica at https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/campsie-aaor/

Structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear. Likely nissen hut to accommodate refugees.
Only concrete base remains under the grass cover.

Sydenham airfield
The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars.
Section of perimeter track network still extant within car parking area. It has been infilled with modern tarmac but the WW2 concrete trackway is clearly visible.
DHP report
Guy Warner and Jack Woods, In the heart of the city: The history of Belfast's City Airport 193801998 (Belfast, 1998)

Structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear.
Only concrete base remains beneath grass cover.

Unidentified structure, part of the RAf maritime craft unit.
Structure has been demolished, only concrete base remains.

Series of three rail roadblocks constructed during WW2. Steel rails were placed in recesses in the concrete blocks to close access to vehicular traffic.
Dermot Francis, Brian Lacey and Jim Mullen, Atlantic Memorial: The Foyle and the Western Approaches 1939-1945 (Derry), p.27

RNAD Kilnappy
Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the munitions depot, function unknown.
Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (English Heritage, 2000)
website www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt1.htm

Quonset huts were prefabricated structures first manufactured in the US to fulfil a need for a lightweight hut that could be assembled quickly without skilled labour. Based on the Nissen hut, they were usually a 16-foot span and 36-foot long.
The hut was constructed as part of the camp, likely used as a barracks.
The structure is intact and in good condition. It has been repurposed as a store.
Richard Doherty, Key to victory: The maiden City in the Second World War (Derry, 1995)
Richard Doherty, 'Escort base' in Ulster Local Studies, Vol 16, No. 1 (1994), pp 31-42.
https://base1europe.com/

Kinnegar Barracks
The Romney hut (also known as a shed) was designed in Romney House, London by the Directorate of Fortifications and Works at the start of WW2. Primarily used for storage, they could be adapted for canteens, workshops and even cinemas. Semi-circular in section, the hut was a series of tubular steel ribs curved to a radius of 17 feet 6 inches. The were bolted to the foot and connected by steel purlins. The frame was covered by corrugated iron sheeting. The inside of the structure was normally unlined. The hut was composed of any number of bays each 8 feet wide (usually 96 feet long) and an internal span of 35 feet.
Romney pre-fabricated hut, likely used as a store.
Site appears intact and in good condition
PRONI file AM/1/5/42A/0241-0286 Website https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart3.htm https://archives.wartimeni.com/location/co-down/holywood/

RAF Aldergrove
Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks.
This is a double finger park with two hardstandings.
T. G. Doherty, Ours to hold: RAF Aldergrove at war 1939-1945 (2008)
WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

Group of 8 Romney huts used as stores at the depot.
RAF aerial photo in PRONI file AM/1/5/11C/4101-4150
https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart4.htm

Bishops Court Airfield
Provided accommodation for senior non-commissioned officers. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters.
Concrete construction, retains original windows, exterior light fittings. Compressed asbestos sheeting roof and brick chimney.
Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)

Structure erected to facilitate operations at the army camp. Function unknown.

Downhill Chain Home Low Radar Station
Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. The contemporary map suggests this may have been duel use and used as a defensive pillbox.
Sections of this structure were upstanding in 2007 but most recent visits have determined the site has been levelled, only concrete base remains.
Colin Dobinson, Building Radar: forging Britain's early-warning chain 1935-1945 (London, 2010)
Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)
The Radar Pages at www.radarpages.co.uk
Frontline Ulster at

Cluntoe Airfield
Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland.
On day of fieldwork site was obscured by slurry and soil, but later aerial photos suggest the four park dispersal is intact. Is part of a larger 'snowflake' with 25 dispersals.
John Hughes, Where the wind blows free: a history of the wartime airfield at Cluntoe, (Ardboe, 2003)
WW2NI website at https://www.ww2ni.com/countytyronepart1.htm

Mullaghmore Airfield
Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected b y integral blast walls. This example was divided into 4 separate rooms with their own entrances and emergency escape hatches in the internal dividing walls.
Site remains in good condition, it was converted to use as a pig pen post war but is now disused.

This structure was related to the operation of the heavy anti-aircraft battery, its function is unknown. Likely nissen hut to accommodate troops.
Plotted from AP, appears concrete base remains
DHP report.
Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001)
N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

Ballywoodan GCI station
Should the electrical power from the grid be cut off, each site had its own power generating facility to ensure continuous operation.
Only concrete base with concrete plinth for generator remains.
Colin Dobinson, Building Radar: forging Britain's early-warning chain 1935-1945 (London, 2010)
Neil Redfern, Twentieth-century fortifications in the United Kingdom: vol. III, Site Gazetteers: Northern Ireland (York, 1998)
The Radar Pages at www.radarpages.co.uk
Frontline Ulster at

Nutts Corner Airfield
Concrete trackway providing access to hard-standing
Trackway remains in good condition, used as storage yard.

Maydown Airfield
Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected b y integral blast walls. This example was divided into 4 separate rooms with their own entrances and emergency escape hatches cut through internal dividing walls.
Site is in good condtion id heavily overgrown.

The small brick and concrete shelter protected the crew tasked with operating the decoy site during a raid. It was equipped with a telephone and switch gear used to control the ignition of the flame groups. Its main entrance was protected by a blast wall and an emergency escape hatch is on the roof. The blast wall was demolished post war, the remain of which still remain on site.
Site is intact but heavily overgrown, The entrance has been sealed with overburden and rubble.
N Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol. 3, Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (unpublished CBA report)
Colin Dobinson, Fields of deception: Britain's bombing decoys of World War II (London, 2000)
https://www.ww2ni.com/

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the camp, likely a nissen hut.

Limavady Airfield
Structure built to house ambulance attached to sick quarters and temporary storage of fatalities/human remains on site.
The structure is in good condition. It has been fitted with two modern roller shutters and used to store agricultural machinery.
John Quinn, Wings over the Foyle: a history of Limavady Airfield in WWII (Belfast, 1995)
John Quinn and Alan Reilly, Covering the approaches, the war against the U-Boats: Limavady and Ballykelly’s role in the Battle of the Atlantic (Belfast, 1996)

Beltrim
The grounds of Beltrim Castle were requisitioned by the War Office during WW2 to house troops. A camp was constructed and from February to May 1944 the site housed the 552nd (US) Ordnance Heavy maintenance Company (Tank).
This brick structed was reportedly used as a mess, providing dining facilities for troops.
Structure appears intact and it good condition.

Greencastle Airfield
A concrete trackway linking finger park dispersals to the airfield
Approximately 120 metres of concrete trackway remain.
Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995)
Leo Murphy, ‘Action Station: the story of Greencastle aerodrome’, 12 Miles of Mourne, Journal of the Mourne Local Studies Group, Vol 3, (1989), pp 33-50.
Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk
WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countydownairfields.htm
Christopher A Lynn, Greencastle Aerodrome, County Down: Remnant of World War Two in a seaside landscape (QUB, 2007), Unpublished undergraduate thesis

Ebrington Barracks
Building first indicated on the 1904 Ordnance Survey Map and from its detail clearly built at the same time as the adjacent buildings along the boundary wall (numbers 62 and 59 HB01/09/002 N&Q) and designed by the same person. The date of this wall may be from the 1870’s for the main post 1891 expansion is surrounded by a much lower brick wall and fence but there is no documentary evidence to support this. Original function of building has not been ascertained though from evidence of a late 19th century photograph it appears that it may have been stables. A picket fence presumably to contain animals is erected in front in the photographs. Building subsequently converted to storage.

Ballyhalbert Airfield
A ‘Tannoy’ system was used to communicate instructions to personnel across the airfield via loudspeakers across the airfield. These were connected to the amplifying equipment which was found in the Speech Broadcasting Building.
This square brick structure is in good condition though most of the cement render has now scabbed off the brick. The entrance is protected by a brick blast wall.

Langford Lodge
A circular filter bed, filled with stone, used as a filter bed for sewage treatment.
Langford Lodge USAAF Station 597 website langfordlodge.webs.com/
WW2NI website www.ww2ni.com/langford-lodge-a-a-f-597

RAF Castle Archdale
The compass rose was painted on a circular concrete pad and was aligned to magnetic north. It was used by aircraft to calibrate their magnetic compass. Later photographs of the site show it used to park aircraft.
The circular hard standing remains in good condition though markings are no longer visible.

Nutts Corner
The Link trainer (named after its inventor Edwin Link) provided a cheaper and safer alternative to training pilots in instrument flying than flying than flying an actual aircraft. The trainer consider of a circular wooden cubicle, painted with a landscape as would be seen from 2000 feet. At the centre was a mock-up fuselage with a cockpit equipped with basic instruments and flight controls. Movements of the plane were simulated by powerful bellows under the 'aircraft'. Night flying could be simulated by putting a blacked-out hood over the cockpit. Connections led from the trainer to an instructors desk where a trolley called a 'tracking crab' recorded the time and rate of movement of the fuselage. The instructors desk had duplicate flying controls which enabled them to assess the trainees pilots flying ability. Blocks could accommodate a number of students at the same time.

Ebrington Barracks
Purpose built accommodation for married soldiers and their families based on a standard plan used at the time in barracks constructed by the Ordnance Board. Located as far from normal barracks as possible with a school between . Separate self contained flats were accessed from the external walkway at ground and first floors. Accommodation consisted of two bedrooms, a living room and kitchen and toilet facilities in the return. Storage for bins etc was in the return at each gable. Building’s external appearance is little altered from the time of construction (though it is likely that chimneys have been removed). The internal plan because of its loadbearing construction has been little altered though an off centre corridor has been opened up to allow remaining rooms to become single bedrooms. Former external doors have been bricked up with the exception of one near the centre and on each end.
Called Raleigh Block on the 1948/52 plan.
Structure remains intact and in good condition.
HB file for HB01/09/002 CC
HM file for LDY 14:72

Langford Lodge
Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland.
Cluster of 7 finger parks in distinctive snowflake layout. Not visible on day pf visit but owner noted dispersals covered by soil post war leaving concrete dispersals intact under the grass.

Bishops Court Airfield
Provided accommodation for officers. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters.
Concrete walled structure, roof replaced, converted into dwelling/holiday home.

The magazine is a prefabricated design produced by the Armco International Corporation of Middletown Ohio, and sometimes referred to as Armco huts. Measuring 20' x 50', the structure is a curved steel hut with steel end walls, covered with a layer of earth to provide extra protection, which was then seeded to provide a level of camouflage. Ventilation was provided in the headwall to prevent condensation within the magazine. The magazines at Fincarn were used to store five and three inch naval shells, torpedo warheads, depth charges and small arms ammunition. These were brought to the US navy operating base at Lisahally.
Site remains relatively intact and in good condition. Repurposed as an agricultural stroe.
https://www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt2.htm

Two concrete tanks lined with pumice stone, used to filter sewage from site.
Site is relatively intact with remains in pumice filter still in situ.
Nick McCamley, Cold War secret nuclear bunkers (Barnsley, 2002)

Erected to accommodate airmen stationed at Greystone radar station. Function is unclear but likely barracks.
Only concrete base remains, largely obscured by berm of earth.
DHR 00168-000 Greystone Chain Home Radar Station-1942_004

Structure built to facilitate operations at the site. Owner suggested it was part of the water treatment works for the camp
Concrete tank is overgrown but largely intact.

Palace Barracks
Constructed in the inter-war years or WW2, the magazine is a long brick structure behind the guardhouse. It is revetted with earth and has two protected entrances. It was used to store ammunition for small arms.
Site appears intact and in good condition, modern use is uncertain.
Robin Masefield, The history of Palace Barracks (to 1969) and Holywood as a garrison town ( (Belfast, 2007)

Military structure built during WW2, possibly associated with Belgian troops stationed in Seapatrick.
Structures walls are largely intact though roof is in state of advanced collapse.

Army camp constructed to house troops during WW1.
Irish army archive no IE/MA/MPD/AD119288-001 at https://mpdsearch.militaryarchives.ie/
https://frontlineulster.co.uk/north-irish-horse-camp-antrim/

Kirkistown Airfield
During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This concrete dispersal is 18 metres wide. Grass grows from the expansion joints but it appears to be in good condition.

Shane's Castle
This is a brick walled store reinforced with earthwork revetment. It is 336 sq. metres in area. The store was designed to direct an explosive blast upwards in the event of an accident. May have had storage shed constructed in interior.
The retaining wall and earthworks remain in relatively good condition though heavily overgrown.
DHP report
Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (English Heritage, 2000)
website
https://www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart3.htm

Newtownards Airfield
Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire.
A concrete revetted trench with 2 ammunition shelters.
Buried within sea wall, traces may remain within structure.

Erected to accommodate airmen stationed at Greystone radar station. Function is unclear but likely barracks.
DHR 00168-000 Greystone Chain Home Radar Station-1942_004

Provided accommodation for airmen. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters.
The concrete structure has a compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof and retains its original windows and brick chimney. A section of ridge tiles has been lost along western end of roof.

RAF Castle Archdale
Nissen hut workshop used to maintain and service aircraft and equipment.
Only concrete base hard standing remains

Nissen hut housing Rooms for pilots and ground crew while working at aircraft on dispersals/ blister hangers.
Only hut base remains, heavily overgrown.

RAF Castle Archdale
Salvation Army canteen to provide mess facilities for air and ground crew.
Only section of concrete footings remain

Mullaghmore Airfield
During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed
A modern dwelling and domestic garage have been built around the site, perhaps 60% and part of the approach track way remain intact.

St Angelo Airfield
Site provided washing and showering facilities.
Structure is intact and well-maintained with replacement roof and fittings . It has been repurposed into holiday chalets.

Moorfields Gibraltarian Camp
In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps. Eight of these camps were erected near Ballymena.
Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school.
The pumphouse and remains of the generator building remains and the cookhouse has been converted into a domestic dwelling. The adjoining field is terraced with concrete hut bases remaining under the grass.

Killadeas
Small brick structure for storing small arms ammunition for use in ground defence of station.
Joe O'Loughlin, Catalinas and Sunderlands on Lough Erne, Ireland in World War 2 (2013)
Breege McCusker, Castle Archdale and Fermanagh in World War II (1993)
Joe O'Loughlin and John Hughes, Fermanagh in the Second World War at

Maghaberry Airfield
Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire.
Access could not be gained to site but aerial photos suggest buried remains remain sub-surface
https://britainfromabove.org.uk/en/image/XAW009896

Tynan Abbey
Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the camp.
Only concrete footings and surrounding concrete hardstanding remain.

RNAD Kilnappy
Small brick structure relating to operations at the depot. May have been a shelter similar to DHR 00192:009 but collapsed and too overgrown to get close look.
Significant remains of structure survive though in recent years the blast wall and roof section above it have collapsed.
Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (Egnlish Heritage, 2000)
website www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt1.htm

Limavady Airfield
RAF Limavady was the first of four new airfields to be constructed along the north coast during World War II. It opened late in 1940 and was assigned to Coastal Command. Initially, long-range anti-submarine patrols were flown out of Limavady, which continued until early 1942, when it became an operational training unit then a torpedo training unit. Active anti-submarine warfare patrols were resumed between January and April 1944. The Royal Navy operated several squadrons out of Limavady from June –November 1944. Coastal Command returned at the start of September 1944 and remained until June 1945. The site was transferred to the Admiralty at the end of 1945 but no Fleet Air Arm units were ever stationed there. The airfield was sold off in 1958.
The site is in a excellent state of preservation with large sections of runway intact, perimeter tracks and dispersals. The technical area retains many of it structures including the control tower, hangars and an exceptionally rare gunnery training dome. The retention of generators and switching gear in the powerhouse ids unique as far as can be discovered at this point. Though the survival of individual structures is remarkable in itself, the retention of a campus feeling and sense of place adds to the quality of the site.
There are some outstanding structures remaining within the Limavady dispersed living sites. There are two gas decontamination facilities, with one (DHR70:80) retaining its original filtration unit, possibly a unique survival in N. Ireland. Others such as the features of Dispersed Site No. 5 (70:101-11, 132) are well presented and maintained.
The airfield is remarkably well-preserved with many structures surviving in the technical and dispersed living sites.
John Quinn, Wings over the Foyle: a history of Limavady Airfield in WWII (Belfast, 1995) John Quinn and Alan Reilly, Covering the approaches, the war against the U-Boats: Limavady and Ballykelly’s role in the Battle of the Atlantic (Belfast, 1996)
Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk
WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countylderryairfields.htm

The main house was commandeered and converted to officers' quarters. It was returned to civilian use after the war.
The house is intact and in good condition.
Owner pers comm.
Websites
https://base1europe.com/
https://www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt4.htm

This small section of the Tyrone and Fermanagh Hospital was designated as the alternative Wartime control centre for the Department of Health and Social Security. It was to be manned with 9 clerical staff and 4 directing staff. These were to be supported by 7 professional staff.
Its role would be to direct the clearing of hospitals, collating and updating heath material and assets, information on available beds, supplies, fuel, medicine in DHSS facilities and report to the Regional Government HQ.
Site never commissioned as situation never called for it. Remains part of hospital.
PRONI file Civil defence Planning 1984-1990 HSS/32/1/21/8A

This was a small arms range constructed to allow troops to practice marksmanship with small arms such as rifles, submachineguns and pistols. It appeared first on the Third Edition OS map as a 1000 tard range, but by the OSNI, 1-10,000 maps produced 1957-96; the range has only three firing points at 100, 200 and 300 yards. The firing gallery appears to be from WW2 or possibly post-war.
The site appears in relatively good condition.

RAF Aldergrove
This housed the personnel responsible for fire-fainting duties in the base. The site also had garages for storing a number fire tenders and ambulances.
Site appears intact and in good condition. An extension was added to the south elevation post war.
On operational MoD site, Joint Helicopter Command Flying Station Aldergrove.
T. G. Doherty, Ours to hold: RAF Aldergrove at war 1939-1945 (2008)

Eglinton Airfield
Dining facilities provided by YWCA for female personnel. This was formerly a Laing hut. Originally designed in 1940, the hut consisted of standard prefabricated lightweight timber wall sections bolted together. Externally the wooden frame and plasterboard was covered in felt sheeting to make the structure weatherproof. Inside, the walls were lined with plasterboard. The roof was made of corrugated asbestos sheeting supported by wooden trusses.

Large camp housing US Navy personnel. Consisted of approx. 88 Quonset huts with air raid shelters.

This was the site of a camp constructed during WW2 . It was composed of 20+ structures, likely stores. It is now the site of an army reserve depot.
Redeveloped post-war as Territorial Army centre.

Building first indicated on the 1904 Ordnance Survey Map and forms part of the post 1891 expansion eastwards of the barracks. A purpose built barrack block of a standard military type. There are two other buildings (numbers 79: HB02/09/002Oand 104 : HB01/09/002AA ) of the same type on this base. Originally the block would have housed an open dormitory to either side of the entrance section consisting of stair to one side of the hall room to other side and toilets ahead. In later years the dormitory has been converted to individual accommodation. Building still used for its original purpose. A faded painted sign on umber 80 saying shelter position indicates that room under stone stairs was a bomb shelter during WWII.
Site is intact and in good condition. Has been repurposed as commercial offices.
HB file for HB01/09/002 M
HM file for Ldy 14:72

Newtownards Airfield
The Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes is a company created by the British government on 9 December 1920 to run recreational establishments needed by the British Armed Forces, and to sell goods to servicemen and their families.
The structure housed the NAAFI which provided canteen and recreation facilities for airmen. It usually contained a kitchen, dining room and games/recreation room.
The NAAFI has been converted into a number of domestic dwellings.

Erected to facilitate operations at the site, function unclear.
Colin Dobinson, Building Radar: forging Britain's early-warning chain 1935-1945 (London, 2010)
Neil Redfern, Twentieth-century fortifications in the United Kingdom: vol. III, Site Gazetteers: Northern Ireland (York, 1998)
Frontline Ulster at

Toome Airfield
Used to house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.
Site appears relatively intact, though with significant crack in east wall.
John Hughes, Toome’s wartime airfield fifty years ago (Draperstown, 1995)

Langford Lodge Airfield
Provided accommodation for troops or civilian employees of Lockheed Corporation
Appears relatively intact on aerial photo. No access on day of visit.
Langford Lodge USAAF Station 597 website langfordlodge.webs.com/ WW2NI website www.ww2ni.com/langford-lodge-a-a-f-597

Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the camp.
The structure appears relatively intact though heavily overgrown.

At the start of WW2 the British military's operational doctrine stressed a mobile flexible response to land attacks, but the catastrophic loss of tanks, transport and heavy weapons meant that the resources were unavailable. Concrete, steel and wire had to make up the shortfall in men and equipment. The first layer of fixed defence was erected along threatened coastlines. Known as the ‘coastal crust’, the network of pillboxes, anti-tank ditches and barricades, barbed wire (known as Dannert wire), minefields, slit trenches and beach obstacles were constructed to delay any potential landing; buying time for mobile reserves to be gathered to check any German advance inland. There were eight beach areas identified as vulnerable to amphibious landings in N. Ireland: Magilligan, Dundrum, Strangford Lough, Carnlough Bay, Cushendall, Cushendun, Portrush and Portstewart.
Remains of reinforced concrete pillbox on Cushendun beach, wave action had broken it into collapsed sections.
Until recently the remains of the pillbox were visible on the beach however a visit to the site revealed the structure has been removed or covered by sand.
CBA, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol 3, site gazetteer: Northern Ireland
Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008)

Cluntoe Airfield
Sited in front of the watch office, the signal square facilitated air traffic control signals warning pilots of the prevailing condition and precautions to be taken during landing and take-off. Though signals could be sent using radio transmissions, pyrotechnics, lamps and flags, the majority of signals were displayed on this 40-foot square black concrete square edged in a one-foot white border.
Though overgrown, the signal square appears intact.
John Hughes, Where the wind blows free: a history of the wartime airfield at Cluntoe, (Ardboe, 2003)
WW2NI website at https://www.ww2ni.com/countytyronepart1.htm

St Angelo airfield
Concrete trackway, part of the infrastructure of Communal Site 1.
155 metres of trackway remain in good condition.

During the 1990s security operation were operated by Royal marines from this site on the vessels LPV Grey Wolf and LPV Grey Fox. The gate provided access from the dock to the Six Mile Water and Lough Neagh.
The gates remain intact and appear in good condition. The are kept in the open position

Castlerock Chain Home Radar Station
Concrete and steel block used to maintain tension wires supporting the steel transmitting towers.

The motor transport sheds were used for the maintenance of motor vehicles. The number of bays varied on the size and activity of the station. The two facing lines of bays were separated by a manoeuvring yard.
Only the concrete manoeuvring yard remains surfaced with modern tarmac. its is now used as a car park.

Shantallo HAA battery
The location of Northern Ireland on the western edge of the United Kingdom suggested that the region may be insulated from the threat of German bombing raids. Plans laid down by the government in London for the defence of Britain and Northern Ireland assumed that air defences in England would protect the province. After the Munich crisis of 1938, A re-evaluation of air defences recommended that Belfast be protected by a single fighter squadron, twenty-four heavy (HAA), and twenty-four light anti-aircraft (LAA) guns. Nevertheless, with the advent of war, Belfast was considered an unlikely target for German raids. Consequently, few guns were committed to the defence of the city and none were supplied to protect the rest of the north. The fall of France in June 1940 brought Northern Ireland well within the range of air attacks from German bases in northern France. Therefore recommendations were made to double the strength of the gun defences in the province, but shortages of equipment meant that on the eve of the air raids on Belfast in the spring of 1941, Belfast was defended by sixteen HAA guns (in four batteries), and six LAA guns. The damage and human toll inflicted by the Luftwaffe raids on the nights of 15 April and 4-5 May was devastating, with over 1,000 people killed and almost half the housing stock of the city rendered uninhabitable. Shocked into action by the appalling loss of life and damage to industry, the anti-aircraft defences were significantly reinforced. Four Gun Defended Areas (GDA) were established; Belfast, Larne, L’Derry and Lough Erne. Twelve HAA batteries surrounded the periphery of Belfast, while seven HAA batteries were built around L’Derry and the Foyle estuary, and two each at Larne and Lough Erne.
This battery was designated as LO 2, original sited at Brookhall, by 1941 it was moved to Shantallow.
HAA batteries were typically armed with four 3.7-inch heavy anti-aircraft guns, which could fire a 28-pound projectile to an effective ceiling of 32,000 feet. The gun crews were directed from the battery command post. The command post provided height, direction and altitude data to the gun pits to enable the gun layers to set the fused to detonate at the correct altitude.

Aberdelghy House
Aberdelghy House was commandeered by the war office during WW2.
During WW2 an air raid shelter was constructed in the grounds of the Aberdelghy House. Image online show a brick lines structure with a galvanised steel roof and concrete benches along the walls.
The mound of the shelter is visible however the access has been covered by debris and earth spoil.

Derrygally House
Constructed to facilitate operations on site, likely a nissen hut.

Structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear. Likely nissen hut to accommodate refugees.

This is a low-level brick structure to provide quick and relatively safe shelter from blast. The structure is open topped so it was of little use from a direct hit or aerial strafing.

This pontoon was a flat-bottomed raft used to ferry supplies to moored flying boats.
It appears only the aluminium frame remains relatively intact.

Magilligan Practise Trenches
With the outbreak of war with Germany in 1914, the rapid expansion of the army led to a corresponding expansion of training facilities. A hutted camp was added to the existing training camp at Magilligan. Part of the training of the recruits required them to practice constructing the types of fieldworks found at the front in France and Belgium. By 1915 trench construction formed a major part of the training of recruits, reflection the prevailing methods of warfare on the Western Front.
The sites displays several characteristic fieldworks prevalent in stac trench warfare of WW1. There are 'sawtooth' communication trenches and possibly sections of crenellated 'greek key' trenches, which formed the fire trench. The traverses/crenellations prevented an enemy enfilading the length of a trench with fire.
The trenches are largely infilled, with only shallow depressions evidence of even the best preserved section. Full extent of system not yet defined.
Mark Adkin, The Western Front Companion (London, 2013)
Rebecca Enlander, Magilligan Estate Archaeological Audit, on behalf of WYG Environmental Planning Transport Ltd to MoD (2018)
James O'Neill, Beaches, field and landing grounds, Archaeology Ireland, vol 32, no 1 (2018), pp 38-43.

Nutts Corner Airfield
Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Opposite the entrance was the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
The site remains in good condition though the blast wall has been removed.

The Iris hut was a prefabricated steel shed designed by the Directorate of Fortifications and Works in London. Very similar t the Romney Hut, it was semi-circular in section 2 inch steel ribs and tubular purlins. Approx. 35 feet in diameter the Iris hut was normally used for stores requiring larger than normal roof spans, however the Iris design proved vulnerable to with loading from snow and was superseded by the Romney which had stronger 2.5 inch diameter ribs.
This Iris hut was used as a quartermaster's store and was approx. 28 metres long and 10 metres wide.
Only concrete base and loading ramp remains

Ballykelly Airfield
With the advent of the Cold War, the British airborne nuclear forces became vulnerable to pre-emptive strike. Therefore, the V-force bombers were dispersed to airfields around the UK. These bases became host to either two or, in the case of Ballykelly, four bombers. In order to minimise take-off times, Operational Readiness Platforms (ORP) were constructed at the dispersed bases between 1958 and 1963. The increased threat from ballistic missile led to the construction of ORPs at the end of runways, as at Ballykelly, to further improve reaction times to fifteen minutes’ readiness. This policy was known as ‘quick reaction alert’ (QRA). The ORP is a square hardstanding with sides 40 metres square.
John Quinn and Alan Reilly, Covering the approaches, the war against the U-Boats: Limavady and Ballykelly’s role in the Battle of the Atlantic (Belfast, 1996)
Shackleton and Aviation Museum Ballykelly at www.shackletonaviationandspacemuseum.homestead.com

Langford Lodge
Concrete trackway providing access to frying pan dispersals (now no longer extant/visible)
10m wide and 540m long, the trackway is overgrown in some parts but generally in good condition
Langford Lodge USAAF Station 597 website langfordlodge.webs.com/
WW2NI website www.ww2ni.com/langford-lodge-a-a-f-597

St Angelo airfield
Structure provided kitchen and dining facilities for sergeants.
Only concrete base remains though largely obscured by vegitation.

Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. Type A huts were for officers and consisted of 4 rooms and one for servants. Type B huts were for sergeants and were a single room accommodating 8 men. Those for other ranks or airmen accommodated 12 men in a single room. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides.
This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for airfield defence troops
John Quinn, Wings over the Foyle: a history of Limavady Airfield in WWII (Belfast, 1995)

Greencastle Airfield
The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted.
Narrow strip pf runway 4 metres wide and 180 metres long.
Leo Murphy, ‘Action Station: the story of Greencastle aerodrome’, 12 Miles of Mourne, Journal of the Mourne Local Studies Group, Vol 3, (1989), pp 33-50.
Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk
WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countydownairfields.htm

Mount Stewart
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door.
Structure built to facilitate operations at the site, likely a nissen hut providing accommodation to service personnel.
Ulster Archaeological Society survey report at

Structure appears to have housed equipment to transform electrical current.
In good condition, the crick structure houses a concrete plinth, which sits in middle of floor, louvered doors lie broken just outside the entrance. Retains its original green paint scheme.

Magilligan Camp
The base at Magilligan has been an army training facility since the end of the 19th century and has remained active to the present day.
A rifle range was first established at Magilligan in 1898, and in 1909 the army set up a tented camp, but this was later removed to Ballykinler, Co. Down. In 1912 the army built two ranges and the start of World War I in 1914 saw increased use of the site as troops were trained before dispatch overseas. The camp was further expanded to accommodate the influx of new recruits.
In 1923 new brick buildings were erected to replace the WW1 era huts.
The outbreak of World War II and corresponding increase in demand for troops saw further expansion of Magilligan camp. By 1942 there was the ‘Old Camp’ (which remains the basis of the modern camp’s facilities) and the ‘Musketry Camp’.
The Royal Navy established target range in Ballymaclary townland, which was transferred to the Army in 1959.
The camp remains in active use by the British Army as a small arms and infantry training facility, though the Musketry Camp was reused as an internments camp and later became Magilligan Prison.
The site remains a large number of features from throughout the 20th century. The core of the modern camp remains the refurbished inter-war building erected to replace the WW1 huts, though these have been modernised to retain their use. A network of WW1 practice trenches are evident. LArge areas of the camp are covered by small arms ranges and training structures. There is a modern close quarter battle house but also features more relevant t the 'Troubles' or in military terms the Operation banner. The 'Foyle Patrol Base' is a mockup of the kind of bases erected on the NI border during the Troubles. This facility was used to train small units how to operate independently for extended periods of time There is also a public order training facility used to instruct troops in riot control techniques.
The site retins many features relating to WW1, WW2 and the Troubles period. Any features relating directly to Cold War operations are less obvious.
Several ares on the site are worthy of consideration for scheduling

Structure used to house and prepare food for the station guard dogs.
Structure remains relatively intact. Used as an agricultural store.
Nick McCamley, Cold War secret nuclear bunkers (Barnsley, 2002)

Ballyhalbert Airfield
Provided bathing and showering facilities for sergeants '
The site remains in good condition. A large access door, sealed with corrugated iron has been opened in the west facing wall, but the structure retains many of its original window frames and asbestos cement sheeting roof. It is used for agricultural storage.

Allows suspended particles to settle out of wastewater as it flows through the tank.
Tanks appear largely intact including brick intake pipe It has been converted to agricultural use as an animal pen.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the depot, precise function unknown.

Magilligan Coast Artillery Battery
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door.
This 16 ft span nissen hut provided accommodation for enlisted men.
John W Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (Belfast, 2000)
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)
Frontline Ulster at frontlineulster.co.uk/magilligan-musketry-camp/

Eglinton Airfield
Structure housed barber, shoemaker and tailor services for use by service personnel, normally divided into 3 sections.
The structure is in good condition and retains its original roof but has replacement windows.

The Bellman hangar was designed in 1936 as a temporary facility capable of being erected or dismantled quickly by unskilled labour with basic equipment. Time taken to erect one hanger was estimated at 500 man hours. From 1938-40, around 400 were constructed across the UK. Bellmans came in two sizes, 175 feet long and 105 feet long. They had a clear height of 25 feet.
This hanger retains its original cladding but abandonment has meant that several sections have become detached from the north and south facing sidewalls, allowing wind to enter the structure putting continuing strain on the remaining cladding. The hangar is now disused but large quantities of refuse remain inside. A large section of cladding is missing from the siding of the western gable.

A steel-framed general-purpose store.
INtact at time of original DHP, the site has been redeveloped.

Killadeas
Part of a fuel installation holding bulk stores of aviation fuel. This brick bund/retaining wall likely held two steel 4,400 gallon tanks, once placed inside the bund the tanks were covered with earth.
The tanks have been removed but the brick bund remains largely intact though overgrown.
Joe O'Loughlin, Catalinas and Sunderlands on Lough Erne, Ireland in World War 2 (2013)
Breege McCusker, Castle Archdale and Fermanagh in World War II (1993)
Joe O'Loughlin and John Hughes, Fermanagh in the Second World War at

Mullaghmore Airfield
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. Type A huts were for officers and consisted of 4 rooms and one for servants. Type B huts were for sergeants and were a single room accommodating 8 men. Those for other ranks or airmen accommodated 12 men in a single room. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides.
This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for airmen.

Military structure built to facilitate operations at the site
https://www.ww2ni.com/county-fermanagh-part-2

This building brought together the instrumentation needed for effective fire-control of the four HAA guns. It is a semi-sunk partially roofed structure, with open bays overlooking the guns, holding the height-finder, predictor and telescope. Inside was found the plotting room, telephonists and offices. The plotting room was the core of the structure and was used to receive and process raid data from telephone and radar. This data was used to calculate information to direct the fire of the battery guns.
Site was intact and in relatively good condition at time of DHP, demolished by owner in 2011 to return field to agriculture.
DHP report

Magilligan Camp
The site was used to train british troops in riot control/public order techniques. It is composed of a series of streets and alleyways surrounding a central 'Square'. The streets are defined by steel sheeting mounted on concrete blocks. The 'streets' are named after former and serving ember o of the base staff.

Bennarees Pillbox
At the start of WW2 the British military's operational doctrine stressed a mobile flexible response to land attacks, but the catastrophic loss of tanks, transport and heavy weapons meant that the resources were unavailable. Concrete, steel and wire had to make up the shortfall in men and equipment. The first layer of fixed defence was erected along threatened coastlines. Known as the ‘coastal crust’, the network of pillboxes, anti-tank ditches and barricades, barbed wire (known as Dannert wire), minefields, slit trenches and beach obstacles were constructed to delay any potential landing; buying time for mobile reserves to be gathered to check any German advance inland. There were eight beach areas identified as vulnerable to amphibious landings in N. Ireland: Magilligan, Dundrum, Strangford Lough, Carnlough Bay, Cushendall, Cushendun, Portrush and Portstewart.
The pillbox at Bennarees looks over the broad expanse of beach and two beach exits at Downhill leading to the cliff tops. The walls are c. 60cm thick, making it bulletproof but not blast resistant. Its construction is unique in N. Ireland as it is a composite structure made of reinforced concrete, precast embrasures, brick and local basalt boulders. While providing excellent camouflage this design would have proved brittle and ultimately a death-trap to its crew should it have been attacked. Staircased machinegun embrasures look east and west along the beach and an observation port looks north out to sea. The position is entered by a protected entrance to the rear.
The structure remains in good condition. The pillbox is three-quarters filled with sand and litter suggests it is used for drinking and the occasional barbeque. Since the previous visit in 2017 a lifeguard’s tower has been constructed c. 10m north-west of the site.
CBA, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol 3, site gazetteer: Northern Ireland
Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008)

Eglinton Airfield
Accomodation site for WRNS petty officers and other ranks. Described as 'cabins' in parlance of Royal Navy.
Site in good condtion. Refurbisged with replacement windows and roof. Reporposed into units for commercial and social projects.

Cherry Valley
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. Type A huts were for officers and consisted of 4 rooms and one for servants. Type B huts were for sergeants and were a single room accommodating 8 men. Those for other ranks or airmen accommodated 12 men in a single room. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides.
Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut serving as barracks

Greencastle Airfield
Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This dispersal had 8 finger parks.
Dispersal has been largely removed for development of a caravan park. Remains of only two finger parks and a section of the trackway visible.
Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995)
Leo Murphy, ‘Action Station: the story of Greencastle aerodrome’, 12 Miles of Mourne, Journal of the Mourne Local Studies Group, Vol 3, (1989), pp 33-50.
WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countydownairfields.htm
Christopher A Lynn, Greencastle Aerodrome, County Down: Remnant of World War Two in a seaside landscape (QUB, 2007), Unpublished undergraduate thesis

Camp constructed to accommodate crew of HAA battery.
Visible on 1951 RAF aerial photo of site. Multiple hut bases, removed post war.
PRONI RAF image in file AM/1/5/9B/3173-3218

Magilligan Musketry Camp
The Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes is a company created by the British government on 9 December 1920 to run recreational establishments needed by the British Armed Forces, and to sell goods to servicemen and their families. Also known as the Institute.
This structure housed a restaurant for troops stationed at the camp.
The site remains in good condition, it houses a tradesmens (non-prisoner) workshop.
Binevenagh and Coastal Lowlands Defence Heritage Mapping Survey (2019), by Ulidia heritage Services for the Binevenagh and Coastal Lowlands Landscape Partnership

Toilet facilities for female (WAAF) personnel.
Though heavily overgrown the structure remains in good condition with remains of the original porcelain ware remaining in one of the stalls.

St Angelo Airfield
This site provided accommodation for sergeants.

Musgrave Park Hospital
The hospital was first established here in 1942 as the 31 General Hospital established facilities in an old reform school with the US 5th (Harvard) General Hospital, with the first wards opening in May 1942. The brick reform school was supplemented by the construction of 10 Nissen hut wards. Capacity was 800 beds but this was expanded and at its peak the hospital had approx. 1,500 patients. A In addition to wards and medical facilities the hospital also had barracks for medical staff.
The hospital was handed over to civilian use after the war ended, however a military wing remains in use until just after 2000 when it was decommissioned. Many original Nissen wards remains and were replaced during refurbishments of the hospital in 2005.
Websites
https://www.flickr.com/photos/usani4245/11385263344
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4920487/

Magilligan Camp
Constructed as barracks providing accommodation for for officers. Is now part of the officers mess.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Has been repurposed as the officers mess.
Binevenagh Coast and Lowlands Defence Heritage Audit (2017) by Quarto and Ulidia Heritage Services for Causeway Coast and Glens Heritage Trust.
Magilligan Estate Archaeological Audit (2019) prepared by WYG Environment Planning Transport Ltd for MoD
https://frontlineulster.co.uk/magilligan-musketry-camp/

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing airmen's accommodation.

Grey Point Fort
Also known as a block house, the concrete strongpoint was constructed as one of three to defend the perimeter wall of the fort. It was likely manned by and infantry section or rifle group. Wall thickness approximately 30 cm.
Sections of the pentagonal concrete wall survive though it is now heavily overgrown. The site was excavated by the Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork (QUB) in 2014.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1596
Northern Ireland Environment Agency (ndg) Grey Point Fort: A short guide to the fort complex.
K.W Maurice-Jones, The history of coast artillery in the British army (London, 1957)
Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork (QUB), Data structure report No. 108, Excavations at Grey Point Fort, Co Down (2015)

Castlerock Chain Home Radar Station
Provided accommodation for troops stationed to defend radar station.

Caledon House
The main house was used to quarter officers during WW2.
House was returned to civilian use post-war.

Ballykelly Airfield
Sited in front of the watch office, the signal square facilitated air traffic control signals warning pilots of the prevailing condition and precautions to be taken during landing and take-off. Though signals could be sent using radio transmissions, pyrotechnics, lamps and flags, the majority of signals were displayed on this 40-foot square black concrete square edged in a one-foot white border.
INn2017 site was in relatively good condition with airfield code letters BL indiating site as Ballykelly. However more recent erail photos indicate the site has degraded.
Shackleton and Aviation Museum Ballykelly at www.shackletonaviationandspacemuseum.homestead.com

Killadeas
Provided washing and bathing facilities for female personnel.
The brick water tower remains intact but the rest of the block has been removed leaving only the concrete and brick footings.
Joe O'Loughlin and John Hughes, Fermanagh in the Second World War at

Trench feature located on the lidar survey, uncertain of WW1 or WW2 date.
Original DHR file
SM 7 Dow 44:64
Philip Orr, Ballykinler camp: The first seven decades, 1900-1969 ((2012)

At the start of WW2 the British military's operational doctrine stressed a mobile flexible response to land attacks, but the catastrophic loss of tanks, transport and heavy weapons meant that the resources were unavailable. Concrete, steel and wire had to make up the shortfall in men and equipment. The first layer of fixed defence was erected along threatened coastlines. Known as the ‘coastal crust’, the network of pillboxes, anti-tank ditches and barricades, barbed wire (known as Dannert wire), minefields, slit trenches and beach obstacles were constructed to delay any potential landing; buying time for mobile reserves to be gathered to check any German advance inland. There were eight beach areas identified as vulnerable to amphibious landings in N. Ireland: Magilligan, Dundrum, Strangford Lough, Carnlough Bay, Cushendall, Cushendun, Portrush and Portstewart.
Constructed of reinforced concrete, the coastal pillbox was sited to provide defensive fire using machine guns along the length of the beach firing through embrasures in the concrete wall. The concrete was thick enough to provide protection against bullets and shell splinters but was not thick enough to withstand direct fire from artillery and heavy guns. This pillbox appears to be a variant to design DFW3/24 as there is no anti-ricochet wall inside. It has 7 firing embrasures and an entrance in the rear wall this is secured with a steel door. 5 embrasures have recesses which may have housed ammunition or condenser doe a water-cooled machine gun.
The structure is in good condition, though the embrasures have been sealed with brick and concrete. Remains of the steel shutters are in-situ as is the original steel door. The structure is used to store fishing equipment.
CBA, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol 3, site gazetteer: Northern Ireland
Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008)

Nissen hut for storing small arms ammunition for use in ground defence of station.
Small sections of brick wall and concrete base remain

Provided accommodation for airmen. Built on site of WW2 huts.
The concrete structure is in good condition, retains asbestos roof. Has been converted into a holiday home.

Provided toilet facilities for sergeants.
In good condition, retain its original windows and roof.

This trench system was constructed as part of the Belfast Defence Scheme. It consisted of a communication trench, firing position and support trench to the rear of the position.
The site is overgrown with long grass but aerial photographs suggest there are extensive subsurface remains.
Robert Liddiard and Davis Simms, A very dangerous locality: The landscape of the Suffolk Sandlings in the Second World War (Hatfield, 2018)

The crew procedure trainer was used to instruct aircrew on the ground by simulation the conditions of actual operations using simulators, known as the time as synthetic training. Large posters and dramatic diagrams taught crews on all aspects of aircraft handling, fuel consumption and ditching drills. A dummy instructional fuselage was via the large access door on either side of the building. Cockpit drills familiarised crews with their aircraft and allowed realistic training for engine fires, ditching, fuel/oil failures, crash landing, parachuting and wireless telegraphy procedures. Micro-switches enabled controls for fuel, throttle levers, flaps, dinghy release and bob doors provided the most realistic training experience available without leaving the ground and all under the supervision of experienced instructors.
The interior of the structure is gone and only two section and side wall and the end wall remain.

Temporary hut structure used to accommodate troops manning nearby anti-aircraft battery, likely nissen or Laing hut.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001) N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing officers’s accommodation.

Kirkistown Airfield
During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This concrete dispersal is 18 metres wide is appears in good condition, though it is overgrown with moss and grass growing through the expansion joints. It is accessed by a 110 metre concrete track running north from the perimeter track.

Dundrod ROC post
A network of 1,518 underground monitoring posts were built across the UK to house the volunteer staff from the Royal Observer Corps (ROC), who, in the event of a nuclear attack, were tasked with recording the blast yield, location and drift of radioactive clouds caused by the detonation of Soviet nuclear weapons. There were 59 of the small underground posts evenly distributed across Northern Ireland. A crew of three could operate for three weeks. Their results would have been transmitted to a regional ROC group headquarters, which for N. Ireland was the 31 Group HQ (DHR 310) in Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn.
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft.
The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis.
Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated mater post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
Though significant remains exist the structure is in poor condition. The interior has been destroyed by fire and the concrete on the ventilation shaft is in a state of collapse.
Pers comm from www.nibunker.co.uk
Report at https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/dundrod-roc-post/

This small store was used to store bomb fuses, detonators, fuse pistols and exploders. Normally divided into 2 compartments with smaller storing detonators, with fuses, fuse pistols and exploders stored in the other, usually L-shaped room. Normally protected by earthwork berm and blast wall.
Uncertain condition as no access could be gained during the duration of the survey

Airfield bomb dumps were designed to store high explosive bombs, incendiary bombs, fused bombs, tail units, bomb components and small arms ammunition. As would be expected they were sited well away from the technical area. Toome had two main bomb stores: a double trackway serviced both. The northern track is 12-foot wide allowing lorries to unload munitions into the stores, whereas the southern track widened to 20 feet to accommodate tractors and bomb trolley trains. The bomb stores at Toome were an improvement over pre and early-war designs. Designated 3164/42, the store consisted of a series of 30-foot square open storage areas protected by 25 foot thick and 6-foot high earthwork traverses. The stores were built with a slight slope to enabled easier loading from the upper track while bombs were taken from the lower track. Bombs were then driven on trolley trains to the fusing points before being taken out to aircraft for loading.
Only a 90 metre section of concrete upper trackway remains.

Ballykelly Airfield
By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ or loop dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on air-frames and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
Site covered in modern tarmac, concrete likely remains beneath.
Shackleton and Aviation Museum Ballykelly at www.shackletonaviationandspacemuseum.homestead.com

Site used to park Runway Control Caravan. Normally parked at the touchdown end of a runway, their purpose is to provide shelter and communications for an Air Traffic Control (ATC) controller whose role is to visually inspect an approaching aircraft and provide radio or visual warnings of any issues on the approaching aircraft to the pilot. This may be by radio, Signal Light Gun, or a pistol flare. Usually equipped to provide basic Air to Ground Communications between the Controller and pilot, and Ground to Ground Communication to the ATC Tower for coordination the caravan is designed to be towed or driven to the threshold of the in-use runway. This is important in the event of runway changes where approaches are changed due to changes in wind direction.
Site only visible as a grassmark in aerial photos.

This provided accommodation for the flight commander, flight sergeants, pilots’ restrooms and locker rooms. Additionally, offices were provided for flight clerks, administration officer, defence officer and a range of storerooms.
This building is of temporary brick construction and contains a series of offices off a corridor and two large rooms in relatively good condition. The roof has collapsed on the western end of the structure. Most of the original window frames survive. Large quantities of corrugated asbestos cement sheeting stored in several of the large rooms on the eastern end of the building.

Large (4x4m) concrete and steel blocks used to support a crane, likely used to install the Type 84 radar on the modulator building.
Only 3 large concrete blocks with steel hold-fasts

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments
The site remains in good condition and retains all four of its ammunition recesses. The steel holdfast remains extant in the centre of the site.

Providing toilet facilities
IN good condition, refurbished with modern roof, porch and windows.

Sandy Bay Flying Boat Station
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door.
This was a 16 foot span Nissen hut servicing the fling boat station. What its exact function was is uncertain.
The hut was upstanding until recently, however the has collapsed in on itself and is now overgrown.
WW2NI at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

Military structure, likely an Iris or Romney hut used as a store.
Websites
https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart3.htm

Small galvanised steel hut used to facilitate operations at the site, uncertain functioin.
Site appears intact and in relatively good condition.
Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (English Heritage, 2000)
website
https://www.ww2ni.com/county-down-part-1

The use of gas was outlawed by the Geneva Gas Protocol of 1925, but not its production or development. As agreements could be cast aside in the event of hostilities, measures were taken to protect against the use of gas. Specialised structures were built to provide first aid and decontamination facilities for gas casualties. Though gas masks can protect from some gas agents, others such as mustard gas are blistering and can be absorbed through the skin, requiring the removal of contaminated clothing and thorough washing/bleaching of casualties.
The building was divided into undressing areas, bleaching/decontamination area and dressing area,
This structure was for the use of female personnel.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Still in use by MoD ()though not for original purposes).
On operational MoD site, Joint Helicopter Command Flying Station Aldergrove.

Nissen hut constructed to facilitate operations at the RN armaments depot and was reused when site became army barracks post war.
No access possible, site appears intact and in relatively good condition.

Cherry Valley
255 metres of 5.5 metre wide concrete trackway providing access around the camp.
Most covered by grass cover, probing suggests the road is intact.

Hand operated fuel pump installed to refuel military vehicles.

Summer Island
Requisitioned by the War Office to house troops a hutted camp was erected. Initially occupied by US troops during WW2, including 3rd Field Artillery observation Batt., HQ battery and Battery A, the site was later used by Belgian Troops.
PRONI image from AM/1/5/50F/4451-4489
https://www.ww2ni.com/countyarmaghpart3.htm

Concrete and steel block used to maintain tension wires supporting the steel transmitting towers.
https://www.ww2ni.com/county-fermanagh-part-2

St Angelo airfield
Treatment plant for filtering and treatment of wastewater and sewage, composed of filter beds and settling tanks.

Temporary hut structure used to accommodate troops manning nearby anti-aircraft battery, likely Nissen or Laing hut.

Structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear.

Quadrant towers were used to house observers who would rate the bombing performance of trainees on the bombing range. This structure is composed of a single cabin supported on four brick columns.
Structure remains in good condition though becoming somewhat overgrown.

Long Kesh Airfield
The motor transport sheds were used for the maintenance of motor vehicles. The number of bays varied on the size and activity of the station. The two facing lines of bays were separated by a manoeuvring yard.
Only the raised platforms of the parking bays can be discerned, the manoeuvring yard has been resurfaced with tarmac.
Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm
The Second World War in Northern Ireland at www.ww2ni.com/countydownairfields.htm
Wartime NI website at

Store used by Home Guard (also known as Local Defence Volunteers) to store equipment.
Intact until 2012, demolished sometime between 2012 and 2015.

Millisle Airfield
Parachutes became standard issue in the RAF from 1927. They had to be regularly inspected, normally on a monthly basis. Condensation was an issue as it caused the parachute to shrink, therefore they had to be dried in a room with constant temperature and dust-free ventilation. Moreover, they had to be suspended from their apices without any part touching the floor. Parachutes were suspended from the highest part of the ceiling to dry with the aid of a pulley system. When dry they were lowered, placed on a table for repacking then stored on racks.
Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012

Palace Barracks
A two story barrack block designed to accommodate 84 troops (82 enlister men and 2 unmarried NCOs)
Site appears intact and in good condition.
Robin Masefield, The history of Palace Barracks (to 1969) and Holywood as a garrison town ( (Belfast, 2007)

Newtownards airfield
Living site for personnel. Had 12 structures, mostly barracks with ablutions and latrines.

Caledon House
Hutted camp used to house troops.
Hut bases remain intact until possibly the 1990s. No visible traces remain.

Drumbanagher
Like many large estates, Drumbanagher was requisitioned by the War office for training and accommodating troops during WW2. A large camp of over 200 huts and buildings was constructed. These were largely removed post-war.
There are no visible remains on AP, but traces may remain sub-surface.

Provided accommodation for airmen. Built post-war to provide improved living quarters.
Converted to office for local fish processing business, retains asbestos roof.

Mourne Park
Constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut to accommodate troops.

The watch office (known as the watch office on RAF airfields, but control towers on sites operated by the USAAF) provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Built to designs of the Air Ministry's Directorate of Works and Buildings, as Office for All Commands design, to Drawing No. 12779/41. Rendered brick with asphalt roof. The ground floor had the watch office to front with duty pilot's rest room, meteorological office, switch room and lavatories to rear. The first floor had control room to front, with controller's rest room and signals office to rear, opening onto passage with access to stairs. This design was modified to reduce the size of the main windows, which were made significantly smaller. This may have been done to facilitate night operations.
The structure is in relatively good condition. Most of the exterior render is intact though the owner has been obliged to seal the windows and doors with modern brickwork as the site was attracting anti-social behaviour.

The site appears to be the base of a temporary hut built to service the HAA battery. The purpose is unclear but likely a barrack hut to accommodate the battery personnel.
Only base remains and is obscured by grass cover.

Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp.

Constructed as a backstop for a firing range constructed for training troops stationed at Loughgall House.
The earth bank has slumped but the concrete revetment is largely intact.

The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. Type A huts were for officers and consisted of 4 rooms and one for servants. Type B huts were for sergeants and were a single room accommodating 8 men. Those for other ranks or airmen accommodated 12 men in a single room. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides. .
Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut serving as barracks

Temporary hut structure used to accommodate troops manning nearby anti-aircraft battery, likely nissen or Laing hut.

The site was a series of fire decoys. Each group was composed of a number of different flame decoys such as fire baskets, boiler fires and grid fires. Each group was surrounded by a shallow trench to act as a fire break ensured fire from one group would not spread to the other groups, as a decoy would bit lit sequentially to simulate a spreading fire.
Equipment removed post war. Landowner reported how fire groups position in the field opposite the control shelters.
N Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol. 3, Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (unpublished CBA report)
Colin Dobinson, Fields of deception: Britain's bombing decoys of World War II (London, 2000)

Newtownstewart ROC post
A network of 1,518 underground monitoring posts were built across the UK to house the volunteer staff from the Royal Observer Corps (ROC), who, in the event of a nuclear attack, were tasked with recording the blast yield, location and drift of radioactive clouds caused by the detonation of Soviet nuclear weapons. There were 59 of the small underground posts evenly distributed across Northern Ireland. A crew of three could operate for three weeks. Their results would have been transmitted to a regional ROC group headquarters, which for N. Ireland was the 31 Group HQ (DHR 310) in Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn.
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ.
The site appears to have been removed sometime between 20011 and 2016. Buried remains may remain as landowners tend to fill in rather than completely remove subterranean sites.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/newtownstewart-roc-post/

Store for parts and equipment for maintenance unit
Totally overgrown, only visible on aerial photograph

Structure built to facilitate operations on site, function unclear but siting may suggest it was position the antenna.
Neil Redfern, Twentieth-century fortifications in the United Kingdom: vol. III, Site Gazetteers: Northern Ireland (York, 1998)

Newtownards Airfield
Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire.
This concrete pillbox was sited on the perimeter of the airfield. It has 5 embrasures and a single doorway to the rear. This was likely one of the earliest defences built on the airfield as it lacks defensive refinements, such as stair-casing on the embrasures to prevent ricochets into the position. Post war the tail boom of a Miles Aerovan was mounted on the roof, from which was hung a (now missing) windsock.
The pillbox is in good condition, though somewhat obscured with the strengthening of the sea wall. A steel safety fence has been constructed on the roof.
Website https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownairfields.htm

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing airmen's accommodation

A workshop for general maintenance of equipment with storage areas and workbenches.
Heavily overgrown on its southern section, this structure is in relatively good condition. It is a series of offices and workshops and many of the rooms are filled/cluttered with rubble. There are traces of the wartime operations with office signage, aircraft maintenance posters and some graffiti doodled on the walls.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The low walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments. Though constructed in 1941, this site followed an early design as there are no shelters for the crews at the position.
The site is heavily overgrown, but examination of photos taken during defence heritage project and aerial photos suggest there are some remains under the vegetation, though it is unclear if any of the retaining wall remains.
DHP report.

Tynan Abbey
Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the camp.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments.
The site is in good condition and retains the full extent of the retaining wall and ready-use ammunition recesses. The steel holdfasts for the gun remain in the centre of the site.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001) N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

Narrow Water
Groups of 6 Nissen huts constructed during WW2 to house troops
Destroyed c. 2012-16, removed to make way for anaerobic digestion plant.

Kilkeel CH station
The advent of electronic warfare saw N. Ireland protected by a series of radar transmitting and receiving stations which circumscribed the United Kingdom. An invisible fence of radio waves stood watch along the coast, and it was the radars in N. Ireland which covered the western extremities of the UK’s coverage. The Chain Home (CH) system provided the backbone of the RAF early warning system. A typical A typical CH radar site had a transmitter block, with a series (normally four) ninety-nine-metre tall steel transmitting towers, a receiver block around which sat two seventy-three metre wooden antennae (steel receiver towers would adversely affect the radar returns), and an electrical standby set house which provided the power. The masts were supported by tensioned cables anchored to concrete bases and anchoring points. The sites in N. Ireland were consistent with the ‘West-coast’ design which relied on dispersal and concealment for protection.
The Kilkeel station was one of 5 CH sites established in N. Ireland. Approved for construction in 1941it was completed by April 1942. However, as the war progressed and the threat of German air attack receded the station was mothballed in late 1943-early 1944 and closed by 1945.
Much of the site still remains in the transmitter, receiver and standby set house in good condition with two air raid shelters also remaining intact.
Site remains in relatively good condition.
https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart2.htm
www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart2.htm Frontline Ulster at

The main workshop building was an attempt to centralise workshop requirements in a single structure. Two main workshops are connected by two annexes. The facility would have contained an airframe repair shop, an engine store and the annexes may have functioned as a machine shop and welders shop
The structure is in relatively good condition. The easterly workshop is sealed and weatherproof, as are the annexes, whereas the westerly workshop’s roof has partially collapsed.

Toome Airfield
Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected b y integral blast walls. This example was divided into 4 separate rooms with their own entrances and emergency escape hatches cut through internal dividing walls.
The shelter has had the roof removed and brick formwork stripped away to expose the steel-reinforced concrete core.
John Hughes, Toome’s wartime airfield fifty years ago (Draperstown, 1995)

Nutts Corner
A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing airmen's accommodation

Campsie HAA battery
Hutted camp used to house troops manning HAA battery.
Original DHP report
Subterranea Britannica at https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/campsie-aaor/

Banbridge ROC post
A network of 1,518 underground monitoring posts were built across the UK to house the volunteer staff from the Royal Observer Corps (ROC), who, in the event of a nuclear attack, were tasked with recording the blast yield, location and drift of radioactive clouds caused by the detonation of Soviet nuclear weapons. There were 59 of the small underground posts evenly distributed across Northern Ireland. A crew of three could operate for three weeks. Their results would have been transmitted to a regional ROC group headquarters, which for N. Ireland was the 31 Group HQ (DHR 310) in Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn.
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated mater post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
The site remains in good condition retaining its ventilation louvres and hatch cover.
Website www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/banbridge-roc-post/

Provided accommodation for airmen. Built post-war on site of World War 2 fuel compound to provide improved living quarters.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide
The full length of 460 metres remains intact. This has been resurfaced in areas of high traffic volume. Sections of original fabric remain on western end. Known as Kilmascally Road.

Shed used to storing oil bowser, a large wheeled trailer used to transport oil and the tractor used to tow it.
Only concrete hard-standing remains under covering of grass

Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected b y integral blast walls. This example was divided into 4 separate rooms with their own entrances and emergency escape hatches cut through internal dividing walls.
Site demolished by owner in 2020 as he considered it an eyesore, only concrete base and some trace of walls remain.

A circular filter bed, often filled with pumice stone, used as a filter bed for sewage treatment.
Relatively intact with some remains of pumice filter bed remaining.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland.
Fragment of aircraft hardstanding now largely obscured by a manure dump. An access path runs from the main road but no remaining finger parks visible.

Military structure relating to the HAA battery domestic camp.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restriction on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive snowflakes, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This is a cluster of 9 finger parks.
This is a cluster of 9 finger parks in the distinctive 'snowflake' pattern. A barn has been erected on one of the 'fingers' and there is some agricultural dumping but the site is intact and in relatively good condition.

Every station was provided with medical facilities with wards to accommodate all ranks. The sick quarters would have held a ward, an operating theatre and a dispensary, with facilities and offices for the station medical officer and dental officer. Typically there would have been 22 beds and quarters for sergeants and orderlies
Concrete walled structures make up a complex of three buildings, retains original compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof and original windows. At some point it has been converted into a community hall but is now disused. The rear of the complex is now used as a mechanics workshop.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
Approx 38 metres diameter. Denied access but site appears i good condition, agricultural structure built on hardstanding.

This was formerly a Laing hut. Originally designed in 1940, the hut consisted of standard prefabricated lightweight timber wall sections bolted together. Externally the wooden frame and plasterboard was covered in felt sheeting to make the structure weatherproof. Inside, the walls were lined with plasterboard. The roof was made of corrugated asbestos sheeting supported by wooden trusses.

Long Kesh Airfield
During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This 44 m diameter dispersal remains in good condition.
Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm
The Second World War in Northern Ireland at www.ww2ni.com/countydownairfields.htm
Wartime NI website at

Millisle Airfield
Site constructed to accommodate personnel. Airfield never completed but site likely housed construction crews.
RAF Photos held at PRONI, file AM/1/5/92A/41-80

During the interwar period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.

This building brought together the instrumentation needed for effective fire-control of the four HAA guns. It is a semi-sunk partially roofed structure, with open bays overlooking the guns, holding the height-finder, predictor and telescope. Inside was found the plotting room, telephonists and offices. The plotting room was the core of the structure and was used to receive and process raid data from telephone and radar. This data was used to calculate information to direct the fire of the battery guns. Vegetation makes it impossible to discern the form of the site though aerial photographs and maps suggest it is similar to the command posts at DHR 00111:001 (Ballysnod) and DHR 00159:001 (Knocknagulliagh).
Extent of remains unclear due to heavy vegitation.

The operations block was the central control for all flight operations from the airfield. Orders were received via a telex room and flight plans, targets plotted on target maps, crew listings and final planning for flight operations took place here. Finalised plans, distress procedures and operational radio frequencies were passed on to the crews in the crew briefing room. It was reinforced to operate while under attack and a ventilation system was fitted to provide protection from attack by chemical weapons.
This feature was intact until 2006 when it was demolished. Though the site is covered in rubble, there may be surviving elements of the operations block remaining below ground as the operations room contained a sunken area which may remain, though filled with demolition rubble.

This was a raised rectangular concrete plinth used by shooters to brace in firing positions, with lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters and instructors.
Small section visible on AP but no traces visible on day of fieldwork.

Concrete structure erected to facilitate operations at the site, possibly small arms ammunition store.

Maghaberry Airfield
Nissen hut accommodation for other ranks/airmen
No access but visible on aerial photos, only concrete base remains.

The Iris hut was a prefabricated steel shed designed by the Directorate of Fortifications and Works in London. Very similar t the Romney Hut, it was semi-circular in section 2 inch steel ribs and tubular purlins. Approx. 35 feet in diameter the Iris hut was normally used for stores requiring larger than normal roof spans, however the Iris design proved vulnerable to with loading from snow and was superseded by the Romney which had stronger 2.5 inch diameter ribs.
This Iris hut was used as a quartermaster's store and is approx. 28 metres long and 10 metres wide.
The structure is largely intact but in poor condition with several panels missing from the roof and the eastern end wall.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide
Small c. 75 m section of partially narrowed track remaining.

Provided accommodation for airmen. Built on site of WW2 huts.
The concrete structure is in good condition, retains asbestos roof and some of its original windows. Has been converted into a holiday home.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide. This track was constructed when the runways were realigned between 1941-43.
730 m of track remain. The line of the track remains though it appears the track has been widened post war and resurfaced with modern tarmac, though the original concrete likely remains beneath.

Provided accommodation for commanding officer of base.
The concrete structure is in good condition, it has a modern roof and has been converted into a domestic dwelling/holiday home.

Newtownards ROC monitoring post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ. This post was closed in 1991. Older photos of this site from the original DHP show a dome on the ventilation shaft marking this site as a Master Post. One post in each cluster was equipped with a VHF radio and antenna to keep in contact with the group HQ should the land lines fail.
The site appears relatively intact though the steel hatch cover has been removed and the site open. The steel ladder into the post has become detached from the wall. All the louvres from the ventilators are missing as is the baffle plate form the bomb power indicator. Site is overgrown and original sightlines obscured.
Website report at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/newtownards-roc-post/

Castlerock Chain Home Radar Station
This site is designated a West Coast Type C Transmitter block by its layout. Constructed of reinforced concrete and brick protected by earthwork revetments, it has two opposing entrances leading to the transmitter room and adjoining air-conditioning and heating plant room. The transmitting sets produced significant quantities of heat, therefore, a ventilation system was required. All the equipment has long been removed but a large proportion of the ventilation ducting remains in situ. The feeder outlet bay allowed cables to pass from the transmitter block to the steel transmitter aerials, carrying high voltage radio frequency power. There are two reinforced concrete ventilation stacks in the roof.
The site is in good condition with some remains of the ventilation system extant. Since the last survey visit in early 2017, there has been significant regrading around the site including the removal of some of the edges of the earth revetments. Furthermore, spoil has been mounded on top of the earth revetments.

This concrete plinth was used to mount an M2 .50 Calibre heavy machine gun on a pintle mount. It was used to allow trainee air gunners get ground to air firing practice against towed drogue targets.
The block would have originally been mounted with others looking out to sea but has been moved from its original position and incorporated into the field wall.

Circular gun emplacement used to train anti-aircraft gunners. Likely mounted a light AA gun or heavy machine gun in air to ground role due to small size.

Downhill Chain Home Low Radar Station
The improved CHL mounted a single (10 by 30 foot) rotating aerial. The single array flicked continually from transmit to receive. This had many advantages-simpler construction, ease of installation and maintenance over the earlier double aerials, but also it yielded more accurate plots as the transmitter and receiver aerials lay precisely in line. Range was approximately 100 miles.
These are four concrete blocks which supported the steel gantry on which the Tx/Rx aerial was mounted. It has a central concrete platform with steps on its northern face. The central platform is grassed over. A water tank rests on the southwest plinth and a cattle feeder lies beside the south-east plinth. The truncated remains of the steel gantry can be seen in the top face of each block

200 metres of t5.5 metre wide concrete trackway providing access around the camp.
Approx. 200 metres of track remains intact but below grass cover.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. It was equipped with concrete benches and was designed to accommodate 25. Opposite then entrance the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
Owner removed to build shed and greenhouse, reported foundations remain subsurface.

Military camp constructed during WW2, likely composed of nissen huts, its function remains unclear.
PRONI RAF aerial photos file AM/1/5/9B/3173-3218

Ballymartin CHL station
Should the electrical power from the grid be cut off, each site had its own power generating facility to ensure continuous operation.
The small brick structure is in good condition, its only window has been sealed with modern blockwork.
www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart2.htm Frontline Ulster at

The magazine is a prefabricated design produced by the Armco International Corporation of Middletown Ohio, and sometimes referred to as Armco huts. Measuring 20' x 50', the structure is a curved steel hut with steel end walls, covered with a layer of earth to provide extra protection, which was then seeded to provide a level of camouflage. Ventilation was provided in the headwall to prevent condensation within the magazine. The magazines at Fincarn were used to store five and three inch naval shells, torpedo warheads, depth charges and small arms ammunition. These were brought to the US navy operating base at Lisahally.
Site is overgrown but is largely intact, though the steel elements of the structure have a corroded to a greater degree than the other magazines.

Maydown airfield
Living site for personnel. Had mostly barracks with ablutions blocks and latrines.

By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ or loop dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on air-frames and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
The site has been subject to landscaping and reconfiguration of the car park, however details of the redevelopment suggest the new tarmac surface was overlaid on the original concrete, suggesting that fabric of the dispersal remains underneath.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is visible on contemporary aerial photographs and in a contemporary defence plan is shown with 2 defence positions/pillboxes, 2 slit trenches, the Battle HQ and an anti-aircraft position.
The area is ploughed over, no visible remains though sub surface remains are likely.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide
This 600 metres of track remain intact and in good condition

The beaches at Dundrum and Murlough was defended by a series of concrete pillboxes but these fixed defences were not constructed in isolation. The majority of troops on coastal defence positions occupied earthwork section posts. These could start as small pits which were extended to form larger slit trench position or fire trenches. Section trenches were grouped in threes to form platoon positions, and these grouped in threes to form company positions.
These position are ephemeral and hard to locate on the ground but lidar survey by the National Trust has identified five clear trench positions.
The design of the trenches and proximity to concrete coast defences suggest these are WW2 in date.
Pillbox, part of beach defence network; Anti-airlanding poles
Sites are overgrown but trenches identified in Lidar survey
National Trust, unpublished Lidar Survey of Murlough Nature reserve,
Robert Liddiard and Davis Simms, A very dangerous locality: The landscape of the Suffolk Sandlings in the Second World War (Hatfield, 2018)

RNAD Kilnappy
This concrete tank would have provided an emergency water supply for firefighting,
Difficult to assess extent of remaining structure as largely obscured by dumper soil and vegitation.
Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (Egnlish Heritage, 2000)
website www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt1.htm

Light anti-aircraft (LAA) guns are smaller, faster firing weapons deployed to engage fast low-flying aircraft. The size and type of weapons deployed at these site could be light machine guns on simple mounts, to 20mm Oerlikon gun to the 40MM Bofors L40 gun. Unlike heavy AA guns which were deployed in batteries of four or eight, LAA guns tended to be deployed individually. LAA sites were deployed to defend the port facilities at Derry and the naval base at Lisahally in May 1941. Twelve in total were deployed, with four dedicated to Lisahally, The LAA coverage of Derry was reduced during 1943 and the last LAA guns were removed from m the Foyle in April 1944
The site sits on the west back of the River Foyle adjacent to the Royal navy jetty at Lisahally. It is a platform constructed of concrete sandbags where sandbags were filled with wet cement than laid down, with wet cement bonding the structure as it seeped through the hessian sandbags. The sandbags rot away leaving the hardened concrete structure. Site likely mounted a 40mm Bofors gun.

Greystone Chain Home Radar Station
Site of officers quarters, baths and batmens quarters.
Only concrete base remains. Post war prefabricated hut erected on site.
DHR 00168-000 Greystone Chain Home Radar Station-1942_004 JPEG

Orlock Coastal Battery
The site housed a Mk. VII 6 inch breech-loading gun on steel hold-fast. The gun could fire a 100-pound armour-piercing shells 12, 600 yards. The position was sheltered by a reinforced concrete gun house, which provided protection from aerial attack.
The reinforced concrete gun house has been incorporated into a domestic dwelling. A second storey has been built on top of the position, which can be seen as a large north-looking picture window. While it was not possible to gain access to the site as the owners were not in at the time of the field visit.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: the fortifications of Ulster 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)

Structure used to accommodate administration personnel for maintenance wing. Also known as Maintenance Wing HQ.

Part of camp site, nissen huts shown in this area on AP

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The low walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments. Though constructed in 1941, this site followed an early design as there are no shelters for the crews at the position.
In relatively good condition, the site retained its original retaining walls, though some have been reduced in height and sections mounded with soil.

This long brick structure housed navigation lecture rooms where trainees were instructed in all aspects of aerial navigation.
The structure is 38m long and 9m wide built of brick, rendered in cement with a compressed asbestos sheet roof. The site could not be directly accessed as it was secured by a fence but appears to be well-maintained. A modern accesss with roller-shutter has been added to western end of structure.

A structure relating to the AAOR, likely prefabricated hut.
Subterranea Britannica report at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/campsie-aaor/

Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Demolished but landowner noted that it was a shelter he had removed.
Only some footings and low line of brick remain.

Up to 20 nissen huts were constructed in this area to house base personnel. This area is heavily overgrown but it appears many if not most of the huts constructed in this area may remains as overgrown concrete hut bases.
Heavily overgrown but likely hut bases remains in the undergrowth.

Down Royal
Erected to accommodate troops.
Group of 14 concrete bases visible in photograph. Removed when course extended.
PRONI aerial photos AM/1/5/92D/81-120

Site consisted of 2 pillboxes connected by a central ammunition/command element room with an observation post. The doorway was protected by a blast wall.
Destroyed prior to redevelopment as shopping centre.

This pillbox sits on the perimeter of the airfield, suggesting it was built early in WW2. It has four embrasures and a central concrete (unique in N. Ireland) pillar supporting the roof and acting as a anti-ricochet wall. The embrasures have remains of wooden shelves and the pillbox retains its original steel door. The exterior brickwork has steel ring mounted in the mortar, likely for supporting camouflage netting.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide
Approximately 1,440 meters of track remain intact. It has been resurfaced in section with modern tarmac and concrete.

Used to house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.
The brick structure has a modern roof on it. It has been converted into a chicken coop.

Brick barrack block designed to accommodate 18 enlisted men. Built possibly c. 1923 but not WW2 austerity style construction.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Roof and windows hare modern replacements but structure repurposed and still in use by MoD.
Binevenagh Coast and Lowlands Defence Heritage Audit (2017) by Quarto and Ulidia Heritage Services for Causeway Coast and Glens Heritage Trust.
Magilligan Estate Archaeological Audit (2019) prepared by WYG Environment Planning Transport Ltd for MoD
https://frontlineulster.co.uk/magilligan-musketry-camp/

Single storey structure used to accommodate administration personnel for maintenance wing.
Site remains in good condition. It has been repurposed for light industry/manufacturing.
Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012

Benbradagh USN radio station
Prefabricated structure erected to facilitate operations at the radio station. Known as a multi-purpose building, it served as a reception area for visitors to the site and domestic area for those stationed there.

St Angelo
During the interwar period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This small dispersal is intact but has been resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Ballymaclary Pillbox
The pillbox was exposed during a storm in 2003, leading to limited recording by a team from NI Environment Agency. Three embrasures were visible but the bulk of the site was obscured by sand dunes. What could be seen appeared in good condition.
Since 2003 the site has been obscured by sand but remains in good condition.

This brick and concrete store was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. It differs from the others at this site in the addition of a sentry post on the roof.
Site remains relatively intact, though it lack any exterior blast wall. It has been repurposed as a cattle shed.
Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (Egnlish Heritage, 2000)

Spring Hill
Site Description Structure built to facilitate operations at the cam, likely a nissen hut.
Structure built to facilitate operations at the camp, likely a nissen hut.

Used to store tools used at sewage treatment site.
Fragments of brickwork and concrete base remain.

Approximately 475 metres survives in relatively good condition. It is truncated at its northern and southern ends by industrial developments. Much of the remaining runway is used a storage are for building materials and has been resurfaced with tarmac.

This was a shore base for the RAF constructed during the 1930's. The boats operating from serviced and managed the target ranges on the lough that were used by RAF units for bombing and gunnery practice, usually operating from RAF Aldergrove. The site was closed around the end of the 1930 in favour of new ranges closer to Antrim.
The site consists of a slipway, jetty and two extant but unidentified buildings.
Two extant brick structures remain, the slipway, jetty and concrete hardstanding.

Providing toilet facilities for airmen
Only concrete base remains obscured by overgrowth of moss and grass

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was normally 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The 45m diameter hand standing is in good condition, it has a large agricultural shed built on its south eastern section.

Military structure built to facilitate operation on site.
Only concrete base remains under foliage and leaf litter

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing airmen’s accommodation.

This structure was originally a Laing hut, made of lightweight prefabricated wooden wall sections bolted together. Externally the walls were lined plasterboard covered in felt sheeting to weatherproof. Internally the walls were lined with plasterboard. The roof was supported by wooden trusses
Provided accommodation for sergeants
The hut's walls have been replaced with modern corrugated iron. Roof, frame and base may be only remaining original fabric.

This was a wood-framed galvanised steel hut erected at the 200 yard firing point. Likely a shelter for range instructors.
The hut has collapsed with galvanised steel sheeting lying on the ground.

Structure built post war to facilitate operations at the depot, possibly a security post.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (English Heritage, 2000) website www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt1.htm

Brick compound used to house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V. This particular M & E plinth is notable in that it does not appear on the 1943 map of the airfield.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
The site remains intact and in good condition.

St Lucia Barracks
The barracks were constructed in 1881 (construction began in 1878) to act as a depot for the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers. It housed troops throughout the 20th century but was closed in 2007, as it has become surplus to army needs.
Adjacent Lisanelly barracks (now demolished) was developed during WW2 to accommodate the rapid expansion of army size.
The central parade ground is flanked by the main barracks, officers mess, hospital and guardroom. The entire complex is surrounded by a boundary wall.

Part of Orangefield camp converted to use as a POW camp.

Provided accommodation for officers. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters.
Concrete platform remains, obscured by overgrowth at time of field visit but discernible in recent aerial photographs.

Maghaberry airfield
Living site for personnel. Had 41 structures, mostly barracks with ablution and latrines.

Blister hangars were small arched dispersal sheds, made of wood or welded steel, and were used for the maintenance and storage of aircraft with small wingspans. They were clad in steel sheeting and had quick-release canvas curtains on either end.
Only concrete hard-standing and approach track remain.

Grey Point Fort
This linear fieldwork dug as a means of concealment from enemy observation and protection from enemy fire. Likely main function was a communication trench to allow troops to move about area around battery under cover. Plotted by HED surveyors in 2015. Uncertain of dating.
Shallow 10 metre trench running approximately north from the searchlight position.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1596
Northern Ireland Environment Agency (ndg) Grey Point Fort: A short guide to the fort complex.
Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork (QUB), Data structure report No. 108, Excavations at Grey Point Fort, Co Down (2015)
Historic Environment Division GPF trench survey 2015

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing sergeants’ accommodation.

Described a a pillbox in original DHP report
Some sections of concrete at site but noting identifiable as part of a pillbox, may be entirely obscured by sand.
Original DHP report

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Early 'frying pan' dispersals proved unsuitable therefore loops dispersals were designed to make taxi-ing on and off dispersals quicker and less stressful to air-frames. This 'loop' designed are the only known sites in NI as they appear to have been quickly superseded by spectacle dispersals.
Most of the dipersal has been removed only a small 47 m section remains

Treatment plant for filtering and treatment of wastewater and sewage, composed of filter beds and settling tanks.

Gosford Castle
Short concrete trackway providing access to and from the grass airstrip.

Lisnaskea ROC post
A network of 1,518 underground monitoring posts were built across the UK to house the volunteer staff from the Royal Observer Corps (ROC), who, in the event of a nuclear attack, were tasked with recording the blast yield, location and drift of radioactive clouds caused by the detonation of Soviet nuclear weapons. There were 58 of the small underground posts evenly distributed across Northern Ireland. A crew of three could operate for three weeks. Their results would have been transmitted to a regional ROC group headquarters, which for N. Ireland was the 31 Group HQ (DHR 310) in Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn. Site was closed during the 1970s due to security issues.
Site Description The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
The site is largely intact subsurface, though the surface ventilation shaft has been removed and the access hatch sealed with concrete. There is significant damage to the access shaft . The ladder into the site can be seen still in situ.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/lisnaskea-roc-post/

Kilkeel CH station
Structure constructed to facilitate operations at Kilkeel Chain Home radar station, its exact purpose remains unclear.
Structure appears intact, doorway sealed with modern blockwork.
www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart2.htm Frontline Ulster at

Railway constructed to connect the depot to the Cookstown Branch Line.
No visible remains though line of railway marked by gaps in the hedges.

Palace barracks
The guard house was used to control access on and off the base. It was also used to detain prisoners. This site could accommodate 12 prisoners for short term detention, it also controlled access to the magazine and armoury.
Site remained in good condition until it was demolished in 2011.
Robin Masefield, The history of Palace Barracks (to 1969) and Holywood as a garrison town ( (Belfast, 2007)

Concrete walled structure, half modern roof, half asbestos roof, converted into dwelling/holiday homes.

This structure remains in good condition

Long nissen type structure built to facilitate operations at the site, exact function remains unclear.

Crossmaglen PSNI Station
The police station at Crossmaglen was initially fortified in an ad-hoc basis at the start of the Troubles, with the erection of a chain-link and galvanised steel sheeting fence around the original station, which only served to obscure the view of the site and secure a perimeter. This was protected by concrete sangers and concrete bollards.
Due to the increasing threat of IRA attack the station was replaced with a purpose-built concrete structure in the 1980s, however this proved vulnerable to attacks with ever larger explosive devices, therefore the site was retrofitting with a second layer of concrete blast protection, tied onto the main structure with steel beams.
The station was protected by a large observation post on the northern tip of the perimeter and a 'Super Sanger' on the corner of Cullaville Road and Cardinal O'Fiach Square, but these were removed as part of a programme of de-militarisation after the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.
During the trouble the police in the station were supported by British army units stationed on site. For much of its use during the troubles there was no vehicular to the site, with supplies and personnel ferried in by Helicopter.
The station consists of a triple layer perimeter fence surrounding a large yard with the station itself sitting on the northern end of the site. The station is composed of a two stores concrete building with ballistic windows and a pronounced base batter. I The interior is cramped , holding the operations room, public desk, waiting room and domestic/dormitory facilities. The public waiting room is accessed via an enclosed pedestrian tunnel leading from the perimeter fence. from the perimeter fence.
There is concrete spalling/blast damage to parts of the inner structure. The main building is enclosed by an outer shell of reinforced concrete which is itself tied onto the main building with steel beams.
The site is in good condition and still an operational PSNI station.

Clandeboye Estate
Structure erected to facilitate operations on site. Function remains unclear.

Campo constructed to accommodate troops manning the anti-aircraft battery. Approx. 15 huts.

This structure contained equipment required to generate the medium frequency radio signal. Several concrete support/holdfasts remains beside the structure.
The structure is relatively intact and retaining its original window frames. It has been modified with a modern sliding galvanised steel doo as it has been repurposed as an agricultural shed.
Joe O'Loughlin, Catalinas and Sunderlands on Lough Erne, Ireland in World War 2 (2013) Breege McCusker, Castle Archdale and Fermanagh in World War II (1993)

Aircraft were refuelled using mobile tankers, which were refilled from the bulk storage sites. An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. The site had contained six 12,000 gallon steel tanks, 30 feet by 9. Two Pumps would have serviced the fuel tankers which parked on the circular hardstanding.
The steel tanks and service trackway have been removed but two pump houses remain in relatively good condition. The larger of the two has been repurposed as an agricultural store/animal pen.
Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995)
Christopher A Lynn, Greencastle Aerodrome, County Down: Remnant of World War Two in a seaside landscape (QUB, 2007), Unpublished undergraduate thesis

Accommodation for station warden, a civilian on base responsible for day-to-day maintenance on base facilities.
Site appears intact with post war extension added to north east end.

Sited beside a 19th century Coastguard signal station, the post was constructed in the inter-war years to house auxiliary coastwatchers. Coastwatchers were responsible for maintaining observation of coastal waters, monitoring shipping and curtailing coastal smuggling. The posted was extended during WW2 when a fortified brick observation post was added.
The original post's windows appear to have been sealed, likely during WW2 when the brick observation post was added. The site remains in good condition.

This is a raised area of compacted earth on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters.
This firing point is now disused but possibly 30% of its length remains intact. Uncertain of when the firing point fell into disuse.
Original DHR file
SM 7 Dow 44:64
Philip Orr, Ballykinler camp: The first seven decades, 1900-1969 ((2012)

Long Kesh Airfield
During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The dispersal may be intact but heavy overgrowth makes inspection impossible at time of survey.
Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm
The Second World War in Northern Ireland at www.ww2ni.com/countydownairfields.htm
Wartime NI website at

A concrete revetted trench with 32 protected ammunition shelters.
Report from 1996 noted site buried within sea well, traces may remain within the structure.

Maintenance unit (Wireless/Telegraph) for repairing and servicing wireless communication radio sets.

The site consists of a group of 8 finger park dispersals arranged in the distinctive snowflake pattern. The site was not visible on the day of survey but discussion with the landowner suggests the dispersals were covered with topsoil post war, leaving the concrete extant below the grass.

A small concrete structure, possibly a support or holdfast for the aerials.
The features appear relatively intact with steel holdfasts fitted

Structure constructed to house pumping equipment to draw water out of the Kells Water, supplying water to the camp.
Structure is intact and in relatively good condition.

A concrete trackway linking finger park dispersals to the airfield
167 metres of trackway remain in good condition. It is incorporated into the road network in a caravan park.

Every station was provided with medical facilities with wards to accommodate all ranks. The sick quarters would have held a ward, an operating theatre and a dispensary, with facilities and offices for the station medical officer and dental officer. Typically there would have been 22 beds and quarters for sergeants and orderlies.
A single annex of the sick quarters remains, but this is in relatively good condition with original windows and roof. It has been converted into a chicken shed.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This concrete dispersal is 18 metres wide is heavily overgrown with grass growing from the expansion joints. It is obscured by growth of moss but appears to be in good condition underneath.

Concrete track providing access to the WAAF living site
Approximately 160 metres of concrete trackway remains.

The control tower provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Almost square, the control tower is 44 feet 9 inches by 37 feet 6 inches and was the largest wartime design. Initially, it was intended to have an all-timber first floor, but a shortage of wood resulted in only the control room and balcony being made of timber. The ground floor contained the metrological section and teleprinter room with the control tower at the front. Above this on the first floor was the controller’s restroom, signals office and the control room with access out onto the balcony.
The ground floor contained the watch office, forecast room, teleprinter room. Lavatories, restroom and switch room. The first floor housed the signals office, restrooms and the large control room. This was the heart of the control tower and held the plotting board, aerodrome lighting control board and the aerodrome state board. The stairs continued to the roof and the balloon filling room.
The brick and concrete structure is in relatively good condition, though much of the cement render has fallen away. The wooden veranda is completely absent. The interior where it could be observed is littered with rubble. The site has been sealed with modern concrete blocks and iron sheeting, though one has been forcibly removed. There is a large growth of ivy on the rear wall.

The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. Type A huts were for officers and consisted of 4 rooms and one for servants. Type B huts were for sergeants and were a single room accommodating 8 men. Those for other ranks or airmen accommodated 12 men in a single room. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides
This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for sergeants.

Range for practicing firing small arms such as as pistols, submachine guns and rifles. Structure was tall brick backstop for stopping rounds fired downrange.

Derrymore House
Structure built to facilitate operations ay the camp.
Only concrete base/base hardcore remains under the grass.
Liz MacShane and George Rutherford, Survey of Derry More WWII army base, County Armagh, for Ulster Archaeological Society, survey report 20 (2011) found at
https://gitrailni.com/gitrail/derrymore-house/

Sited in front of the watch office, the signal square facilitated air traffic control signals warning pilots of the prevailing condition and precautions to be taken during landing and take-off. Though signals could be sent using radio transmissions, pyrotechnics, lamps and flags, the majority of signals were displayed on this 40-foot square black concrete square edged in a one-foot white border
The square remains intact but the concrete kerb has been removed

Linear ‘Stop-Lines’ were built to support the coastal defences. These were intended to restrict and contain the movement of enemy armoured formations. Canals, river, anti-tank ditches and obstacles were protected by pillboxes, infantry trenches and anti-tank guns at key crossing points, with other bridges and culverts prepared for demolition should the enemy threaten the line. Eight stop-lines were constructed in NI. They were all concentrated east of the River Bann, with the river and the Newry Canal providing the main obstacle bisecting N. Ireland. Line A ran from the Bannmouth on the north coast to Toome where the Bann enters Lough Neagh. Line B started at the Bannfoot on the southern shores of Lough Neagh and followed the line of the River and the Newry Canal to Carlingford Lough. A sequence of lines (C to H) supported lines A and B, and fell back on the Belfast Defence Scheme which was a perimeter of forward defended localities, observation posts and roadblocks. However, this strategy was quickly seen to be flawed, as any penetration of the line compromised the whole defensive scheme. By autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland, fortified with pillboxes and roadblocks. This pillbox is placed to cover the rear approaches to the stop-line.
This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.
The maximum thickness of the walls is 135 cm, which meant the position was considered shell-proof. Their roofs are significantly thinner, approximately 30 cm thick, suggesting the positions were designed to resist direct flat-trajectory gunfire (field guns and tanks) rather than indirect high-angle artillery fire from mortars and howitzers.
A small embrasure allows the flank of the position to be covered by small arms fire. The rear door was protected by a concrete blast wall . This has collapsed and lies to the rear of the pillbox.
The position has two machine gun loops with staircased embrasures, designed to prevent ricochets from entering the bunker.
The pillbox would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
The site is is overgorwn but remains in good condition.
William Foot, Beaches, fields, streets and hills: the anti-invasion landscapes of England, 1940 (York, 2006)
Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008),

Shane's Castle
This is a brick walled store reinforced with earthwork revetment. It is 287 sq. metres in area. The store was designed to direct an explosive blast upwards in the event of an accident. May have had storage shed constructed in interior.
The retaining wall and earthworks remain in relatively good condition though heavily overgrown.
https://www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart3.htm

This is a raised area of compacted earth on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters.
This firing point is now disused but possibly 50% of its length remains intact. Uncertain of when the firing point fell into disuse.

Bishops Road GCI Radar Station
During the early stages of WWII, air controllers used Chain Home radar to position fighter aircraft, normally with an accuracy of around five miles. However, this was not accurate to ensure an intercept in poor weather conditions or at night. While more exact intercepts could be achieved by directing the radar aerial at the target, this would prevent the radar from continuing to track other target plots. Consequently, there was a clear need for dedicated radar sites and controllers for vectoring in fighters on incoming enemy aircraft
The stations were initially mobile (Type 15) or transportable (Type 8). The site would have consisted of a radar aerial, an operations room, a transmitter and power generator. The only surface remains are a series of concrete hardstanding.
Group of 5 overgrown concrete hardstandngs

Seco huts were designed to be constructed of standard units for walls and roofs. They made use of plywood, woodwool and asbestos cement. The standardised units eliminated the need for steel in construction and minimised the use of wood. The structures were cheap and easy to erect, while also being lightweight and insulated against the elements. Their flexibility in design allowed for a wide range of uses from barracks, stores, machine shops or even hospitals.
Seco hut providing accommodation for troops or civilian employees of Lockheed Corporation.
Langford Lodge USAAF Station 597 website langfordlodge.webs.com/
WW2NI website www.ww2ni.com/langford-lodge-a-a-f-597

This wooden receiver tower was part of the Kilkeel Chain Home radar station. One of two used to receive incoming radar signal reflected back from airborne targets.
The four concrete footings for the tower remain intact, Small sections of the wooden tower remain fitted to the footings.

Gilnahirk
This was the site a a Radio Security station established to monitor radio traffic. Construction of the site began in November 1939 and may have been completed around May 1940 (when the GPO station at ballygomartin was switched off).
Post-war the site was taken over by Government Communication Headquarters (GCHQ) when the facilities were improved with the construction of a new wireless station completed by at least 1951 and operational by 1953.
The station operated until 1979 when it was closed. The structure was demolished in 2009 and replaced with new apartments which are very similar in style as the original structure.
The site consisted of a few wooden and nissan huts which were surrounded by a considerable number of very tall telegraph poles dotted about the adjoining fields. These poles were linked together with overhead wire and formed the aerial network which was used to intercept the radio traffic. The wooden huts served a number of roles, but one hut would have contained the main radio room. This consisted of eighteen banks of American HRO radio receivers.
During the establishment of this station a top secret Marconi-Adcock Direction finding facility was placed into an all metal tank and then the whole thing was buried just below the ground some distance from the main collection of wooden huts. Four thirty feet high telegraph poles were placed one at each corner of this underground structure.
A new brick structure was constructed after the war which was surrounded by a series of 29 100 foot steel masts.
George Busby, The spies at Gilnahirk (Donaghadee, 2017)
Web page https://frontlineulster.co.uk/gchq-gilnahirk-station/

The guard house was the main point of access and egress from the airfield, where visitors reported providing their authorisation for entry, and where they signed out on leaving. Airmen reported here with leave passes before they were allowed off station. The guard house also held prisoners prior to their appearance before their section officers or CO.
Access could not be gained to the site but the size of the structure and location suggest the guardhouse structure has been converted to a domestic

A circular filter bed, often filled with pumice stone, used as a filter bed for sewage treatment.
Filter material has been removed, only the brick circular retaining wall survives. Site is heavily overgrown.

The site consists of 2 finger park dispersals. The site was not visible on the day of survey, but discussions with the landowner suggest the site was covered by topsoil post war, leaving the concrete dispersals extant under the grass.

Structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear. Open topped and protected by barbed wire it may have housed an electrical transformer.

This small store was used to store bomb fuses, detonators, fuse pistols and exploders. Normally divided into 2 compartments with smaller storing detonators, with fuses, fuse pistols and exploders stored in the other, usually L-shaped room. Normally protected by earthwork berm and blast wall.

Approach lighting was used to guide aircraft in to land on the correct runway in poor or limited visibility conditions. The approach lights, or funnels as they were known, consisted of a group of six lights which were aligned in the direction of approach to a runway (six groups of six on an airfield with 3 runways). They were mounted on poles and shone directly upwards, arranged in a vee-shape with the axis pointing in the direction of the runway.
Only the concrete base and section of wooden upright and steel ducting remains. Not visible on day of field visit but position taken from aerial photos and condition from photos on www.ww2ni.com/countydownairfields
David J Smith, Britain’s military airfields, 1939-45 (1989)

Large earthwork traverse placed opposite entrance to a magazine to deflect a blast in the event of an accidental explosion in the magazine.
The earthwork has slumped and heavily overgrown. Difficult to assess if there was a retaining wall due to overgrowth.

Ballymartin CHL station
The operations block accommodated all the technical equipment and acted as a combined transmitter (Tx) and Receiver (Rx) facility. The Tx/Rx facility enabled targets to be located more accurately at lower levels and allowed multiple targets to be tracked on a single display. The combined Tx/Rx antenna was mounted on a steel gantry on the roof. The improved CHL mounted a single (10 by 30 foot) rotating aerial. The single array flicked continually from transmit to receive. This had many advantages-simpler construction, ease of installation and maintenance over the earlier double aerials, but also it yielded more accurate plots as the transmitter and receiver aerials lay precisely in line. Range was approximately 100 miles.
Site opened late 1941, mothballed late 1943-4 and closed 1945.
The operations block has been incorporated into a byre and agricultural storage shed with a modern double door entrance on its western end and a modern roof added.

Concrete trackway providing access around the site.
Approx. 130 metres of trackway remain relatively intact.

Concrete trackway providing access around the site.
Approx. 820 metres of trackway remain in good condition.

Provided accommodation for naval ratings, likely nissen hut.

Structure provided washing and showering facilities to airmen.
Only concrete base remains though this is larely obscured by vegitation.

Large concrete wall placed opposite entrance to a magazine to deflect a blast in the event of an accidental explosion in the magazine (DHR 192:014)
Blast wall to protect from explosion in this magazine.
Structure remain intact and in good condition.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (English Heritage, 2000) website www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt1.htm

St Angelo
A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing officers accommodation.

The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. Type A huts were for officers and consisted of 4 rooms and one for servants. Type B huts were for sergeants and were a single room accommodating 8 men. Those for other ranks or airmen accommodated 12 men in a single room. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides
16 foot span nissen hut, function unknown, may be related to pump house (DHR 85:36)
Site remains in relatively good condition if heavily overgrown.

The gunnery and crew procedures centre, known by aircrew as ‘grope’, was to train aircrew on the ground by simulation the conditions of actual operations using simulators, known as the time as synthetic training. Large posters and dramatic diagrams taught crews on all aspects of aircraft handling, fuel consumption and ditching drills. A dummy instructional fuselage was via the large access door on either side of the building. Cockpit drills familiarised crews with their aircraft and allowed realistic training for engine fires, ditching, fuel/oil failures, crash landing, parachuting and wireless telegraphy procedures. Micro-switches enabled controls for fuel, throttle levers, flaps, dinghy release and bob doors provided the most realistic training experience available without leaving the ground and all under the supervision of experienced instructors.
The gunnery and crew procedure centre at Toome has been renovated and is now home to a joinery business. The roof has been re-clad (though the original roof frame remains) and an extension built to the rear of the structure. The rear windows have been blocked as has the access door on the northern face of the building. The access doors on the southern wall have been replaced with two modern roller shutters. The alterations are mostly sartorial and this structure remains in excellent condition

Tynan Abbey
A concrete trackway which provided pedestrian access round the campo.

Border post established to control movement of people and goods across the border. Usually manned by Home Guard.
Nissen hut remains in good condition, appears to be used as a store

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restriction on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive snowflakes, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This is a cluster of 9 finger parks.
The dispersal cluster remains intact though largely obscured by surface vegetation.

Provided accommodation for enlisted airmen.
Formerly the site of a wooden Laing hut, only concrete footings remain

Blister hangars were small arched dispersal sheds, made of wood or welded steel, and were used for the maintenance and storage of aircraft with small wingspans. They were clad in steel sheeting and had quick-release canvas curtains on either end.
Only approach track and concrete hardstanding remain.

This was an extension built providing an 8 bed ward for WAAF personnel.
The brick stricture is in good condition. It retains the original asbestos sheet roof and steel window frames. Most windows have been partially secured with modern concrete blocks and steel sheeting.

Military structure relating to the HAA battery domestic camp.
Richard Doherty, Key to victory: The maiden City in the Second World War (Derry, 1995) Richard Doherty, 'Escort base' in Ulster Local Studies, Vol 16, No. 1 (1994), pp 31-42.

Thick wooden poles erected in lines to prevent airborne-glider landings on the beach.
Group of approx. 15 poles visible on day of survey

Crom Castle
Structure erected to house troops.
Only concrete base remains under foliage and leaf litter.

Narrow concrete trackway connecting barrack huts.
Approximately 80 metres of trackway are intact

This was the site of an RAF unit, No. 226 Maintenance Unit, which was tasked with clearing and recovering crashed aircraft, and recovering material that could be reused.

This concrete tank is filled with water providing an emergency supply for firefighting.
Site appears intact and in good condition.
https://www.ww2ni.com/county-down-part-1

Inflatable dinghies were stored in aircraft and deployed in the event of ditching on water, when they were inflated by a cylinder of compressed gas. They would be returned to the dinghy shed every three months for inspection.
The structure was used by the station's safety section to inspect dinghies got defects, cracking or leaks. They wee then re-packed and returned to their aircraft. The site normally had a large inspection table in the centre and shelving around the walls
Site remains in good condition. Structure has bee repurposed as a mechanics workshop.
Paul Francis, RAF Oakington: An operational history and gazetteer of surviving structures (2004), Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012

Access could not be gained to the site as construction of a solar farm has sealed off the area behind security fencing, but analysis of aerial photographs shows the concrete runway retains its fully original length of 1,006 m, however a 240m section at the southern end is grassed over. Furthermore, 536m of the runway has had solar panels erected on it, but the surface is clearly visible beneath the solar array.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
Permission could not be gained for access to the site but examination of aerial photographs suggest this dispersal is in good condition. Approximately 38 metres in diameter.

Site held office of security detachment responsible for access to and from the WAAF dispersed living site.
The site remains intact but has been modernised with replacement roof and windows. It has been repurposed into a toilet block.

An observation sanger used to guard Ulster Defence regiment base. It was fitted with a conical roof likely to soften its visual impact on the streetscape.

Redburn Park
The house and grounds of Redburn Park were requisitioned by the War Office during WW2 and used to accommodate units of the Women's Royal Air Force. The site became derelict post-war and the main house was demolished. The area is now a country park.

Used to house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.

Provided toilet facilities for airmen.
In good condition, retains it original roof and windows. Used to store hay.

Hardstanding for the parking, maintenance, loading or refuelling of aircraft. Built post-war.
In good condition, some grass growing through expansion joints.

Structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear.
Only concrete base remains under grass cover.

Lurgan ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated mater post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ

Nissen hut with no windows, likely used as a store.
Site appears intact and in good condition.

Langford Lodge Airfield
The site was the terminus for a railway connected the Langford Lodge site into the Northern Ireland rail network. It had a platform for arriving and departing civilian personnel. It had a number of sidings, storage yards and 16 warehouses.
ONly some sections of concrete hardstanding remain.
Langford Lodge USAAF Station 597 website langfordlodge.webs.com/ WW2NI website www.ww2ni.com/langford-lodge-a-a-f-597

This provided washing and showering facilities for airmen.
The shower block is now gone, only the brick boiler house and water tower remain.

No visible remains, may be subsurface archaeological remains.

Structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear. Likely nissen hut to accommodate refugees.
Only concrete base remains under grass cover.

Cromore
Collection of prefabricated/nissen huts used to house troops. Constructed in woods.
No remains visible on aerial photos but remains may survive obscured by foliage or subsurface.

The Iris hut was a prefabricated steel shed designed by the Directorate of Fortifications and Works in London. Very similar t the Romney Hut, it was semi-circular in section 2 inch steel ribs and tubular purlins. Approx. 35 feet in diameter the Iris hut was normally used for stores requiring larger than normal roof spans, however the Iris design proved vulnerable to with loading from snow and was superseded by the Romney which had stronger 2.5 inch diameter ribs.
This Iris hut was used as a quartermaster's store and was approx. 28 metres long and 10 metres wide.

The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. The runway was initially 1,450 metres but was extended to 1,838 metres to accommodate the longer take-off of the B-24 Liberators stationed there.

Approximately 317 metres of the concrete perimeter track remain in good condition.

Two connected Quonset huts were designated as offices in the original US plan.
The end walls of this site remained in situ at the time of the original DHP. The have since been demolished, and the site redeveloped.

The main store was a facility for the storage of non-technical items such as clothing and technical equipment such as aircraft components. All incoming material was unloaded into a receiving bay where it was logged and stored away to be issued when needed.
Built to a more robust expansion period design than austerity designs of later years.
Site remains intact and in good condition, still in use by MoD.

The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated mater post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
This post remains relatively intact though the hatch cover and steel ladders have been removed. The ventilation louvres on both the entrance hatch and the air vent have been removed. A section of the entrance hatch (approx 25%) has broken off from the main concrete structure.
Subterranea Britannica report at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/bushmills-roc-post/

Storage hut, possibly holding supplies for adjacent instrument repair shop (DHR 42:11)
Small store in relatively good condition though overgrown. Contemporary 'no smoking' stencilled on outside wall.

During World War II aircraft were considered to be vulnerable when on the ground, either from air attack or from possible ground attack. Precautions were taken to prevent any loss of aircraft when not in action. As a result aircraft were often held in dispersed pens located around the perimeter of the airfield but with access to the main runways. The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site was constructed earthwork traverses on concrete revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There was a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.
The site was relatively intact until 2004 when it was demolished by the owner, largely overgrown the site consists of rubble on the surviving hardstanding. Some remains of concrete revetment of central traverse and outer arms.
Report at

By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ or loop dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on air-frames and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.

The sites displays characteristic fieldworks prevalent in static trench warfare of WW1. There are crenelated 'Greek key' trenches, which formed the fire trench. The traverses/crenellations prevented an enemy enfilading the length of a trench with fire.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersal were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.Photographs from 1944 show that a blister hangar was erected on the dispersal. Blister hangars were small arched dispersal sheds, made of wood or welded steel, and were used for the maintenance and storage of aircraft with small wingspans. They were clad in steel sheeting and had quick-release canvas curtains on either end.
It has a double gable steel shed built on it, but the 45m diameter hand standing is in good condition. There is no trace of the blister hangar.

This section of secondary runway is 532m in length running south-east-northwest. It is constructed of tarmac surfaced with bitumen laid on hardcore base. Though weeds grow along its length the runway is in relatively good condition.

Technical latrine providing toilet facilities for pilots and ground crew stationed at dispersals/blister hangers.

Only concrete base remains under the crass cover.

A dining facility for station personnel, originally composed of 3 annexes.
No visible remains but owner claimed concrete bases still remains beneath top soil.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Early 'frying pan' dispersals proved unsuitable therefore loops dispersals were designed to make taxi-ing on and off dispersals quicker and less stressful to air-frames. This 'loop' designed are the only known sites in NI as they appear to have been quickly superseded by spectacle dispersals
Most of loop dipersal complex has been removed, this is a 147 m section remaining in relatively good condition.

Constructed to facilitate operations on site, likely a nissen hut.

Linear ‘Stop-Lines’ were built to support the coastal defences. These were intended to restrict and contain the movement of enemy armoured formations. Canals, river, anti-tank ditches and obstacles were protected by pillboxes, infantry trenches and anti-tank guns at key crossing points, with other bridges and culverts prepared for demolition should the enemy threaten the line. Eight stop-lines were constructed in NI. They were all concentrated east of the River Bann, with the river and the Newry Canal providing the main obstacle bisecting N. Ireland. Line A ran from the Bannmouth on the north coast to Toome where the Bann enters Lough Neagh. Line B started at the Bannfoot on the southern shores of Lough Neagh and followed the line of the River and the Newry Canal to Carlingford Lough. A sequence of lines (C to H) supported lines A and B, and fell back on the Belfast Defence Scheme which was a perimeter of forward defended localities, observation posts and roadblocks.
Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. In this case the pillbox protected crossing point of the Newry Canal on Line B (stopline) which ran from Lough Neagh to Carlingford. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.
The maximum thickness of the walls is 135 cm, which meant the position was considered shell-proof. Their roofs are significantly thinner, approximately 30 cm thick, suggesting the positions were designed to resist direct flat-trajectory gunfire (field guns and tanks) rather than indirect high-angle artillery fire from mortars and howitzers.
Entry is via a door at the rear which is protected by a concrete blast wall.
The pillbox would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
Site remains in good condition. Site has improved over recent years as foliage has been cut back to expose the pillbox,
William Foot, Beaches, fields, streets and hills: the anti-invasion landscapes of England, 1940 (York, 2006)

The T2 (‘T’ for transportable) was developed in 1940 to replace Bellman Hangars. They were of a modular design meaning they could be dismantled, moved and reassembled elsewhere. Constructed of steel lattice portal frames and clad in galvanised corrugated iron. The T2 became the standard temporary hangar for the RAF, and over 900 were built during the war. They were considered temporary structures with a limited design life, but many remain on airfields throughout the United Kingdom.
This structure remains in good condition. It has been re-clad post war and later concerted into an equestrian arena.

This is a brick walled store was reinforced with earthwork revetment, however this has been removed.. It is 52 sq. metres in area, significantly smaller than the other magazines at the site. It has been converted into a club house/bar by the owner. , with a modern roof added.
The site is largely intact tough repurposed with modern renovation.
https://www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart3.htm

710 metres of perimeter fence enclosed the site. The fence was composed of bent arm concrete posts supporting chain-link fencing. The outward leaning arms wirer strung with barbed wire. A local informant reported the outside face was reinforced with concertinas of coiled Dannert/barbed wire.
The chain-link and coils of dannert wire have long been removed leaving the concrete posts in place.
Nick McCamley, Cold War secret nuclear bunkers (Barnsley, 2002)

'Ben Neagh'
The house at Ben Neagh was requisitioned by the US Navy for use by their Flying Boat service. The house was returned to civilian use after the war.
House remains intact and in use as dwelling.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Early 'frying pan' dispersals proved unsuitable therefore loops dispersals were designed to make taxi-ing on and off dispersals quicker and less stressful to air-frames. This 'loop' designed are the only known sites in NI as they appear to have been quickly superseded by spectacle dispersals

Provided kitchen and dining facilities for officers.
Originally composed of three blocks, one has largely collapsed with just part of the eastern gable remaining, the central block is entirely removed with only the concrete base remaining. The northernmost block retains its chimney and western end walls. The roof was in place c. 2020 but appears to have been lost in the interim, with only 3-4 steel trusses remaining.

The radar station was expected to operate in chemically contaminated environment so the operations block was equipped with a air-conditioning system. This drew in air, passing it through filters to remove any contaminants, before being pumped into the operations block. The air-conditioning was used to keep the air pressure in the Operations block higher than the ambient pressure, thereby preventing chemical contaminants entering the building.
The filtration system retains much of its original plant with air intakes, ducting and original filters still in situ.

Ballywalter airfield
This was a c. 830 metre grass airstrip, now completely planted with maize.
The area of airstrip still defined by planting but entirely turned over to agriculture.

Groups of 10 Nissen huts constructed during WW2 to house troops

This is a raised area of compacted earth on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters.

Provided accommodation for airmen. Built post-war to provide improved living quarters.
Concrete walled structure, retains original asbestos roof and windows. Windows sealed with modern concrete blocks.

This 25 yard range was used to test fire machine guns and cannon. The majority of World War airfields were equipped with gun butts, used for the testing and alignment of aircraft guns, and for airmen to test shooting skills. A large brick structure supported by brick buttresses acts as a retaining wall for the sloping earth/sand backstop. A shelter would have faced the earth and brick butts, however this has long since been removed.
The site remains in relatively good condition. The owner noted how the concrete stands for the machineguns have remained until recently, when he removed them to expand his boat building business. Two full length cracks can be seen at the northern and southern ends of the retaining wall.

A series of nissen huts used to house Canadian and British WRENs (Women's Royal Navy Service) during WW2. Located using probing of undergrowth. Site is heavily overgrown it is difficult to define exact number of remaining huts, possibly five concrete bases remain.
Newsreel at
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fXlYPR8GC10

Also known as an engine house, this structure was used to house generators used to provide electricity to the site.. it is unclear it this was the main power supply or and auxiliary backup.
One red brick wall remains though it has cracked and failed with the northern end tilting . The base has been refurbished with modern concrete.
Richard Doherty, Key to victory: The maiden City in the Second World War (Derry, 1995) Richard Doherty, 'Escort base' in Ulster Local Studies, Vol 16, No. 1 (1994), pp 31-42.

Large 644 square metre magazine with concrete walls and earthwork traverse protection. The site was used to store ammunition/explosives for use by the Royal Navy. Protective concrete wall may remain in situ.
https://www.ww2ni.com/county-down-part-1

Structure relating to the operation of the naval gunnery range, function unknown.

This is a brick walled store reinforced with earthwork revetment. It is 294 sq. metres in area. The store was designed to direct an explosive blast upwards in the event of an accident. May have had storage shed constructed in interior.
The retaining wall and earthworks remain in relatively good condition though heavily overgrown.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This 125 foot/36m dispersal remains in good condition though approximately 50% of the original surface remains exposed and in hood condition. A hairpin bend for the race circuit has been laid over the rest, though the surface likely remains in situ beneath.

Greystone Chain Home Radar Station
The advent of electronic warfare saw N. Ireland protected by a series of radar transmitting and receiving stations which circumscribed the United Kingdom. An invisible fence of radio waves stood watch along the coast, and it was the radars in N. Ireland which covered the western extremities of the UK’s coverage. The Chain Home (CH) system provided the backbone of the RAF early warning system. A typical A typical CH radar site had a transmitter block, with a series (normally four) ninety-nine-metre tall steel transmitting towers, a receiver block around which sat two seventy-three metre wooden antennae (steel receiver towers would adversely affect the radar returns), and an electrical standby set house which provided the power. The masts were supported by tensioned cables anchored to concrete bases and anchoring points. The sites in N. Ireland were consistent with the ‘West-coast’ design which relied on dispersal and concealment for protection.
The Greystone station was one of 5 CH sites established in N. Ireland. Approved for construction at the start of 1941, it was completed by the end of the year. However, as the war progressed and the threat of German air attack receded the station was closed in 1944. The Receiver block and R antennae were located where the caravan park is now in Ballyferris, and the transmitter block and R antennae were just south of the Greystone Road. No traces remain. The standby set house remains intact though sections have been removed to allow its use as an agricultural store. Some support structure remain such as the NAAFI and Womens accommodation block.
Standby set house, NAAFI and WAAF barracks and ablutions remains, there are also some hut bases remaining but the antennae, and almost all operational sections of radar station have been removed.

The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. The runways were all 50 yards wide, but three differing lengths, 1,300 yards, 1160 yards and 1000 yards.
A narrow section of exposed runway, approximately 148m by 9m. Constructed of poured concrete surfaced with tarmac.

This site is composed of a concrete revetted firing trench with a concrete and brick shelter used for ammunition storage

Reported in the original Defence Heritage Project as a picket post, it was designed as a small single room shelter with a fireplace, Possibly sited to observe and report on coastal traffic.
The site has deteriorated significantly since it was reported in 1998. The brick wall with concrete render have collapsed with only a small base of the gable now visible through the overgrowth.

During the interwar period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This concrete dispersal is in good condition though overgrown.

In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps. Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school.
The site consists of a number of brick structures and supporting outbuildings. The camp would have had a large number of nissen huts housing displaced families and the school however these have been removed post war. Only three structures remains, two latrines and one unidentified structure which may have housed a generator.

Only the approach track remains, the small circular hardstanding has been removed.

Position where trainee crews unlimbered gun to start firing procedures. US troops armed with M3 37mm Anti-tank gun, British with 2 pounder Mark IX gun. Push from point to take position on edge of bluff to take aim at target track 500 metres distant.
www.frontlineulster.co.uk/portmoon-anti-tank-range/
www.ww2ni.com/county-antrim-part-1

Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door.
Structure constructed to facilitate operations in the camp.

Trench feature located on the lidar survey, uncertain of WW1 or WW2 date.
Plotted from lidar survey, surface remains extant.

The ammunition magazine held the majority of the ammunition stores of 3.7 inch shells to supply the HAA guns. These were held in wooden racks. The curved roof is made of reinforced concrete and the northern door is protected by a brick blast wall.
The site remains in relatively good condition and retain the original blast wall on the northern end. It has been repurposed as an animal shelter/agricultural store.

This site is composed of a concrete revetted firing trench with a concrete and brick shelter used for ammunition storage
The site has recently been cleared of vegetation, revealing the site to be in good condition.

Narrow Water House
The grounds and house at Narrow Water were commandeered to quarter troops during WW2. The site was home to troops from the 2nd (US) Infantry division, who occupied the main house and grounds, where they were quartered in nissen huts.
The main house was returned to civilian use after the war, whereas the huts were cleared away with only a small number of hut bases remaining.

Blister hangars were small arched dispersal sheds, made of wood or welded steel, and were used for the maintenance and storage of aircraft with small wingspans. They were clad in steel sheeting and had quick-release canvas curtains on either end.
The site appears overgrown but hardstanding may be intact.

The main store was a facility for the storage of non-technical items such as clothing and technical equipment such as aircraft components. All incoming material was unloaded into a receiving bay where it was logged and stored away to be issued when needed. The left-hand wing was a general technical store whereas the right hand stored non-technical material.

This building was a garage used to store a single mobile floodlight and the tractor used used to deploy it on the airfield during night flying operations.
In relatively good condition. It is currently used by the owner for domestic storage. The western end wall has been replaced by modern blockwork, but it retains the original window frames, steel frame and AC roof. The main entrance is sealed with corrugated iron.

This site was used to house a Coastal Artillery Searchlight. One of three sited at the fort, it was primarily used to spot and track approaching enemy vessels. Original called Defence Electric Lights (DEL), they were redesignated Coast Artillery Search Lights (CASL) in WW2. This site was constructed in 1940.
Site remains in good condition. It is secured by a steel door and grilles on the windows. It is currently undergoing conservation works.

The ammunition magazine held the majority of the ammunition stores of 3.7 inch shells to supply the HAA guns. These were held in wooden racks.
The site was originally constructed with a curved steel sheeting supporting a concrete roof. This has collapsed in on itself. The low brick retaining walls remains along either side.

Site was a nissen hut housing a generator for providing electrical power to nearby buildings.

This building mounted the Type 84 surveillance and control radar, with its 60 foot wide and 21 foot high rotating radar antenna and its control cabin which also rotated with the antenna at 4 revolutions per minute. It had a maximum effective range of 250 nautical miles (460km).
The modulator building is constructed of red brick and concrete. When operational the Type 84 radar was mounted on the roof on the southern end of the structure. The part of the building immediately beneath the where the radar was mounted housed the DC supply rectifiers to convert alternating electrical current to direct current and the switch and control room. Apparatus to ensure that the radar emitted a wave of constant frequency was located in a room to the south. A short corridor connected the modulator room to separate rooms for generators and switch-gear. There is a fan and filter chamber on the roof.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008)Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004), Frontline Ulster at

Ballyedmond camp
Concrete trackway provided access across the camp.
220 metres of trackway remain relatively intact.

Orlock Coastal Battery
The site housed a Mk. VII 6 inch breech-loading gun on steel hold-fast. The gun could fire a 100-pound armour-piercing shells 12, 600 yards. The position was sheltered by a reinforced concrete gun house, which provided protection from aerial attack.
The reinforced concrete gun house, c. 10 metres square and 2.5 metres high, has been converted by the owner into a games room. A small extension has been built onto the northern face of the position, with sliding doors and a large window, but otherwise the fabric of the gun house is intact. The reinforced concrete roof beams are visible inside the structure.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: the fortifications of Ulster 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)

Provided accommodation for troops or civilian employees of Lockheed Corporation
Appears intact on aerial photographs, no access.
John W Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (Belfast, 2000)
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)
Frontline Ulster at frontlineulster.co.uk/magilligan-musketry-camp/

The watch office (known as the watch office on RAF airfields, but control towers on sites operated by the USAAF) provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Built to designs of the Air Ministry's Directorate of Works and Buildings, as Office for All Commands design, to Drawing No. 12779/41. Rendered brick with asphalt roof. The ground floor had the watch office to front with duty pilot's rest room, meteorological office, switch room and lavatories to rear. The first floor had control room to front, with controller's rest room and signals office to rear, opening onto passage with access to stairs. The design allowed large windows overlooking the airfield, but these were later modified with smaller windows fitted to the watch office at most stations. Post-war the site was fitted with an octagonal Visual Control Room on the roof.
The site remains in relatively good condition although there is some weather penetration into the structure.

Dining facilities for base personnel.

Concrete base remains under grass cover.

Roe Valley Discrict Hospital
Roe Valley Hospital was designated as a casualty receiving hospital at the start of WW2. At least four large nissen wards were constructed, only one remains.
One nissen hut remains on south side of complex. The site is no longer a hospital but does have health clinics.
John Hedley-Whyte, Debra R. Milamed, 'Battle of the Atlantic: Military and Medical Role of Northern Ireland (After Pearl Harbour)', in Ulster Medical Journal (83:3), 2015, pp 182-187.
PRONI file AM/1/5/48

Site was used for inspection of munition after return from operational units or during long-term storage of munitions.

This site is composed of a concrete revetted firing trench with a concrete and brick shelter used for ammunition storage
This site is in good condition, though the fire trench is filed with garden debris.

A circular filter bed, often filled with pumice stone, used as a filter bed for sewage treatment.
All the filter material has been removed and a section of the circular retaining wall removed. It is partially filled with building rubble.

Larne Coastal battery
At the start of WW2, the WW1 vintage coastal batteries at Kilroot and Grey Point forts were fully manned, and an examination service was established at Belfast Lough. Two new batteries were built during 1940; one at Larne, County Antrim and the other at Orlock, County Down. Larne had increased in military importance as it became a base for minesweepers and anti-submarine trawlers. The coast battery at Larne was established in June 1940 as “C” Coast Battery Royal Artillery, with its initial armament of one 12 pounder Quick Firing (QF) gun. This was later replaced with a 4.7 inch gun reinforced with a second gun, this time a 6 inch Breech Loading (BL) Mk VII gun similar to those arming the batteries at Greypoint, Kilroot and Orlock. However, the 4.7-inch gun was replaced with a second 6 inch BL Mk VII gun.
By 3 August 1940 a coastal searchlight had been added to the site at Larne and the battery provided an examination service for the port.
The Admiralty abolished the examination service at British ports in August 1944 and the emergency batteries were run down and finally removed after the ned of the war in Europe in May 1945.
The battery consisted of two 6-inch BL Mark VII guns mounter inside protective brick and concrete gun houses. They were supported by a complex of magazines and battery command post. Photographs of the site appear to show the majority of the battery functions were inside and among requisitioned houses on the sea front.
Most traces of the battery have been removed but two magazines survive and traces of the southern gun house.
Bill Clements, Defending the north: the fortifications of Ulster 1798-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)

This brick and concrete store was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. The store had steel doors (now missing) and a brick blast wall.
Site remains in relatively good condition, it has been repurposed as a cattle shed.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (English Heritage, 2000) website www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt1.htm

The White Stone
The stone was kept painted white as an aid to navigation for aircraft.
Site is intact and appears to be well maintained, a small plaque has been added in recent years.

Provided accommodation for sergeants.
The site of a wooden Laing hut, only the concrete footings remain.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide.
The full 340m of the original perimeter track remain, though it has been resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Only concrete base remains beneath grass cover

A change in NATO policy in the 1970s changed tripwire defence against the Warsaw Pact to that of ‘flexible response’, whereby aggression by the Soviet Union would be met by a proportional response rather than nuclear retaliation as a first option. This called for an early warning network which was capable of operating while under attack. Consequently, a hardened Control and Reporting Post (CRP) and smaller wireless transmitting stations were constructed.
Transmitter/Receiver (Tx/Rx) station constructed in the early 1980s in response to changing strategic stance of NATO. RAF facilities were ‘hardened’ to resist conventional attack. This bunker, used to maintain base communication is similar to one sited on the southern end of the airfield (DHR 32: 44)
The structure is in good condition. This site is constructed of reinforced concrete, the entrance is protected by a blast wall approximately 0.75-1m thick. Used for agricultural storage.

Large area of concrete hardstanding, likely used as a storage area for military equipment.

With the advent of the Cold War, the British airborne nuclear forces became vulnerable to pre-emptive strike. Therefore, the V-force bombers were dispersed to airfields around the UK. These bases became host to either two or, in the case of Ballykelly, four bombers. In order to minimise take-off times, Operational Readiness Platforms (ORP) were constructed at the dispersed bases between 1958 and 1963.
The increased threat from ballistic missile led to the construction of ORPs at the end of runways at approximately 30 designated airfields, to further improve reaction times to fifteen minutes’ readiness. This policy was known as ‘quick reaction alert’ (QRA).
It is unclear exactly how many aircraft could have been sited at Aldergrove, two possibly three.
The hardstanding is intact though resurfaced with modern tarmac, though three distinct square platforms of concrete remain (suggesting the ORP may have been equipped for three aircraft)

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing officer's accommodation

Barrack block used to accommodate officers. It was a Nissen hut design, type ‘C’. They came in spans of 16 foot or 24 foot. Designed in 1915 by Canadian, Col P. N. Nissen, these prefabricated structures were purchased in large numbers as an alternative to brick construction, and became one of the most common structures built during World War 2. They were semi-circular in section, and normally built in multiples of 6 foot sections. They were constructed of steel ribs covered with sections of curved steel sheeting held in place by straining wires. The ends could be either brick or timber.
This hut has a span of 16 foot and was 36 feet long. A fragment of the overgrown western end wall and concrete hardstanding remains.

Provided accommodation for officers. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living
Concrete walled structure, retains asbestos roof, converted into dwelling/holiday

The ammunition magazine held the majority of the ammunition stores of 3.7 inch shells to supply the HAA guns. These were held in wooden racks.
The store is largely intact retaining its endwalls and reinforced concrete shell, however in recent years the western end of the structure has collapsed.

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire., could be used as a fire trench or communication trench to access weapon pits.
Ephemeral traces show up in National Trust lidar survey in 2021.
National Trust, unpublished Lidar Survey of Murlough Nature reserve,
Robert Liddiard and Davis Simms, A very dangerous locality: The landscape of the Suffolk Sandlings in the Second World War (Hatfield, 2018)

This concrete dispersal lies within the grounds of an industrial estate. It is entirely overgrown and impossible to see from the ground but its footprint can be discerned on aerial photographs. Probing through the overgrowth shows that this site remains extant and likely in good condition.

Groups of 6 Nissen huts constructed during WW2 to house troops

This brick and concrete store was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. The store had steel doors (now missing) and a steel gantry connected to a blast wall, which was used for loading and unloading the store.
The structure is set into a cut in the hillside and protected by heavy concrete traverses at the entrance of the cut..
This site is in relatively good condition though heavily overgrown.

Structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear. It has been suggested that this may have housed an electrical generator.
Site intact and in good condition. Now converted to summer house.

The lubricants store was separate from the main stores as it housed dangerous liquids in a fireproof cubicles.
Only concrete base remains with concrete plinth.

This site is designated a West Coast Type C Receiver block by its layout. Constructed of reinforced concrete, it was protected by earthwork revetments. The receiver room contained receiver sets fitted with cathode ray tube consoles which displayed incoming signals reflected by airborne targets. The operator used a goniometer to interrogate height and direction data form the incoming signal. This data was then passed to a plotter who calculated the location of the target on a plotting map.
The site has been demolished and a barn erected on the site

Temporary hut structure used to accommodate troops manning nearby anti-aircraft battery, likely nissen or Laing hut.
Only concrete base remains underneath the grass

The engine house was constructed before WW2 to provide electric power to the searchlights and internal lighting.
The site is in good condition. It is used as a store.

Kilkeel CH station
This site is designated a West Coast Type C Receiver block by its layout. Constructed of reinforced concrete, it was protected by earthwork revetments, but these have been removed, with the only traces of the earthworks remaining on the roof. To the left of the main entrance is the transformer room. Main door lead to the receiver room with the filtration room to the left and office and toilets to the left. The receiver room contained receiver sets fitted with cathode ray tube consoles which displayed incoming signals reflected by airborne targets. The operator used a goniometer to interrogate height and direction data form the incoming signal. This data was then passed to a plotter who calculated the location of the target on a plotting map.
The site is intact and in good condition, much of the internal filtration fittings are also in situ.

Sydenham airfield
The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. This 65 metre section of track connected the western ends of runways 13/32 and 14/32.
65 metres of trackway remain in good condition.
Guy Warner and Jack Woods, In the heart of the city: The history of Belfast's City Airport 193801998 (Belfast, 1998)

Linear ‘Stop-Lines’ were built to support the coastal defences. These were intended to restrict and contain the movement of enemy armoured formations. Canals, river, anti-tank ditches and obstacles were protected by pillboxes, infantry trenches and anti-tank guns at key crossing points, with other bridges and culverts prepared for demolition should the enemy threaten the line. Eight stop-lines were constructed in NI. They were all concentrated east of the River Bann, with the river and the Newry Canal providing the main obstacle bisecting N. Ireland. Line A ran from the Bannmouth on the north coast to Toome where the Bann enters Lough Neagh. Line B started at the Bannfoot on the southern shores of Lough Neagh and followed the line of the River and the Newry Canal to Carlingford Lough. A sequence of lines (C to H) supported lines A and B, and fell back on the Belfast Defence Scheme which was a perimeter of forward defended localities, observation posts and roadblocks.
However, this strategy was seen to be flawed as any penetration of the line compromised the whole defensive scheme. By autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland, fortified with pillboxes and roadblocks.
Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle.
Identified on image from Britain from Above https://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/en/image/XAW045062

Brecart Lodge
Structure constructed to facilitate operations on site, function unknown.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
Two dwellings and outbuildings built on hardstanding and access trackway to dispersal. Owner denied permission to photograph but surface appears in good condition.

Lisgoole
Structure built to facilitate operations on site, exact function is unclear., possibly a canteen.
Structure is largely intact, it has been repurposed as a domestic store.

An incinerator used to burn dried decontaminated waste.

Structure containing electrical switch-gear and transformers to regulate electrical supply to technical site.
The brick structure appears in good condition with original wooden ventilation louvres and signage.

St Lucia Barracks
Originally known as the canteen, the sergeants mess provided dining and recreation facilities for non commissioned officers.
Site is intact and in relatively good condition.
HB file ref HB11/09/005
https://www.ww2ni.com/countytyronepart1.htm

Dispersed living site No. 3 providing accommodation and bathing facilities for officers and NOCs.

Stor of parts, components and tools for the electrical workshop.
Formerly a long narrow structure, only a small section remains repurposed as electrical substation.

Grange Beg Pillbox
This pillbox is constructed of reinforced concrete and brick overlooks the River Bann Estuary. It is located within the National Trust Barmouth Nature Reserve. It has three staircased firing embrasures and three observation ports. The site is heavily overgrown but otherwise in good condition. There are remains of the steel shutter rails inside the position but the shutters are no longer in situ. An access tunnel runs towards the National Trust bird hide but the entrance has been filled in.
The site is in good condition, though a visit in 2019 showed some collapse of the west facing embrasure.

Camp constructed to accommodate crew of HAA battery.
Original DHP report John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001) N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters. This was the XXX yard firing point
Compacted area remain clearly visibly, section in centre either removed or position was composed of 2 small firing points.
NA, located from map evidence and dated from analysis of bullets recovered from butt

Whitehead ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
The site is in relatively good condition, It retains the original access hatch though this has been damaged and is now secured with external steel chains. The louvres from the main hatch and ventilation shaft are missing. Some damage to concrete of main hatch and ventilation shaft.
Subterranea Britannica report at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/whitehead-roc-post/

The watch office (known as the watch office on RAF airfields, but control towers on sites operated by the USAAF) provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Built to designs of the Air Ministry's Directorate of Works and Buildings, as Office for All Commands design, to Drawing No. 12779/41. Rendered brick with asphalt roof. The ground floor had the watch office to front with duty pilot's rest room, meteorological office, switch room and lavatories to rear. The first floor had control room to front, with controller's rest room and signals office to rear, opening onto passage with access to stairs. The design allowed large windows overlooking the airfield.
Site replaced in 1943 by new control tower (still existing) 390 metres to south.

Seco huts were designed to be constructed of standard units for walls and roofs. They made use of plywood, woodwool and asbestos cement. The standardised units eliminated the need for steel in construction and minimised the use of wood. The structures were cheap and easy to erect, while also being lightweight and insulated against the elements. Their flexibility in design allowed for a wide range of uses from barracks, stores, machine shops or even hospitals.
Seco hut providing accommodation for troops or civilian employees of Lockheed Corporation.

Used house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.
Constructed of red brick with air vents in upper course. Largely overgrown.

Trackway providing access for aircraft to a complex of seven blister hangars
Track-way remains though obscured by heavy overgrowth. Cuts through fields also remain, leading to blister hangars (though hangers no longer extant).

The but is and and earthwork and sand traverse/bank used to stop rounds fired downrange after hitting (or missing) their targets.
Visible on aerial photos, this is the remains of a butt used on a WW1 & WW2 small arms range, however the range was removed when the Abercorn barracks was extended..

Small rendered brick structure with flat concrete roof, with two rooms protected by steel (now replaced with wooden) doors. This was used store flare cartridges for ready use.

The radar station set house was constructed to ensure the station could continue to operate if the mains power supply failed. The centre of the structure was a large generating hall housing a single diesel generator. It was fuelled by an elevated day tank which was refilled from a large diesel storage tank from an adjoining room. The generating hall and fuel tanks are surrounded by an enclosing blast wall which is further protected by an earthwork revetment.
Direct access into the generating hall has been enlarged to accommodate farm machinery. The site is currently used to store a stock car and there has been some dumping around the site, with a large quantity of spoil deposited on the southern earthwork revetment.

Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut serving as barracks.

A cam-shaped concrete pillbox constructed on the northern end of the surrounding ditch to protect the battery from ground attack. Designed to me manned by 18 troops.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1596 (Belfast, 2003)

Provided accommodation for naval ratings. Likely nissen hut.

Image clipped from Carryduff Historical Society Facebook Page (21/05/2021) also https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart5.htm

Small brick structure for storing small arms ammunition, for pistols, submachine guns, rifles and machine guns of station defence force.

The armoury had an office for the Station Armament Officer and another for his subordinate. Most of the building was taken up by the Small Arms Store containing small arms for ground defence, such as Enfield rifles, Sten sub-machine gun, Bren light machine guns and pistols. All, except the pistols, were placed in purpose built racks with the pistols in lockable cupboards beneath. A workshop for the servicing of Small Arms was also within the building. It was usual to have a built-in masonry cupboard with a steel door containing ready-use quantities of Small Arms Ammunition. The site reused an existing farm outbuilding.
Small sections of upstanding walls remain on edge of stand of mature trees.

RAF Ballyhalbert was completed in mid-1941 operating fighters for RAF Fighter Command, and was one of three dedicated fighter stations in NI during the war, the others were RAF Kirkistown (which acted as a satellite station for Ballyhalbert) and RAF Eglinton. It was built to the standard 3-runway design and was equipped with two Bellman Hangers and 12 smaller Blister hangers. The first operational fighters were Hurricanes from 245 Squadron. Later in the year Spitfires arrived. A night fighter squadron flying Bristol Beaufighters arrived in 1942, USAAF fighters and Fleet Air Arm were stationed here. There were complaints about the build quality on the site to the extent that the CO called for a Court of Inquiry.
RAF Fighter Command had stopped operating from Ballyhalbert by mid-1944, but Fleet Air Arm squadrons were stationed at the base in 1944 and in 1945 it was as a royal Navy Air Station, becoming HMS Corncrake in July 1945. The airfield was put on care-and-maintenance in November 1945 and eventually abandoned in 1947.
The site is composed of the standard three runway design with surrounding perimeter track. Mush of the eastern side of the airfield has been converted to a caravan park and the norther side redeveloped as residential housing. At some point after its initial construction the main east-west runway was extended by 365 meters, with additional perimeter track added. The runways are clearly on aerial photographs though dumping and overgrowth of grass and moss has obscured sections. Many of the berms which divide up land holdings on the site are composed of rubble generated by the demolition of many of the sites structures. Some key and highly recognisable features remain such as the control tower and machine gun butts. Two fighter dispersal pens survive, though only one is in relatively good condition.
Though much of the airfield is obscured by caravan parks and housing and the technical site has been largely removed there are still a significant number of contemporary structures, including the control tower and rare survivals such as the HFDF compound.

A large hall used to provide recreation for personell, was used as a dance hall.

These shallow tanks would have contained filters beds of sand and gravel which would have drained water away from solid sewage sludge. Once suitable de-watered the waste would destroyed on site.
The 8 shallow concrete beds are heavily overgrown by appear in good condition

Site remains relatively intact though heavily overgrown.

Half Nissen hut providing toilet facilities for officers,

Historic Development During the siege of Derry a fort was located on this site with a battery of cannons directed towards the city . This structure is indicated on a contemporary map as a rectangular enclosure with circular corner bastions to the north-west and an irregular complex of bastions to the south-west overlooking the city. Colonel O’Neill commanded a battery of canons and a regiment of infantry from this position. By the 1831 Ordnance Survey no trace of this fort appeared to survive though an examination of the 1831 map suggests that the road patterns may have formed an echo. The route of this road can be traced through the site today. The construction of the barracks on the site began in 1841 following a number of locations on the city side. Previously soldiers had been accommodated in Foyle Street with a separate magazine at the base of Magazine Street within the city walls. By the 1830s the building was reported by the Ordnance Survey Memoirs as damp and too small for its purpose. The proposal for a barracks on this site had been discussed in1815 but had been opposed by the Council because of the location on the opposite bank. The river would compromise speed of reaction to civil unrest. The ferry connection between the fort and the city was a key element in reassuring these fears. With the formation of a Police Force in Ireland in 1836 concerns over the public order role of the military also reduced. In 1836-7 the Ordnance Estimates record a sum for the new barracks of £6,000. The design was to accommodate 600 men and their officers. The architecture was of simple rendered buildings around a rectangular parade ground. These were in the Georgian style and enclosed within a ‘star fort’ of un-rendered local whinstone. The design was by the Ordnance Board based in London which from 1801 had assumed responsibility for all new military buildings in Ireland. A substantial part of this construction remains today through the boundary wall of the fort inland from the river has been altered. The 1854 Ordnance Survey records the complex at this time. The functions of the individual buildings are clearly labelled. The 1873 map shows the complex largely unchanged through with temporary buildings on the square to each side of the main barracks. In 1875 land was purchased to the south of the complex and extra accommodation for soldiers was erected in a number of ‘whinstone’ buildings (a local form of schist) with brick and sandstone dressings to the openings. A new boundary wall was erected to surround these buildings without apparent alteration of the original. An extra bastion (now demolished) extended the fort closer to the river. In 1891 the land was purchased to the east connecting with Limavady Road. The 1904 Ordnance Survey Map indicates these developments. The now enclosed inland wall of the star fort has been demolished and landscaped into its current form. The officer’s mess is constructed and the accommodation along the perimeter is progressing. By 1933 much of the new lands to Limavady Road had been built upon. Many of these buildings were temporary huts which were replaced by more substantial brick buildings by the 1950s. Most new development has been in this area to the present period. Historic use of the site the buildings as described already were purpose-built as army barracks and appear to have been the first such structure in the city. In their 100-year initial history of army use they were never a regimental depot but for most of the period housed parts of locally recruited regiments. A article in the Londonderry Standard in 1891 recorded the hope that the recently purchased land to expand the base would result in its becoming the main base for a regiment. This was never to be. The 27th of Foot and 109th of Foot were initially stationed on the site. These evolved into the 1st Battalion the Enniskillen Dragoon Guards (main base Enniskillen) and the 2nd Battalion (Derry, Tyrone and Donegal) main base Omagh. They occupied the site until the First World War being replaced during the war by the 3rd (reserve) Battalion of the Enniskillen Dragoon Guards. During the war the poet Francis Ledwidge was stationed for a time at the barracks. He later died in France aged 27. After the war the Barracks were host to a mixture of English and Scottish regiments posted to the city. Some of these regiments were the Sherwood Foresters, the Leicester, Yorkshire and Lancashires, The South Wales Borderers and the Royal Artillery. At the start of the Second World War in 1939 a territorial unit from Wales replaced the regular army. However, after the retreat from Dunkirk in 1940 the importance of Ebrington and its city to the war effort steadily increased. The presence of U-boat bases in France caused most Convoys from America to divert to the North Atlantic route. Derry was the most westerly port and furthest from German airfields. A massive investment in port facilities and airfields was commenced. The Army commander at Ebrington retained seniority for military matters in the city but as the balance of military personnel shifted towards the Navy the Army presence was reduced and the senior command was transferred to the Admiralty. Their commander set up his headquarters in Dill House (now demolished) in the grounds of Magee College. In 1941 the Barracks were partly handed over to the first contingent of American ‘technicians’ to arrive in the city. These technicians were involved in the construction of further military facilities prior to the formal entrance of America into the war. In 1942 the barracks were transferred to the Royal Navy and incorporated into HMS Ferret the name for the Naval base in the city. At the peak of operations, the base handled an average of 120 Escort vessels and had a personnel strength of 30,000 men. Reports at the time describe the river thick with shipping. The base functioned as a depot for ships refuelling and taking on munitions. It was also involved in the development, planning and training of anti-submarine warfare throughout the war. Devices claimed to be developed specifically at Ebrington include: sonar devices, anti-submarine weapons such as the Squid mortar system , depth charges and anti-submarine tracking devices for planes. Squid mortar was developed and pressed into action in a very short period. It increased the success rate in attacking submarines from 9% with depth charges to 35%. In 1945 the German U-boat fleet surrendered to the commander of HMS Ferret at Lisahally. The boats were scuppered at the mouth of Lough Foyle. The development of anti-submarine doctrine and the coordination of air and naval action had been closely associated with HMS Ferret during the war, and in the subsequent period Ebrington remained a Naval Base and retained its role in anti-submarine development. The fort was renamed Sea Eagle in 1947 and the Joint Anti-Submarine School (JAAS) was added to its functions. This provided courses on Anti-Submarine warfare to all NATO countries until 1970. In 1955 the base was used as the command base for a large Naval exercise involving a number of NATO Countries in the North Atlantic. Rear Admiral GUG Simpson controlled the enemy ‘Orange’ submarine force and group Captain RT Gething of JAAS controlled their planes from Sea Eagle premises. In 1951 the IRA raided the base and stole a quantity of arms causing security to be increased. By the late 1950’s however the Eglinton airbase and the Kilnappy supply base (integral parts of the Navy facilities in the area) were closed and operations were reduced at Sea Eagle. Small numbers of troops returned to the barracks in 1958. In 1970 with the worsening security situation the base reverted to full Army use and to its original name. It has been used as the headquarters of Army 8th Brigade throughout most of ‘the Troubles’. This area covered the western of four command regions in the Province. Its parade ground has doubled as a helicopter pad and the link to the river has been used for quick connections to the other riverside base: Fort George and for river patrols. The IRA attacked the base a number of times during the period. A car bomb in the early seventies caused the main entrance to be relocated from Limavady Road, soldiers at the landing quay were attacked in the late 1980’s and a bomb damaged the Browning Drive entrance to the base in the early nineties, causing the guard house to be rebuilt. In January 2001 a mortar attack on the base caused a roof to be damaged but did not explode. The Chief Constable of the RUC announced in January 2002 that the Barracks would close ‘in as part of demilitarisation moves under the Good Friday Agreement’ The Office of the First and Deputy First Minister will be given control of the base in January 2004.
The oldest part of the site is the parade ground and surrounding barracks, administrative buildings, hospital and stores. This is enclosed in a defensive wall with loop holed bastions though the inland section of the wall has been much reduced. The majority of the structures remain in good condition and are currently part of a regeneration programme which will result in the main barrack block on the eastern side of the parade ground being repurposed as a hotel. The red brick Barracks and officers mess constructed during the expansion of the site remain in good condition though many of the 20th century structures have been demolished as the site has been subject to significant regeneration.
The site remains in excellent condign and continued to be central to a major regeneration programme in the city.
Historic buildings file HB01/09/002
Papers held on Historic Monuments file for LDY 14:072

Provided accommodation for 14 WAAF officers

Provided washing and latrine facilities

Concrete and steel block used to maintain tension wires supporting the steel transmitting towers.

Building built as part of the initial construction of the barracks in 1841 and unaltered in plan and general external appearance since. Though windows and fanlight have been replaced by inferior imitations. Labelled on the 1854 ordnance survey as ‘officers quarters’, it appears to have been used for this function at least until 1970. During the period of Sea Eagle (1947-1970) it was the ‘Captain’s House’ and residence of the second of command on the base. When first constructed, a wall linked the front gable of this building to the adjacent boundary wall of the ‘star fort’, it is likely that this was very similar to the surviving wall with arched gateway of building No 71, which is symmetrical about the parade ground.
HB file for HB01/09/002 A
HM file for Ldy 14:72

Part of the access trackway remains and a finger park which is used to store silage bales.

Quonset huts were prefabricated structures first manufactured in the US to fulfil a need for a lightweight hut that could be assembled quickly without skilled labour. Based on the Nissen hut, they were usually a 16-foot span and 36-foot long.
Constructed to provide accommodation for troops.

The site was used to train naval gunnery to merchant seamen who were used to crew merchant vessels and trawler. They were commissioned to carry out patrol duties around the approaches to harbours and tend anti-submarine nets/booms.
The site consisted of mounts for two guns, likely 12 pounder Quick firing (QF) guns what were frequently used to arm merchant ships. There are upstanding remains and traces of ancillary building, the function of which is uncertain.

Two finger parks, not visible but landowner noted they were covered by soil post war, remaining intact beneath the grass.

At the start of WW2 the British military's operational doctrine stressed a mobile flexible response to land attacks, but the catastrophic loss of tanks, transport and heavy weapons meant that the resources were unavailable. Concrete, steel and wire had to make up the shortfall in men and equipment. Stop-lines were initially constructed using pillboxes defending obstacles such as rivers and canals, however by autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland.
This brick shuttered square pillbox is situated to the south of Dungiven covering the crossing point of the River Roe . It has firing embrasures in each face and the entrance is protected by a surrounding wall.
Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a light machine gun, wither a Vickers gun on a tripod or a Bren Gun. However it would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
The structure appears intact though the entrance has been sealed with concrete and the embrasures secured with galvanised steel sheeting.
William Foot, Beaches, fields, streets and hills: the anti-invasion landscapes of England, 1940 (York, 2006)

Greencastle airfield was planned as an RAF bomber Operational Training Unit, but in April 1942 it was designated as one of the N. Ireland airfields to be taken over by the USAAF. The airfield opened in July 1942, but it was over a year before US units were stationed there. The site was handed over the Americans on 3 August 1943 when it was designated as AAF 237. The 5th Combat Crew Replacement Centre was opened training bomber crews. Air gunners practised ground-to-air firing against towed drogue targets. Greencastle was also a satellite air depot for Langford Lodge (DHR 42). This led to the construction of large MAP hard-standings or finger parks, which could store up to 100 aircraft. However, proximity to the salt air of the coast meant long-term storage was not possible. In February 1945 the 5th Aerodrome squadron took control of flight operations at Greencastle and that moth there were 320 aircraft stationed at the airfield. A lodger unit trained ground anti-aircraft gunners from 1944-45, which trained for ground anti-aircraft defence of airfields. The airfield was handed back to the RAF in May 1945 and was closed down soon after.
The airfield remained intact until the 1960s then in a process of field reclamation practically all the runways dispersal and perimeter tracks and many of the structures were broken up and the rubble repurposed into agricultural walls. Indeed, the broken concrete/brickwork walls gives the area a distinctive and possibly unique quality. In contrast, where some of the structures remain they survive in a remarkable degree of preservation, such as the instructional/training site . The finger parks remained in relatively good condition up to the 1990s but recent caravan park developments have eroded the resource.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Opposite the entrance was the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked. Smaller than shelters on dispersed living sites, it was designed to accommodate air and ground crews working at the dispersals.
The brick shelter remains in good condition though there is some deep cracking on the northern edge of the bast wall.

The T2 (‘T’ for transportable) was developed in 1940 to replace Bellman Hangars. They were of a modular design meaning they could be dismantled, moved and reassembled elsewhere. Constructed of steel lattice portal frames and clad in galvanised corrugated iron. The T2 became the standard temporary hangar for the RAF, and over 900 were built during the war. They were considered temporary structures with a limited design life, but many remain on airfields throughout the United Kingdom.
Though the hardstanding was laid down the hanger was never constructed. The site has been covered over with a steel-framed shed for used in recycling. Hardstanding remains intact inside.

Ballymena County Hall
Ballymena county Hall was designated as site of the Northern Area Emergency Centre in event of a nuclear exchange. Staff posted here would be responsible for co-ordinating essential services at local level led by the district council clerks. Quite unclear what their tasks would be but suggestions were collection and dissemination of information, advice on protective measures, determining local priorities and most ominously ‘organising tasks contributing towards survival’.
It was also the Department of Environment's wartime alternative HQ.
The county hall remains a government office .
PRONI file DFP war plan 1984-1988 DFP/6/119 A

Only concrete hardstanding and approach track remain. An agricultural shed has been constructed on the site.

This concrete trackway is 12 metres wide and provided access to one of the T2 hangars (now demolished).
Approximately 99 metres of trackway remain in good condtion.It acts as an access road for a sand extraction operation.

Concrete walled structure, modern replacement roof, converted into dwelling/holiday homes.

Structure erected to accommodate the crew of HAA battery, Precise function unclear, likely barracks.
Only concrete base remains, site heavily overgrown.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Opposite the entrance is an emergency escape hatch.
The brick structure has lost its roof and has been infilled.The brick blast wall remains but is no longer attached to the shelter.

Only the concrete base remains underneath the grass

This three wing structure allowed crews to rest while on duty. The were also used for crew briefings and meetings. Attached was a locker room where they could store flight gear and harnesses, and Mae West life preservers in wooden lockers. It was also used for parachute storage and issue. Though not mentioned, normally the third smallest wing held the drying room with attached boiler room, This was used to dry wet clothing on a series of heated pipes.
Only concrete base remains with small sections of upstanding wall visible.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The low walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments.
Only concrete floor of emplacement remains, obscured by grass.

Provided washing, showering and latrine facilities for troops or civilian employees of the Lockheed Corporation
The brick and concrete structure remains in relatively good condition. Unlike other ablution blocks on this site the annex is attached to the main block.

Glenarm CHL radar station
Should the electrical power from the grid be cut off, each site had its own power generating facility to ensure continuous operation.
Site remains relatively intact,most of the windows have been sealed with modern blockwork.
www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart2.htm

Benburb Priory
From Oct 1943-April 1944 the site was used by the 7th (US) Field Hospital. IN the first two months of operations the 150-bed unit admitted 900 patients and over the course of its term the hospital cared for 3,564 patients.
The Priory buildings remain intact and in good condition though temporary outbuildings were demolished post-war.

Likely constructed to facilitate the operations of the US 82nd Airborne troops who were billeted in and around Cookstown 1943044.
Site remains in relatively good condition, it used as a a store.
John P McCann, Passing through: The 82nd Airborne Division in Northern Ireland, 1943-44 (Newtownards, 2005)
https://www.ww2ni.com/countytyronepart1.htm

Site used for the storage of fuel, likely coal to feed heating stoves throughout camp.
Only concrete hardstanding remains. Used to store silage bales.

Charlemont Fort
Small camp shown on aerial photos. Three hut bases visible in 1941, still visible as parch-marks in modern aerial imagery.
Only visible on aerial photos, subsurface features may remain.
PRONI aerial photo from file AM/1/5/50B/3161-3210

The armoury had an office for the Station Armament Officer and another for his subordinate. Most of the building was taken up by the Small Arms Store containing small arms for ground defence, such as Enfield rifles, Sten sub-machine gun, Bren light machine guns and pistols. All, except the pistols, were placed in purpose built racks with the pistols in lockable cupboards beneath. A workshop for the servicing of Small Arms was also within the building. It was usual to have a built-in masonry cupboard with a steel door containing ready-use quantities of small-arms ammunition.
Structure is in relatively good condition, some sections of compressed asbestos roof sheeting are missing.May be used as cattle byre but could not get close inspection on day of fieldwork due to presence of cattle with calves.

Divis Firing Range
This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters. This was the 200 yard firing point.
Slightly raised compacted soil marks out firing point.

Concrete base of structure, possibly nissen hut to accommodate soldiers.

The operations block was the central control for all flight operations from the airfield. Orders were received via a telex room and flight plans, targets plotted on target maps, crew listings and final planning for flight operations took place here. Finalised plans, distress procedures and operational radio frequencies were passed on to the crews in the crew briefing room. It was reinforced to operate while under attack and a ventilation system was fitted to provide protection from attack by chemical weapons.
The brick and reinforced concrete structure where it remains is in relatively good condition, though some internal walls have been knocked through and the interior is strewn with rubble. Old animal shelters remain in some of the rooms. Sections of the contemporary ventilation system remain throughout the structure. Construction of a private dwelling resulted in demolition of the air conditioning plant and boiler room.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. The defence sites at St Angelo appear to be more dispersed across the landscape due to the hilly topography breaking lines of sight, necessitating more defensive clusters than is normally seen at WW2 airfields.
Site is so heavily overgrown is was difficult to discern exact design of pillbox but likely similar to those formerly found elsewhere on the airfield.
Site is intact but heavy vegetation and fencing makes closer examination difficult.

A cam-shaped concrete pillbox constructed on the southern end of the surrounding ditch to protect the battery from ground attack. Designed to me manned by 18 troops.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1596 (Belfast, 2003)

Small private air raid shelter constructed of concrete. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
Site remains intact and in good condition.

This was a series of 28 steel storage tanks, each capable of holding 10,000 barrels of fuel. Site individually or in groups of three or four, they were surrounded by earthwork bunds used to contain any potential leaks.
All the WW2 tanks were removed post-war, with only a single post-war tank remaining. It sits within the confines of the original bund excavation.

Langford Lodge has 2 runways, this was Runway No. 2 and is 1,440 metres long.
The concrete runway is surfaced in tarmac and is in good condition. It is maintained by the owners who use it for flights servicing the factory several times per year.

WW2 structure of uncertain function. It may have been used to house electrical generating equipment. May have been used to support flight operations from nearby RAF Nutts Corner.
Structure remains largely intact, appears to have been repurposed as an animal shelter.

The guard house controlled access to and from the camp, with responsibility for providing security for the entire station.
Site remains intact and in good condition.

Benbradagh USN radio station
Steel mast used for transmission communications using microwave transmissions.
Only concrete plinth of helix/antenna tuning hut remains

Derrymore
Structure built to facilitate operations ay the camp.
Only impression where site stood now evident.
Liz MacShane and George Rutherford, Survey of Derry More WWII army base, County Armagh, for Ulster Archaeological Society, survey report 20 (2011) found at
https://gitrailni.com/gitrail/derrymore-house/

St Angelo Airfield
During World War II aircraft were considered to be vulnerable when on the ground, either from air attack or from possible ground attack. Precautions were taken to prevent any loss of aircraft when not in action. As a result aircraft were often held in dispersed pens located around the perimeter of the airfield but with access to the main runways. The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site was constructed earthwork traverses on concrete revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There was a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.
Site aSir may yet retain earthwork revetment and central traverse, used to store timber. No Access to site therefore assessment from recent aerial photographs.

Structure containing electrical switch-gear and transformers to regulate electrical supply to technical site.
The brick and concrete structure is in good condition. It has 3 rooms with entrances protected by blast walls. Used by cattle as a shelter.

Much of the runway has been removed by the construction of the prison, Approximately 265 m of runway remain though this has been resurfaced with tarmac.

The location of Northern Ireland on the western edge of the United Kingdom suggested that the region may be insulated from the threat of German bombing raids. Plans laid down by the government in London for the defence of Britain and Northern Ireland assumed that air defences in England would protect the province. After the Munich crisis of 1938, A re-evaluation of air defences recommended that Belfast be protected by a single fighter squadron, twenty-four heavy (HAA), and twenty-four light anti-aircraft (LAA) guns. Nevertheless, with the advent of war, Belfast was considered an unlikely target for German raids. Consequently, few guns were committed to the defence of the city and none were supplied to protect the rest of the north. The fall of France in June 1940 brought Northern Ireland well within the range of air attacks from German bases in northern France. Therefore recommendations were made to double the strength of the gun defences in the province, but shortages of equipment meant that on the eve of the air raids on Belfast in the spring of 1941, Belfast was defended by sixteen HAA guns (in four batteries), and six LAA guns. The damage and human toll inflicted by the Luftwaffe raids on the nights of 15 April and 4-5 May was devastating, with over 1,000 people killed and almost half the housing stock of the city rendered uninhabitable. Shocked into action by the appalling loss of life and damage to industry, the anti-aircraft defences were significantly reinforced. Four Gun Defended Areas (GDA) were established; Belfast, Larne, L’Derry and Lough Erne. Twelve HAA batteries surrounded the periphery of Belfast, while seven HAA batteries were built around L’Derry and the Foyle estuary, and two each at Larne and Lough Erne.
HAA batteries were typically armed with four 3.7-inch heavy anti-aircraft guns, which could fire a 28-pound projectile to an effective ceiling of 32,000 feet. The gun crews were directed from the battery command post. The command post provided height, direction and altitude data to the gun pits to enable the gun layers to set the fused to detonate at the correct altitude. Most batteries had a ramp and platform nearby which held the gun laying (GL) radar. A polygonal mat surrounded the GL radar, marking the area of the false datum, which was composed of a wire mesh and was needed to generate a false horizon for the primitive GL radar sets.
All the battery has been removed saving the ammunition store

Built to accommodate troops as part of the initial phase of construction of Ebrington Barracks in 1841, though the porches and tower to the parade ground are not indicated until the 1873 Ordnance Survey Map. The toilet extensions to the rear are first indicated on the 1955 Ordnance Map though chamfered door openings inside suggest an earlier date in the century circa 1900’s as elsewhere on the site. In the 1955 map, the building is connected at the northern end to the single storey building (number 70) to the south. This building is removed by 1977. The building is indicated on the 1854 map as Soldiers’ Quarters. It fulfilled the same function at the time of survey in 2003.
The barrack block was in excellent condition when the site was vacated by the army, it is currently being refurbished and repurposed as a hotel.
Structure is intact though currently being redeveloped.
HB file for HB01/09/002, HM file for LDY 14:72

Provided washing and bathing facilities
IN good condition. has been refurbished with modern windows, roof and fittings. Repurposed as an animal rehoming service.

Structure relating to operation of the searchlight battery, function remains unclear.
In relatively good condition. Roof has been replaced and the windows sealed with modern blockwork. Has been repurposed as a store.

Site of a military depot with large storage huts, likely Romney or Iris huts.

For storing fuel for use in the camp, likely coal to for stoves.
Only a few traces of the concrete hardstanding remain.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
Site appear intact though there appears to be a number of vehicles dumped on the site. Access could not be gained on the day of survey therefore assessment made from aerial photos.

Living site for personnel. Had 24 structures, mostly barracks with ablution and latrines, also Stanton air raid shelters.
Air raid shelter
Only remaining structure visible is an air raid shelter

Benbradagh USN radio station
Structure built to facilitate operatons at the radio station, exact funtion remains unclear.
Concrete structure built to facilitate operations at the radio station, exact function remains unclear.

Maydown Airfield
The T-series (transportable) hangars were developed from 1940 to replace the now obsolete Bellman hangars. Constructed of a steel frame and galvanised steel cladding the T1 was similar to the more common T2, but smaller, 90 feet wide, 175 feet long with a clear height of 19 feet.
Only concrete base and access track remains and these are obscured by heavy vegetation and moss growth.

Army camp constructed to house troops during WW1.
Irish army archive no IE/MA/MPD/AD119288-001 at https://mpdsearch.militaryarchives.ie/ Website https://frontlineulster.co.uk/north-irish-horse-camp-antrim/

In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps. Eight of these camps were erected near Ballymena. Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school.
The site consists of a number of brick structures and supporting outbuildings. The camp would have had a large number of nissen huts housing displaced families and the school however these have been removed post war. A pumphouse and water tank plinth remain on the northern end of the site.
There are six upstanding structures remaining with more hut bases though the precise number is unclear as they are obscured by grass cover

Used to store personnel's coats, cloaks and outerwear. The facility was heated as the structure had a small brick chimney.
Site was intact until recently, now demolished only the concrete base remains.

Only concrete base remains obscured by vegitation.

Magilligan Coast Artillery Battery
This site was used to provide shelter to crews on watch at gun site 3, mounting the 12 pounder QF gun.
The brick shelter is heavily overgrown to the extent that it is difficult to discern the extent of the site, but it appears intact.
John W Blake, Northern ireland in the Second World War (Belfast, 2000)
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)
Frontline Ulster at frontlineulster.co.uk/magilligan-musketry-camp/

Barrack block used to accommodate sergeants. It was formerly a Laing hut, made of a wooden frame and plasterboard covered in felt sheeting to weatherproof.

This 212 metre concrete roadway resembles a short runway. It is 11 metres wide but not
especially level. This may have been caused by slippage since the structure was built. There are two concrete ramps on the wester end possibly to allow vehicular access. One industrial heritage record (IHR 7700) suggested that the ‘runway’ was used to by a truck to tow a moving target via pulleys to a target on the high ground to the north.
The site is relatively intact though the uneven surface suggests there may have been some subsidence/slippage since the site was abandoned.
www.frontlineulster.co.uk/portmoon-anti-tank-range/
www.ww2ni.com/county-antrim-part-1

The aircraft manufacturer Boulton and PAul based in London and Norwich designed and built hangars for factories and RAF Armament Training Schools. Usually built in single (VR1) and double spans (VR2), Constructed of a steel frame with corrugated asbestos sheeting.
This example is unusual as it has five span, with three at full length and two at half.
Site is intact and in good condition. it has been reclad post war with modern steel sheeting.

Used to store replacement clothing and uniforms
In good condition, retains original roof and windows. Repurposed as offices for car dealership.

83 metres of 5.5 metre wide concrete trackway providing access around the camp.

Site used to pump water to and/or from the filter beds.
Only 2 sections of upstanding wall and footings remain.

Much of the runway has been removed by the construction of the prison, approximately 118 m of runway remains.

Concrete track way providing providing access to series of finger park dispersals
Road partially built built along line of track way, approximately 600 m remains in good condition

A small brick structure to provide shelter to units on guard duty at the site. A record would be kept of who entered and left the site.

A naval base established for the Royal Navy during WW2 and was associated with HMS Caroline, which acted as the RN headquarters in Belfast. Composed of a complex of structures incorporating maintenance units, stores (clothing, paint, petrol ammunition etc). There were nine large fuel storage tanks The tanks had been cleared by 1950.
The site has been redeveloped, there are no visible traces of the base.
PRONI file Defence of Belfast 1939-43 CAB/3A/1

Concrete walled structure, modern roof, converted into dwelling/holiday homes.

This structure held diesel electrical generators, fuel and electrical switch-gear and transformer, which provided power to vital parts of the airfield in the event of a failure of the main supply. It had a single storey engine room. It has a reinforced concrete rood and large steel beam which was used to support a crane/hoist
The site remains in good condition. It has been converted to a domestic store/garage. The structure has been covered in a modern render and a pitched roof added to the single storey annex. A lean-to carport has been added. The owner refused permission to enter or photograph the site.

Provided shower facilities for sergeants.
The site remains in good condition with its original roof, window frames and boiler house on southern end.

The Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes is a company created by the British government on 9 December 1920 to run recreational establishments needed by the British Armed Forces, and to sell goods to servicemen and their families.
The structure housed the NAAFI which provided canteen and recreation facilities for airmen. It usually contained a kitchen, dining room and games/recreation room.

Structure housed fire section office which was responsible for running and training the fire fighting unit (RAF Fire Service). They were a specialist unit trained for dealing with aircraft/aviation fires.
Site appears to be intact on recent aerial photos, no access to give more detailed assessment.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the site though function remains unclear.

The main workshop building was an attempt to centralise workshop requirements in a single structure. Two main workshops are connected by an annex, with a smaller central workshop. The facility would have contained an air-frame repair shop, an engine store and the annexes may have functioned as a machine shop and welders shop.
The main workshop normally comprised 3 brick structures however in this case only the central structure appears to be brick, the 2 either side appear to have been two 24 foot span Nissen huts. The remains of the steel spans are collapsed on bot sites with small sections of brick gable remaining.

The rectangular structure is surrounded on three sides with a low earthwork traverse. Though unidentified, its location and size suggests it may have been the small ammunition store for the battery's defence unit.

Caledon House
The house, grounds and outbuildings of the Caledon estate were requisitioned by the War Office during WW2 and used to billet troops. The camp initially housed British troops but by 1942 these wee replaced by units of the 34th (US) Infantry Division. These troops went on to take part in the invasion of North Africa as part of Operation Torch in November 1942. The 23rd Inf. Regt, 2nd (US) Infantry Division arrived in Oct 1943 after which they were sent to Normand landing on D+1 on 7 June 1944. Belgian troops were stationed here in 1945.
The main house and stables remain in good condition with contemporary graffiti and wall paintings remaining in the top yard stables.

Concrete walled structure, modern roof, converted into dwelling/holiday home.

Groomsport ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ. This post was closed in 1991.
Older photos of this site from the original DHP show a dome on the ventilation shaft marking this site as a Master Post. One post in each cluster was equipped with a VHF radio and antenna to keep in contact with the group HQ should the land lines fail.
The site is intact and sealed. The access hatch has been covered with a thick layer of anti-climbing paint to deter anyone seeking to gain access. The VHF dome on the ventilation shaft appears to be missing and the site is heavily overgrown.
Subterranea Britannica entry at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/groomsport-roc-post//,

This building brought together the instrumentation needed for effective fire-control of the four HAA guns. It is a semi-sunk partially roofed structure, with open bays overlooking the guns, holding the height-finder, predictor and telescope. Inside was found the plotting room, telephonists and offices. The plotting room was the core of the structure and was used to receive and process raid data from telephone and radar. This data was used to calculate information to direct the fire of the battery guns.
Site remains intact and in relatively good condition.
Richard Doherty, Key to victory: The maiden City in the Second World War (Derry, 1995) Richard Doherty, 'Escort base' in Ulster Local Studies, Vol 16, No. 1 (1994), pp 31-42.

Randalstown Camp
In 1914 Lord O'Neill made 80 acres of the Dunmore estate available to the War Office to establish a barracks and training camp for army recruits before dispatch overseas. Construction began in October 1914 and was completed in December of the same year.
A contemporary map shows the camp divided into four named areas: The Mount Camp, Dunmore Camp, Hollow Camp and Ridge Camp. It was composed of dozens of wooden huts fit to accommodate 125 officers and 4,500 other ranks. Practice trenches were cut in areas of open ground and three firing ranges were established to the south of the camp in the Shane's Castle deer park.
It initially billeted the 109th inf. brigade of the 36th Ulster Division. The troops were sent overseas in July 1915, after which the site became a depot for rehabilitating injured troops who, after retraining, were fit to return to active duty. The site remained in use as a convalescent hospital until 1919.
The hutting as long been removed though indistinct surface features are discernible on aerial photographs and on Lidar surveys of the area. The practice trenches are clearer and the slumped earthwork target galleries are still extant in Randallstown forest park.
Ephemeral traces of the hut sites and practice trenches can be discerned and three target gallery earthworks remains upstanding.
Rory McNeary, Archaeological feature detection using laser scanning at Shane's Castle Park, County Antrim, Ulster Journal of Archaeology, vol. 70,(2011), pp 111-125. Website https://frontlineulster.co.uk/randalstown-camp/

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide. This track was constructed when the runways were realigned between 1941-43.
Approximately 960 metres of track remain in good condition, though resurfaced with modern tarmac post-war, the original concrete surface likely survives beneath.

Maydown Airfield
Concrete trackway which provided access to sick quarters, no visible signed of hospital buildings remain.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The 40m diameter concrete hard-standing is in good condition, grass growing from expansion joints. Building rubble and hay bales stored on site.

A small brick structure to provide shelter to units on guard duty at the site. A record would be kept of who entered and left the site.
In relatively good condition, ithas the original rood though this appears to be stating to collapse. Windows sealed with modern blockwork.

Red brick store used to store arms and equipment for home guard units.
Pers. comm. from moderator of https://ww2ni.webs.com/

For storing fuel for use in the camp, likely coal to for stoves.
Originally an area of concrete hard-standing surrounded by wire fencing, only the concrete path and hard-standing remain, though much of this is obscured by overgrowth and earthwork berms.

Airfield bomb dumps were designed to store high explosive bombs, incendiary bombs, fused bombs, tail units, bomb components and small arms ammunition. As would be expected they were sited well away from the technical area. Toome had two main bomb stores: a double trackway serviced both. The northern track is 12-foot wide allowing lorries to unload munitions into the stores, whereas the southern track widened to 20 feet to accommodate tractors and bomb trolley trains. The bomb stores at Toome were an improvement over pre and early-war designs. Designated 3164/42, the store consisted of a series of 30-foot square open storage areas protected by 25 foot thick and 6-foot high earthwork traverses. The stores were built with a slight slope to enabled easier loading from the upper track while bombs were taken from the lower track. Bombs were then driven on trolley trains to the fusing points before being taken out to aircraft for loading.
Only the lower track remains, though a series or raised areas along the track may be the ephemeral remains of the earthwork berms and traverses of the bomb storage areas.

Site appears intact and in good condition

The guard house was the main point of access and egress from the airfield, where visitors reported providing their authorisation for entry, and where they signed out on leaving. Airmen reported here with leave passes before they were allowed off station. The guard house also held prisoners prior to their appearance before their section officers or CO. The accommodation was split between civilian wardens, the fire party and the station guard.
The structure is in good condition. It retains the original roof and windows. It has been secured with modern steel doors and steel roller shutters.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is shown on the Ballyhalbert Defence Plan map as having three pillboxes and two slit trenches.
No traces visible, but possibility of subsurface remains of pillboxes and slit trenches.

Claudy ROC post
With WW2 over the government felt the Royal Observer Corps had a role to play in aircraft observation and tracking. However, this task became increasingly difficult due to the development of jet aircraft. Therefore new monitoring posts were developed to assist observers. New observation posts were constructed during 1951-2 which provided some level of protection from the elements for observers. They were known as Orlit Posts (after the manufacturers of the pre-cast concrete versions). The came in two versions, the ground level Orlit A and the raised Orlit B. It quickly became apparent that the ROC was ineffective tat reporting high-speed aircraft and it role in the diminished from 1957.
Constructed of brick, this structure was an Orlit B, raised on legs approx. six feet high. Accessed by ladders, It had a covered shelter/store and an open observation area which held a plotting chart.
In situ at time of original DHP survey, site was demolished sometime after 2018
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/claudy-roc-post/

Langford Lodge has 2 runways, this was Runway No. 1 and is 1,780 metres long.
The concrete runway is surfaced in tarmac and is in good condition. It is maintained by the owners who use it for flights servicing the factory several times per year.

Designed in 1915 by Canadian, Col P. N. Nissen, these prefabricated structures were purchased in large numbers as an alternative to brick construction, and became one of the most common structures built during World War 2. They were semi-circular in section, and normally built in multiples of 6 foot sections. They were constructed of steel ribs covered with sections of curved steel sheeting held in place by straining wires. The ends could be either brick or timber.
Nissen Erected to accommodate crew of HAA battery, precise function unclear.

This was a Ministry Of Supply (MoS) living hut. It was unusual in that it had canted sides unlike most other timber huts. It was a simple wooden frame construction. The gable ends were made of 5 sections of light timber stud work framing which were bolted together. It was clad with plasterboard, the external face was felted. Each hut was normally 60 feet long. There were 3 alternative internal arrangements.
1: A large open plan dormitory for 19 airmen and single bedroom for an NCO.
2: Quarters for 10 sergeants or airmen , with 4 double bedrooms and 2 single bedrooms arranged along a central corridor.
3: Quarters for 6 officers with a servants bedroom at the rear.
This was an MoS barrack hut to accommodate officers

Woodville House
This was a military camp erected in the grounds of Woodville House during WW2. It was demolished post-war. The site has been redeveloped with housing.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Opposite the entrance was the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
The structure remains in good condition but the wall containing original entrance has been removed.

The control tower (in this case Drawing no. 518/40), known as the watch office on RAF airfields, but control towers on sites operated by the USAAF, provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. The control tower provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Almost square, the control tower is 44 feet 9 inches by 37 feet 6 inches and was the largest wartime design. Initially, it was intended to have an all-timber first floor, but a shortage of wood resulted in only the control room and balcony being made of timber. The ground floor contained the metrological section and teleprinter room with the control tower at the front. Above this on the first floor was the controller’s restroom, signals office and the control room with access out onto the balcony. The ground floor contained the watch office, forecast room, teleprinter room. Lavatories, restroom and switch room. The first floor housed the signals office, restrooms and the large control room. This was the heart of the control tower and held the plotting board, aerodrome lighting control board and the aerodrome state board. The stairs continued to the roof and the balloon filling room.
Remained in good condition until site was demolished in late 1990s. Recorded in original Defence heritage project as DHP 1.

A small brick structure to provide shelter to units on guard duty at the site. A record would be kept of who entered and left the site.
Only concrete base remains, obscured by grass overgrowth.

Provided toilet facilities and also drying room for personnel. Drying room had heated pipes doe drying wet coats over-clothes.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks.
Site appears intact though obscured by grass cover.

Stormont civil defence sub-control centre
Six sub-control buildings were built by Belfast council between 1954-6 to support the efforts of the War Room at Mount Eden, Belfast in the event of a nuclear attack. It remained operational until the disbanding f the Civil Defence Corps in 1968.
The structure consists of a single story, rectangular, concrete built building set into an artificial hollow with a low bank of earth to the west, north and east. The control centre retains many of the original fixtures, fittings and plant that were installed during its initial construction. This structure is the only known upstanding example of its type in Northern Ireland. It has been repurposed as a government document store.
Site is well-maintained and secured behind a wooden fence.
Report in Subterranea Britannica at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/belfast-stormont-sub-control/
Scheduling file for Dow 5:94

Site used for the storage of fuel, likely coal to feed heating stoves throughout camp.

Structure erected to facilitate operations on site, function not clear.
Small brick structure remains largely intact. though brick blast wall/porch has been removed.

Tanks used to store water supply for the camp. Tanks was mounted on a concrete plinth.
The tank has been removed with only the concrete plinth and some steel pipework remaining.

Military structure erected to facilitate operations at the camp.

Terminal building for processing passengers for trans-Atlantic flights.
Only concrete base remains. Large dump of hardcore on site.

The Royal Navy operated a wireless station at this site during WW2. The crews, often WRENS, intercepted German radio transmissions which enabled accurate bearings of the transmissions to be calculated.

Large steel shed used to store equipment and material for use at the base.

Offices housing the Depot Engineering Department
Modernised with new roof, windows and render. Used as accommodation for on site staff

This is a small example of the type, just 55 foot/16.5 metres in diameter.
The site appears intact though obscured by overgrowth of grass

Military camp constructed during WW2, likely composed of nissen huts, its precise function remains unclear.
PRONI RAF aerial photos file AM/1/5/9B/3081-3110

Runway layout was traditionally three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. However the airfield was never completed with only a single runway being partially completed before the site was closed.
This is a 1,016 metre section of runway lying north of the Moss Road. It is in relatively good condition. Used to store silage and building rubble.

Kinnegar HAA battery
HAA batteries were typically armed with four 3.7-inch heavy anti-aircraft guns, which could fire a 28-pound projectile to an effective ceiling of 32,000 feet. The gun crews were directed from the battery command post. The command post provided height, direction and altitude data to the gun pits to enable the gun layers to set the fused to detonate at the correct altitude. This battery appears to have been constructed with four gun pits of an early square design the reconfigured with new round gun pits.
Aerial photo from PRONI file AM/1/5/42A/0241-0286

Structure relating to the operation of the firing range
www.frontlineulster.co.uk/portmoon-anti-tank-range/
www.ww2ni.com/county-antrim-part-1

Provided accommodation for sergeants and medical orderlies.
Two semi-circular concrete gables survive, with sections of steel support and concrete base, but most of the hut is now gone and a large bush is growing through the centre of the structure.

Road constructed to bypass northern end of runways
265 m of concrete roadway remain in good condition

For reasons of safety the bomb stores were sited away from the main airfield and living sites. Stores were usually grouped according to type of weapons. This store held incendiary bombs, designed to destroy targets by starting fires as opposed to explosive blasts. It also held pyrotechnics such as flares.
The brick and concrete structure is in relatively good condition, entrance enlarged post war for agricultural use. The site also retains part of its original earthwork traverse to rear of structure.

The pump and filter house were used to draw freshwater from Lough Neagh and pump it to a large metal storage tank which sat near St James’ Church
The pump house is built of rendered brick, a steel frame rood and compressed asbestos sheeting. Sections of the roof have collapsed, and small sections of asbestos can be found littered around the structure. Two major structural cracks are present on the west-facing wall. From here fresh water was drawn from Lough Neagh and pumped to the station’s high-level water tower which stood close to St. James’ Church.

The coastal pillbox was sited to provide defensive fire using machine guns along the length of the beach or covering the beach exits, firing through embrasures in the concrete wall. The concrete was thick enough to provide protection against bullets and shell splinters but was not thick enough to withstand direct fire from artillery and heavy guns. This pillbox appears to be a variant to design DFW3/24, it is significantly taller than usual and no anti-ricochet wall inside. It has 7 firing embrasures and an entrance in the rear wall.
It was also sited on the perimeter of the Ballykinler army camp, providing perimeter security, The camp was just behind the beach so would have had to be included in the beach/coastal crust defence scheme.
The pillbox is a rare split level variant with firing embrasures on two levels
The structure remains in good condition.

During the interwar period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed. This is a small example of the type, just 55 foot/16.5 metres in diameter.
Some remains though difficult to be sure as the site is heavily obscured by dumping.

This site contained the High Frequency Detection Finding equipment, known as Huff Duff for short, was a radio transmitter used to guide aircraft over long distances. Tracking aircraft could be difficult overland, therefore stations could tune into the transmissions of friendly aircraft.
Only concrete base and path to site remain.
Frontline Ulster: Military history in the north of Ireland and beyond

This was the site of a military camp composed of at leas 11 huts. It's function remains unclear but the hut bases are clearly visible on post-war RAF aerial photos.

Provided bathing facilities for WAAF personnel.
In poor condition with only walls remaining. Only a small section is roofed with modern metal sheeting.

This structure was related to the operation of the heavy anti-aircraft battery, its function is unknown. Likely nissen hut to accommodate troops.
DHP report.

A concrete trackway providing vehicular access along the site.
The track is obscured by foliage and accumulated topsoil, but sections appear intact.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This DL had 4 possibly 5 defensive structures.
No visible structure but potential for buried remains.

Site was used to store explosives such as bombs and depth charges. This design had 4 brick stores separated by earthwork traverses, surrounded by a concrete trackway.
Uncertain of surviving remains as access could not be during the course of the survey.

Runway layout was traditionally three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. However the airfield was never completed with only a single runway being partially completed before the site was closed.
This narrow 198 metres of concrete track is the early stages of runway construction.

This building was a garage used to store a single mobile floodlight and the tractor used used to deploy it on the airfield during night flying operations.
This tall single storey structure has full height doorways on the northern and southern faces and three windows, with original frames, on each sidewall. Generally weatherproof, vegetation is penetrating where sections of the roof have collapsed, leaving asbestos cement panels littering the floor, along with potions of the original doors.

Constructed of reinforced concrete, the coastal pillbox was sited to provide defensive fire using machine guns along the length of the beach firing through embrasures in the concrete wall. The concrete was thick enough to provide protection against bullets and shell splinters but was not thick enough to withstand direct fire from artillery and heavy guns.
Structure was likely hexagonal with seven embrasures like the other pillboxes along the Co. Down coastline like DHR 67 and 69.
The site was subject to a survey by the Ulster Archaeological Society in 2011.
The site has been subject erosion by the sea and has been largely broken up. Majority of remains buried under the sand.

Site was used to store flare cartridges. Built to design 12725/41, this was a Nissen hut surrounded by an earthwork traverse.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide
This 155 metre section of perimeter track is not visible on the ground, appears as a grass mark/cropmark after long periods of warm dry weather.

The site is heavily overgrown. The access track is in relatively good condition but the circular dispersal is heavily overgrown making it difficult to assess condition.

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire., could be used as a fire trench or communication trench to access weapon pits.
Ephemeral traces show up in National Trust lidar survey in 2021.
National Trust, unpublished Lidar Survey of Murlough Nature reserve, CBA, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol 3, site gazetteer: Northern Ireland Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008) Robert Liddiard and Davis Simms, A very dangerous locality: The landscape of the Suffolk Sandlings in the Second World War (Hatfield, 2018)

Long Kesh airfield
Living site for personnel. Had 16 structures, mostly barracks with ablution and latrines.

Small structure associated with heavy anti-aircraft battery. Function unclear but small size suggests it may be a latrine.

This was a steel shed used to maintain and repair equipment.

The Quonset hut was developed to answer a need ny the US Navy for a lightweight building that could be shipped anywhere and assembled with unskilled labour. The prefabricated structure of galvanised steel had a semi-circular cross section and was similar to the Nissen hut. Developed by the George A Fuller construction company,it was named after its first site of manufacture at the Davisville Naval Construction Battalion Centre, Quonset Point, Rhode Island.
Quonset hut constructed to facilitate operations in the ammunition depot, precise function is unclear.
Structure is heavily corroded with only the base, steel ribs and endwalls remaining.

Large concrete wall placed opposite entrance to a magazine to deflect a blast in the event of an accidental explosion in the magazine.

Royal Victoria Hospital
The RVH was declared a Class A/Group 1 casualty receiving hospital at the start of WW2. Numerous nissen hut structures were erected to provide additional wards/facilities.
John Hedley-Whyte, Debra R. Milamed, 'Battle of the Atlantic: Military and Medical Role of Northern Ireland (After Pearl Harbour)', in Ulster Medical Journal (83:3), 2015, pp 182-187.

As part of the defence plan for Norther Ireland there as a plan for prepare demolition of bridges across major waterways to slow down/channel the advance of the invading force. Demolition cambers were fitted to or cut into bridges. At short notice explosives could be brought to the site and placed in the pore-pared chamber and detonated to destroy the bridge.
Described by local WW2 heritage website as 'the engineers in Gilford, was to create a concealed room underneath the bridge in the town', adding 'near the bottom of Whinney Hill, tunnels ran from both sides of the bridge to the underground room. Although the tunnels are now sealed up, the room still exists, located close to the mail-box at Bridge House'.
N Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol 3, Site Gazetteers: Northern Ireland (CBA)
https://www.wartimegilford.com/visiting-troops-2/british/

Structure relating to the accommodation of anti-aircraft battery's crew. Small size suggests it may have been a latrine.
Only the concrete base remains underneath the grass

Stormont Annexe
During the Cold War the annex located next to the Speakers House was housed the Whitehall Teleprinter Network node for Northern Ireland. The teleprinter network was a means to receive and disseminate high-level communications between Whitehall and other government departments in post-attack conditions.
The teleprinter equipment was fitted with cypher equipment providing security up to and including Top Secret transmissions.
The WTN node in Stormont was manned by Northern Ireland office or Central Secretariat staff responsible for disseminating information to NI departments.
PRONI file DFP war plan 1984-1988 DFP/6/119 A

A steel air raid shelter designed to protect personnel from splinters and near-misses. Typical US design, a narrow steel pipe with the main entrance on one end and an emergency escape on the other.
Obscured by undergrown but main pipe section intact.

Dining facility for enlisted airmen.
Originally constructed of brick with 3 annexes, only the concrete hardstanding remains.

Campbell College
Campbell College grounds and buildings were requisitioned as a military hospital during WW2. From Spring 1940, Netherleigh House, Ormiston house and the school sanatorium where occupied by elements of 15th Company Royal Army Medical Corps, but by July the main building housed the hospital, Neterhleigh the officers section and Ormiston housed the nurses quarters.
The site was housed 20, 24, 25 and 31 British General Hospital, with 24 GH remaining the longest, from August 1940 until April 1944.
The hospital was hit by bombs during an air raid on Belfast on 4-5 May 1941, killing 19 patients and staff.
The site was closed in 1945 after treating approx. 35,000 patients.
The buildings at Campbell college were reused and large nissen hut wards were constructed at Campbell College and Neterhleigh House. The last ward was demolished at Campbell College sometime after 2004. Only the vehicle maintenance sheds, a small unidentified structure and some nissen hut bases remain.

Seco huts were designed to be constructed of standard units for walls and roofs. They made use of plywood, woodwool and asbestos cement. The standardised units eliminated the need for steel in construction and minimised the use of wood. The structures were cheap and easy to erect, while also being lightweight and insulated against the elements. Their flexibility in design allowed for a wide range of uses from barracks, stores, machine shops or even hospitals.
Seco hut providing VIP accommodation.

Structure built as part of searchlight battery, function is unknown.
Largely collapsed, only sections remain of original structure.
www.ww2ni.com/county-down-part-1

This structure housed a generator to provide essential power should the mains supply fail or be cut.
The brick and concrete structure is in good condition. Internally there is a concrete plinth on which would have sat the generator. The structure may have been surrounded by an earthwork traverse but this is no longer extant.

Randalstown Market Yard
Randallstown market yard was used to billet troops from the Royal Electrical and Mechanical engineers, later US troops
Large nissen type structure used to facilitate military operations.
Site is largely intact but has been damaged by fire recently.

Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. Type A huts were for officers and consisted of 4 rooms and one for servants. Type B huts were for sergeants and were a single room accommodating 8 men. Those for other ranks or airmen accommodated 12 men in a single room. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides.
This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for airfield defence troops.

An earthwork range butt which acted as backstop/bullet catch on rounds fired downrange.

This contained stores facilities for camera, oil and dope, small bomb containers, a gun cleaning room, the armaments officers office and turret repair and armaments workshop.
The windows have been bricked up post-war and the
106
site appears on the whole structurally sound though there has been a partial collapse of the roof at the northern end of the building.

Approximately 1,600 m of runway remain in good condition. A complex of poultry houses have been built on the western section and 2 agricultural sheds near where it intersects with runway DHR 78:02. An earth berm has been used to cutoff the eastern section of the site, but the concrete surface remains in relatively intact.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Opposite the entrance was the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
The structure appears in good condition but heavily overgrown

This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters.

Prefabricated structure built to control access t the USN communications station

Site of an AMES Type 7 control radar. The radar array was mounted over a subterranean well. It had a reinforced concrete shell. The antenna was supported by a steel column mounted on a steel box which was attached to a turning mechanism. The well had three rooms which housed the turning mechanism, the transmitter, monitor and receiver. The radar had a range of approximately 90 miles.
Area of concrete remains, however the area is heavily obscured by vegetation. Apocryphal stories tell of the RAF filling the site with concrete. Location triangulated from aerial photographs and contemporary photos of site.
ATC History website

Provided accommodation for airmen. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters.
Only the concrete sidewalls remain and gables ends remain, heavily overgrown at western end.

Trackway providing access through Site 2 (Communal).
Approximately 330 metres of concrete trackway remain.

Living site for personnel. Had 43 structures, mostly barracks with ablution and latrines.

345 metres of concrete wall topped with steel security railings.
The wall and railings are in good condition.

Structure relating to the operation of the firing range.

Steel water tank mounted on a brick tower used to provided water to the camp.
Only the brick plinth remains in relatively good condition.

Sydenham airfield
Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire
Report claimed the site was a 'double seagull trench', however site had been demolished at the time of the original DHP report in 1998. Low mound may mark the site.
Not extant at time of original DHP report.
Guy Warner and Jack Woods, In the heart of the city: The history of Belfast's City Airport 193801998 (Belfast, 1998)

Site intact though largely resurfaced with modern tarmac.

A small structure used house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V. This site is also noted as having 'H Control Centre'. The purpose of this control room is not clear though may have some role in air traffic control or signalling.
In relatively good condition. The 'Control centre' section has a modern replacement rood. Vertical yellow and black identifier/visibility stripes can be seen on the remaining render.

This is a low-level brick structure to provide quick and relatively safe shelter from blast. The structure is open topped so it was of little use from a direct hit or aerial strafing.
The site remains in good condition id slightly overgrown

Site housed transformer to regulating electricity supply to dispersed living site 3
Remains in good condition. Sealed with a steel door with some modern concrete patching around door way. Used as domestic/garden store.

Site appears intact but obscured by grass cover

Ballywalter airfield
This was a approc 1,100 metre grass airstrip.
Airstrip is now completely returned to pastoral agriculture. Long unobstructed line of fields only remaining trace.

Kinnegar Barracks
Large brick structure shown in aerial photos of site just after WW2. Without a field visit its function remains unclear but possibly a workshop.
PRONI file AM/1/5/42A/0241-0286 Website https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart3.htm https://archives.wartimeni.com/location/co-down/holywood/

This structure housed a number of diesel generators which would have provided electrical power to the station should the mains connection fail.
The structure remains largely intact though all the plant and switchgear has been removed. There is a large steel beam fitted to the roof which would have been used as part of a hoist for moving heavy equipment.

Structure erected to facilitate operations at the decoy site, function remains unclear.
Colin Dobinson, Fields of deception: Britain's bombing decoys of World War II (London, 2000)
https://www.ww2ni.com/

Flight offices is where aircrew waited for call to action. It was also an office where day to day unit administration was carried out.
Identified from comparison of contemporary maps and aerial photographs. Owner/manager of site refused access but images suggest footings/foundations of site remain.

The 25 yard range was used to test fire machine guns and used as a small -arms range. Used for ground defence training using the service No 4 .303 Rifle, Bren Gun LMG, Sten gun and pistols. Consisted of a firing stand and brick stop butt.
The firing stand retains part of its roof and some original window frames, however it is overgrown with trees growing from its interior. The stop butt is no longer extant.

This site held an approach system that provided lateral and vertical guidance to air traffic controllers (ATC) guiding an aircraft in on final approach. The radar allows ATCs to advise pilots to keep them on the correct approach and glidepath.
Only the plinth remains with remains of the circular steel guide rail which allowed the radar to turn to face the approaching aircraft depending on which runway was being used.
Precision Approach radar at www.radarpages.co.uk/mob/navaids/par/par1.htm

The gymnasium could be used as an indoor sports hall, lecture room, cinema or dance-hall. It had an annex which could be used for stores and changing rooms.
The site is in relatively good condition, though the curved roof is a modern replacement for the original pitched roof. It is now used as an agricultural store.

Ballydonaghy GCI station
The operations block contained the operations room with the plotting table, Plan Position Indicators (radar screens) and communications equipment. It also had a room containing the radar transmitter and control equipment.
Only concrete base remains covered by grass.

Linear ‘Stop-Lines’ were built to support the coastal defences. These were intended to restrict and contain the movement of enemy armoured formations. Canals, river, anti-tank ditches and obstacles were protected by pillboxes, infantry trenches and anti-tank guns at key crossing points, with other bridges and culverts prepared for demolition should the enemy threaten the line. Eight stop-lines were constructed in NI. They were all concentrated east of the River Bann, with the river and the Newry Canal providing the main obstacle bisecting N. Ireland. Line A ran from the Bannmouth on the north coast to Toome where the Bann enters Lough Neagh. Line B started at the Bannfoot on the southern shores of Lough Neagh and followed the line of the River and the Newry Canal to Carlingford Lough. A sequence of lines (C to H) supported lines A and B, and fell back on the Belfast Defence Scheme which was a perimeter of forward defended localities, observation posts and roadblocks.However, this strategy was seen to be flawed as any penetration of the line compromised the whole defensive scheme. By autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland, fortified with pillboxes and roadblocks. This site was likely constructed to control the southern approach road to Portadown.
This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.The maximum thickness of the walls is 135 cm, which meant the position was considered shell-proof. Their roofs are significantly thinner, approximately 30 cm thick, suggesting the positions were designed to resist direct flat-trajectory gunfire (field guns and tanks) rather than indirect high-angle artillery fire from mortars and howitzers.A small embrasure allows the flank of the position to be covered by small arms fire. It retains a steel shutter which would have been closed to prevent incendiary weapons such as flamethrowers from entering the position. The position has two machine gun loops with staircased embrasures, designed to prevent ricochets from entering the bunker.The pillbox would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
The site is in good condition. it is used by local groups to commemorate war dead with remembrance wreaths left at the site.
Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008),

Structure built to facilitate operations at the site.

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
The shelter is in good condition, with a single main entrance. The opposite wall has a section of loose bonded bricks which may be the emergency escape hatch.

The gunnery and crew procedures centre, known by aircrew as ‘grope’, was to train aircrew on the ground by simulation the conditions of actual operations using simulators, known as the time as synthetic training. Large posters and dramatic diagrams taught crews on all aspects of aircraft handling, fuel consumption and ditching drills. A dummy instructional fuselage was via the large access door on either side of the building. Cockpit drills familiarised crews with their aircraft and allowed realistic training for engine fires, ditching, fuel/oil failures, crash landing, parachuting and wireless telegraphy procedures. Micro-switches enabled controls for fuel, throttle levers, flaps, dinghy release and bob doors provided the most realistic training experience available without leaving the ground and all under the supervision of experienced instructors.
Site is well preserved and maintained, it uis used as a store.

Sic rroups of 6 Nissen huts constructed during WW2 to house troops

Crom Castle
Forty nissen huts were constructed in this area to house base personnel. This area is heavily overgrown but it appears many if not most of the dozens of huts constructed in this area may remains as overgrown concrete hut bases.
Site is heavily overgrown but strong potential for survival of hut bases in the undergrowth.

Building of unidentified function, small size suggests it may have been latrines.

Limavady airfield
Living site for personnel. Had approx. 18 structures, mostly barracks with ablutions, latrines and air raid shelters.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The 43m diameter concrete dispersal sits at the end of 172 m of concrete track-way and is in good condition but is obscured by 2 large dumps of spoil.

Provided toilet facilities for airmen.
No visible features on field visit but aerial photographs suggest concrete hardstanding remains.

Structure used to service and store vehicles used by the hospital personnel.
Structure remains intact and in good condition. It is currently used as a groundskeeper'sstore.

At the start of WW2 the British military's operational doctrine stressed a mobile flexible response to land attacks, but the catastrophic loss of tanks, transport and heavy weapons meant that the resources were unavailable. Concrete, steel and wire had to make up the shortfall in men and equipment. Stop-lines were initially constructed using pillboxes defending obstacles such as rivers and canals, however by autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland.
This pillbox was one of a series around Rathfriland covering key lines of approach. It is constructed of reinforced concrete with a single embrasure facing south. Its entrance appears to have been sealed by later works.
Structure appears intact and in good condition.

Palace Barracks
A two story barrack block designed to accommodate 84 troops (82 enlister men and 2 unmarried NCOs)
Site appears intact and in good condiiton.

Structure was constructed to provide permeant lookout post for the Coastguard Auxiliary. They were responsible for maintaining observation of coastal waters, monitoring shipping and curtailing coastal smuggling. During WW2 brick and concrete observation posts were added to provide protection to the coast watchers.
Structure is intact and in relatively good condition. The WW2 observation post sits at the base of the tower.

Storage hut used to store equipment and supplies , likely a Romney hut
RAF aerial photo in PRONI file AM/1/5/11C/4101-4150

This structure held diesel electrical generators, fuel and electrical switch-gear and transformer, which provided power to vital parts of the airfield in the event of a failure of the main supply. Built to a pre-war design (Drawing 10966-38), it had a single storey engine room. It has a reinforced concrete rood and large steel beam which was used to support a crane/hoist.
The large doorway remains in the north wall, leading to the mains hall, where a generator plinth remains. There is some collapse of the structure of a side room and an eastern annexe has been removed. The site is used to store domestic furniture and has been a clubhouse for local children.

Brick compound used house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.

This Iris hut was used as a quartermaster's store and is approx. 28 metres long and 10 metres wide.
The structure is largely intact if in poor condition with only a small portion of the eastern end wall remaining.

The Southern stone riverside defences of the original star fort constructed around Ebrington Barracks in the 1840s. Remains of the southern section of the original star fort boundary wall of Ebrington Barracks. Indicated on the 1854 Ordnance Survey as a south east bastion, a central bastion and a south west bastion with a road running to the south outside the wall and connecting to Limavady Road. A second curving retaining wall on the other side still remains and is described in HB01/09/002 II . The path ends at the main entrance to the base which was situated between buildings 10 (HB01/09/002E), and 71(HB01/09/002 D). This structure now gone was a sandstone ashlar gate in a triumphal arch form with simple robust detail. The south west bastion as today was the garden for the barrack master’s house (number 17). The central bastion was divided into two yards one for the guard house and one behind the stores. By 1904 the gates had been removed and it is likely that the demolitions behind the stores had also been carried out.
Approximately 60-70% of the southern defences remain in good condition.
HB file for HB01/09/002 Z

Linear ‘Stop-Lines’ were built to support the coastal defences. These were intended to restrict and contain the movement of enemy armoured formations. Canals, river, anti-tank ditches and obstacles were protected by pillboxes, infantry trenches and anti-tank guns at key crossing points, with other bridges and culverts prepared for demolition should the enemy threaten the line. Eight stop-lines were constructed in NI. They were all concentrated east of the River Bann, with the river and the Newry Canal providing the main obstacle bisecting N. Ireland. Line A ran from the Bannmouth on the north coast to Toome where the Bann enters Lough Neagh. Line B started at the Bannfoot on the southern shores of Lough Neagh and followed the line of the River and the Newry Canal to Carlingford Lough. A sequence of lines (C to H) supported lines A and B, and fell back on the Belfast Defence Scheme which was a perimeter of forward defended localities, observation posts and roadblocks.
However, this strategy was seen to be flawed as any penetration of the line compromised the whole defensive scheme. By autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland, fortified with pillboxes and roadblocks.
Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess. The position has two machine gun loops with staircased embrasures, designed to prevent ricochets from entering the bunker. The maximum thickness of the walls is 135 cm, which meant the position was considered shell-proof. Their roofs are significantly thinner, approximately 30 cm thick, suggesting the positions were designed to resist direct flat-trajectory gunfire (field guns and tanks) rather than indirect high-angle artillery fire from mortars and howitzers.The site looks west covering the approach to the bridge at Portglenone.The pillbox would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
The site is well preserved and in good condition, with rusted remains of the Turnbull mounts in the embrasures.

The site is a triangular base with a steel perimeter fence mounting two observation sangers on either end of the south facing fence line. Inside ar prefabricated cabins used to house the troops. Sections would carry out training operations simulation operations from patrol bases, a common sight during the Troubles but now removed after the ending of Operation banner. Most military structures were removed under a programme of normalisation after the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, therefore this site remains as one of the few remaining examples of Troubles military architecture remaining in N.Ireland.
The site remains well maintained and in good condition.

Until recently this site was intact but has now been demolished.

Small brick structure constructed to facilitate operations at the depot, function remains unclear.

The protected brick and concrete sleeping shelter was designed to accommodate pilots and ground crew assigned to night scramble duties. They were located close to the dispersals and fighter pens. In the event of an emergency the pilots and crew did not have far to get to their aircraft. It could be accessed from either end, with one entrance protected by a brick blast porch.
The structure is in good condition, it is currently used as a domestic/garden store.

This military structure relates to the operation of the battery. There structure was surrounded by an earthwork traverse. Its function is unclear though its size and location suggest it may have been a small ammunition store or gun store.
When originally recorded in 2004 the structure retained a low enclosing bank, however the bank has since been levelled through a concrete surface remains under the grass.

Down Royal
Erected to accommodate troops.
PRONI aerial photos AM/1/5/92D/81-120

Crom Castle
The Crom estate was requisitioned by the War office in November 1940 and was used to station troops who used the surrounding landscape as a training area which included assault courses and firing ranges. Over 100 nissen huts were erected on the estate.
Initially used to barrack British troops, US forces arrived in August 1942, with the arrival of the 804th Tank destroyer battalion, where they trained until being sent to Africa as part of Operation Torch in 1943.
Later US troops included 3rd Batt., 28 Inf Regt of the 8th (US) Infantry division.
The main house was used to house officers whereas the enlisted ranks were housed in Nissen huts.
The Old Castle Greens, Old Castle Lawns and Inishfendra parkland were used as rifle, mortar and bomb ranges.
The site was returned to civilian use after the war
The estate is owner by the National Trust but the main house is still in private ownership. Only a few traces remains, such as the hut bases in the woods around the stables, the assault course wall and petrol pump.
Only a few upstanding traces remain, such as the obstacle course wall and petrol pump.

A camp constructed during WW2 to house military personnel. There was approx. 30 structure on site.

This provided emergency power to the radar should the mains electricity supply be cut off. It contained diesel generators and an attached switch room.
The brick structure is in good condition. It is used to store farm supplies and is secured by steel shutters and doors.

This pillbox is composed or 2 main structures, each with 3 staircased firing embrasures, covering all lines of approach to the position. Staircasing was a feature designed to prevent ricochets entering the pillbox. The fighting position are linked by a short covered walkway and the entrance is protected by a low blast wall.
The hangers, blast shelters and pillbox are scheduled monuments
The pillbox is in good condition but the entrances and firing embrasures have been sealed with modern concrete blocks.

The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires.
Structure was constructed as part of the military hospital facilities.
Structure is intact and in good condition.

The motor transport sheds were used for the maintenance of motor vehicles. The number of bays varied on the size and activity of the station. The two facing lines of bays were separated by a manoeuvring yard.
The structure is constructed of brick with a compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof. It has five vehicle bays.

Airfield bomb dumps were designed to store high explosive bombs, incendiary bombs, fused bombs, tail units, bomb components and small arms ammunition. As would be expected they were sited well away from the technical area. Toome had two main bomb stores: a double trackway serviced both. The northern track is 12-foot wide allowing lorries to unload munitions into the stores, whereas the southern track widened to 20 feet to accommodate tractors and bomb trolley trains. The bomb stores at Toome were an improvement over pre and early-war designs. Designated 3164/42, the store consisted of a series of 30-foot square open storage areas protected by 25 foot thick and 6-foot high earthwork traverses. The stores were built with a slight slope to enabled easier loading from the upper track while bombs were taken from the lower track. Bombs were then driven on trolley trains to the fusing points before being taken out to aircraft for loading.
Though obscured by moss, much of the upper and lower trackway of the bomb stores remain intact

Military structure was part of the WW2 depot site. Appears to be intact in modern army depot.

This hut is overgrown remains in good condition with its original window frames and roof.

Appears demolished on aerial photos, only base remains. No access to site on visit.

For gathering and treating casualties, may also have doubled as air raid shelter

Concrete surface shelter designed to provide protection to staff and public from blast and splinters during and air attack.
The concrete shelter site is overgrown but appears intact.

Quadrant towers were used to house observers who would rate the bombing performance of trainees on the bombing range. This structure is composed of a single cabin supported on four brick columns.
Reported intact by informant and shown intact on website. Location reported but not confirmed by visit.
Mike Osborne, Defending Britain: Twentieth-century military structures in the landscape (Stroud, 2004).

During WW2 the Belvoir Estate was commandeered by the War Office. A Naval Armament depot was constructed with over 100 huts and stores. The River Lagan was used to move mentions, mostly naval shells and torpedoes from the depot to Belfast harbour.
https://www.ww2ni.com/greaterbelfastpart1.htm
http://historyhubulster.co.uk/royal-navy-world-war-ii/

Nissen huts erected to accommodate troops. Approx. 8 visible on post war aerial photo.
Probing of site suggests a number if not all remains in situ.

Draperstown ROC monitoring post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ.
Site is relatively intact, though ventilation louvres are missing form the ventilation shaft. Previous photos of site show some equipment intact in the site.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/draperstown-roc-post/

Site used to park Runway Control Caravan. Normally parked at the touchdown end of a runway, their purpose is to provide shelter and communications for an Air Traffic Control (ATC) controller whose role is to visually inspect an approaching aircraft and provide radio or visual warnings of any issues on the approaching aircraft to the pilot. This may be by radio, Signal Light Gun, or a pistol flare. Usually equipped to provide basic Air to Ground Communications between the Controller and pilot, and Ground to Ground Communication to the ATC Tower for coordination the caravan is designed to be towed or driven to the threshold of the in-use runway. This is important in the event of runway changes where approaches are changed due to changes in wind direction.
Small hardstanding was extant in 2017 but has been removed as part of agricultural field clearance .

This dispersal is in in good condition. It has a small solar farm erected on the concrete hardstanding.

Surfaced with modern tarmac, this dispersal likely remains intact underneath.

Provided accommodation for airmen.
Site of wooden Laing hut. No visible features on field visit but aerial photographs suggest concrete hard-standing remains.

An operational training unit was established at the site in May 1944. This was a satellite to Killadeas and was used by 131 OTU. The site was used to moor and offload flying boats. The site was closed in March 1945.
Two jetties remain relatively intact though the longest has been incorporated into a new jetty structure. A hut base and store also remain.
https://www.ww2ni.com/cofermanaghairfields.htm

Brecart Lodge
Structure provided washing and bathing facilities for personnel based at the camp.
Structure in good condition and well maintained.

Templepatrick ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ.
This site was a master post, shown by the dome on the ventilation shaft.
The site is overgrown but in good condition.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/templepatrick-roc-post/

Concrete and tarmac track way providing access to a series of 5 frying pan dispersals (all now removed).
83 m of track way remains linking the perimeter track to the dispersals

During WW" the Belvoir Estate was commandeered by the War Office. A Naval Armament depot was constructed with over 100 huts and stores. The River Lagan was used to move mentions, mostly naval shells and torpedoes from the depot to Belfast harbour.
The site is a wharf used to load and unload mentions at the Armaments Depot. A cofferdam was used to create a small platform on the riverbank.

Group of 14 brick settlement tanks used in sewage treatment works
In working order. Still used to treat sewage for nearby factory. A bit overgrown

Main gateway used to control access to and from the refugee camp.
Site extant in original DHP, demolished c. 2019

Structure erected to facilitate operations at the camp, likely a nissen hut.

Concrete walled structure, retains asbestos roof, converted into dwelling/holiday homes

Kilwaughter Castle
Kilwaughter Castle and its grounds were commandeered by the War Office during WW2 to house troops. Initially it was the 4th Batt, Royal Berkshire Regt (Dec. 1940), later the 148 Independent Reconnaissance Squadron and 644th (US) Tank Destroyer Batt. were based there.
There are few traces of wartime structures. The house is a roofless shell.

This structure was used to pass on information to flight crews, such as finalised plans, distress procedures and operational radio frequencies prior to missions.

Concrete platform for parking vehicles on the range.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This 38 metre diameter dispersal is in good condition, Shipping containers are stores on it and it is used as a car park for nearby sand extraction operation.

Access could not be gained to the site as construction of a solar farm has sealed off the area behind security fencing, but analysis of aerial photographs shows the concrete runway retains 654m of running east-west. The site has had a solar panels erected on it, but surface is clearly visible beneath the array.

The gymnasium could be used as an indoor sports hall, lecture room, cinema or dance-hall. The annex on the eastern end of the hall could be converted into a chapel with vestry. The whole building could be converted into a church using folding wooden partitions and sliding rails. Wooden seats could be laid out in the sports hall to accommodate the congregation.

Site provided washing, shower and latrine facilities for sergeants.
Site is in relatively good condition. It retains the original roof. Windows and doors have been sealed with modern steel sheeting. The structure is now used as an animal byre.

Concrete track providing access to and from frying pan dispersals.
Though entirely grassed over the 316 m of 5m wide trackway appears intact.

Site appears to be intact and in good condition.

Military structure erected to facilitate operations at the site, likely the case of an aerial.
Only the concrete base and some traces of the steel tower remain.

Small brick structure to provided shelter to guard details controlling access to and from the communal site.

Structure's purpose is unclear as it is not make on the contemporary maps. Sited next to Wireless Telegraphy building so likely related to operations there.
In relatively good condition with original roof. is used as an animal shelter

The T2 (‘T’ for transportable) was developed in 1940 to replace Bellman Hangars. They were of a modular design meaning they could be dismantled, moved and reassembled elsewhere. Constructed of steel lattice portal frames and clad in galvanised corrugated iron. The T2 became the standard temporary hangar for the RAF, and over 900 were built during the war. They were considered temporary structures with a limited design life, but many remain on airfields throughout the United Kingdom. This example is the short, 13-bay variant, 135 feet /41 metres in length.
Site is in good condition. It had been reclad post war.

Provided accommodation for sergeants.

The concrete jetty supported steel pipes enabling refuelling of aircraft while in the water.
The site is in relatively good condition though a section of the jetty was removed by the owners to prevent the site being used as a diving platform.

Trackway providing access to Dispersed Site 10.
Only a small 29m section of narrow track-way remains

This site is composed of a complex of structures used to train troops in Fighting in Built Up Areas (FIBUA), also known as Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT). It is used to instruct troops in combat and security operation in an urban setting.

During the early stages of WWII, air controllers used Chain Home radar to position fighter aircraft, normally with an accuracy of around five miles. However, this was not accurate to ensure an intercept in poor weather conditions or at night. While more exact intercepts could be achieved by directing the radar aerial at the target, this would prevent the radar from continuing to track other target plots. Consequently, there was a clear need for dedicated radar sites and controllers for vectoring in fighters on incoming enemy aircraft.
Site of mobile equipment, and aerials. Likely mounded in vans and trailers.
Colin Dobinson, Building Radar: forging Britain's early-warning chain 1935-1945 (London, 2010) Neil Redfern, Twentieth-century fortifications in the United Kingdom: vol. III, Site Gazetteers: Northern Ireland (York, 1998)

Nissen Hut was designed in 1915 by Canadian, Col P. N. Nissen, these prefabricated structures were purchased in large numbers as an alternative to brick construction, and became one of the most common structures built during World War 2. They were semi-circular in section, and normally built in multiples of 6 foot sections. They were constructed of steel ribs covered with sections of curved steel sheeting held in place by straining wires. The ends could be either brick or timber.
Nissen hut erected as part of domestic site accommodating the crew of HAA battery.

This contained stores facilities for camera, oil and dope, small bomb containers, a gun cleaning room, the armaments officers office and turret repair and armaments workshop

Searchlights were used to target enemy aircraft and guide in anti-aircraft fire. The could also be used to aids aerial navigators during night flying operations. Normally composed of 1-3r searchlights enclosed by earthwork berms, predictors to guide lights supported by barracks for the crew and generators buildings.
Likely 102 searchlights and supporting buildings

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide
This 380 m of perimeter track appears to be in relatively intact condition but has significant quantities of spoil dumped on its surface, obscuring much of its length.

Approximately 500m of track-way remain in good condition, though obscured in sections by dumps of spoil.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are normally 50 feet/14 metres wide.
The track has been resurfaced with modern tarmac but at least 366 m of perimeter track remains intact.

The airfield was opened in July 1941 as a satellite airfield for RAF Ballyhalbert. This was reflected in the more rudimentary facilities at the site. It had just four blister hangars but over thirty fighter dispersals including six protected fighter pens, with parking for almost 50 aircraft. It was not until January 1942 when Spitfires from 504 Squadron were based her flying convoy patrols. In August 1943 the Northern Ireland Training School was established here to provide training facilities for the RAF Regiment, learning airfield combat and defence tactics. Some Fleet Air Arm units used the airfield during 1942, but stayed only a few months, however the station was again used by FAA in 1944. A bombing target was constructed and a simulated deck landing painted on the airfield. Bombing practice was moved to the range at Gransha Point after several misses damaged the runway.
Airfield transferred to the Admiralty in 1945 when it was commissioned as HMS Corncrake II, but was returned to the RAF at the start of 1946. It remained under RAF control until it was closed in 1952. The northern section of the airfield has been converted to a racing circuit, while much of the southern end has been returned to agricultural use
The site is composed of the standard three runway design with surrounding perimeter track. The racing circuit has resurfaced one of the runways and length stretches of the northern perimeter track. Many of the frying pan dispersals remain within the ownership of the racetrack, however agricultural reclamation has reclaimed many others. Most of the technical area has been returned to private housing/domestic use
The site is composed of the standard three runway design with surrounding perimeter track. The racing circuit has resurfaced one of the runways and length stretches of the northern perimeter track. Many of the frying pan dispersals remain within the ownership of the racetrack, however agricultural reclamation has reclaimed many others. Most of the technical area has been returned to private housing/domestic use.

The standby set house (drawing no 13244/41) provided emergency power for crucial sections of the airfield should the main power supply fail. When operational this would have housed two diesel generators, two 3,000 gallon fuel tanks, a switch-gear chamber and a transformer chamber. It is robustly built, with a flat reinforced concrete roof supported with steel beams and concrete columns.
The site was locked but appears in good condition. Modern steel security doors have been fitted and the entrance at the rear of the site has been sealed with modern blockwork.

During the interwar period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed. This is a small example of the type, just 55 foot/16.5 metres in diameter.
Site appears intact though surrounded by new surface of concrete roadways.

Hexagonal concrete pillbox, likely early phase of defences due to rudimentary design as lacked staircasing in embrasures to prevent ricochets into position.
Demolished prior to ring-road development in 2003. Concrete base may be still extant under vegetation.

Railway siding constructed to provide transport for materials to and from the storage depot.
Traces of the railway can be discerned in the concrete hardstanding.
RAF aerial photo in PRONI file AM/1/5/11C/4101-4150

The Air Ministry Works department was responsible for the construction, maintenance and repair of RAf airfields. This structures was a garage used to store and maintain their vehicles used in carrying out maintenance and repair duties at the station.
Site remains intact and in good condition, Its remains in use by the MoD.
RAF Historical Society, Vol 51 at

This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for officers.

This concrete dispersal is 18 metres wide and is in good condition with little vegetation growth.

A major feature of the war effort in NI were training facilities established to provide realistic instruction and training for army, air force and naval personnel. There were many scores of mortar, artillery and live firing ranges across NI, however air to ground bombing training required targets to be offshore or in the large expanse of the waters of Lough Neagh.
Targets were moored offshore, but to ensure the pilots found their targets, a large concrete arrow pointing towards the range was constructed as a final navigational aid showing the direction of the range targets. This was undoubtedly painted white to ensure pilots could find it. Beside this sat a quadrant tower. This was used by instructors to evaluate the accuracy of the trainee pilots and bombardiers.
The target marker was a large concrete arrow, pointing in the direction of the bomb target range.
Unaware if markers existence at time of survey, only became apparent during research at PRONI. Marker not visible on aerial photographs but may remain under the sod.
Information found at
The Second World War in Northern Ireland at www.ww2ni.com/langford-lodge-a-a-f-597

The Quonset hut was developed to answer a need ny the US Navy for a lightweight building that could be shipped anywhere and assembled with unskilled labour. The prefabricated structure of galvanised steel had a semi-circular cross section and was similar to the Nissen hut. Developed by the George A Fuller construction company,it was named after its first site of manufacture at the Davisville Naval Construction Battalion Centre, Quonset Point, Rhode Island.
Quonset hut constructed to facilitate operations in the ammunition depot, precise function is unclear.
Only hut base and single endwall remain. Heavily overgrown.

The Bellman hangar was designed in 1936 as a temporary facility capable of being erected or dismantled quickly by unskilled labour with basic equipment. Time taken to erect one hanger was estimated at 500 man hours. From 1938-40, around 400 were constructed across the UK. Bellmans came in two sizes, 175 feet long and 105 feet long. They had a clear height of 25 feet.
This hanger is currently used by the NI Roads Service as a vehicle and equipment store. It has been re-clad and the frame is in good condition. Two new roller door access ways have been added to each end of the hangar.

Also known as a Turret Gun Sighting Trainer (TGST), this was another use of synthetic training, using images of aircraft projected onto a large concave target screen. It was used to instruct aerial gunners how to lead fast moving aerial targets. Images or silhouettes of German aircraft were projected on the screen and a trainee in a mock-up turret would ‘fire’ the guns with realistic sound and ammunition tracking. This example is a double trainer and would have housed 2 screens and mock turrets.

Nissen hut provided accommodation for officers.

Site housed offices for depot engineering maintenance.
In good condition. Has been re-clad in modern sheeting and refurbished for reuse for manufacturing.

Likely a nissen hut but to facilitate operations at the camp.

The Bellman hangar was designed in 1936 as a temporary facility capable of being erected or dismantled quickly by unskilled labour with basic equipment. Time taken to erect one hanger was estimated at 500 man hours. From 1938-40, around 400 were constructed across the UK. Bellmans came in two sizes, 175 feet long and 105 feet long. They had a clear height of 25 feet.
Site appears intact and in good condition, though it has been reclad post war.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks.
Site appears intact if somewhat overgrown

Castlewellan
Site of camp used to accommodate troops, composed of scores of nissen huts along the laneway, L-shaped layout of camp.
Traces may remain subsurface or in undergrowth along the laneway
PRONI RAF images in AM/1/5/69/F21/1-50

Summer Island
Initially occupied by US troops during WW2, including 3rd Field Artillery observation Batt., HQ battery and Battery A, the site was later used by Belgian Troops.
Quonset huts were a prefabricated hut first manufactured in the US to fulfil a need for a lightweight hut that could be assembled quickly without skilled labour. Based on the Nissen hut they were normally a 16 foot span and 36 foot long.
This site was built to facilitate operations at the camp, its exact purpose is unclear. It has 'defence de fumer' sign on interior wall, suggesting it may have been used to store inflammable materials.
The structure retains its brick footings and internal wall however the galvanised steel roof as been removed. Significant cracking on internal dividing wall.

Killard Point ROTOR radar station
The modulator building mounted the AMES Type 80 early warning and ground controlled intercept radar. It could detect aircraft at approx 250 miles and was the primary military ground-based radar in the UK during the 1950s-60s. The transmitter and control equipment was housed in a cabin below the aerial which rotated along with the large 75 feet by 25 feet radar antenna at 4 revolutions per minute. The modulator equipment ensured the radar transmitted at a steady frequency.
Ulster Radar website at www.ulsterradar.co.uk

This was a nissen type structure enclosed by earthwork traverses. It was used to store small arms ammunition and/or grenades for ground defence.
The rear end wall of the store, concrete base and earthwork traverses remain.

RAF Ballykelly
Constructed to provide accommodation and cater to domestic needs of personnel.

Provided washing and showering facilities for airmen and non-commissioned officers.
This building is in excellent condition. The original windows are intact and glazed. The roof was replaced by the owner who also removed the boiler chimney and water tank.
6 Hughes,

The sites displays characteristic fieldworks prevalent in static trench warfare of WW1. There are crenelated 'Greek key' trenches, which formed the fire trench. The traverses/crenellations prevented an enemy enfilading the length of a trench with fire.
Shallow traces of trench line in the trees.
Mark Adkin, The Western Front Companion (London, 2013)

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. It was equipped with concrete benches and was designed to accommodate 25. Opposite then entrance was the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
The structure remains in good condition. Internally there are two supporting columns. The concrete benches have been removed.

Gilnahirk radio intercept station
Structure relating to operation of aerial field to the north of the main site. Exact function remains unknown.
Site heavily overgrown, only concrete base remains.
George Busby, The spies at Gilnahirk (Donaghadee, 2017)
Web page https://frontlineulster.co.uk/gchq-gilnahirk-station/

Ballyedmond
Group of approx. 17 nissen huts. Likely barracks and domestic facilities.

The gallery is a trench protected by an earthwork mantlet . A system of raiseable target frames sat behind the gallery . Frames raised target sheets into line of fire, then lowered where marker then noted hits on target to show accuracy of firing.
Map evidence suggest there is some traces of the site remaining, possibly just the protective earthwork mantlet.

Bombs would only be fused when they were transported to loading onto aircraft. Therefore, fusing point buildings were sited on the trackways from the bomb stores to the perimeter track and dispersals. With doors at both ends, trolley trains loaded with bombs were driven in and each bomb was fused by an armourer. The fused bombs were then driven out the other end of the building and taken directly to their aircraft for loading. This site was termed 'Ultra-Heavy' for fusing large hi-explosive bombs.
Site was recently demolished to make way for domestic dwelling.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire
This site was a brick and concrete revetted trench with a central concrete ammunition storage shelter. There were two bays within the shelter. The site got its name from the distinctive flattened W form.
Demolished during construction of factory in 2009-10.

St Angelo
Provided toilet facilities for officers
The site is relatively intact though heavily overgrown, appears to have lost its roof.

Only concrete base remains, largely obscured by grass cover.

Site used to park Runway Control Caravan. Normally parked at the touchdown end of a runway, their purpose is to provide shelter and communications for an Air Traffic Control (ATC) controller whose role is to visually inspect an approaching aircraft and provide radio or visual warnings of any issues on the approaching aircraft to the pilot. This may be by radio, Signal Light Gun, or a pistol flare. Usually equipped to provide basic Air to Ground Communications between the Controller and pilot, and Ground to Ground Communication to the ATC Tower for coordination the caravan is designed to be towed or driven to the threshold of the in-use runway. This is important in the event of runway changes where approaches are changed due to changes in wind direction.
The site is entirely overgrown but probing show it to be intact under the overgrowth.

Claudy ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ.
The site also had a post-war Orlit post however this has been demolished with an oil tank place where it stood.
Site appears largely intact with both access shaft, BPI and ventilation shaft in situ, however both the shat and access shaft have lost the ventilation louvres. Access hatch retains its original steel hatch cover.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/claudy-roc-post/

This was the site of a storage depot , possibly the US G-10-7 General Depot in 1042-3 and later the Quartermaster Depot Q-111BL.

Camp constructed to accommodate crew of HAA battery.

Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected b y integral blast walls.
Site appears intact. Owner prevented access and photographic recording of site.

This structure held diesel electrical generators, fuel and electrical switchgear and transformer, which provided power to vital parts of the airfield in the event of a failure of the main supply. It has concrete plinths for 3 generators and steel reinforced concrete room.
In good condition, the hall has been cleared and is used to house mechanics workshop.

Small nissen hut constructed to facilitate operations at the camp.
Site appears intact and is used as a storage shed.

Concrete hardstanding connected to communal site by concrete path, function is unclear.

Air Raid Precautions (ARP) was established at the end of the 1930s as the vulnerability of civilian s to air attack became apparent. The ARP was a civilian organisation tasked with mitigating the effects of air attack on the civilian population. They were responsible for distribution of gas masks, enforcing blackouts, reporting damage and rescuing people from wrecked buildings.
28 New Row was used as an office for the ARP. Returned to commercial use afte the war.
Commercial office, no traces of wartime use.
Peter Doyle, ARP and Civil Defence in the Second World War (Oxford, 2011).

Small arms range, approximately 200 yards long for training with pistols, rifles and submachine guns, used by Ulster Home Guard. Firing point, range hut, target gallery and bullet stop.

The airfield was initially constructed for the RAF, leading to its conventional three runway layout with a HQ detachment in place by April 1941. The site became a fighter station protecting the port of Derry, flying air patrols and escorting convoys as they passed through their sector. Aircraft flown were initially Hudsons, but later Hawker Hurricanes then replaced by Supermarine Spitfires. One of the units was one of the ‘Eagle’ squadrons, RAF units filled by American volunteers. These were later joined by US fighter squadrons in March 1942.
Eglinton was transferred to the Royal Navy in May 1943, when it was commissioned as HMS Gannet in May. Its main purpose was for working up naval fighter units. Training continued after the war ended, with a fighter school arriving in August. Anti-submarine training was established, which continued until 1953. Strike training was carried out, as was working up of squadrons destined for the Royal Australian Navy, Royal Canadian Navy and even the new German Federal navy.
The site closed in 1959 but was reactivated in 1960 as HMS Sea Eagle operating helicopters which lasted until 1966 when military operations came to an end. The site was taken over by Derry City Council and opened as a civil airport. It is also the home to Eglinton Flying Club, which operates from the Pentad hangar on the western end of the airfield.
The site is composed of the traditional three runway layout which remain in working condition. The site retains a significant proportions of its original hangars grouped on the western and eastern stremes of the airfield. The quantity and quality of the surviving defensive sites is also remarkable. Though large sections of the technical area was demolished to make way for redevelopment of the modern airport a number of sites, including one of the Bellman hangars, operations rooms and parachute store survive. Though some of the dispersed living sites have been entirely cleared, some of the sites remain in excellent condition. Overall the site represents one of the best preserved airfields in civilian ownership in NI.
The site retains it original runways, many hangars and a broad selection of WW2 related structures, especially domestic and defensive sites.

The small brick and concrete shelter protected the crew tasked with operating the decoy site during a raid. It was equipped with a telephone and switch gear used to control the ignition of the flame groups. Its main entrance is protected by a blast wall and an emergency escape hatch is on the roof.
Site is intact and in relatively good condition.

Provided toilet facilities for sergeants.
Site is slightly overgrown but relatively intact.

Concrete base of structure, likely nissen hut to accommodate soldiers.
Only concrete base remaining, heavily overgrown and difficult to discern orientation, located using information provided by public and probing with a steel rod.

Approx. 75% of site extant. Unsure of when this fell out of use.

Provided accommodation for airfield personnel. Built post-war on site of WW2 sick quarters.
Site in relatively good condition, retains original roof and some window frames. Inside concerted as animal shed in the past but is now abandoned.

The air raid shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. This is an example of a Stanton Shelter. They were manufactured at the Stanton Ironworks Co near Nottingham, England. They could be constructed to any length to suit needs but usually consisted of 18 pre-cast concrete arch-shaped units, bolted together to form a shelter to accommodate 50 people. Stanton shelters can be above ground or semi-sunk and usually had a layer of earth and turf laid over them. The main entrance is protected by a blast wall and an emergency escape hatch was fitted to the roof at the opposite end of the shelter.
The structure remains in good condition though the earthwork protection has been removed.

Structure housed barber, shoemaker and tailor services for use by service personnel, normally divided into 3 sections.

Magilligan Coast Artillery Battery
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door
Provided dining facilities for entisted battery personnel.
John W Blake, Northern ireland in the Second World War (Belfast, 2000) Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003) Frontline Ulster at frontlineulster.co.uk/magilligan-musketry-camp/

Site appears intact though resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Mourne Park
Constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, function unclear.

Long Kesh airfield
Dispersed instructional site used to train aircrew in classrooms and synthetic trainers like Link trainers, Bombing teachers and the crew procedures centre. 20 structures in camp.

Derrymore House
Huts constructed to facilitate operation=s at the site. Group of at least 15 huts.
Liz MacShane and George Rutherford, Survey of Derry More WWII army base, County Armagh, for Ulster Archaeological Society, survey report 20 (2011) found at

Only concrete base remains, obscured by vegetation

The concrete dispersal is in good condition, currently used to store building materials.

Store used to secure foodstuffs.
Little now remains. Concrete blocks replace much of the sites wall, asbestos roof may be sole remaining original feature. The site is now used as sheep shed.

The land at Ardnaveigh was commandeered by the war office to house troops during WW2. The camp was used to house the 3992nd (US) Quartermaster truck company from Dec 193-MAy 1944.

Milkitary structure constructed to facilitate operations on site, may have been a store.

Site provided washing and showering facilities for enlisted airmen.
Site remains relatively intact, though section of the roof on the northwestern end are in a state of collapse. Structure used as store.

Fincairn Glen ammunition depot
The site US Navy began construction in summer 1941 (5 months before the US joined the war) and it was competed in January 1942. Originally designed with 14 magazines (called Armco sheds after the company that designed them), the site was later expanded to 21 ammunition storage magazines. The site stored munitions for the US naval Operating Base 1. The magazines wew used to store depth charges, torpedo warheads, naval shells and small arms ammunition for use by US navy units based around Derry. The base was decommissioned July 1944.
Nineteen of the original twenty one magazines remain in good condition, as do two of the air raid shelters. The support structures are in worse condition with no trace of the domestic site remaining. The structure sin the glen are heavily overgrown. Much of the original perimeter fence remains in situ.

Site is intact and in good condition. Appears to be used for domestic storage.

Newtownards airfield
Living site for personnel. Had 19 structures, mostly barracks with ablutions and latrines.

During the early stages of WWII, air controllers used Chain Home radar to position fighter aircraft, normally with an accuracy of around five miles. However, this was not accurate to ensure an intercept in poor weather conditions or at night. While more exact intercepts could be achieved by directing the radar aerial at the target, this would prevent the radar from continuing to track other target plots. Consequently, there was a clear need for dedicated radar sites and controllers for vectoring in fighters on incoming enemy aircraft. GCI became active at Ballinderry in October 1942
Site would have consisted of a radar aerial, operations block, power room and ancillary support structures.
Colin Dobinson, Building Radar: forging Britain's early-warning chain 1935-1945 (London, 2010) Neil Redfern, Twentieth-century fortifications in the United Kingdom: vol. III, Site Gazetteers: Northern Ireland (York, 1998)

Derrygally House
The house was requisitioned and used to provide accommodation for army officers.
Site remains occupied and in good condition.

Divis firing range
The structure added post-war was used by the rangemaster/range conducting officer to control and observe shoots. It has a large gallery on the north wall which may have been sealed by steel shutters during field firing training. The curved roofed area may have been used as a target shed. The entire south-western wall looking downrange was protected by an earthwork berm but this has been removed or slumped down.

Mourne Park
Constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut to accommodate troops.
PRONI Photo from AM/1/5/49B/3191-3230
https://gitrailni.com/gitrail/mourne-park/

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars.
385 metres of track remain in good condition, though approximately 25% has been resurfaced with modern tarmac.

DHP report noted vehicle maintenance ramps in this area, used to service military vehicles.
Site no longer extant at time of report.

Flying began at Long Kesh in October 1941 and by December 231 Army Co-operation Squadron moved in from Newtownards. Training focused on providing close-support to ground units, which involved low-level practice runs during army exercises. Also in December a Target Towing flight was established to provide air gunnery training.
In early 1942 Spitfires were based at Long Kesh to provide escorts for troopships bringing US forces into the UK during the final stage of their voyage across the Atlantic.
After the destruction caused in Belfast by Luftwaffe raids on Belfast in April and May 1942, a decision was taken to disperse final production of Stirling bombers by Short & Harland. Hangers were constructed under the auspices of the Ministry of Aircraft Production, with at least two completed bombers completed and test-flown before production was concentrated on manufacturing wings. This work continued until 1945
The US Navy established a regular air service collecting passengers, light freight and mail, flying Lockheed Electras between London (RAF Hendon), L’Derry (RAF Eglinton) and Long Kesh.
In August 1942 troop-carrying towed glider service was started between Whiltshire and N. Ireland using Long Kesh as the local terminus. In the same month personnel from the United States 8th Air Force Composite Command arrived, with responsibility for the growing United States Army Air Force presence in the north, staying until November when it moved to a HQ site at Kircassock House near Moira.
RAF Coastal Command took over the airfield in December 1942. No. 5 Operational Training Unit was based there, teaching aircrew in maritime operations, staying until February 1944.
In March 1944 290 Squadron was based at Long Kesh, training anti-aircraft gunners. Concurrently, Fleet Air Arm Seafires and Sea Hurricanes were stationed on the airfield, engaging in training exercises over Lough Neagh.
The last RAF flying unit at Long Kesh was the Communications Flight of HQ RAF Northern Ireland, which was based there from September –December 1945.
The Miles Aircraft Company used the MAP hangars to produce aircraft for a few months during 1945-6 and the airfield was used by the Ulster and Shorts gliding Club.
The site was reused in 1971 when the Long Kesh Detention centre was constructed, later expanded to become HMP Maze. The prison was closed in September 2000. The MAP hangars are now home to the Ulster Aviation Society.
The site was composed of the usual 3-runway layout with peripheral perimeter tracks leading to 31 frying pan hard-standings. There were two T2, two Bellman and sic blister hangars, with the bomb storage area sited to the south-west. All the dispersed living sites were located to the east of the airfield.
The construction of the HMP Maze as removed large sections of the airfield and the army camp. Some of the frying pan hard-standings remain though the most obvious surviving structures are around the two MAP (T2) hangars. Only one structure remains of the dispersed living and communal sites, with development of a golf course removing most remaining structures. The operations room had survived relatively intact but was demolished by the owner in recent years.
Wartime NI at
Ulster Aviation Society page at ulsteraviationsociety.org/long-kesh-maghaberry

A change in NATO policy in the 1970s changed tripwire defence against the Warsaw Pact to that of ‘flexible response’, whereby aggression by the Soviet Union would be met by a proportional response rather than nuclear retaliation as a first option. This called for an early warning network which was capable of operating while under attack. Consequently, a hardened Control and Reporting Post (CRP) and smaller wireless transmitting stations were constructed. The static radar was replaced with a mobile radar. The role of the CRP was to create a local air picture and relay it to sector operations centres, after which they could take over tactical control of fighter interceptors.
The reinforced concrete structure remains in good condition with the original blast doors and some parts of the original ventilation plant in situ. The walls are approximately 0.75-1 metre thick. It has 2 entrances which retain the original heavy steel blast doors which are protected by blast porches. The CRP has been converted to use as a clubhouse by Bishopscourt racecourse, housing offices, club-room, first aid post and storage rooms. Some original fittings remain, such as a security door from the Faraday cage which surrounded the operations room.
Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation 1946-2989 (Swindon, 2004)

This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for officer.

Concrete platform which held tension weight for holding the aerial curtain (hung between the two steel masts) in place.

A military camp constructed during WW2. It was composed of approx. seven large huts, and ancillary buildings.

Living site for personnel. Had mostly barracks with ablutions blocks and latrines. Approx. 21 structures.

No access due to secured solar farm, however map evidence and aerial photos suggest buried remains survive in situ.
Britain from above wbsite https://britainfromabove.org.uk/en/image/XAW009896

The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted
Constructed of poured concrete with expansion joints. Much of this section of runway has been destroyed by the construction of the Bishopscourt racing circuit. This small section is 40m wide and 113m long. The small section remaining survived in good condition.

Site appears intact from aerial photos, no access on day of visit.
John W Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (Belfast, 2000)

Group of approx. 4 nissen huts bases, function is unknown.

Runway layout was traditionally three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. However, given the prevailing winds at Mullaghmore only 2 were built, with only a section of a third constructed, the rest was completed as perimeter track.
The runway survives in its complete length of 1,280m, though there has been much construction on its surface including a coal storage yard and a racing circuit.

The gunnery and crew procedures centre, known by aircrew as ‘grope’, was to train aircrew on the ground by simulation the conditions of actual operations using simulators, known as the time as synthetic training. Large posters and dramatic diagrams taught crews on all aspects of aircraft handling, fuel consumption and ditching drills. A dummy instructional fuselage was via the large access door on either side of the building. Cockpit drills familiarised crews with their aircraft and allowed realistic training for engine fires, ditching, fuel/oil failures, crash landing, parachuting and wireless telegraphy procedures. Micro-switches enabled controls for fuel, throttle levers, flaps, dinghy release and bob doors provided the most realistic training experience available without leaving the ground and all under the supervision of experienced instructors.
The structure is in good condition and retains some of its original window frames, although all the windows have been sealed with modern brickwork. It is used for agricultural storage.

A steel-framed general-purpose store

This Iris hut was used as a quartermaster's store and is approx. 28 metres long and 10 metres wide.
The concrete base remains of site, now used to store silage.. Some remains of steel ribs remain protruding from a concrete dividing wall.

A the beginning of WW" many believed Belfast would be safe from aerial attack due to its position to the west of Britain, however the attacks on April and May by the German Luftwaffe, which destroyed the Shots fuselage hall, led to the dispersal of several assembly sites outside Belfast. One of these was the Altona site at which was constructed two T2 hangar structures and ancillary buildings. The fuselages of Short Stirling bombers were assembled within the two T2 hangars.
The site is composed of one remaining T2 hangar, though this has been re-clad and modified post-war, ancillary buildings and brick annexes. The second hangar was destroyed in an arson attack during the Troubles.
One hangar remains intact though re-clad, the second is a replacement though it retains the original brick annex. An office and another brick structure of uncertain function remain on site.

The steel pen allowed flying boat to be inspected and serviced out of the water. The pen , which had brick sidewalls, covered only the front end of the aircraft.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed
The 40m diameter hard-standing is in good condition, some grass growth in expansion joints, used as go-cart track.

Area of concrete used to store/park aircraft.

Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected b y integral blast walls. This example was divided into 4 separate rooms with their own entrances and emergency escape hatches in the internal dividing walls.

Portavoe was requisitioned by the War Office to accommodate troops during WW2. At one point the site stationed the US Field Force Replacement Depot 8, Casual Detachment 41. Composed of numerous nissen huts and domestic structures.
Site removed post war but traces (such as hut bases) may remains in the woods and sub surface.
PRONI RAF aerial photos file AM/1/5/9B/3173-3218

This strategy was quickly seen to be flawed, as any penetration of the line compromised the whole defensive scheme. By autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland, fortified with pillboxes and roadblocks.
This pillbox is placed to cover the crossing point of the Newry canal.
Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. In this case the pillbox protected crossing point of the Newry Canal on Line B (stopline) which ran from Lough Neagh to Carlingford. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. The position has two machine gun loops with staircased embrasures, designed to prevent ricochets from entering the bunker. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.The maximum thickness of the walls is 135 cm, which meant the position was considered shell-proof. Their roofs are significantly thinner, approximately 30 cm thick, suggesting the positions were designed to resist direct flat-trajectory gunfire (field guns and tanks) rather than indirect high-angle artillery fire from mortars and howitzers.Entry is via a door at the rear which is protected by a concrete blast wall. A small embrasure allows the flank of the position to be covered by small arms fire. It retains a steel shutter which would have been closed to prevent incendiary weapons such as flamethrowers from entering the position.The pillbox would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008),

Site provided bathing and toilet facilities for airmen.

Temporary nissen hut wards constructed during WW2.

Provided washing and showering facilities for airmen.
The rendered brick building is in good condition with its original asbestos roof and steel window frames. The building has been reused to house cattle. This limited full access to the site as the field to the rear was occupied by bull, making any further inspection unsafe.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This concrete dispersal is 18 metres wide is appears in good condition, though it is overgrown with moss and grass growing through the expansion joints. It is accessed by a 50 metre concrete track running north from the perimeter track.

Concrete walled structure, retains half asbestos roof, half reroofed, converted into dwelling/holiday homes.

The security post controlled vehicular and foot access to the radar station.
The brick and cement render structure is in good condition. It retains the window frames and some cabling and ducting relating to equipment contained within the post (long since removed). The original steel and chain link access gates remains in situ.

Living site for personnel. Had16 structures, mostly barracks with ablutions, latrines and air raid shelters.

Toilet facilities for other ranks/enlisted airmen.

St Lucia Barracks
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick,
Small nissen hut, likely used for storage.
HB file ref HB11/09/005
https://www.ww2ni.com/countytyronepart1.htm

Site used to house bathing facilities for WRNS
Site remains in relatively good condition, retaining roof (with some modern patching) and water tower. Modern steel security doors fitted.

Kinnegar Barracks
Brick structure shown in aerial photos of site just after WW2. Without a field visit its function remains unclear.
PRONI file AM/1/5/42A/0241-0286 Website https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart3.htm https://archives.wartimeni.com/location/co-down/holywood/

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. In a contemporary aerial photo this site appears to have 5 defensive posts/pillboxes.
The area is grassed over but the survival of sub-surface remains is possible.

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing accommodation for mess orderlies.

The airfield was first opened with a grass airstrip but two concrete runways constructed in 1940-1. This 800 metre was the third, constructed when the east-west runway (13/32) was realigned.
Truncated by a truck park, this is the western end of the runway. 229 meters in length, it is largely intact and repurposed as a carpark though 113 metre section has been resurfaced with modern tarmac, the original concrete surface is likely intact beneath.

Quonset huts were prefabricated structures first manufactured in the US to fulfil a need for a lightweight hut that could be assembled quickly without skilled labour. Based on the Nissen hut, they were usually a 16-foot span and 36-foot long.
Bult to facilitate operations at the site, possibly a mess or barrack hut.

Greencastle airfield
Living site for personnel. Had approx. 66 structures, mostly barracks with ablution and latrines.
Only ablution block remaining on site

Small Braithwaite water tank used to provide water to the camp.
Structure appears intact and in good condition.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. This is a double finger park with two hardstandings.
Part of one of the parks has been truncated by an aircraft parking apron.

Derrygally House
The house a grounds of Derrygally house were commandeered by the War Office and used to establish a camp to house troops during WW2. Elements of the US 654th Tank Destroyer Batt., who arrived in October 1943 and left April 1944. Units from the Belgian army were also stationed here after the US troops departed. Officer were billeted in the main house while enlisted troops lived in huts arounds the camp.
The house remains in use whereas a number of hut bases remain around the grounds, as does a small pump house.

60 metre section of track connecting to the runway (DHR 00080:001) IN good condition but resurfaced in sections with modern tarmac

This was a hutted camp of approx. 12 structures used to house troops. IN 1942 it accommodated Company E, 16 Armoured Engineers Batt. (1st (US) Armoured Div.) and later other HQ elements.
RAF aerial photo PRONI file AM/1/5/42A/0041-0080
https://archives.wartimeni.com/location/co-down/dundrum/

A narrow 5 metre wide strip of runway remains, 325 metres long.
John Hughes, Toome’s wartime airfield fifty years ago (Draperstown, 1995), Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012) Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/ WW2NI website at https://www.ww2ni.com/countylderryairfields.htm

Site used to maintain, dry and pack parachutes.
The structure remains in good condition, it has been repurposed as a document store by the owner.

Identified as a 'Supply building', the structure stored all the goods and supplies required by the station personnel to operate the facility.

Ballykelly
The T2 (‘T’ for transportable) was developed in 1940 to replace Bellman Hangars. They were of a modular design meaning they could be dismantled, moved and reassembled elsewhere. Constructed of steel lattice portal frames and clad in galvanised corrugated iron. The T2 became the standard temporary hangar for the RAF, and over 900 were built during the war. They were considered temporary structures with a limited design life, but many remain on airfields throughout the United Kingdom. This example is the short, 13-bay variant, 135 feet /41 metres in length.
Site remains in good condition though structure has been re-clad post war.

With WW2 over the government felt the Royal Observer Corps had a role to play in aircraft observation and tracking. However, this task became increasingly difficult due to the development of jet aircraft. Therefore new monitoring posts were developed to assist observers. New observation posts were constructed during 1951-2 which provided some level of protection from the elements for observers. They were known as Orlit Posts (after the manufacturers of the pre-cast concrete versions). The came in two versions, the ground level Orlit A and the raised Orlit B. It quickly became apparent that the ROC was ineffective tat reporting high-speed aircraft and it role in the diminished from 1957.
Constructed of brick, this structure was an Orlit B, raised on legs approx. six feet high. Accessed by ladders, It had a covered shelter/store and an open observation area which held a plotting chart.
Only the brick legs and concrete platrome remain.
Subterranea Britannica report at https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/kilskerry-roc-post/
www.roc-heritage.co.uk/orlit-posts.html

Lamella construction originated in Germany during the 1920. The name derives from ‘Lamellendach’ or ‘segmented roof’. The rights were acquired in Britain by Horsley Bridge & Engineering Company in 1929. Lamella construction was a large net-like steel framework of diamond shaped lattice. This formed a curved arch with a span of 50m, height of 10m and length 91m. The framework was covered with steel sheeting. Due to its design the structure did not require internal supports therefore floor space was maximised.
The Lamella hangars at Aldergrove are the only ones of their type in Ireland
Structure remains intact and in good condition.

Living site for personnel. Had mostly barracks with ablutions and latrines.
Only a nissen hut, air raid shelter and M&E plinth remain.

Thick wooden poles erected in lines to prevent airborne-glider landings on the mudflats. Identified during inter-tidal survey.
MRD 140:015 Identified during inter-tidal survey.
Not visible on day of survey, however inter-tidal survey reported 'Situated on flat, sandy foreshore at the northern end of Strangford Lough, near Newtownards. The defences consist of two parallel rows of small posts orientated NE-SW. They are not substantial posts and from their state of decay would not appear to be of very great antiquity. The posts are between 2.9m and 3.12m apart, on average, and measure about 4cm to 8cm in diameter. They protrude about 0.27m above the sand. The two rows lie about 4.07m apart. The eastern arm measures 80.5m in length at this location, terminating 20m from the sea defence wall. The western arm is 20.6m in length, ending 10m from a small stream flowing parallel to the sea defence wall. A total of 27 posts were noted in this location, and a further four further out in the mid intertidal zone. Similar posts were also recorded in the area of Corporation South (MRD 148:19). '

Quonset huts were a prefabricated hut first manufactured in the US to fulfil a need for a lightweight hut that could be assembled quickly without skilled labour. Based on the Nissen hut they were normally a 16 foot span and 36 foot long.
Site constructed to facilitate operations at the camp.

This site may have been a frying pan dispersal that had a hangar erected over it.
No visible on the ground, appears as a grass mark/cropmark after long periods of warm dry weather.

RNAS Maydown has two rather than the normal three runways, (there was not enough room for a third) both 150 feet wide, the were concrete surfaced with bitumen. The main runway ran roughly east-west and was 1650 yards long, the second roughly north-south was 1350 yards long.
This 200 metre section of the main runway appears in relatively good condition, it is truncated by the DuPont chemical plant.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide.
Concrete with surface of bitumen. The track runs along the eastern edge of the airfield. Approximately 430 m remain of the track, though much is obscures by grass and sections appear to have been resurfaced.

Royal Navy Armaments Depot Cross early in the war to provide facility for safe storage of explosives such as depth charges, shells, gun cartridges and torpedoes for the Royal Navy. The site was primarily for storage of munitions before being distributed to service units. However, there were also laboratories or shell examination rooms where ammunition could be inspected after return from operations or after long-term storage.
The site remained in use by the Royal Navy into the 1960, but by the end of the decade it had been closed only to be bought by Shorts Harland. It was used by Shorts Missile Division which now operates as Thales.
The 89 acre site retains most if not all of its concrete and brick magazines, many of which are protected by concrete blast walls and earthwork traverses. It is currently used by Thales
Most of the site remains as it was when it was constructed as a RNAD. Some modern buildings have been added.

Concrete base of structure, possibly nissen hut to accommodate soldiers.
https://www.ww2ni.com/countyarmaghpart2.htm
Images provided by developer

A 16 foot span Nissen hut providing accommodation for sergeants.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restriction on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive snowflakes, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This is a cluster of 4 finger parks.
This cluster of 4 finger parks remains intact but obscured by surface vegitation

The structure is of a Nissen design. it is likely related to the domestic site associated with the battery, though the function is unknown.

Site appears intact though reclad post war. Still in use by MoD.

Known as the St Lucia club, this structure provided recreation facilities for troops stationed at the base.
HB file ref HB11/09/005

Camperdown HAA battery
Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The low walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments. This site followed an early design as there are no shelters for the crews at the position.

The gallery was a shelter protected by a concrete manltet and earthwork berm. A system of raiseable target frames sat behind the gallery. Frames raised target sheets into the line of fire, then lowered where marker then noted hits on target to show accuracy of firing.
The concrete manltet remains intact and there are some remains of the steel and wood posts used to raise the targets.
NA, located from map evidence and dated from analysis of bullets recovered from butt

Derrymore House
Like many large estates during WW2, Derrymore was commandeered by the war office to house troops. The Fife and Forfar Yeomanry were stationed there in 1940, but they had left in 1943 to be replaced by the US 303rd Quartermaster railhead Company. The site became designated the Q-111D, Quartermaster depot. The usit based at Derrymore was largely black soldiers as the US army was still segregated at this time.
The site was composed of Nissen huts with barracks and stores. These have been removed with only ephemeral traces remaining. There is a single concrete road with subsurface concrete bases and hut platforms remaining. Ceramic telephone cable insulators can be found attached to trees in the adjoining woods.
Some hut platforms and a concrete roadway remain.
The state is ovned by the National trust
https://gitrailni.com/gitrail/derrymore-house/

This 100m section of perimeter track is overgrown with moss and grass but remains in relatively good condition.

This concrete tank would have provided an emergency water supply for firefighting.

442 metres of perimeter trackin good condition.

Structure appears to be a personnel shelter, either from air raids or more likely a refuge in case of an accident at the site. It has a brick blast wall at the entrance and a precast curved roof similar to Stanton shelters found at airfield site. A emergency escape hatch can be seen on the wall opposite the entrance.
Structure appears in relatively good condition.

Site constructed to house troops, later PoWs. Likely nissen hut.
PRONI RAF aerial photos on file AM/1/5/9D/4175-4214

Large area of hard-standing, possibly constructed with intention to site a hangar but it was never completed.
Remains in relatively good condition, used to store farm machinery & heavy plant.

Kilroot Fort
The buried concrete structure sits between the two gun positions. It housed the battery's main store of shells and propellant cartridges. Shells and cartridges would have been conveyed separately to the gun floors to stock the ready use magazines around the gun positions. Each gun would have had its own shell and cartridge store.
The site remains in relatively good condition with remains of locker doors leading out to where the gun positions formerly stood. Rather than use shell and cartridge hoists, the ready use magazines may have been accessed directly from the shell and cartridge store.

The 10 metre wide concrete trackway provided access from the finger park dispersals to the airfield.
Approximately 535 metres of trackway remains intact and in relatively good condition, though overgrown in sections at its northern end.

RAF Murlough Bay (ROROR) radar station
Stage three of the ROTOR radar programme was designed to provide radar cover to the north and west of the United Kingdom which was still vulnerable to low-flying aircraft. This programme called for five new Chain Home Extra Low (CHEL) stations, one of which was the site at Murlough Bay. The site was completed in 1956 but was only operational for two years, closing in 1958.
The site was composed of an R11 operations block, a standby set house, support buildings, such as the guard house and dog kennels, and the operational equipment. The station was equipped with a Type 14 Mk. IX search radar and a Type 13 Mk. VII height finding radar. The station was equipped with VHF transmitter and receiver station, however these were sited approximately 2.8 kilometres to the west.
The site is largely intact if in a derelict condition. The guardhouse has been demolished and the plinth for the Type 13 radar is missing.

Castle Coole
Site was requisitioned by the War Office and from June 1942-June 1944 was used to billet US troops, most were elements of the 8th (US) Infantry Division.
A large hutted camp was constructed approx. 600 metres west of the main house, there are no visible remains.

The CNT was tall 13.7 metre tall octagonal building with a single storey annex used to train the aircrew of long-range bombers and transports how to navigate using references to the night sky or ground indicators. A simulated cockpit held the pilots, navigator, radio operator and possibly an instructor. The cockpit was suspended in a gondola which could rotate or tilt to simulate turning motion.
A night sky was projected on the screen above the cockpit while ground features could be projected below. The pilot would 'fly' the aircraft while the navigator used projected references to guide the aircraft to the target. Instructors could add bumpy flying, cloud cover and static issues for the wireless operator.
The steel tower is no longer extant and its footing overgrown, only the small annex remains and only to approx. 1 metre. It is also heavily overgrown.

Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack
Site appears intact but very hevily overgrown so difficult to get a clear idea of design.

Prefabricated concrete bridge over the Agivey River providing access from the bomb stores to airfield
In good condition though a section on the south end of the bridge was deliberately collapsed post war.

A protected structure used to monitor and assess firing practice in safety on the range. It is constructed on brick and reinforced concrete with an entrance on the eastern side. The structure has two narrow vision slits on the east and west walls. Contemporary graffiti cared into large sections of the walls at the inside entrance to the position, representing both British and American troops stationed at the site.

Site provided for domestic, entertainment and recreational needs of the personnel stationed at the airfield, with games room, NAAFI, mess halls & grocery, formerly 28 structures on site.

Nissen hut for storing small arms ammunition for use in ground defence of station.

This is a 1,025 m section of the original 1,300 m runway. 43m wide, it is composed of section of poured concrete surfaced with tarmac. Grass and weeds a growing from the expansion joints along its length. Blocked by earth berms on both ends.

Long brick structure used by non commissioned officer to rest and relax.
Site is largely intact, (though eastern annexe demolished ) it has been repurposed as a gold school/shop.

Site was a military camp constructed during WW2 . May have been associated/extension of Masserine barracks on the opposite side of the Six mile Water. Dozens of hut bases visible in post-war aerial photo.

Ely Lodge
Site of approx. 16 huts.

Store for housing equipment and spares needed for day to day work of workshops.
The site remains in good condition. Retains original roof and windows, the site has bee repurposed as a workshop.

Kilroot Fort
Small brick structure provided toilet facilities for gun crews.
Site remains intact and still provided toilet facilities. Mono-pitched roof may have been added post war.

During WW2 most large estates were requisitioned by the War Office for accommodating and training troops. The huts at Drumalis appear on a post-war RAF aerial photo.
Over 50 huts and hut bases can be counted on the aerial photograph. Though none are visible now, probing of the ground suggests a significant number remains beneath the grass layer.

Barrack block used to accommodate officers. It was a Nissen hut design, type ‘C’. They came in spans of 16 foot or 24 foot. Designed in 1915 by Canadian, Col P. N. Nissen, these prefabricated structures were purchased in large numbers as an alternative to brick construction, and became one of the most common structures built during World War 2. They were semi-circular in section, and normally built in multiples of 6 foot sections. They were constructed of steel ribs covered with sections of curved steel sheeting held in place by straining wires. The ends could be either brick or timber.
This hut has a span of 16 foot and was 36 feet long. Only part of the eastern end-wall and concrete base remains. The wall is heavily overgrown with vegetation.

Limavady ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated mater post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ

Position where trainee crews unlimbered gun to start firing procedures. US troops armed with M3 37mm Anti-tank gun, British with 2 pounder Mark IX gun. Push from point to take position on edge of bluff to take aim at target track 500 metres distant.
Original DHP report Websites www.frontlineulster.co.uk/portmoon-anti-tank-range/ www.ww2ni.com/county-antrim-part-1

The structure is in poor condition as the majority of the structure has been removed. The entire roof superstructure is missing as are both end walls, which have been replaced with modern blockwork. The north and south sidewall windows and entrances have been blocked. A modern roof and steel I-beam supports provide storage for hay/silage bales and farm machinery. Further survey in 2021 showed a steel-framed agricultural shed has been constructed within the structure, but without damaging the fabric of the building.

This concrete jetty was used by refuelling tenders to load up on aviation fuel to bring out to moored seaplanes, such as Catalinas and Sunderlands.
Approximately 13 metres of pier remain in situ, infilled to sides by post-war land reclamation.

This brick and concrete store was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. The store has steel a steel gantry connected to a blast wall, which was used for loading and unloading the store.
The structure is set into a cut in the hillside. The structure differs from the other magazines as it has a small annex to the side of the main store, also rather than a large loading door the main access is via a smaller steel door (in situ).
Site remains intact and in good condition.

Concrete inspection chamber and sewage pipe were part of the camps sewerage system.
Inspection chamber and 47 meres of ceramic sewer remain intact.

Kilwaughter Castle
Used to house officers and possibly HQ elements during WW2
The structure was stripped of its fittings and roof after WW2, only the walls remain.

The gallery was a shelter protected by a concrete mantlet and earthwork berm. A system of raiseable target frames sat behind the gallery. Frames raised target sheets into the line of fire, then lowered where marker then noted hits on target to show the accuracy of firing. The gallery has several rooms (sealed), likely a range officer's room and a target store.
The markers gallery appears intact, though there is no trace of the target frames.

The armoury had an office for the Station Armament Officer and another for his subordinate. Most of the building was taken up by the Small Arms Store containing small arms for ground defence, such as Enfield rifles, Sten sub-machine gun, Bren light machine guns and pistols. All, except the pistols, were placed in purpose built racks with the pistols in lockable cupboards beneath. A workshop for the servicing of Small Arms was also within the building. It was usual to have a built-in masonry cupboard with a steel door containing ready-use quantities of Small Arms Ammunition
The structure is now heavily overgrown but the interior is still largely weatherproof. One half is sealed and inaccessible, however, three rooms remain accessible on the eastern end of the building, all of which are filled with old furniture.

Position where trainee crews unlimbered gun to start firing procedures. US troops armed with M3 37mm Anti-tank gun, British with 2 pounder Mark IX gun. Push from point to take position on edge of bluff to take aim at target track 370 metres distant

Site appears intact though resurfgaced with modern tarmac.
Site appears intact though resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the armament depot. Uncertain function.

Site used to store provisions for use in the nearby mess (now demolished).
In good condition, the site is used as an agricultural store, It has a replacement galvanised steel roof.

Knock-na-more house was requisitioned for military use during WW2 and became the headquarters for the US 34th Infantry Division. It was reportedly visited once by Gen. Eisenhower, supreme commander for allied forces in Europe. After the war it was returned to civilian use as a hotel but was destroyed in a fire during 1990s.
Owner described how the stable block had been requisitioned by the army and used as a motor pool by US troops stationed there. Returned to civilian use after the war it is now a domestic dwelling.
No trace of wartime use, the site is a domestic dwelling.
Owner personal communication.
After the Battel magazine, number 34 (1981), p. 7

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
The hangers, blast shelters and pillbox are scheduled monuments
The shelter remains in good condition, though overgrown. All the entrances have been sealed with modern concrete blocks.

Light anti-aircraft (LAA) guns are smaller, faster firing weapons deployed to engage fast low-flying aircraft. The size and type of weapons deployed at these site could be light machine guns on simple mounts, to 20mm Oerlikon gun to the 40MM Bofors L40 gun. Unlike heavy AA guns which were deployed in batteries of four or eight, LAA guns tended to be deployed individually. LAA sites were deployed to defend the port facilities at Derry and the naval base at Lisahally in May 1941. Twelve in total were deployed, with four dedicated to Lisahally, The LAA coverage of Derry was reduced during 1943 and the last LAA guns were removed from m the Foyle in April 1944
This structure is a steel reinforced concrete octagon with two ready-use ammunition lockers.
Site remains in relatively good condition although there is damage to the upper surfaces of both ammunition lockers.

This brick and concrete store was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. The store had steel doors (now missing) and a brick blast wall. The loading/unloading area is covered by an asbestos porch.
The site remains in good condition, it has been repurposed as a cattle shed.

This was a u-shaped earthwork traverse with opposing blast wall used to temporarily store fused weapons that returned from operations. The ordnance was then defused before returning to the main bomb stores.

The surface is in relatively good condition though the segments on the left and right of the dispersal have been removed. Used to store farm machinery.

The lubricant store was separate from the main stores as it housed dangerous liquids in a fireproof cubicles.
The structure appears in relatively good condition. It has been reused as storage units with modern steel security doors fitted.

ONly narrow section of runway runs for 61 metres along the field boundary.

Concrete wall placed opposite entrance to a magazine to deflect a blast in the event of an accidental explosion in the magazine.

At the start of WW2 the British military's operational doctrine stressed a mobile flexible response to land attacks, but the catastrophic loss of tanks, transport and heavy weapons meant that the resources were unavailable. Concrete, steel and wire had to make up the shortfall in men and equipment. Stop-lines were initially constructed using pillboxes defending obstacles such as rivers and canals, however by autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland.
Site Description This pillbox was one of a series around Rathfriland covering key lines of approach. It is constructed of reinforced concrete with a single embrasure facing west.
The site has been largely obscured by later environmental works, obscuring the face of the structure with an ornamental wall.

The sites displays characteristic fieldworks prevalent in static trench warfare of WW1.
Site appeared in lidar survey, some surface traces remain.

Only concrete base and plinth for the generator remains.

Hut base, likely a nissen hut. Exact function remains unclear but likely related to operation at Castle Archdale. Four reported but only three visible on aerial photographs.

Described as a line terminal building on RAF map, clearly a technical building housing electronic equipment, exact function remains unclear.
The brick structure has two entrances and a third sealed with modern concrete blocks. It appears to have contained electronic switching gear which has been removed. The floor is strewn with rubble and plasterboard stripped from the walls.

HAA batteries were typically armed with four 3.7-inch heavy anti-aircraft guns, which could fire a 28-pound projectile to an effective ceiling of 32,000 feet. The gun crews were directed from the battery command post. The command post provided height, direction and altitude data to the gun pits to enable the gun layers to set the fused to detonate at the correct altitude.

Providing bathing and showering facilities for airmen.
The structure has been converted into a number of domestic dwellings.

High level steel water tower holding 80,000 gallons. Filled by a nearby pump house, it provided water by gravity feed to the entire camp.
only the four concrete footings of the steel support legs remain.

Building held coal-fired boiler to provide heating to huts and hot water to ablution facilities in dispersed camp 3.
In good condition. Modern roller shutter have been added to one bay and the other sealed with modern concrete blocks.

This contained a battery charging room, oil paint store, office and towed target/general engineering. The targets would be towed by other aircraft on a long line for gunners during live firing practice.
The structure is in relatively good condition. All the windows are sealed with concrete blocks and there is damage in several places to the asbestos cement panel roof. Further survey on 12/05/2021 showed the site has been re-roofed and a modern shutter door fitted.

A concrete water tank constructed to provide the water supply to the station. It had a small prefabricated pump house on its north west corner.
The tank remains with traces of the now removed pump house on its upper surface.

Site remains in good condition if somewhat overgrown. Retains original stovepipe chimney.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. Gun was surrounded by a concrete wall which there were seven integral ammunition lockers. These held the ready-use ammunition stored on on wooden racks. This was a more sophisticated design compared to the batteries in the Belfast and Larne GDPs, as they had dedicated crew shelters built into the design, though one was usually allocated as a maintenance and tool store for the position. The outside of the position was reinforced with earthwork revetments providing additional protection and camouflage.
The site remains relatively intact and in good condition. Ann exterior wall of one of the ammunition lockers has been removed in the past, likely by army personnel on training exercises, however the structure appears structurally secure.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001) N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998) Richard Doherty, Key to victory: The maiden City in the Second World War (Derry, 1995) Richard Doherty, 'Escort base' in Ulster Local Studies, Vol 16, No. 1 (1994), pp 31-42.

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing sergeants accommodation

Site was extant in 2017 but appears to have been since removed for agricultural field clearance

This structure was used to pass on information to flight crews, such as finalised plans, distress procedures and operational radio frequencies prior to missions.
Outer walls remain but the windows have been sealed with post-war brickwork and the roof replaced to re purpose the site as a cattle byre.

The Wireless Telegraphy station, otherwise known as W/T, used radio to maintain long range communication, using Morse code and teletype. The building housed the transmitters and would have been surrounded by an array of aerial. WT sites were normally sited away from the main airfield and technical site.
There is a large entranceway on northern endwall, and the structure retains its original window frames. The AC roof is in poor condition with one third missing and another third in a state of collapse. An entrance has been enlarged on the eastern aspect of the structure but this had resulted in potentially dangerously compromised brickwork over the entrance. The roofed section appears to be used as a byre or animal shelter.

The grounds of Cherryvalley were commandeered during WW2 to house troops. The site was used to billet troops from the 1st Battalion, Belgian 6th Infantry Brigade.
All upstanding structures have been removed however there are approx. 56 hut bases remaining across the site and three access roads.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This dispersal contained 4 finger parks.
The site has been truncated by field reclamation and obscured by soil overburden.

Structure containing electrical switch-gear and transformers to regulate electrical supply to technical site.
In good condition, the structure retain its original blast wall.

There is a contemporary doodle/graffiti on the rear end wall likely depicting Hitler. Firefighting instructions remain stencilled on the outside face of the head wall.
The site is overgrown but largely intact, though it has lost one of its doors.

Provided toilet facilities, likely for kitchen staff

Site is intact but resurfaced with modern tarmac.

However, this strategy was seen to be flawed as any penetration of the line compromised the whole defensive scheme. By autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland, fortified with pillboxes and roadblocks.
Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.
The position has two machine gun loops with staircased embrasures, designed to prevent ricochets from entering the bunker.
The maximum thickness of the walls is 135 cm, which meant the position was considered shell-proof. Their roofs are significantly thinner, approximately 30 cm thick, suggesting the positions were designed to resist direct flat-trajectory gunfire (field guns and tanks) rather than indirect high-angle artillery fire from mortars and howitzers.
Entry is via a door at the rear which is protected by a concrete blast wall.
The pillbox would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
William Foot, Beaches, fields, streets and hills: the anti-invasion landscapes of England, 1940 (York, 2006)Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008), N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

Structure erected to accommodate crew of HAA site, function and design unknown.

This was the site of 8 sludge drying beds b until recently, however removed by field clearance c. 2022

By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on air-frames and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
Formerly the site of a group of 4 spectacle dispersals, a speedway track has been constructed on the site, however the central section of concrete hard-standing remains at the centre of the track.

This was a u-shaped earthwork traverse with opposing blast wall used to temporarily store fused weapons that returned from operations. The ordnance was then defused before returning to the main bomb stores. Also used to store tail units for bombs.

Also known as a Compass Swing, the compass rose was painted on a circular concrete pad and was aligned to magnetic north. It was used by aircraft to calibrate their magnetic compass. The entire aircraft could be turned to align the aircraft's compass reading with those painted on the edge of the rose.
Approximately 45 metres in diameter, the site remains intact.

Site appears intact on aerial photos, no access.

Divis firing range
This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters. This was the 600 yard firing point.
Slightly raised compacted soil marks out firing point.

Approximately 507 m of track remain, though the modern road has been laid on the the southern side of the track.

Military structure built to facilitate ATS barracks, exact function unclear
Structure remains intact and in relatively good condition.

The concrete dispersal is in good condition, used as go-kart track.

Site provided accommodation to airmen

Camp constructed during WW2 to house troops. Was handed to US ordnance and maintenance units for use from April 1942- August 1944. Total of 56 Nissen huts and 25 other huts constructed.
Contemporary map from PRONI FIN-19-24-40 Knockmore Camp

This single storey structure was used to house a single fire engine (known as a fire tender) tasked with firefighting and rescue on the airfield.

Short half nissen hut used to store smoke grenades. The 12725/41 design was a nissen hut protected by low earthwork traverses.
The structure remains in relatively good condition and retains some of its original safety markings. The site also retains part of its surrounding earthwork traverses.

This hut provided accommodation for enlisted airmen.

This structure was an R11 operations block. The operations block processed the information received from the radar antennae. It contained a Radar office which housed the complex electronics used to generate and modulate the radar signal. An intercept cabin in the radar screen were monitored. There was the track-telling room which passed air surveillance data and tactical information to other command units. There was a GPO apparatus room (housing communications equipment), a guardroom and armoury and an air-conditioning unit which would have filtered incoming air used to create an overpressure within the structure, giving a measure of protection from chemical weapons and harmful airborne particles. A domestic wing was attached providing restrooms and a small kitchen area.
The structure is largely intact though al the plant, machinery and fittings have been removed, The mahogany floors have also been removed exposing the sunken floors used to house cabling.

Skady Tower
The site was used as an aerial bombing range by the Royal Navy Fleet air arm and the US combat crew replacement centre based at Toome.
David J Smith, Britain's military airfields, 1939-45 (Wellingborough, 1989)

Aldergrove originally had four runways but this layout was altered when the site was rebuilt between 1941 and 1943. This was one of two runways that replaced the previous four. This runway was 1,800 metre long when finished.
Resurfaced, this is the main runway for the Joint Helicopter Command Flying Station.

This structure provided washing and toilet facilities for officers
In good condition, the structure retains its original asbestos roof, steel windows and some window panes. Some sections of roof panelling are missing.

Military structure built to facilitate operations on site, function is unclear.

Concrete trackway providing access through camp.

This 190 m of track appear in good condition. There have been 3 domestic single-storey dwelling built on the surface but used the concrete as foundations.

This concrete dispersal has some overburden piled in its centre but is in good condition.

Two dwellings have been built on hardstanding. Modern tarmac surfacing, concrete mat remain underneath.

With the outbreak of war with Germany in 1914, the rapid expansion of the army led to a corresponding expansion of training facilities. A hutted camp was added to the existing training camp at Magilligan. Part of the training of the recruits required them to practice constructing the types of fieldworks found at the front in France and Belgium. By 1915 trench construction formed a major part of the training of recruits, reflection the prevailing methods of warfare on the Western Front.
The sites displays characteristic fieldworks prevalent in static trench warfare of WW1. There are crenellated 'greek key' trenches, which formed the fire trench. The traverses/crenellations prevented an enemy enfilading the length of a trench with fire.
The sites are quite shallow and barely visible on the ground, they are more apparent on aerial photographs. Approx. 60 metres of trenches remain.
Rory McNeary, Archaeological feature detection using laser scanning at Shane's Castle Park, County Antrim, Ulster Journal of Archaeology, vol. 70,(2011), pp 111-125.
https://frontlineulster.co.uk/randalstown-camp/

This building brought together the instrumentation needed for effective fire-control of the four HAA guns. It is a semi-sunk partially roofed structure, with open bays overlooking the guns, holding the height-finder, predictor and telescope. Inside was found the plotting room, telephonists and offices. The plotting room was the core of the structure and was used to receive and process raid data from telephone and radar. This data was used to calculate information to direct the fire of the battery guns.
Site remains in good condition. Section of wall surrounding former position of spotting telescope has been damaged but the rest of the structure is intact.

Downhill Chain Home Low Radar Station
The operations block was an improvement over the original equipment erected in the station on the opposite side of the road as transmitted and received radar signals from the one antenna. It is constructed of rendered brick and is located just to the east of the site of the radar aerial. The new Tx/Rx facility enabled targets to be located more accurately at lower levels and allowed multiple targets to be tracked on a single display. Internally the structure would have been divided into two main rooms linked by a short corridor and two smaller rooms on either side. The largest rooms was the operations room with plotting tables, plan position indicator and maps. The smaller rooms were a restroom and a store. The westernmost room at Downhill was the transmitter room holding the control cubicle, control panel and transmitter.
The structure is in relatively good condition. All the dividing walls have been removed, as has the original floor exposing the cabling ducts, which are filled in after years of farming activity. There may have been blast protection on both doorways but this has been removed. The doorway on the western end of the black has been enlarged to facilitate its use by farm animals or machinery.

This structure was used to store the three maxim machine guns and other equipment for the running and maintenance of the battery.
Site remains intact and in good condition, it has been fitted with modern doors and windows.

The trackway provided access around the camp.
Approx. 390 metres of concrete trackway remains in relatively good condition.

Concrete trackway providing access to Dispersed living site 2.
80 metres of trackway truncated by domestic dwelling.

The full extent of the track remains (approx 1,780 metres). Large sections in poor condition with some potholes as wide as the track itself. The southern end of the track is better maintained and has been resurfaced to provide access to the Creagh concrete plant. Known as Ardboe Road.

The T2 (‘T’ for transportable) was developed in 1940 to replace Bellman Hangars. They were of a modular design meaning they could be dismantled, moved and reassembled elsewhere. Constructed of steel lattice portal frames and clad in galvanised corrugated iron. The T2 became the standard temporary hangar for the RAF, and over 900 were built during the war. They were considered temporary structures with a limited design life, but many remain on airfields throughout the United Kingdom. Thsi example was larger as it was twice the length of a normal T2 and was known locally as the 'super hanger'
The superstructure of the hanger has been removed leaving the concrete base and door guide rails. Uniquely the piston pits for the aircraft maintenance hoists also survive on the eastern end of the hangar footings.

Approx. 400 metres of concrete trackway leading to site of water treatment works.
Track appears intact and in relatively good condition

A steel-famed general-purpose store
Only the concrete base remains. Overgrown but visible in aerial photographs.

Approx. 580 metres of perimeter wall, punctuated with firing loops for defensive fires/observation along the perimeter.

Blackhead Chain Home Low radar station
The operations block accommodated all the technical equipment and acted as a combined transmitter (Tx) and Receiver (Rx) facility. The Tx/Rx facility enabled targets to be located more accurately at lower levels and allowed multiple targets to be tracked on a single display. The combined Tx/Rx antenna was mounted on a steel gantry on the roof. The improved CHL mounted a single (10 by 30 foot) rotating aerial. The single array flicked continually from transmit to receive. This had many advantages-simpler construction, ease of installation and maintenance over the earlier double aerials, but also it yielded more accurate plots as the transmitter and receiver aerials lay precisely in line. Range was approximately 100 miles.
Site remains in relatively good condition.

The Romney hut (also known as a shed) was designed in Romney House, London by the Directorate of Fortifications and Works at the start of WW”. Primarily used for storage, they could be adapted for canteens, workshops and even cinemas. Semi-circular in section, the hut was a series of tubular steel ribs curved to a radius of 17 feet 6 inches. The were bolted to the foot and connected by steel purlins. The frame was covered by corrugated iron sheeting. The inside of the structure was normally unlined. The hut was composed of any number of bays each 8 feet wide (usually 96 feet long) and an internal span of 35 feet.
This was a Romney hut and likely used as a workshop or for storage.

This 300 m of track remains in good condition, sections used for test track, some dumping on southern end.

Kilkeel Chain Home radar station
This site is designated a West Coast Type C Transmitter block by its layout. Constructed of reinforced concrete, it was protected by earthwork revetments, but these have been removed, with the only traces of the earthworks remaining on the roof. It has two opposing entrances leading to the transmitter room and adjoining air-conditioning and heating plant room. The transmitting sets produced significant quantities of heat, therefore, a ventilation system was required. The feeder outlet bay allowed cables to pass from the transmitter block to the steel transmitter aerials, carrying high voltage radio frequency power. At least one, possibly two reinforced concrete ventilation stacks in the roof.
The site is relatively intact but has been converted to use as a domestic/farm store. An animal shed has been constructed on the southern end and a small window opened in the west facing wall. This structure was covered in earth when operational but this has been removed post-war.

Aldergrove is the oldest airfield in Northern Ireland. Opened in 1918 as an Aircraft Acceptance Park, it was planned to station bombers at the site but this phase was short-lived as it was closed in 1919, but remained in RAF ownership and reactivated annually to exercises. It was reopened in 1922 and in 1925 it became a fully operational flying station. The station operated night bombers but later day-bombers were added. In March 1936 No. 2 Armament Training Station was established at the airfield, this provided armament training facilities to operational squadrons and other Flight Training Schools.
Naval units such as 774 squadron were based at the airfield at the outbreak of war in September 1939. 23 Maintenance Unit was moved to the airfield in November 1939, preparing bombers such as Wellingtons, Hampdens and Blenheim’s for service. Hawker Hurricanes were based there from July 1940 providing air cover for the region and convoy patrols. Several Coastal Command units were based at Aldergrove flying anti-submarine and convoy escort patrols. Aldergrove was allocated to coastal command after the sector fighter HQ was moved to RAF Ballyhalbert in June 1941.
IN September 1941 work was started on reconstructing the runway layout, replacing the pre-war design of 4 runways with the now familiar 2. This work continued until completion in February 1943, though the station remained operational throughout, after which Coastal Command B-17 Flying Fortress and B24 Liberators flew anti-submarine patrols.
The airfield continued to operate after the end of the war, operating reconnaissance units and fighter squadrons. The airfield was included in a list of dispersal airfields for the RAF nuclear deterrent V-force bombers, to prevent destruction in attacks on their home bases in England. In 1963 the northern end of the airfield was redeveloped as Belfast International Airport and remain a busy international airport to this day.
Aldergrove ceased being and RAF station in September 2009, however it remains home to the Joint Helicopter Command
The station has two runways surrounded by a network of dispersals and perimeter tracks. Belfast International Airport operated the northern end of the site, whereas MoD operations control the southern side. The site is in exceptionally good condition with a wide variety of inter-war (RAF expansion period) and WW2 structures. The large number of hangers from the earliest periods of operation to WW2 make this an exceptionally important defence heritage site, with advanced lamella hangars and the early aircraft sheds with Belfast Truss roofs. Te neo-georgian RAF expansion period architecture often seen at RAF stations in Great Britain are not found anywhere else in Northern ireland or Ireland.
Large number of 1920-40 airfield structures extant and in good condition.

Large concrete wall placed opposite entrance to a magazine to deflect a blast in the event of an accidental explosion in the magazine. May have been extended in recent years with the removal of the magazine's southern traverse.
Site appears intact and in good condition

Clogher ROC monitoring post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ.
Site was demolished in the 1990s.
Website https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/clogher-roc-post/

Narrow trackway connecting bomb stores to perimeter track
Approximately 100 metres of concrete track remain.

16 foot span nissen hut provided accommodation for officers

Provided toilet facilities for personnel
Brick structure appears in good condition. Replacement iron roof, with modern concrete blocks sealing doorway and windows. Livestock in field prevented full access.

Structure provided toilet facilities for airmen.
Heavily overgrown, only three walls remaining, with significant cracking visible.

Provided cooking and dining facilities for non-commissioned officers. Sections on southern part of halls were accommodation blocks post war.
The complex of 4 structures in good condition. Retains asbestos roof, converted for use by fish processing business.

Housed guard party responsible for security of the camp. To the east the main building with gables facing the parade ground and to the west a smaller parallel building. This is the structure with high level, small windows noted in the description. The building is labelled ‘guard house’ on this map and were located adjacent to the main entrance into the Barracks. Those stationed in the building organised security for the entrance and site. The larger scale 1874 map shows a gate into a small courtyard around the ‘jail block’ through the piers noted on the parade ground (north) elevation. This courtyard was formed by this wall, a bastion formed in the boundary wall of the fort, the main guardhouse to the east and a parallel wall to the west.
HB file for HB01/09/002 E

Site appears intact, resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Concrete walled structure, retains original compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof and some original windows, converted into dwelling/holiday home.

Eglinton airfield
Living site for personnel. Had approx. 60 structures, mostly barracks with ablution and latrines.

Unidentified airfield building, marled as demolished on contemporary plan.

Structure used to provide shelter to security detail/sentries.

Kircassock House
Kircassock house was requisitioned by the war office during WW2. A camp was constructed which became the HQ for the American 8th Air Force Composite Command, staying from November 1942 to February 1944. During this time the camp was known as AAF Station 231. Approx. 80 structured were erected, with the main house becoming the officers club. After the war ended the site was returned to civilian use.No camp structure remain in situ. Though there is contemporary gaffiti on the gatehouse.
Ernie Cromie, Overhead and over here: The Story of American Military Aviation in Northern Ireland During the Second World War (Belfast, 2013)
https://www.americanairmuseum.com/place/200

Site appears intact though resurfaced with modern tarmac

Divis Firing range
Structure built to facilitate operation on site, likely a nissen hut, identified from aerial photo.
Frontline Ulster report at www.frontlineulster.co.uk/rifle-range-divis

.
Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut serving as barracks

Living site for WAAF personnel. Had 36 structures, mostly barracks with ablution and latrines.

Toilet facilities for sergeants

Concrete trackway running through the technical site
The 5 m wide concrete trackway runs for 268 m through the technical site. Overgrown with moss in some sections.

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected by an integral blast wall. This air raid shelter was formerly of a semi-sunk design, but regrading of the ground sometime during 2017-18 has removed much pf the surrounding earth.
The brick and concrete structure is in relatively good condition and retains its blast wall and the emergency escape is intact.

When construction started in November 1941, the airfield at Mullaghmore was planned as an Operational Training Unit for the RAF, then a gunnery school, then a satellite fighter station to RAF Limavady. Originally planned to have 3 runways, local topography and prevailing wind condition meant only 2 were completed, the third becoming part of the system of perimeter tracks. The site opened in August 1942 and in October the runways were cleared to make them usable for emergency landings.104 Operational Training Unit moved in during October 1943 but the site was handed over to the United States Army Air Force (USAAF) as AAF 240 during December 1943. The 6th Combat Crew Replacement Centre HQ was stationed there from at this time. Troops from 320th Glider Infantry (82nd Airborne Division) were on site during February 1944, then the station was used for short term storage of aircraft. The airfield returned to RAF command in May 1944. The Loran Training Unit (Loran was a long range radio navigation system developed in the US) was stationed here, engaging in navigational training flights and Air-Sea-Rescue sorties looking for missing aircraft.
4 Refresher Flying Unit (focusing on Loran training) in October 1944, with each course for 24 navigators lasting 5 days. This unit mover to RAF Limavady in March 1945. Fleet Air Arm aircraft were stationed hat Mullaghmore in 1945 but all units were gone when the station passed into care and maintenance in May 1945.
One incident of note was the appearance of General Gavin, CO of the 82nd Airborne Division (US), who in December 1943 needed somewhere to hang dry 30,000 parachutes. They had become wet during operations in Italy and were needed for training for and operational use during Operation Overlord in Normandy, commonly known as D-Day. One of the T2 hangars as Mullaghmore was selected and the 505th parachute maintenance company was stationed there until February 1944.
The site is composed of 2 runways, 1,800 and 1,300 m long with surrounding perimeter tracks. The runways are relatively intact though built over in sections. The bomb stores are to the north of the airfield on the other side of the Agivey River. At its peak it stationed over 3,000 personnel and had 4 T2 hangars and a complex of MAP hard-standings, or finger parks. for aircraft storage. It retains the original control tower which has been converted to a domestic dwelling and the technical site is in surprisingly good condition. The airfield has 4 dispersed living sites some of which contain a significant number of remaining structures. Given that Mullaghmore is possibly less well-known of the airfield in Northern Ireland it has a large number and variety of surviving WW2 structures.
Agivey church and graveyard, a scheduled monument just to the north of the airfield
The airfield in is a good state of preservation with a large number and wide variety of structure remaining in relatively good condition.

Only concrete base remains obscured by grass

Site housed boilers for providing heated water to adjoining ablution blocks. Built post-war on the site of the station sick quarters.
The walls, mounting platform for boilers and some water pipes remain.

Site was constructed to facilitate operations at the camp. Its function remains unclear.
The walls remain relatively intact however the structure has lost its roof and easatern end wall.

Trackway providing access around the depot site.
Track only appears as a parch mark on aerial photos.

430 m of perimeter track has been incorporated into the road network, resulting in this section of the road appearing abnormally wide for a rural road. The concrete appears on the edges of the road which has been resurfaced with tarmac, but a number of track light fittings remaining in-situ.
David J Smith, Britain's military airfields, 1939-45 (Wellingborough, 1989).

Ablutions bloc prviding bathing and washing facilities for WRNS
In good condtion, refurbished with modern windows, fittings and roof. Modern extension built on east side-wall.

Constructed of poured concrete with expansion joints. Much of this section of runway has been destroyed by the construction of the Bishopscourt racing circuit. This small section is 10m wide and 187m long. The small section remaining survived in good condition.

The structure was composed of twin reinforced concrete shelters central to concrete revetted trench.
Destroyed to make way for housing development in 2000

Hut provided accommodation for enlisted airmen.

Flight crews coming from their respective Fight Training Schools were qualified to fly and operate aircraft, they were no ready for operational units until they became familiar with the types of aircraft with which their operational squadron was equipped. Operational Training Units (Combat Crew Replacement Centres for the USAAF) were designed to train crews on the aircraft they would fly on operations. An instructional site housed a suite of synthetic trainer which could simulate flight operations on the ground in safety and under the supervision of instructors. The Air Ministry Laboratory (AML) bombing teacher projected a moving map on which the bombardier used a mock bomb sight to hit a target and passed instructions to the pilot, who could alter the course of the ‘flight’ over the map according to instructions from the bombardier, who calculated wind and speed as on a real mission. Timing after bomb release was assessed by instructors to determine the accuracy of the simulated bomb run.

This is a quadruple finger park with two hardstandings remaining
Two of the finger parks remain, though one is visible a second appears as a grass mark in the adjacent field.

Site of a camp built to house soldiers. Belgian soldiers were based her, reportedly the heavy weapons company of 3rd Battalion, 3rd Rumbeke Infantry.
Three concrete bases (likely nissen hut foundations) are extant and a red brick structure, possibly the base of a chimney. Heavily overgrown.

Glenarm Chain Home Low radar station
While the Chain Home radar formed the backbone of the radar coverage for the UK, it had significant gaps in its coverage. When flying at low level (c. 450 metres) enemy aircraft could avoid detection entirely. In response, the system of Chain Home Low radar was developed using early coastal defence radars, which had been used to detect coastal shipping. The station was equipped with the improved Air Ministry Experimental Station (AMES) Type 2 radar set with a combined transmitting/receiving aerial mounted on a steel gantry just north of the operations block. The site was the first CHL station constructed in Northern Ireland and opened in July 1940.
The operations block and standby set house remain in situ, though the main administration block, army guard huts and interrogator mast & hut are now gone.
The operations block and standby set house remain in relatively good condition.
www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart2.htm

A workshop for general maintenance of equipment with storage areas and workbenches. These workshops were positioned to service hangars dispersed around the airfield. They contained a battery charging room, W/T store, office, workshop, instrument section office, auto-control shop, instrument repair and two flight equipment stores.
This structure is in good condition with original windows and workbenches. The roof is in generally good condition though there is some collapse on the most westerly workshop.

Established to support operations as part of the US Naval Base 1. Construction began at Clooney and Rossdowney in 1943. The Rossdowney site was composed of a transmitter, antennae field and maintenance facilities. The site remained operational post war, expanding its role to provide communication support for US and NATO ships, and providing a military communications link between the US and northern Europe. The site was closed in 1977.

Provided accommodation for airmen. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters.
Only the concrete sidewalls remain and gables ends remain, heavily overgrown.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. This is a double finger park with two hardstandings.
One park remains visible and intact whereas the second appears only as a grassmark.

Small brick structure, likely remains of brick chimney from a wooden barrack hut.
Rory McNeary, Archaeological feature detection using laser scanning at Shane's Castle Park, County Antrim, Ulster Journal of Archaeology, vol. 70,(2011), pp 111-125.
https://frontlineulster.co.uk/randalstown-camp/

Provided toilet facilities.
Site appears intact, may be used as domestic store.

Described as RAF hut/billet during WW2

The site remains in good condition, Though the open bays are overgrown and there is some flooding the structure is largely intact. However, the only significant damage to structure is a large section of the south endwall but this damage is not recent.

This is a low-level brick structure to provide quick and relatively safe shelter from blast. The structure is open topped so it was of little use from a direct hit or aerial strafing
The site is in good condition but has been repurposed into a domestic garage. The walls have been added to and a rood and door added.

Nutts Corner airfield

The ammunition depot at Kiltierney was constructed in 1941-2 for the US Navy to store and supply munitions to squadrons of seaplanes planned to be based on lower Lough Erne. Over 30 steel Armco magazines were built. These were connected by a narrow concrete track. However, the US seaplane units were never stationed on the lough and by 1943 the site was used to store munitions for the Royal Artillery.
The site retains four intact magazines and traces of several other, connected by almost 5 Km of concrete trackways.
Trackway and four maga=zine remain with traces of others.

Recorded as cookhouse for preparing meals and storing provisions. Building indicated on the 1854 map but not labelled and formed part of the original group of buildings of the base constructed in 1841. It is likely that they were used for the function of stores throughout most of the time the site was used as a military base.
Intact at time of original DHP, site demolished sometime between 2012 and 2017.
HB file for HB01/09/002 P

The 859 metres of track remain in good condition, only a small section on the eastern end where it joined with the main runway has been removed.

The Bellman hangar was designed in 1936 as a temporary facility capable of being erected or dismantled quickly by unskilled labour with basic equipment. Time taken to erect one hanger was estimated at 500 man hours. From 1938-40, around 400 were constructed across the UK. Bellmans were constructed to 2 specifications. Both had a clear span of 87 feet, 9 inches and a clear height of 25 ft, but length could be either 175 ft or 105 ft 10 in. This example was 175 ft long.
Only the concrete hard-standing and steel door rails remain in situ.

Only approx 50% of concrete hardstanding and manoeuvre yard remain.

The position was a small square concrete pillbox with a single staircased embrasure visible. The site was largely obscured by soil overburden. Steel hooks lined the upper edge which were used to secure camouflage netting. A turnbull mount frame remained fitted to the embrasure. This allowed a Vickers or Bren machine gun to be mounted.
No visible remains. The site was demolished by the owner in 2004 though archaeological remains are likely to survive.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012)BBC report at

Series or stage huts/sheds used to store ammunition during WW2.
DHP report,

The steel pen allowed flying boat to be inspected and serviced out of the water.
Only the concrete base remains with traces of steel uprights which have been cut off at ground level.

The site appears to be a defence post of some sort but it was never completed or has been truncated by later redevelopment. A later more modern encloseure of concrete was constructed on top of the original work. The interior enclosure noted in the original DHP report has been filled in by recent remodeling and landscaping with ornamental railings added.
It is difficult to assess how much of the original site remains as it function is unclear, but recent work have obscured the site with railings and the addition of wooden sleepers as cladding. The chamfering of the concrete from the original report has been removed to facilitate landscaping.

The boiler house was used to provide heat to the adjacent workshop.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is visible on contemporary aerial photographs and in a contemporary defence plan is shown with 2 defence positions/pillboxes, 2 slit trenches and an anti-aircraft position.
The area is grassed over, no visible remains though sub surface remains are likely. A local informant related how the last pillbox was destroyed by the army sometime during the 1980s.

A two story barrack block designed to accommodate 84 troops (82 enlister men and 2 unmarried NCOs)
Site is intact and appears in good condition.

This structure provided accommodation and dining facilities for army officers.

This small security hut was used to control access on and off the depot site.
The structure appears relatively intact with its original asbestos roof.

Drumbanagher
Like many large estates, Drumbanagher was requisitioned by the War office for training and accommodating troops during WW2. A large camp of over 200 huts and buildings was constructed. These were largely removed post-war.
Site of barracks and support buildings such as ablutions and mess facilities.
There are no visible remains on AP, but traces may remain sub-surface.

This 346 m section of runway is in good condition. Its concrete is surfaced with tarmac.

A group of 5 finger parks, 3 of which are visible above ground. Landowner noted dispersals covered by soil post war leaving concrete dispersals intact below the grass.

During the interwar period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed. This is a small example of the type, just 55 foot/16.5 metres in diameter.
Site appears intact though surrounded by new surface of concrete roadways. Assessment from aerial photo as no access during fieldwork.

The air raid shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. This is an example of a Stanton Shelter. They were manufactured at the Stanton Ironworks Co near Nottingham, England. They could be constructed to any length to suit needs but usually consisted of 18 pre-cast concrete arch-shaped units, bolted together to form a shelter to accommodate 50 people. Stanton shelters can be above ground or semi-sunk and usually had a layer of earth and turf laid over them. Often there was a roof escape hatch but this design has brick blast walls and entrances on either end.
The hlast walls have been removed fro both ends of the shelter. Only the pre-cast concrete arches remain in situ.

Orlock Coastal Battery
Camp used to house crew of battery.

Nissen huts erected to accommodate troops. Approx. 6 visible on post war aerial photo.
Site was overgrown but aerial photograph shows at least 2 hut bases in the area of the tree clump..

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. Gun was surrounded by a concrete wall which there were seven integral ammunition lockers. These held the ready-use ammunition stored on on wooden racks. This was a more sophisticated design compared to the batteries in the Belfast and Larne GDPs, as they had dedicated crew shelters built into the design, though one was usually allocated as a maintenance and tool store for the position. The outside of the position was reinforced with earthwork revetments providing additional protection and camouflage.
Site is intact but heavily overgrown with vegetation.

Greencastle airfield
Living site for personnel. Had approx. 67 structures, mostly barracks with ablution and latrines.

Blaris airfield
First used to disperse aircraft in late 1939, the site consisted of a series of large fields with hedges removed to create a grass airstrip 770 yards long. Accomodation was in tents around the perimeter. Later upgraded from dispersal site to a Relief Landing Ground. The site was closed in 1946.
Original DHP record
Martyn Chorlton, Action Stations revisited (vol. 7) Scotland and N. Ireland (Manchester, 2012)

Caledon ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ.
Site is intact and in good condition. The access hatch and ventilation shaft have been re-clad in modern concrete.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/caledon-roc-post/

Unidentified structure, only base remains

By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on air-frames and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
Dispersal remains in good condition, some dumping of spoil on eastern end of site

A group of 4 finger park dispersals. Not visible at time of visit, discussion with the landowner suggested the dispersal was covered with topsoil post war, but dispersal remains intact under the grass.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This 18m diameter dispersal remains in good condition. It is one of the smallest found in NI, likely due to the small size of the aircraft (fighters) based at Ballyhalbert. It is overgrown with large stands of grass growing from expansion joints.

Site has been truncated by construction of cantilevered hangar, what remains is in good condition.

This building brought together the instrumentation needed for effective fire-control of the four HAA guns. It is a semi-sunk partially roofed structure, with open bays overlooking the guns, holding the height-finder, predictor and telescope. Inside was found the plotting room, telephonists and offices. The plotting room was the core of the structure and was used to receive and process raid data from telephone and radar, and control the guns.
The site is in relatively good condition, although the reining wall on the south face of the post has been collapsed inwards and covered with spoil to seal the entrance into the site.

Larne Coastal Battery
The concrete structure was used to store ammunition, either a shell store or cartridge store. Thought to be air raid shelter in original DHP report, its proximity to the Larne battery and construction suggest this was a magazine.

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected by an integral blast wall.
The structure is in poor condition. It appears to have been demolished along its centre line, revealing the supporting pillars and steel reinforced roof. The blast wall has also been removed.

Provided bathing/ washing facilities for troops and/or civilian employees of the Lockheed Corporation
Remains in good condition but heavily overgrown

Large 1670 square metre magazine with concrete walls and earthwork traverse protection., used to store ammunition/explosives for the Royal navy. Uncertain if there were storage structures inside but site is currently used as a storage yard.

Small dispersal appears intact and in good condition

This was a brick building used to store flame floats. They were small incendiary devices dropped by pilots onto water to aid navigation. Sighting by the rear gunner calculated deviation and drift due to crosswinds.

The site was used by gun crews to shelter while on duty. The reinforced concrete construction was designed to provide protection to crews should the site come under direct aerial attack.
The layout of the structure is intact with access stairways at either end, however the roof has collapsed into the sistructure.

Only concrete base remains, planters built on surface.

Provided toilet facilities for officers
Structure remains in good condition with original windows.

Used as a mess hall for US troops, providing dining facilities.
Site returned to civilian use after the war, it is now used as a visitor centre.

Carrickfergus Castle
Vault in Castle converted to 50-person air raid shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
The vault remains intact wit traces of emergency exit in masonry. Brick cubicles remain at rear of vault, these would have screened the chemical toilets.
Extracts from the Ministry of Finance (Finance Works Division) File

Divis Firing Range
Structure built to facilitate operation on site, likely a nissen hut, identified from aerial photo.
Frontline Ulster report at www.frontlineulster.co.uk/rifle-range-divis

A brick structure erected to provided toilet facilities to enlisted men and non-commissioned officers. Built possibly c. 1923 but not WW2 austerity style construction.
Site is intact and in good condition. Reroofed and modern pvc windows fitted. Repurposed and still in use by MoD.
Binevenagh Coast and Lowlands Defence Heritage Audit (2017) by Quarto and Ulidia Heritage Services for Causeway Coast and Glens Heritage Trust.
Magilligan Estate Archaeological Audit (2019) prepared by WYG Environment Planning Transport Ltd for MoD
https://frontlineulster.co.uk/magilligan-musketry-camp/

Strongpoint is obscured by soil and is overgrown, making it difficult to discern design.
This strongpoint is heavily overgrown but sections of the observation post and pillbox can be seen on the northern end of the site. Most of the site is obscured by overburden. The entrance to the observation post has been blocked with an improvised metal barrier. Machine Gun embrasures can just about be made out on pillboxes at the northern and southern end of the site.

Stramore Farm
A camp was constructed at Stramore farm by troops from the Royal Electrical Mechanical Engineers (R.E.M.E’s). After they left they were replaced by US troops from the 6th US cavalry.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restriction on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive snowflakes, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland.
The site is a collection of 9 finger park dispersals in a 'snowflake' pattern. A barn/byre has been erected in the centre of the pattern and four of the parks are visible. Discussion with the landowner suggests that the rest of the dispersal is covered with topsoil but remain extant under the grass.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. It was equipped with concrete benches and was designed to accommodate 25. Opposite then entrance the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
Destroyed to make way for housing development in 2000.

The standby set house provided emergency power for crucial sections of the airfield should the main power supply fail. When operational this would have housed two diesel generators, two 3,000 gallon fuel tanks, a switchgear chamber and a transformer chamber. It is robustly built, with a flat reinforced concrete roof supported with steel beams and concrete columns.
The structure is in relatively good condition. A large entrance has been opened into the fuel storage chamber and another through the dividing wall into the generating hall. Steel cladding has been added to the outside of parts of the building and a pitched roof covers the original concrete slab roof. The engine beds for the generators have been removed and a wooden mezzanine floor added.

Structure relating to operations at the camp, reported locally as something to do with camp electricity, either generator, substation or switch-house.
The brick walls appear structurally intact, but the asbestos cement roof is in state of collapse. Some remains of electrical system on interior south wall.

HAA batteries were typically armed with four 3.7-inch heavy anti-aircraft guns, which could fire a 28-pound projectile to an effective ceiling of 32,000 feet. The gun crews were directed from the battery command post. The command post provided height, direction and altitude data to the gun pits to enable the gun layers to set the fused to detonate at the correct altitude. Most batteries had a ramp and platform nearby which held the gun laying (GL) radar. A polygonal mat surrounded the GL radar, marking the area of the false datum, which was composed of a wire mesh and was needed to generate a false horizon for the primitive GL radar sets.
The battery has been largely removed and the ground returned to pasture. Only the hut bases of the associated domestic site remains in the adjoining field.

A former flax mill, the Holts building was commandeered by the War Office to accommodate troops during WW2. A small army camp of several huts was erected. Elements of the Welsh Regiment were based there during 1941.
The commandeered building remains intact and in use but the temporary camp was dismantled post-war.

Narrow Water Castle
Structure built to facilitate operations at the site, likely a barracks.

Sick quarters provided medical care for personnel on base. had barracks for orderlies and ambulance garage/mortuary.

Flight offices is where aircrew waited for call to action. It was also an office where day to day unit administration was carried out.
Entirely overgrown on the ground, visible in aerial photographs, only concrete base remains.
BBC report at

The Fromson hangar is a small arched hangar designed and manufactured by a Canadian company, Fromson of Byfleet in England. Similar to a blister hangar, it was used as an aircraft storage shed at Royal Naval Air Stations. It had four bays, each 17 feet 6 inches wide. Used to store small aircraft it had a clear door height of 17 feet.
Only concrete hardstanding remains. Modern steel shed erected on part of site.

The Type C Hangar (known during the interwar years as a shed) was designed to meet the RAF’s need to house larger aircraft. A hangar was required with a clear span of 150 feet, length of 300 feet and a clear height of 35 feet. This led to the development of the Type C hangar. Early examples were built with brick and steelwork, but in 1936, this was changed to concrete in anticipation of enemy bombing. Doors were arranged in six leaves, with steel plates on both sides. The cavity was filled with gravel to a height of 20 feet to provide protection against bomb splinters.
The annexes to either side of the hanger served day-to-day operations, with offices, rest rooms, changing and locker rooms, briefing rooms and briefing rooms. There were also wireless and instrument workshops, armouries, aircraft and equipment store to serve the immediate needs of the ground crews.
A change to the design came in 1938 when austerity called for economy of materials and manpower, with greater use of steel cladding and cantilevered roof frames covered with asbestos sheeting.
This hangar was of the late interwar Type C (unprotected) as it made maximum use of austerity materials, with the brickwork and gables (see DHR 00025:026) being replaced with steel framework, steel cladding and asbestos sheeting.
The site was extant until 2013, after which it was demolished and a smaller modern hanager constructed on part of the site. Concrete hardstanding remains.

The Type C Hangar (known during the interwar years as a shed) was designed to meet the RAF’s need to house larger aircraft. A hangar was required with a clear span of 150 feet, length of 300 feet and a clear height of 35 feet. This led to the development of the Type C hangar. Early examples were built with brick and steelwork, but in 1936, this was changed to concrete in anticipation of enemy bombing. Doors were arranged in six leaves, with steel plates on both sides. The cavity was filled with gravel to a height of 20 feet to provide protection against bomb splinters.
The annexes to either side of the hanger served day-to-day operations, with offices, rest rooms, changing and locker rooms, briefing rooms and briefing rooms. There were also wireless and instrument workshops, armouries, aircraft and equipment store to serve the immediate needs of the ground crews.
A change to the design came in 1938 when austerity called for economy of materials and manpower, with greater use of steel cladding and cantilevered roof frames covered with asbestos sheeting.
This hangar was of the late interwar Type C (unprotected) as it made maximum use of austerity materials, with the brickwork and gables (see DHR 00025:026) being replaced with steel framework, steel cladding and asbestos sheeting.
The site was extant until 2013, after which it was demolished. Only concrete hardstanding remains.

Appears relatively intact on aerial photo. No access on day of visit. Room has been replaced with modern cladding.

Site used to draw and filter water from the lough for use in the camp.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This 150 foot/46m dispersal remains in good condition.It has 2 porta-cabins parked on its northern end.

This site is composed of a concrete revetted firing trench with two concrete and brick shelters used for ammunition storage.
The site is in good condition though somewhat overgrown, with some dumping of concrete in the eastern end of the position.

The site retain the original curved roof and body of the structure, however the steel end walls were removed by the owner due to corrosion and replaced with modern blockwork and fitted with a modern roller door. Most of the earth covering has been removed.

Structure relating to the operation of the firing range
Only concrete base remains, likely a nissen hut.

Store used by Home Guard (also known as Local Defence Volunteers) to store equipment.
The brick and concrete structure remains in good condition.
Bernard Lowery (ed) 20th Century defence in Britain: an introductory guide (1996)

For the support and servicing of aircraft guns, it had a specific layout to include an office, a large workshop with metal topped workbenches for aircraft gun servicing. Separate was a room for the making-up pf ammunition belts with sequenced rounds and hand cranked belt positioning machine to ensure correct alignment of cartridges were used.
The structure remains in good condition, It retains the original rood but the windows are modern replacements. The site has been repurposed as a joiners workshop.

This concrete dispersal is 18 metres wide is appears in good condition, some grows grows through the expansion joints.

During night-flying the site could station a mobile floodlight. This was used to illuminate the length of the runway by shining down it in the same direction as the landing aircraft.

This small dispersal appears intact if heavily obscured by vegitation

This structure was built to test fire and synchronise aircraft machine guns and cannon. The recess would have been filled with a sand backstop into which the guns were fired.
Site is in good condition. It has been repurposed as part of the modern small arms firing range,

Spring Farm
The site was requisitioned at the start of WW2 for the construction of a camp to house troops. It was used to billets black troops from the US quartermaster service.

354 metres of track remain in good condition.

Provided accommodation for sergeants. This was described as a ‘portable hut’ design, likely made of wood and plasterboard/plywood.
Only the brick and concrete hardstanding remains.

This site was composed of a concrete revetted firing trench with two concrete and brick shelters used for ammunition storage.
Site demolished in 2003, traces of foundations may remain. Heavily overgrown with whin bushes.

Elmfield House
The house and grounds of Elmfield House was requisitioned by the War office to house troops during WW". Initially a camp was constructed to billet troops, however by 1945 this was repurposed as a prisoner of war camp. The camp could hold 1,800 prisoners and the camp was guarded by British troops with guard post sited along the perimeter. The German troops were repatriated after the war and the camp was returned to civilian use.

Kilrea ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
Site remains in good condition, it was restored by the local radio club. Mount for radio antenna mounted on the baffle plate of the bomb power indicator.
Website www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/kilrea-roc-post/

The original runway lighting system was rudimentary, with unidirectional lighting systems marking out the lines of the main and secondary runways during night or low-visibility flight operations. This was improved in late 1941 with the introduction of the Mk II system. This is an example of the retrofitted MK II light, with its directional lighting. This allowed the light to be switched on pointing in one direction at a time, preventing pilots from landing on the correct runway but wrong direction.
This lighting system was added after the construction of the airfield as it is mounted in a block of concrete, not the embedded in the runway surface. The light housing survives in good condition
David J Smith, Britain's military airfields, 1939-45 (Wellingborough, 1989).

Blackhead Chain Home Low radar station
Structure built to facilitate operations at the station.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide.
This is a 300 metre section of perimeter track, it has been resurfaced with modern tarmac but the original fabric remains underneath.

Series of eleven 4,400 gallon petrol tanks buried along the side of the roadway.
Uncertain if they still remain, only visible trace of installation is the three drop kerbs leading down to the sites of the tanks.

Provided accommodation for airfield personnel. Built post-war on site of WW2 sick quarters.
Site retains it gable ends and sidewalls, some internal dividing walls also remain.

Unknown function, marked as demolished on contemporary plan.

Nutts Corner airfield
The air raid shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. This is an example of a Stanton Shelter. They were manufactured at the Stanton Ironworks Co near Nottingham, England. They could be constructed to any length to suit needs but usually consisted of 18 pre-cast concrete arch-shaped units, bolted together to form a shelter to accommodate 50 people. Stanton shelters can be above ground or semi-sunk and usually had a layer of earth and turf laid over them. Often there was a roof escape hatch but this design has brick blast walls and entrances on either end.

Single storey dwelling built on hardstanding. Landscaping of sections into lawn and flower beds.

Ballycastle ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft.
The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis.
Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated mater post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
The site is intact and sealed with two large padlocks. The site has its original green paint though this is flaking. All the ventilation louvres are intact though rusting.

The main workshop building was an attempt to centralise workshop requirements in a single structure. Two main workshops are connected by two annexes. The facility would have contained an airframe repair shop, an engine store and the annexes may have functioned as a machine shop and welders shop
The structure remains in relatively good condition. It is secured with modern steel doors but is becoming overgrown.

18-19 Century magazine converted into use as an air raid shelter in 1940-41. A bricked up window in the magazine was opened to provide an emergency exit.
Site remains intact though shelter fittings were removed post-war.
Extracts from the Ministry of Finance (Finance Works Division) File

Identical in original construction to DHP 85:13, this T2 is also owned and maintained by Acheson and Glover Ltd. The hangar has been re-clad with three new entrances/loading docks cut into the southern sidewall. The hangar houses a concrete products manufacturing plant.

Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. Type A huts were for officers and consisted of 4 rooms and one for servants. Type B huts were for sergeants and were a single room accommodating 8 men. Those for other ranks or airmen accommodated 12 men in a single room. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides.
This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for airfield personnel.

RNAS Maydown has two rather than the normal three runways, (there was not enough room for a third) both 150 feet wide, the were concrete surfaced with bitumen. The main runway ran roughly east-west and was 1650 yards long, the second roughly north-south was 1350 yards long.
This 176 metre long section of the main runway is located inside the DuPont plant. It appears to have been resurfaces, therefore it is not clear if the runway remains under the modern surface.

Orlock Coastal battery
Structure erected to facilitate operations at the site. May have housed generators to power searchlights.

This concrete tank is filled with water providing an emergency supply for firefighting,

Blackhead CHL radar station
Brick structure built to facilitate operations at the station.
Only concrete platform with brick rubble of structure remaining.

Large airfield building, not on original map therefore likely built post war, Unknown function.
A rear section of the building remains roofed and lower levels of part of the walls have been reused to support the structure of modern storage warehouse.

Accommodation for officers housed in Nissen hut.
Only traces remain of hut, mostly built on by private dwelling

Killymoon
Shallow ramp on which vehicles were driven to allow access to underside for maintenance/inspection.

Ely Lodge
Site of appox. 13 huts., likely barracks
Traces may remain obscured in the undergrowth.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The low walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments. This site followed an early design as there are no shelters for the crews at the position.

Up to 40 nissen huts were constructed in this area to house base personnel. This area is heavily overgrown but it appears many if not most of the huts constructed in this area may remains as overgrown concrete hut bases.
Heavily overgrown but likely hut bases remains in the undergrowth.

The manor house was commandeered during WW2 and used to house British and US officers.
The site was returned to civilian used after WW2 and is now a hotel.

Aughentaine Castle
Aughentaine Castle was requisitioned by the War Office to accommodate troops during WW2. Camps were errected and from December 1943-June 1944 the 43rd (US) Field Artillery Batt. and 28th Field Artillery Batt., (8th US Infantry div.) were stationed there.
Two areas of hardstanding and a number of hut bases remain in situ.

Lamella construction originated in Germany during the 1920. The name derives from ‘Lamellendach’ or ‘segmented roof’. The rights were acquired in Britain by Horsley Bridge & Engineering Company in 1929. Lamella construction was a large net-like steel framework of diamond shaped lattice. This formed a curved arch with a span of 50m, height of 10m and length 91m. The framework was covered with steel sheeting. Due to its design the structure did not require internal supports therefore floor space was maximised.
The Lamella hangars at Aldergrove are the only ones of their type in Ireland

The site appears largely intact, though slightly truncated at it western side where it should join the perimeter track.

Designed in 1915 by Canadian, Col P. N. Nissen, these prefabricated structures were purchased in large numbers as an alternative to brick construction, and became one of the most common structures built during World War 2. They were semi-circular in section, and normally built in multiples of 6 foot sections. They were constructed of steel ribs covered with sections of curved steel sheeting held in place by straining wires. The ends could be either brick or timber.
Nissen hut erected to accommodate crew of HAA battery.Precise function unclear.

Site appears intact from aerial photos, no access on day of visit.

The site was constructed to control and monitor movement of goods and people across the border.
Roof and steel body has been removed leaving only the concrete floor and brick end walls.

The threat of gas attack was very real, therefore decontamination facilities were attached to the sick quarters. Gas casualties could be decontaminated before treatment and other troops could replace contaminated clothing.
This decontamination centre was sealed but appears to be in good condition with air vents still in situ.

Provided washing and latrine facilities
Main entrance sealed but remains in good condition. May have been converted to agricultural store.

Provided dining facilities for officers.
The site is in good condition with original roof. Modern windows have been added as one annex was converted into a private dwelling. Northern annex converted to workshop.

Killard Point ROTOR radar station
The radar site at Killard point opened in 1956 and was a major air defence radar unit under the stage 3 of the ROTOR programme. The site provided military air traffic control and acted as an air defence radar protecting the UK from attack from Soviet bombers from over the Atlantic during the Cold War. IN 1960-61 the site became a Joint civil/military air traffic control unit, known as Ulster Radar providing cover for air traffic control centres Prestwick, Preston and London, tracking civil aircraft flying over 25,000 feet. The site was closed in 1978
The site had an above ground R8 operations block which controlled and plotted data and tracks from number of different radars. A large AMES Type 80 search radar which had a range of approx. 250 miles. The aerial was 75 feet long and 25 feet high, rotated at 4 rpm and was mounted on a modulator building. It was also equipped with two AN-FPS 6 long-range height finding radars on raised steel gantrys, three Type 13 height finding radars on brick plinths and a Type 14 surveillance radar.
Bishops Court Rotor radar, worked in conjunction with Killard Point
Only hardstand remains where the operations block and Type 80 radar modulator building stood. However the brick and concrete plinths for the Type 13 height finding radars remain, as does the plinth and concrete hold fasts for the Type 14 radar. The site is now a nature reserve.
Ulster Radar website at www.ulsterradar.co.uk

Terrace of five houses was constructed to provide married accomodation for five airmen and their families.
Site appears intact and still in use my MoD

The main strip (08/26) was 45 metres wide and the surface is made of concrete separated by expansion joints. The surface was originally surfaced with bitumen, but this has eroded away to expose the concrete on much of the runway. Approximately 641 metres of the runway remains. Overburden and soil heaps cover 228 metres of the eastern end of the runway. However, the runway is likely to remain under this.
John Hughes, Toome’s wartime airfield fifty years ago (Draperstown, 1995) Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012) Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/ WW2NI website at https://www.ww2ni.com/countylderryairfields.htm

Military camp constructed during WW2, likely composed of nissen huts, its function remains unclear, though possibly housed US army medical units.

Provided washing and bathing facilities for sergeants and other ranks

Derrymore
Structure built to facilitate operations at the camp.
Only concrete base re4mains under the grass.

This brick-faced (the inner core of the walls is steel reinforced concrete)concrete pillbox would have held a section with a light machine guns, wither a Vickers gun on a tripod or a Bren Gun. However it would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements. It has six embrasures providing all-round defence. This site appears to be of an early design as it is not fitted with staircasing on its embrasures to prevent ricochets into the position. The pillbox was erected to defend against a land attack as its entrance faces towards the coast.
Very similar design and construction.
Site remains in relatively good condition. It retains its original steel door though this now acs as a ramp into the site. There are remains of steel guide rails for steel shutters (missing)These would have protected the position from small arms fire and flame weapons entering the embrasures.
Some concrete panels have fallen away from the south-west face exposing the concrete core.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: the fortifications of Ulster, 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. It was equipped with concrete benches and was designed to accommodate 25. Opposite the entrance was the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
Site in rear garden of a private dwelling, roof over grown with ivy but structure in good condition.

This 38 metre diameter dispersal is in relatively good condition. A single story dwelling has been built on the concrete hardstanding, and a public road cut through the southern end.

A protected structure used to monitor and assess firing practice in safety on the range. This is the most easterly blockhouse. It is constructed on brick and reinforced concrete with an entrance on the eastern side. It has two narrow vision slits on the east and western wall, with each slit divided into two smaller apertures. There is a substantial quantity of
contemporary graffiti cared onto the internal walls. One of the norther faces of the
blockhouse was been shots at there are multiple bullet strikes and spalling of the brick.

Provided toilet facilities for personnel stationed at dispersed living site
Remains relatively intact, retain original asbestos roof and steel window frames.

Linear ‘Stop-Lines’ were built to support the coastal defences. These were intended to restrict and contain the movement of enemy armoured formations. Canals, river, anti-tank ditches and obstacles were protected by pillboxes, infantry trenches and anti-tank guns at key crossing points, with other bridges and culverts prepared for demolition should the enemy threaten the line. Eight stop-lines were constructed in NI. They were all concentrated east of the River Bann, with the river and the Newry Canal providing the main obstacle bisecting N. Ireland. Line A ran from the Bannmouth on the north coast to Toome where the Bann enters Lough Neagh. Line B started at the Bannfoot on the southern shores of Lough Neagh and followed the line of the River and the Newry Canal to Carlingford Lough. A sequence of lines (C to H) supported lines A and B, and fell back on the Belfast Defence Scheme which was a perimeter of forward defended localities, observation posts and roadblocks. However, this strategy was seen to be flawed as any penetration of the line compromised the whole defensive scheme. By autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland, fortified with pillboxes and roadblocks.
This pillbox would have been armed with a machinegun top protect the southern approaches to the road bridge across the River Bann at Coleriane. It was elaborately camouflaged and made to look like a shopfront, whereas the gable on the opposite side of the street had a false embrasure painted on it to draw enemy fire.

This hanger was one of the first two constructed on the airfield when it opened in 1938. Built to a non-standard civilian design, the two hangars serviced Belfast Harbour Airport during WW2.
The site appears intact though it has been re-clad post war.
Guy Warner and Jack Woods, In the heart of the city: The history of Belfast's City Airport 1938-1998 (Belfast, 1998)

Covered with modern tarmac, concrete likely remains underneath.

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing sergeants'

Sidewalls and gable ends remain with some dividing walls, the structure is heavily overgrown.

Nissen hut constructed to facilitate operations at the armament depot.
Demolished c. 2017 for housing development

Gun laying (GL) were developed to provide range and altitude data of attacking aircraft. This fire control data was used to direct the battery's four 3.7 inch guns. To avoid or minimise the effect of ground clutter the early sets (Mark I and Mark II) were mounted on a raised platform and surrounded by a 130 yard diameter GL mat, consisting of a mesh of steel wires. This mat provided a false datum and allowed radar operators to get the best from these early radar sets. The Mk I and II radars were mounted on wheeled trailers, therefore the inclined ramp allowed the trailer to be positioned on the platform. The GL Mk II could see aircraft at 50,000 yards, track continuously at 30,000 yards and control the HAA fired at 14,000 yards.
The Structure was a shallow inclined which allowed the radar equipment to be rolled up onto the square platform. This would have been surrounded by the GL mat.

Structure to provide shelter to units on guard duty at the site.
Only concrete base remains and that is overgrown.

The estate was requisitioned during WW2 and an ammunition/ordnance depot establishes to store explosives and ammunition. With the entry of the US into the war in 1941 American ordnance units were also based here. The only upstanding remains are ten explosive/ammunition magazines.
There are the remains of 10 prick and earthwork magazines remaining in relatively good condition but heavily overgrown. One has been converted into a clubhouse.
DHP report,

Three structures erected to facilitate operations at the camp.

Site provided for domestic, entertainment and recreational needs of the personnel stationed at the airfield, with NAAFI, & mess hall, formerly 6 structures on site.

The wharf was constructed as part of the US Navy repair base.
The site appears intact and in good condition.
websites
http://historyhubulster.co.uk/royal-navy-world-war-ii/
http://www.theyard.info/yards/londonderry/londonderry.asp

The site is heavily overgrown but appears intact and in relatively good condition

When constructed this 1,620 metre runway is part of a less common 2-runway layout as a third was not permitted by the surrounding hilly topography.
Short 40 metre section of runway remains, It is used as a storage yard.

Provided bathing and showering facilities for sergeants and airmen.
In good condition, rtains its original asbestos roof, window frames and internal dividing walls. Has been repurposed as an agricultural store

Bombs/missiles would only be fused when they were transported to loading onto aircraft. Therefore, fusing point buildings were sited on the trackways from the bomb stores to the perimeter track and dispersals. With doors at both ends, trolley trains loaded with bombs were driven in and each bomb was fused by an armourer. The fused bombs were then driven out the other end of the building and taken directly to their aircraft for loading. This site had two nissen huts protected by earthwork traverses on either side. KNown as 'interceptor traverses' they were to channel a blast in event of an accident and catch debris.
Only the concrete track way remains. Northern loop of track was extant in 2017 but has since been removed for agricultural field clearance.
Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)
International Bomber Command Centre at internationalbcc.co.uk/about-ibcc/news/fuzing-point-shed/

Huts erected a part of army camp, group of approx. 4 built to facilitate operations at the camp.
https://history.army.mil/reference/ireland/readme.htm

Vault in Castle converted to 50-person air raid shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
Traces of emergency hatch in roof of the vault, returned to used as storage room after the war.

Landing pad for helicopters flown into site. The helipad provides a clearly marked hard surface away from obstacles where such aircraft can land safely.

This Iris hut was used as a quartermaster's store and was approx. 28 metres long and 10 metres wide.
Only concrete base remains obscured by dumped spoil.

The structure was composed of 2 pillboxes connected by an ammunition/command element room with a single observation post, similar to DHT 00087:004.
Buried by construction of sea wall, remains my be extant within sea wall.

Possibly seven nissen huts constructed in this area to facilitate operations at the site.
Site overgrown but traces may survive sub surface.

Nissen hut constructed during WW2 to facilitate operations though at this stage it is unclear what purpose they served. They may have been part of a camp or used as roadside stores.
Site is relatively intact though doors have collapsed from end wall. Heavily overgrown.

Anti-aircraft dome trainers were built to simulate air to ground gunnery techniques. Within the dome (which resembled a small planetarium) aircraft images were projected on the curved interior while gun bursts were displayed whenever the trainee fired the trigger of the dummy gun unit. Sound effects were used throughout to ensure the training was as authentic as possible. The sound effects track played form five seconds, as this was the length of time needed to exhaust the ammunition supply on the machine gun. An instructor would assess the trainees’ accuracy by beams of light projected from the gun onto the inner surface of the dome. Only half the domes inner surface was used as a target screen as the rest was lined with sound absorbent material to limit echoes. Indeed, the shape of the structure creates a unique acoustic effect for visitors to the site.
The dome appears in good condition from the outside, but internally much of the render has fallen from inside the dome exposing the concrete and steel framework. The rusted remains of the steel frame of the panel dividing the instruction area and the lobby and ventilation plant room remains, though in poor condition. The site has been used as a stable but not on the day this fieldwork was undertaken. the anti-aircraft training dome at Limavady is one of only six surviving examples in the UK.

Kilkeel ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated mater post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ

Searchlights were used to target enemy aircraft and guide in anti-aircraft fire. The could also be used to ais aerial navigators during night flying operations. Normally composed of 1-3 searchlights enclosed by earthwork berms, predictors to guide lights, supported by barracks for the crew and generator buildings.
Only remaining structures are 2 nissen type structures of uncertain function.
Bernard Lowry (ed), 20th Century defences in Britain: an introductory guide (1996)

This contained a battery charging room, oil paint store, office and towed target/general engineering. The targets would be towed by other aircraft on a long line for gunners during live firing practice.
Significant concrete block patching in walls and replacement corrugated iron roof. This structure has been converted into a cattle byre.

Structure relating to operation of radar station, function unknown.

Pellipar
This is a concrete walled ammunition./explosives store reinforced with earthwork revetment. It is 416 sq. metres in area. The store was designed to direct an explosive blast upwards in the event of an accident. Owner noted that the site formerly has four nissen huts constructed in its interior to house the munitions.
The site remains in good condition and is largely intact though the owner has constructed a large storage shed, fully enclosing the storage area.

Group of 12 huts constructed to facilitate operations at the site.
PRONI Photo from AM/1/5/49B/3191-3230
https://gitrailni.com/gitrail/mourne-park/

Long Kesh airfield

Provided toilet facilities for officers
The site is overgrown but remains in relatively good condition.

This site retains the command post and two of the gun emplacements retain upstanding structures, although perhaps 50% remains of one. Surrounding walls of the two other gun emplacements have been removed but the gun platforms remains below the grass. The ammunition store remains though its outer concrete reinforcing has been replaced with modern galvanised steel sheeting.

This site was used as a shelter by the gun crews while on duty. It also housed a cook house and ablutions to provide for the domestic needs of the crews. This single storey structure was countersunk behind a surrounding revetment to protect it from direct naval gunfire. It is now used as a store by the salt mine company.
Site appears intact and in relatively good condition. A prefabricated office has been erected on top of the structure, though this has now fallen into disuse as the company has constructed new officers to the south of the site.

Used for treating wastewater from station, allows particulates to settle before pumping water to filters.

Concrete trackway providing pedestrian access to camp
Some steps and approx. 19 metres of track remain.

Area of concrete laid during construction of anti-aircraft range. May have been used for storage of parking.
Hardstanding remains with agricultural feeder erected on it

Local informant related how he remembered a brick and concrete bunker sat on the site surrounded by supporting trenches and barbed wire entanglements.
No visible remains, however this does not preclude buried remains surviving.

Pellipar
This is a concrete walled ammunition./explosives store reinforced with earthwork revetment. It is 440 sq. metres in area. The store was designed to direct an explosive blast upwards in the event of an accident. Owner noted that the site formerly has four nissen huts constructed in its interior to house the munitions.
The store has been relined with modern concrete and has been repurposed to store woodchips.

This is an earthwork traverse used to protect the markers gallery from incoming gunfire.

Store used by Home Guard (also known as Local Defence Volunteers) to store equipment.
Bernard Lowery (ed) 20th Century defence in Britain: an introductory guide (1996)

Provided bathing facilities for officers

Site of a military camp during WW2. The site appears to have been composed of approx. 19 nissen type huts with several other structures.

This jetty was used to load and unload tenders and seaplanes.
The 75 metre concrete jetty remains in relatively good condition. The original jetty has been added to with modern additions. and refurbishment.
Joe O'Loughlin and John Hughes, Fermanagh in the Second World War at Website https://www.ww2ni.com/cofermanaghairfields.htm

Structure relating to the operation of the naval gunnery range, function unknown.
Site survives in good condition. repurposed as farm store.

This is a double finger park with two hardstandings.
In good condition, part of Belfast International Airport . Part of western hardstanding truncated by aircraft parking apron.

Shane's Castle Park
The site was established to provide marksmanship training to troops stationed at Randallstown, 1914-18.
The site consisted of three small arms ranges and a number of workshops, shelters and target stores. There was a 500 yard, 600 yard and 200 yard range with a total of 56 target lanes. Only the earthwork banks of the markers galleries remain.
Randallstown army camp
Only the earthwork banks of the three marker galleries remain.

Provided washing and bathing facilities. Also included a drying room, fitted with heated racks for drying wet coats and overclothes.
Only concrete base and single course of brick. Largely obscured by dump of stone hardcore.

Lisanelly Barracks
The camp was contracted during WW2 and remains n army barracks until 2007 when it was decommissioned.
The WW2 camp was composed of a large number of irregularly spaced huts, however these were replaced in the post-war years. The site has been cleared for redevelopment.
Site closed and later demolished c. 2007.

Sire noted as a 'Produce compound', but position on technical site makes it an unlikely place to store foodstuffs, purpose remains unclear.
The brick structure has been heavily modified post war with additional brickwork to raise the height of the walls and the addition of steel hangar doors, may have been used to house light aircraft.

Concrete hardstanding used to store equipment and artillery. Known locally as the 'gun yard'.
Some trace of concrete hardstanding remain as part of farmyard.

RAF Toome
The site is overgrown but remains in good condition.

This is an enclosing earthwork traverse designed to contain a leak from the fuel tanks. The tank inside the bund is a post-war construction.
The depression created by the excavation of the bund remains but the bank has been levelled.

Linear ‘Stop-Lines’ were built to support the coastal defences. These were intended to restrict and contain the movement of enemy armoured formations. Canals, river, anti-tank ditches and obstacles were protected by pillboxes, infantry trenches and anti-tank guns at key crossing points, with other bridges and culverts prepared for demolition should the enemy threaten the line. Eight stop-lines were constructed in NI. They were all concentrated east of the River Bann, with the river and the Newry Canal providing the main obstacle bisecting N. Ireland. Line A ran from the Bannmouth on the north coast to Toome where the Bann enters Lough Neagh. Line B started at the Bannfoot on the southern shores of Lough Neagh and followed the line of the River and the Newry Canal to Carlingford Lough. A sequence of lines (C to H) supported lines A and B, and fell back on the Belfast Defence Scheme which was a perimeter of forward defended localities, observation posts and roadblocks. However, this strategy was seen to be flawed as any penetration of the line compromised the whole defensive scheme. By autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland, fortified with pillboxes and roadblocks.
Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess. The position has two machine gun loops with staircased embrasures, designed to prevent ricochets from entering the bunker. The maximum thickness of the walls is 135 cm, which meant the position was considered shell-proof. Their roofs are significantly thinner, approximately 30 cm thick, suggesting the positions were designed to resist direct flat-trajectory gunfire (field guns and tanks) rather than indirect high-angle artillery fire from mortars and howitzers. The site looks west covering the right flank approach to the bridge at Portglenone. The pillbox would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
The site is intact and in good condition, with remains of Turnbull mounts for machine guns and steel shutters in embrasures.

Left of the entrance is a contemporary doodle/graffiti of a man's face in profile smoking a pipe.
The site is largely intact but heavily overgrown. Both doors have become detached, with one inside the structure and another lying outside on the concrete loading ramp.

Only the concrete hard-standing and door guide-rails remain, largely overgrown

An RAF Bomber Command Operational Training Unit (OTU) was planned for Toome. Construction was started in January 1942, but Bomber Command lost any need for the site before it was completed. The pace of building was slow as the water-logged ground was almost at the same level as the nearby Lough Neagh. The airfield was completed early in 1943, and in July the first unit to operate from the site was ‘A’ Flight, 104 (Transport) OTU from the RAF, though they only remained until September.
The base was formally handed over to the USAAF on 26 July, when it was re-designated US AAF Station 236. The CCRC was activated on 23 August 1943, training crews for service with the medium bombardment groups of the 9th Air Force. This was designated 3rd CCRC in November 1943. Crews arrived in September to take a three-week course to operate A-20 Havocs and B-26 Marauders. In just one month, August 1944, 112 B-26 crews and 42 A-20 crews passed through the training programme at Toome. Over the course of its service at Toome, the 3rd Combat Crew Replacement Centre (CCRC) trained almost 800 aircrews for the 9th Air Force.
To ease the storage problems at the Base Air Depot (BAD) at Langford Lodge (Co. Antrim), MAP hardstandings were built on the north-east and north-west of the airfield, capable of storing 50 aircraft. The 3rd CCRC was relocated to England, and by November 1944 Toome was back under the auspices of the RAF who closed it to flying by the end of the month. The following year it was considered for training crews for Bomber Command, but the domestic sites were considered not fit for purpose.
27 Maintenance Unit arrived in June 1945, using the site for equipment storage until 1947. The establishment of the 2 Flight Training School at Cluntoe brought the possibility of renewed flight operations as a satellite airfield, but the school at Cluntoe was short-lived. The site was handed over to the Admiralty who used Toome as a Naval Repair Yard, repairing naval gun turrets, until finally closing in 1959.
In Northern Ireland, the level of clearance at Toome is second only to RAF Maydown, Co. L’Derry (DHP 73). However, meticulous walking of the airfield turned up more than was expected at the outset. The site retains three T2 hangars though one is not in its original position. The assistance of local knowledge was essential for location extant features of the dispersed living and communal sites. Though much has been lost the site retains some excellent examples or airfield architecture, such as the Gunnery and Crew Procedures Centre, and the Norden bombsight vault, which was a feature found only on USAAF airfields.

186 metres of 5.5 metre wide concrete trackway providing access around the camp.

Private air raid shelter to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
Could not get access but owner noted the site was in good condition.

Seco hut providing accommodation for troops or civilian employees of Lockheed Corporation.
Only half of concrete base remains, truncated by domestic garden

Mount Stewart
Site Description Structure built to facilitate operations at the site, unction remains uncertain.
The brick enwalls, entrances and base remains intact though the galvanised roof and supporting ribs have been removed.
Ulster Archaeological Society survey report at

Providing kitchen and dining facilities for WAAF personnel.
Composed of two linear temporary brick buildings, the site retains its original roofs, vents and many of its windows.

Ballyhalbert airfield
Uncertain function of building
One possible structure remains though function remains unclear.

Group of approx. 30 nissen huts, likely barracks and domestic facilities.

Derrymore
Structure built to facilitate operations ay the camp.
Only concrete bas/hardcore remains under the grass.

Erected during WW2 to house POW's. It was demolished post-war.
https://archives.wartimeni.com/location/co-down/holywood/

Aldergrove originally had four runways but this layout was altered when the site was rebuilt between 1941 and 1943. This was one of the four original metalled runways.
Some traces visible but mostly appears as a grassmark after period of dry warm weather.

This small brick structure was used to store small arms ammunition for issues to aircraft crews.

Blackhead CHL radar station
Structure built to facilitate operations at the station.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide. This section of track was constructed after the initial construction phase of the airfield when the main runway (DHR 28:1, 3) was lengthened.
There is 650 m of perimeter track remaining in this southern section. It is constructed of poured concrete with expansion joints and surfaced with bitumen. It is heavily overgrown in some sections and obscured by berms of earth and demolition rubble.

This structure house pumps used to boost water pressure in an emergency, to fire hydrants located around the station. Likely took its water supply from the large static water tank which sat just to its north (now demolished for car parking).
Structure appears intact and in good condition, still in use by MoD.

Constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut to accommodate troops.
PRONI Photo from AM/1/5/49B/3191-3230
Websitehttps
://gitrailni.com/gitrail/mourne-park/

In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps. Four of these camps were erected near L'Derry.
Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school.

Only impression where site stood now evident.

During World War II aircraft were considered to be vulnerable when on the ground, either from air attack or from possible ground attack. Precautions were taken to prevent any loss of aircraft when not in action. As a result aircraft were often held in dispersed pens located around the perimeter of the airfield but with access to the main runways.
The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site is constructed earthwork traverses on brick revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There is a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft
The brick and concrete shelters remain and are filled in with building rubble, but both arms of the shelters and the central spine have been removed.

Only concrete hard standing and approach track remain.

Narrow Water Castle
The main house was commandeered and used to house troops during WW2. It was returned to civilian use after the war ended.

Carrowreagh Quadrant Tower
Quadrant towers were constructed to observe and control operations at aerial bombing ranges. They provided viewing platforms where range officers could give immediate feedback and advice to pilots and bomb aimers. Though they were often just single room structures on raised stilts, the tower at Carrowreagh was more substantial with the upper room for the range control officer and lower stories for generators, radio and toilet facilities.
The tower has lost its roof and first storey wooden floor. There is evidence for two curved-roof annexes on the northern and western sides of the structure. There is a concrete base for a structure immediately to the south of the tower. The main viewing window was built into a bay in the northern gable of the tower, but this is no longer extant.
Bernard Lowry (ed.). 20th Century defences in Britain: an introductory guide (York, 1996).
Mike Osborne, Defending Britain: twentieth-century military structures in the landscape (Stroud, 2004)
The Second World War in Northern Ireland at ww2ni.webs.com

This was a cluster of five dispersals but these have been removed leaving only the access track way of which 135 m is extant.

Moneyglass House
The house and grounds were commandeered by the War Office during WW2 to accommodate troops. A hutted camp of approx. 20 structures was erected between the driveway and Meadow Plantation to the north of the house.

The yard where building materials would be stored behind a wire mesh fence. This area would hold the plans of the airfield, huts, hangars and details of materials to be used. Run by a Clerk of Works a Ministry employee to oversee the civilian workforce.
The site consisted of a series of five brick building surrounding a central yard. The structures have been refurbished into a single modern dwelling, with a replacement roof, modern UPVc window and replacement rendering.

Trench feature located on the lidar survey, uncertain of WW1 or WW2 date.
Surface remains located on lidar survey.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. This is a double finger park with two hardstandings.
Only appears as grassmark on 2021 aerial photograph.

Gocean Lodge
Small military structure built to facilitate operations at the camp, likely a nissen hut.

Provided accommodation for airmen. Built post-war to provide improved living quarters.
Converted for use by local fish processing business, retains asbestos roof.

Small brick structure, originally intended as latrines, used as a store instead.
Structure sis heavily overgrown but remains intact and in relatively good condition.

Holywood ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ. This post was closed in 1968.
The post is intact abs sealed with a steel hatch. Baffle plate and mount for survey probe also in situ. The has been some damage as ventilation louvres on main hatch and ventilation shaft have been removed/destroyed.
Subterranea Britannica entry at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/holywood-roc-post/, Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)

Built to facilitate operations at the site. Its function is uncertain.

Killymoon
Reported by the owner that the site was used to prepare meals for troops stationed at the camp.
Site remains intact, it appears to be used as a dwelling.

Structure appears largely intact. Markings on the interior suggest this may have been latrines.

Large bulk fuel storage tank. Built post-war for the Royal Navy to replace the three 10,000-barrel fuel storage tanks built for the US Navy.

Private air raid shelter designed to provide protection from blast and splinters during and air attack.

Site was constructed in the early stages of the war to provide a range to train anti-tank gunners. The range provided facilities to allow troops to engage in live fire against moving targets. Target screens were towed along a track to provide a more realistic training than static targets. Local informants suggest that the first track was powered by a pulley system tethered to a truck which moved along the target track (238:007),however this was replaced by the more sophisticated target railway powered by the winch house.
Though most of the structures have been removed the more robust features such as the range blockhouses and winch house remain in good condition.
Original DHP report Websites www.frontlineulster.co.uk/portmoon-anti-tank-range/ www.ww2ni.com/county-antrim-part-1

Provided access from the finger park dispersals to the airfield
Approximately 240 metres of trackway remains.It has been repurposed as a farm laneway.

Used as a ready store for gas masks, this structure was also used for practical gas training drills. Personnel were locked in a windowless room as small quantities of (non-lethal) gas was released into the room.
This structure is heavily overgrown with vegetation penetrating most of the interior. The roof of the northernmost room has collapsed littering the floor with roof beams and compressed asbestos cement roof panels.

Loughbrickland House
Small brick structure described by owners as possibly used to store fuses for artillery shells.
Structure is intact and used as store for archery club.

Narrow trackway providing pedestrian access around the camp.

Only a short section of the concrete access track to the hanger remains with dumps of soil obscuring most of what remains.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008_

The site of this hangar is obscured by large quantities of overburden on which thick scrub has grown. Probing through the surface suggest the hardstanding remains intact.

Site used for the storage of fuel, likely coal to feed heating stoves throughout camp.
May have been surrounded by a fence but concrete hardstanding largely intact.

Military camp constructed during WW2. Composed of approx. 28 Nissen huts, it's function remains unclear.

Portadown ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ. This post was closed in 1991. Older photos of this site from the original DHP show a dome on the ventilation shaft marking this site as a Master Post. One post in each cluster was equipped with a VHF radio and antenna to keep in contact with the group HQ should the land lines fail.
This post has a dome on the ventilation shaft marking it as a master post. The site has been restored as a museum. An information board has been erected and a small shed installed to store maintenance equipment.
Site is in excellent condition. It has been restored and converted into a small RPOC museum.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/portadown-roc-post/

Concrete dispersal remains in good condtion.

Providing toilet facilities for personnel.
The site still retains its original window frames though the southern section of the roof has collapsed.

Office and store, described as general purpose hut, likely a Nissen hut.

Structure housing boiler for heating water.
Poor, heavily overgrown, only upright supports remain.

Coleraine ROC Monitoring Post
Since a previous visit in 2017, the site has been refurbished with the intention of turning it into a small ROC museum. The paintwork has been refreshed, the iron hatch cleaned and repainted and repairs made to the ventilation shaft. A new baffle plate and bolts have been placed on the fixed survey meter mounting.
Info on Coleraine ROC post at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/coleraine-roc-post/ Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)

This 16 foot span Nissen hut appears to be in good condition.

Structure erected to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut .

This battery was designated as LO 5. A decision was taken in March 1941 to improve the city's AA defences and construction of LOs 3, 4, 5 and 6. However, as the threat of German air attack receded the anti-aircraft defence was scaled back. By July 1943 LO5 was noted as 'unmanned'.
Site remains in good condition retaining all four gun emplacements, the battery command post, ammunition store and GL radar ramp

Camp constructed during WW2. Likely a storage depot.

Quadrant towers were used to house observers who would rate the bombing performance of trainees on the bombing range.
Bombing range marker. This large concrete arrow directed aircraft towards bomb range tower crew were observing.
The concrete roof has collapsed onto the floor platform and the brick uprights and supports have completely collapsed. Fragment s of the brick supports have been washed to the west along the shoreline by wave action.
Mike Osborne, Defending Britain: Twentieth-century military structures in the landscape (Stroud, 2004).

The Battery Observation Post was the tactical headquarters of the Duty Officer/Battery Commander. From here, he had a clear view of his guns and their field of fire, and could pass orders to both the guns and searchlights. The observation post consisted of the observing room, inside of which was stationed the battery commander, the battery command assistant and the depression rangefinder. Set in front of the observation room was the Searchlight Direction Station manned by the Searchlight Officer. From here the movements of the searchlights were regulated according to the orders of the battery commander.
The ground floor of the post contained the telephone exchange, which was manned by women from the Auxiliary Territorial Service (ATS)
Site remains in good condition and is currently used a museum exhibit. The searchlight direction station currently houses Greypoint Fort Amateur Radio Society.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed. As Ballyhalbert was a fighter station its dispersals are much smaller, 60 feet/18m.
This 18m diameter dispersal remains in good condition. It is one of the smallest found in NI, likely due to the small size of the aircraft (fighters) based at Ballyhalbert. The site is in good condition but heavily overgrown.

The small dispersal appears intact on aerial photos but is entirely obscured by vegetation, dumped tyres and steelwork.

Site appears intact though partially resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Also known as a Compass Swing, the compass rose was painted on a circular concrete pad and was aligned to magnetic north. It was used by aircraft to calibrate their magnetic compass. The entire aircraft could be turned to align the aircraft's compass reading with those painted on the edge of the rose.

Structure built to facilitate operations at the camp, likely a nissen hut.

Newtownards airfield was opened in 1934 in response to a need for a proper civil airport as facilities at RAF Aldergrove proved insufficient. It became the main airfield for civilian airlines but its function was transferred to Sydenahm when it opened in Belfast in 1938. The airfield was requisitioned on the outbreak of war in 1939, when the airfield was extended and facilities provided with the constructions of 7 dispersed living sites. Two tarmac & concrete runways were laid with a third, rather unconventionally constructed half of tarmac/concrete and half grass. It operated as a relief landing ground for RAF Sydenham.
The airfield was home to 231 Squadron, which was an army-co-operation squadron flying Lysanders, which flew patrols along the border with Ireland. Training included anti-aircraft co-operation flights and air-to-air gunnery. The airfield suffered 13 fatalities when it was bombed on the night of 14/15 April 1941. A number of different air units were stationed at the base. Eventually, the wide variety of aircraft stationed there caused difficulties due to the lack of sufficient maintenance personnel with experience in different airframe and engines. After units transferred to Long Kesh in 1944, the airfield saw little use and was put into care-and-maintenance until the end of the war.
The airfield is now home to the Ulster Flying Club, used for both training and leisure flights, microlights and a helicopter training school.
The airfield retains it three runways and one of the original blister hangers. Almost all the technical site has been destroyed by later commercial redevelopment and much of the dispersed living sites have been returned to agricultural use of removed for housing. Though much has been removed there are some surprising survivals such as the communal buildings reused as private dwellings.
The three runways remain in good condition with narrower sections resurfaced. A number of defensive site survive but most of the WW2 technical buildings and living sites have been demolished.

Most of the dispersal has been removed leaving a circular depression around a central remaining track approximately 5m wide.

Shed used to storing oil bowser, a large wheeled trailer used to transport oil and the tractor used to tow it.
The structure is a single story brick building with cement render and a compressed asbestos cement sheet roof. It appears in good condition and it sealed with a modern steel door.

Low-level shelter of brick construction to provide emergency shelter in the event of an air attack. It is semi-sunk to provide an additional level of protection. A brick blast wall protects the entrance.
Site is intact though the entrance is blocked with rubble.

Series of approx. 6 long nissen hut wards.

The site mounted a naval gun for use in training. Likely mounted a 12 pounder QF gun
The site consists of a concrete platform an a steel mounting ring on which would have been bolted a steel pedestal holding the gun.

Group of 4 finger parks. Not visible on day of visit but landowner noted site covered by soil post-war, leaving concrete dispersal intact under the grass.

Blackhead CHL radar station
Structure erected to facilitate operation at the site

A small square brick compound used house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.
ONly concrete basre remains and that is overgrown with vegitation.

Office accommodation for the administration of the attached motor transport unit
The structure is a single story brick building with cement render and a compressed asbestos cement sheet roof. It has been converted into an office with a later flat-roofed extension added to the south sidewall.

Flight crews coming from their respective Fight Training Schools were qualified to fly and operate aircraft, they were no ready for operational units until they became familiar with the types of aircraft with which their operational squadron was equipped. Operational Training Units (Combat Crew Replacement Centres for the USAAF) were designed to train crews on the aircraft they would fly on operations. An instructional site housed a suite of synthetic trainer which could simulate flight operations on the ground in safety and under the supervision of instructors. The AML bombing teacher projected a moving map on which the bombardier used a mock bomb-sight to hit a target and passed instructions to the pilot, who could alter the course of the ‘flight’ over the map according to instructions from the bombardier, who calculated wind and speed as on a real mission. Timing after bomb release was assessed by instructors to determine the accuracy of the simulated bomb run.
These sites were normally brick built but this one was housed in a steel shed.

The structure has been modified and reclad but the internal frame remains intact.

Limavady airfield
Living site for personnel. Had15 structures, mostly barracks with ablutions, latrines and air raid shelters.

A camp was constructed on the site at the start of WW1 to accommodate troops and horses of the North Irish Horse. Composed of single storey wooden huts.
A military storage deport was constructed at this site during WW2. It was composed of approx. 16 large Romney/Iris hits and several other nissen type structures. The site has been renovated and improved post war and remains a military depot.
Two of the original WW2 structures appear to remain, though their function remains unclear.
Irish army archive map IE/MA/MPD/AD119287-006 viewed at https://mpdsearch.militaryarchives.ie/

Site Description Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle.
The position has two machine gun loops with staircased embrasures, designed to prevent ricochets from entering the bunker.
Entry is via a door at the rear though this is no longer accessible as it has been blocked with building rubble.
The pillbox would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements
Site remains in good condition but is overgrown.

The post was constructed in the inter-war years to house auxiliary coastwatchers. Coastwatcher were responsible for maintaining observation of coastal waters, monitoring shipping and curtailing coastal smuggling.
This post has been modified during WW2. Steel sheeting with observation slits has been added to provide some protection to the site.

This section is 115m long the most northerly remaining part of the main runway and is composed of poured concrete slabs. It is bisected by the Downland Road, with the northern section contained within the Water Service Aghanloo Sewage Treatment Works.

Ballywalter Airfield
Site reported as strongpoint by local informant. May be similar in design to DHR 00031:003.
Site appears ti be intact but obscured by heavy overgrowth of vegetation.

Provided washing, bathing and toilet facilities for officers
The site remains in good condition, retaining its original roof and windows. It is used as an agricultural store.

The Fromson hangar is a small arched hangar designed and manufactured by a Canadian company, Fromson of Byfleet in England. Similar to a blister hangar, it was used as an aircraft storage shed at Royal Naval Air Stations. It had four bays, each 17 feet 6 inches wide. Used to store small aircraft it had a clear door height of 17 feet.
The site appears in good condition, appears to have been re-clad. Site was sealed therefore closer inspection not possible.

Maydown airfield
Site provided for domestic, entertainment and recreational needs of the personnel stationed at the airfield, with gymnasium, NAAFI, mess halls, grocery and barbers, formerly 16 (approx.) structures on site.

Sections of standardising remain as agricultural shed has been erected on the site.

Castlewellan
The Castlewellan estate was requisitioned by the war office at the start f WW2 to accommodate troops. In May 1942 it housed troops from the 1st (US) Armoured Division, notably the HQ unit of 1st Armoured, HQ of Combat Command B and HQ of artillery command. They left in October 1942 to take part in Operation Torch in North Africa. Elements of the 5th US infantry Division arrived the following year.
Hutted camp now redeveloped, site of car park
The site was largely cleared post war though some ephemeral remains may survive, possibly off Station Road.
PRONI RAF images in AM/1/5/69/F21/1-50

Nissen hut constructed to facilitate military operations in Comber, likely barracks for troops stationed at Mount Alexander estate. Exact function unclear.
Structure intact and in relatively good condition. South end wall has been altered wit larger modern entrance. Used as store for cricket club.

Structure built to accommodate administration offices, which included the office of the station engineer and clerk of works.
Site appears intact and in good condition,. Still in use by MoD.

Approximately 185 metres of runway remain though obscured by vegetation and dumps of topsoil

The 25 yard range was used to test fire machine guns and used as a small -arms range. Used for ground defence training using the service No 4 .303 Rifle, Bren Gun LMG, Sten gun and pistols.
The site is in good condition with both the firing stand, which has ventilation cut into the rear wall to let gun smoke escape, and the brick stop-butts.

This site is designated a West Coast Type C Transmitter block by its layout. Constructed of reinforced concrete and brick protected by earthwork revetments, it had two opposing entrances leading to the transmitter room and adjoining air-conditioning and heating plant room.

The standby set house provided emergency power for crucial sections of the airfield should the main power supply fail. When operational this would have housed two diesel generators, two 3,000 gallon fuel tanks, a switchgear chamber and a transformer chamber. It is robustly built, with a flat reinforced concrete roof supported with steel beams and concrete columns.
This structure appears to remain in excellent condition and retains its protective blast walls at the entrances, which have been sealed with concrete blockwork. A large streel door has been added to the south wall. Likely to provide access for farm machinery/vehicles.

The main store was a facility for the storage of non-technical items such as clothing and technical equipment such as aircraft components. All incoming material was unloaded into a receiving bay where it was logged and stored away to be issued when needed.
Site remains in good condition, it retains original roof. Windows have been sealed with steel panels and modern tollers shutters added.

It was originally envisioned in 1941 that two bases be constructed on Lough Erne for the US; a flying boat base at Ely Lodge and a repair facility at Killadeas. The US government was responsible for the construction of these bases which were completed by the US Navy in early 1942. However, never used them and the station at Killadeas was handed over to 17 Group Coastal Command in July 1942. The base was used as an operational training unit for training on Catalina seaplanes, then also Sunderlands. Training was done with the target towing detachment flying from nearby RAF St. Angelo. The base was run down late in the war and closed in 1947.
The site was largely composed of nissen hut accommodation, with operations centred at the concrete hardstandings around Gublusk Bay.
The majority of the station has been removed post war however there are a few upstanding structures such as the marine craft shed, air raid shelters and the sergeants ante rooms. Though cleared there appears to be a large number of hut bases still extant throughout the site.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012) Joe O'Loughlin, Catalinas and Sunderlands on Lough Erne, Ireland in World War 2 (2013)Breege McCusker, Castle Archdale and Fermanagh in World War II (1993)Joe O'Loughlin and John Hughes, Fermanagh in the Second World War at Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/

Providing toilet facilities for base personnel.
The structure is overgrown but relatively intact

Site intact and in good condition, used as domestic store.
Bernard Lowery (ed) 20th Century defence in Britain: an introductory guide (1996)

Ballymartin CHL station
Site is in good condition. At some point post war a window has been cut in the eastern side wall.

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 60 feet long providing sergeants' accommodation.
This site has mostly collapsed but some remains of brick end-walls, entrance hall and curved steel ribs.

Terrace of four houses was constructed to provide married accomodation for four airmen and their families.
Site appears intact and still in use my MoD

This large nissen hut was constructed to facilitate operations at the depot. Exact function uncertain as there appears to be ne protective berm/traverse around the site, suggesting it was not a munition store. However, earthworks could have been removed post-war
There are substantial remains however the northern endwall has been removed and large sections of the galvanised steel sheeting on the western side of the site have collapsed or fallen away.

A concrete trackway linking finger park dispersals to the airfield
Approximately 145 metres of trackway remains. Used to store silage.

The gymnasium could be used as an indoor sports hall, lecture room, cinema or dance-hall. The annex on the eastern end of the hall could be converted into a chapel with vestry. The whole building could be converted into a church using folding wooden partitions and sliding rails. Wooden seats could be laid out in the sports hall to accommodate the congregation.
The structure is in relatively good condition, A modern entrance has been opened in the eastern end to allow storage of farm machinery and the storage of peat. The site retains the original roof and window frames. On the western end is the cinema projectionists booth and on the outer wall the faded sign for 'Station Cinema' can still be made out.

Used to store grenades for use by airfield defence force.
Small area of concrete base remains, obscured by demolition rubble.

Shane's castle

Site appears intact, surfaced with modern tarmac

This building provided offices for engineers and engineers’ clerks, an electrical engineering office and restrooms for NCOs and airmen.

This brick and concrete store was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. The store had steel doors (now missing) and a steel gantry connected to a blast wall, which was used for loading and unloading the store.
Site in intact and in good condition, it has been repurposed as a cattle shed.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the camp, possibly an office
Structure intact, identified post-survey from contemporary aerial photo

Ballyhalbert airtfield
Ablution block is only remaining structure of this site

This site provided accommodation for officers.

In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps during 1944.
The site consisted of rows of Nissen huts, with each hut divided in two, each side housing a family. There was a canteen, laundry, bathhouse and toilet facilities. The was a refectory in which social occasions such as concerts and dances.

The mantlet is a concrete wall erected to provided protection to the downrange structures from inaccurate/off-target small arms fire.
The concrete wall remains relatively intact.

Part of camp constructed to house crews for HAA battery
Original DHP report John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001) N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

Runway layout was traditionally three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. However the airfield was never completed with only a single runway being partially completed before the site was closed down.
This narrow 350 metres of concrete track is the early stages of runway construction. Section obscured by overgrowth of grass.

Provided bathing facilities for Petty Officers
In relatively good condition with original roof louvres, windows and water tower.

St Columb's Hospital
A large hutted hospital was constructed during WW2 to provide medical facilities for Royal Navy personnel. Post-war it was leased to the local health board and was renamed St. Columb's Hospital. It remained a civilian hospital until it was closed and demolished in 1985.

Structure relating to the operation of the firing range.
Only hardstanding remains, later animal pens built on surface.

This small store was used to store bomb fuses, detonators, fuse pistols and exploders. Normally divided into 2 compartments with smaller storing detonators, with fuses, fuse pistols and exploders stored in the other, usually L-shaped room. Normally protected by earthwork berm and blast wall.
The rendered brick structure remains in good condition and retains its original small windows and sections of glass window. The surrounding earthwork berm and blast-wall have been removed.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012)Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

Kilkeel Chain Home radar station
This site is designated a West Coast Type C Receiver block by its layout. Constructed of reinforced concrete, it was protected by earthwork revetments, but these have been removed, with the only traces of the earthworks remaining on the roof. To the left of the main entrance is the transformer room. Main door lead to the receiver room with the filtration room to the left and office and toilets to the left. The receiver room contained receiver sets fitted with cathode ray tube consoles which displayed incoming signals reflected by airborne targets. The operator used a goniometer to interrogate height and direction data form the incoming signal. This data was then passed to a plotter who calculated the location of the target on a plotting map.
The site is largely intact and is used as an animal byre. Some internal walls have been removed. When operational this structure was covered with a covering of earth, all of which has since been removed, exposing the concrete shell. This retains some of the bitumen used to keep dampness out of the building.

Sydenham
Slipway used by Shot Sunderland flying boat to enter water from Shorts factory.
Site appears intact and in good condtion.
Guy Warner and Jack Woods, In the heart of the city: The history of Belfast's City Airport 1938-1998 (Belfast, 1998)
https://www.ww2ni.com/greaterbelfastpart3.htm

This structure was used to house generators used to provide electricity to the site.. it is unclear it this was the main power supply or and auxiliary backup. The site has plinths for two generators,
The generator house had been removed leaving the concrete plinths. The brick wall that covers two sides was likely used to support a protective earthwork revetment.

Built to provide medical care for female personnel.
Only the shell of the structure remains, as the roof, windows and doors are all missing.
Officers Latrines
DHP Ref. 70:98
Grid Ref.
C 69238

A structure constructed to facilitate operations at the site. Its function remains uncertain.

During World War II aircraft were considered to be vulnerable when on the ground, either from air attack or from possible ground attack. Precautions were taken to prevent any loss of aircraft when not in action. As a result aircraft were often held in dispersed pens located around the perimeter of the airfield but with access to the main runways.
The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site was constructed earthwork traverses on brick revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There was a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.
Only the concrete hard standing remains.

Redhall
The house and grounds at Redhall were commandeered by the War Office during WW2 to accommodate troops. A camp was constructed south of the main house. Troops from Britain, Belgium and the US were based here.
Surviving hut bases were reported but these have not been located.

Tircrevan Pillbox
At the start of WW2 the British military's operational doctrine stressed a mobile flexible response to land attacks, but the catastrophic loss of tanks, transport and heavy weapons meant that the resources were unavailable. Concrete, steel and wire had to make up the shortfall in men and equipment. The first layer of fixed defence was erected along threatened coastlines. Known as the ‘coastal crust’, the network of pillboxes, anti-tank ditches and barricades, barbed wire (known as Dannert wire), minefields, slit trenches and beach obstacles were constructed to delay any potential landing; buying time for mobile reserves to be gathered to check any German advance inland. There were eight beach areas identified as vulnerable to amphibious landings in N. Ireland: Magilligan, Dundrum, Strangford Lough, Carnlough Bay, Cushendall, Cushendun, Portrush and Portstewart. As well as the beaches beach exits and routes leading away from landing zones were guarded and fortified.
This pillbox was sited to cover one of the main routes onto the high ground overlooking the beaches at Magilligan. It is square in plan with an outer wall protecting the entrance at the rear of the position. The walls are c. 60cm thick, therefore this position was intended to be proof to small arms fire but not shellfire. It has four stair-cased embrasures, the main machine gun embrasure looking northwest towards Magilligan and three observation ports, each with the remains of their steel shutter guide rails remaining on the inside face. The roof is of cast concrete formed with corrugated iron (known as wriggly tin), unlike other pillboxes in the area which frequently used wooden formwork. A recess on the inner face of this embrasure was to accommodate the tripod leg of the machine gun, often a Vickers water-cooled .303 or Bren gun. The machine gun embrasure is reinforced with an outer concrete and brick buttress, preventing the recess from compromising the frontal protection.
The site remains in good condition and retains its original steel door.

Sandy Bay Flying Boat station
The site was originally planned as an Royal Navy Air Service airship station in 1916 but it was never built. It was associated with the pre-war bombing ranges but it was most used during WW2 as a flying boat base. It had up to 12 offshore moorings which used Rams Island to shelter aircraft from poor weather and prevailing westerly winds. It was utilised by the US Naval Transport Service and RAF Transport command operating PB2Y Coronados. The aircraft made trans-Atlantic flights to the USA via Bermuda. This service ceased at the end of 1944. Facilities were sparse, with flight control performed from RAF Langford Lodge.
The base consisted of some concrete track, nissen huts and a wooden jetty serving offshore mooring points.
Very little remains. The sole remaining nissen hut has collapsed in recent years. Remains of the wooden jetty are extant. The site is largely overgrown.

Military structure built to facilitate operations at the anti-aircraft gunnery range. Function unknown.
Low brick structure with additional height added with concrete. Repurposed as animal shelter.

This structure used by work services staff. These were civilians employed provide maintenance services at the base.
Only hut base remains, largely obscured by grass.

The ammunition magazine held the majority of the ammunition stores of 3.7 inch shells to supply the HAA guns. These were held in wooden racks.
The concrete store remain in good condition, it appears to be used as an animal shelter.

The exact design of this site was unclear as it was heavily overgrown. May have been pillboxes linked by concrete revetted trench. Site was demolished in 2004 by the owner but archaeological remains may still remain.
Site was demolished by owner in 2004 but subsurface remains likely.
Report at

Concrete trackway providing access to dispersed living camp No. 2.
Approximately 240 metres of concrete trackway remain.

This structure was built to test fire and evaluate torpedoes constructed at the Roylka Navy armaments depot (known locally as the Torpedo factory), what later became the Masserine army camp site. Torpedoes were lowered through a bay in the structure into the water then fired, running from 1,000-3,000 yards. The torpedo was fitted with a buoyancy aid so it could be recovered.
The superstructure of the building is largely gone, with only the concrete frame and platform remaining.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (Belfast, 2000)
https://www.ww2ni.com/county-antrim-part-1
https://www.downmemorylane.me.uk/Antrim%20T1.htm

Small brick structure providing toilet facilities.
Largely collapsed, only 2 walls remain upstanding.

Original mill outbuilding refitted with brick chimney and steel crossbeam to facilitate operations of the military camp.
Sit is relatively intact with WW2 period brick chimney and steel cross beam in situ.

This site is quite unlike any other pillboxes in N. Ireland. It appears to date from the first phase of airfield defences, which concentrated on securing the perimeter of the airfield, as the firing embrasures only point out from the airfield, whereas later defensive posts had defensive embrasures covering all approaches. The site is composed of three sections, an ammunition bunker, the pillbox and a circular position, most likely an attached light anti-aircraft machinegun post.
The ammunition bunker is made of reinforced concrete, brick, and corrugated iron, and has traces of its bitumen roof. The passageway to the rear of the pillbox is protected by a brick and concrete blast wall. It appears that the defences may have been reinforced as the wall was initially constructed of brick and concrete which was later added to with another layer of concrete, doubling its thickness.
The pillbox has two fighting embrasures and has walls c. one metre thick. The embrasures are staircased to prevent ricochets from entering the position. Both embrasures have remains of their steel Turnbull mounts, which held a pivoting cradle for mounting a machine gun. There is an access hatch to the rear of the pillbox to the anti-aircraft post, likely for facilitating communication between the posts and passing ammunition. The steel brackets for shelving remain in the east and south facing walls of the pillbox.

The site is a group of 6 finger park dispersals. Nothing was visible on day of visit but discussion with the landowner suggest the dispersals were covered with soil post war, leaving concrete dispersal intact under the grass.

This small dispersal was extant in 2017, but now appears to have been removed for field clearance.

During World War II aircraft were considered to be vulnerable when on the ground, either from air attack or from possible ground attack. Precautions were taken to prevent any loss of aircraft when not in action. As a result aircraft were often held in dispersed pens located around the perimeter of the airfield but with access to the main runways.
The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site was constructed earthwork traverses on brick revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There was a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.
Only the concrete hardstanding and approach track remain

The Ballinderry depot was constructed by the British but transferred for use by the US Northern Ireland base Section in 1942. First used by the 71st Ordnance Batt. for maintenance. At the end of 1942 the site came under the control of the master depot G-10 as a sub-depot, becoming G-10-0, focusing on maintenance and supply.
The site was composed of 10 Romney huts, a double Romney Hut 8 Irish huts (similar to Romney, different only in technical specifications of internal frame) with 75,000 sq. feet of storage hardstanding.
Though most of the depot has been removed, the double Romney remains as does most of the concrete hardstanding on which most of the hut bases can still be discerned.

This is the site of a structure relating to the QL decoy site, approximately 18 feet in width it was liley a temporary hut erected to house the QL site personnel. Likely a wooden Laing hut
Colin Dobinson, Fields of deception: Britain’s bombing decoys of World War II (London, 2000)

Flight crews coming from their respective Fight Training Schools were qualified to fly and operate aircraft, they were no ready for operational units until they became familiar with the types of aircraft with which their operational squadron was equipped. Operational Training Units (Combat Crew Replacement Centres for the USAAF) were designed to train crews on the aircraft they would fly on operations. An instructional site housed a suite of synthetic trainer which could simulate flight operations on the ground in safety and under the supervision of instructors. The AML bombing teacher projected a moving map on which the bombardier used a mock bomb-sight to hit a target and passed instructions to the pilot, who could alter the course of the ‘flight’ over the map according to instructions from the bombardier, who calculated wind and speed as on a real mission. Timing after bomb release was assessed by instructors to determine the accuracy of the simulated bomb run.
This structure was locked on the day of visit but remains in good condition and well-maintained.

During World War II aircraft were considered to be vulnerable when on the ground, either from air attack or from possible ground attack. Precautions were taken to prevent any loss of aircraft when not in action. As a result aircraft were often held in dispersed pens located around the perimeter of the airfield but with access to the main runways. The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site is constructed earthwork traverses on brick revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There is a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.

Site provided washing and bathing facilities for troops stationed at the camp.
The section that remains is in good condition however approx. only 50 % of original site remains as it has been truncated by construction of an agricultural shed post war.

The concrete dispersal is in good condition but perhaps 50% is obscured by large dumps of building hardcore.

Military structure associated with the accommodation of anti-aircraft battery crew. The structure is long than the rest so likely an ablutions block.

This is a small example of the type, just 55 foot/16.5 metres in diameter.
Site appears to be intact but obscured by dumping of stones and overgrowth of grass.

Military camp constructed during WW2, likely composed of four nissen huts, its function remains unclear.
Site cleared post-war, modern shed may be constructed on base platforms.

Ebrington barracks
Building constructed between 1891 and 1904 following the purchase of land to the west of the original fort. This allowed the removal of temporary barrack accommodation on the site to permanent premises to the rear. The design of the new building complied with the rigid symmetry and architectural style of the existing buildings around the parade ground and was complemented by an identical building on the opposite side of the central accommodation block (Numbers 67, 68 and 69). This building was demolished in the early 1970s. The building was built as administrative office accommodation.
Site remain in good condition, has been repurposed as a brewery.
HB file for HB01/09/002 C

Used to sell fresh local produce to base personnel, with issuing area and counter with an office behind.
The site appears in relatively good condition, entry sealed with modern corrugated sheeting.

The Pentad hangar was a Royal Navy Air Station designed with canted sides to accommodate aircraft with folding wings. It had 13 bays and was 185 feet long with a clear height of 25 feet. This hanger was not drawn on the 1944 map nor was the aircraft parking apron in front of it, therefore these were likely constructed post-war.
The site is in good condition and is used by a local flying club.

The site was constructed to allow troops to practice small arms such as rifles, pistols and machine guns.
Some evidence of bullets impacting in area of butt.

The CADF was a post-war system used to detect signals from aircraft used to refine direction finding. Rather than a rotating aerial, the system had 18 stationary aerials arranged in a circle at 20 degree intervals. Used to get a fix on aircraft by comparing signals from each antenna to determine the direction of the aircraft.
The square control cabin sits below a steel platform, which is supported by 10 brick support pillars.
Cold War buildings at

Military camp constructed during WW2 to house troops or provide storage. Approx. 8 huts, may be part of camp at Aberdelaghy house.

The hangar has been removed, only the concrete footings remain

Barracks providing accomodation for naval ratings.

Provided accommodation for airmen. Built on site of WW2 huts.
The concrete structure is in good condition, retains asbestos roof and original windows. Has been converted into a holiday home.

Provided accommodation for non-commissioned officers. Built on site of WW2 huts.
The concrete structure is in good condition, it has a modern roof and has been incorporated into a community centre.

Small building for preparation of food for locally stationed troops.
This brick structure is in good condition though part of the eastern wall has collapsed. The rusted but relatively intact stove remains in situ.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Early 'frying pan' dispersals proved unsuitable therefore loops dispersals were designed to make taxi-ing on and off dispersals quicker and less stressful to air-frames. This 'loop' designed are the only known sites in NI as they appear to have been quickly superseded by spectacle dispersals
The site is used for storage and appears to be subject to heavy vehicle traffic as condition on day of survey appears to be much degraded from recent aerial photos. Perhaps 50% still extant.

Thick wooden poles erected in lines to prevent airborne-glider landings on the beach.
Not visible on day of survey due to tide, plotted from aerial photos

A prefabricated air raid shelter construction of a steel pipe with a steel revetment protecting the entrance. The whole structure would have been covered in with a layer of soil with only the entrance visible. The emergency exit is at the opposite end, the steel cover which formerly covered the emergency exit has fallen flat. May have been repurposed to store gunpowder.
Sit is heavily overgrown but largely intact. The vent is missing as is the steel revetment which would have protected the entrance.

This is the remains of the old 150 yards firing point, it has not been used for some time though when its use was discontinued is not clear.

This brick structure contained equipment required to generate the low frequency radio signal.
The structure remains relatively intact, it has been repurposed as an animal shelter.

Much of the runway has been removed by the construction of the prison, Approximately 259 m of runway remain though this has covered with gravel, the original surface appears to remain underneath.

This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for sergeants.

Armagh ROC post
Site was demolished in 2013 and the site redeveloped by 2014 with the construction of a wind turbine.
Report at https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/armagh-roc-post/

Camp erected to accommodate troops.
Huts had been removed leaving only concrete bases by 1958. Destroyed when redeveloped into housing post war.
RAF Photos held at PRONI, file AM/1/5/92A/41-80

Part of the system of controlling fighter aircraft, a very High Frequency (VHF)/direction finding network was established. Direction finding equipment at these sites allowed pilots to calculate their position by transmitting a signal that was fixed by triangulation. The sites consisted of a small transmitter and receiver block each with a 90 foot aerial. This was the site of the receiver block.
Only concrete footings remain obscured by grass overgrowth.

This 272m of track remain in good condtion.

Q sites were night time decoys built to simulate airfields using lights to simulate airfield facilities and operation at night time. The used different lights to simulate breaches in blackout discipline. The intention was to draw off attacking bombers and deceiving them into dropping their bombloads on the simulated target, which was normally constructed on waste or non-productive ground.
Often lights were used to simulate the runway flarepath and approach funnel.
The lighting system was controlled from a control shelter.
The control shelter remains in relatively good condition. There are military structures located on the south east of the decoy are that locals have noted was part of the site however their exact function remains unclear.

Killymoon
The grounds of Killymoon Demesne were commandeered for housing troops during WW2. The house is most well-known for billeting troops from the US 82nd Airborne Division, 505th Regimental Combat Team from 1943-44. Officers and enlisted men were billeted in the main house and temporary huts around the demesne. Some outbuildings remain as does the original main house which has contemporary graffiti throughout the cellar area.
Some outbuildings and the main house remains in good condition.

Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, its function remains unknown.

Small brick building providing washing facilities for officers.
Structure was intact until c. 2009, now demolished with no visible remains, concrete base may yet remain.

In good condition, retains original windows but has replacement roof. Used to store animal feeds.

Searchlights were used to target enemy aircraft and guide in anti-aircraft fire. The could also be used to aids aerial navigators during night flying operations. Normally composed of 1-3r searchlights enclosed by earthwork berms, predictors to guide lights supported by barracks for the crew and generators buildings.
This site retained a single brick structure of uncertain function, possibly a generator house.
The site was demolished in 2020 leaving only the concrete footings.
Bernard Lowry (ed), 20th Century defences in Britain: an introductory guide (1996)

The set house contained generators to provide emergency power to the W/T station should mains power be lost.
The site remains in good condition. It has been repurposed to domestic storage.

The use of gas was outlawed by the Geneva Gas Protocol of 1925, but not its production or development. As agreements could be cast aside in the event of hostilities, measures were taken to protect against the use of gas. Specialised structured were built to provide first aid and decontamination facilities for gas casualties. Though gas masks can protect from some gas agents, others such as mustard gas are blistering and can be absorbed through the skin, requiring the removal of contaminated clothing and thorough washing/bleaching of casualties. The building was divided into undressing areas, bleaching/decontamination area and dressing area to the rear.
This site is in good condition with its original gas-tight door and sections of its original ventilation system. Air was drawn into the structure through a tall ‘chimney’ at the western end of the building. This was so tall to ensure that air drawn in was from above any potential poison gas cloud. The plinths for the air condition plant are still in situ, as is part of the filter unit. Two steel pressure stabilisation vents can be seen to the left of the main entrance. Thoughthe equipment has been long removed there are traces of internal signage with a number stenciled signs such as 'underlothes', 'haversacks' and 'respirators'.

Provided washing and showering facilities.
Gable ends and sidewalls remain, site is heavily overgrown.

The gallery was a shelter protected by an earthwork berm. A system of raiseable target frames sat behind the gallery. Frames raised target sheets into the line of fire, then lowered where marker then noted hits on target to show accuracy of firing.
Only a shallow linear depression remains where the gallery stood.

Concrete trackway providing access to dispersed living site.
Approximately 90 metres of trackway remain.

The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site is constructed earthwork traverses on brick revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There is a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.
The site was truncated by the construction of the aircraft parking apron in the 1950s. ONly a section of the concrete hardstanding remains.

This hangar was used as a production facility for Short Stirling bombers. Its northern sidewall has an original brick annex housing offices.
The structure has been re-clad and modified post-war but is largely intact. It has been repurposed as an commercial store.

The site housed two 12,000 gallon steel tanks holding aviation fuel. Each tank was surrounded by a brick retaining wall and separated by a minimum of 100 feet. Between the two sat a brick pumping house supplied by pipes at ground level. Pipes from each tank terminated at a 5 point manifold positioned next to a concrete hard standing used by tankers to fill up the tank. A hard standing in front of the pump house was used by the aircraft fuel tanker.
The pump house remains in relatively good condition but much of the fuel tanks retaining walls have collapsed or are now heavily overgrown

Andersonstown Police Station
The police station at Andersonstown was fortified during the period known as the Troubles, surrounded by chain link fence screens and perimeter wall it was largely destroyed in a bomb attack in 1983. The station was rebuilt with a second modern fortified building erected on site and the whale station reinforced with blast walls, anti-rocket screens and observation towers. The site was closed and demolished in 2005.
In its final form the site was composed of two main buildings, the old rebuilt police station and a modern section with a reinforced roof and armoured windows. The entrance was protected by a thick concrete blast wall. The perimeter fence had two entrances protected by steel gates and fortified sangers. A two storey observation tower sat on the northern end of the perimeter wall.

Brick structure built as part of searchlight battery, function is unknown.
The walls of the structure are largely intact but the roof has been replaced post war with galvanised steel, which is now in a state of collapse.
www.ww2ni.com/county-down-part-1

The Romney hut (also known as a shed) was designed in Romney House, London by the Directorate of Fortifications and Works at the start of WW2. Primarily used for storage, they could be adapted for canteens, workshops and even cinemas. Semi-circular in section, the hut was a series of tubular steel ribs curved to a radius of 17 feet 6 inches. The were bolted to the foot and connected by steel purlins. The frame was covered by corrugated iron sheeting. The inside of the structure was normally unlined. The hut was composed of any number of bays each 8 feet wide (usually 96 feet long) and an internal span of 35 feet.
Romney pre-fabricated hut, likely used as a store.

Workshops relating to engineering maintenance department
Re-rendered and replacement roof but in good condition. Repurposed by owner as industrial storage.

The Wireless Telegraphy (W/T) Operational Instruction Centre consisted of 2 buildings where crew were instructed in the operation of wireless sets, direction finding navigation. One wing contained instruction and instrument rooms and a number of cubicles containing Harwell Boxes. These were small boxes in which a pupil sat. It was fitted with appropriate radio equipment. Instructors sent signals down a line, simulating reception conditions and simulated homing beacons. The trainer allowed students to be taught intercommunication skills and the used of Direction Finding loops. Bearings and homing, maintenance of W/T equipment, frequency changing, fault finding and communication with ground W/T and D/F stations could all be taught. To add realism this could all be carried out while a loudspeaker played the roar of synchronised engine noise.
A direction finding simulator could be fitted which allowed crews to practise wireless and celestial navigation, with pupils in cubicles with projected images to simulate visual navigation while aided by W/T signals.
Only one of the two original blocks remains, but this is well-maintained. It has been renovated and repurposed as an office and light industrial unit.

Thick wooden poles erected in lines to prevent airborne-glider landings on the beach. Erected in lines running north south approximately 100 metres apart. Reportedly cut off at base at the end of the war.
Reported visible in original DHP report but now no visible remains.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is visible on contemporary aerial photographs and post-war OS mapping.
No visible remains, though subsurface remains likely.

Pomeroy ROC monitoring post
Report on Subterranea Britannica noted only main room and entrance remained as entry hatch had been removed and ventilators had been removed.
The site is no longer visible as owner reported covering hatch with mound of earth to secure site though monitoring room remains intact.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/pomeroy-roc-post/

This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters.
The site is faintly visible as a raised area on the ground.

This concrete tank was filled with water providing an emergency supply for firefighting, it has been converted into a helicopter landing pad post war.
The site appears to be intact though filling in and resurfaced with modern tarmac.

The administrative centre of the airfield. It had offices for the commanding officer, the adjutant and the engineer, chief accounting officer and their supporting clerks.
This site also included the Wireless Telegraphy (W/T room and Operations room
The W/T room used radio to maintain long range communication, using Morse code and teletype.
The operations room was the central control for all flight operations from the station. Orders were received via a telex room and flight plans, targets plotted on target maps, crew listings and final planning for flight operations took place here.
Several walls of the central and lower structures remain upstanding but only the concrete base remains of the main station office block. The site is heavily overgrown.

In relatively good condition, the roof has been replaces and there is some collapsing of the brickwork on the western facing wall.

Formerly a small brick building, it provided toilet facilities for airmen.

Unidentified structure relating to RAF maritime operations on site.
Small brick structure with concrete roof. The windows and door are sealed.

Light anti-aircraft weapons were smaller fast-firing weapons designed to engage low-flying aircraft. The smallest of these were and most common of these were light machine guns. On RAf airfield these would have been most likely Bren guns, Vickers K or Lewis guns mounted on purpose built tripods, but often were mounted on simple poles allowing a 360 degree traverse while fired from a standing position.
The site is a central concrete plinth with circular retaining wall. When operational the site was provided further protection by a surrounding earthwork revetment. The gun was mounted on the central plinth.
The site is in relatively good condition though the earthwork revetment has been removed or slumped down from the retaining wall.

Provided sleeping are for non-military YWCA (Young Women's Christian Association). This was formerly a Laing hut. Originally designed in 1940, the hut consisted of standard prefabricated lightweight timber wall sections bolted together. Externally the wooden frame and plasterboard was covered in felt sheeting to make the structure weatherproof. Inside, the walls were lined with plasterboard. The roof was made of corrugated asbestos sheeting supported by wooden trusses.

Ballymacrevan
Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The low walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments.
Approximate 50% of the surrounding walls have been removed, but the concrete floor remains as does two of the ammunition recesses.

No visible traces on surface but the potential remains for buried remains.
Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)

Small 40 metre section of perimeter track remains.

This 25 yard range was used to test fire machine guns and cannon. The majority of World War airfields were equipped with gun butts, used for the testing and alignment of aircraft guns, and for airmen to test shooting skills. A large brick structure supported by ten brick buttresses acts as a retaining wall for the sloping earth/sand backstop. A shelter would have faced the earth and brick butts, however this has long since been removed.
The backstop of the butts which formerly contained sand has slumped and is overgrown, but the brick structure appears in good condition, though there is large growth of bushes on northern face of structure.

Huts erected a part of army camp, group of approx. 12 built to facilitate operations at the camp.
https://history.army.mil/reference/ireland/readme.htm

Small brick structure with flat concrete roof, normally with two rooms protected by steel doors. Used to store flare cartridges.

Only concrete base remains obscured by grass cover.

Structure built to facilitate operation of the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear.

Described as a position constructed of stone and sandbags on promontory overlooking the beach.
Reported as noon-extant in original DHP report

A camp constructed to house troops during WW2. A sample testing suggests many hut bases remain to be located in this area.
Overgrown but with high potential for concrete bases to remain.

The site was for a HF 200 height finding radar which was mounted on a circular concrete tower. Used in pairs, its main role was to gather height data on aircraft at short to long range (up to 160 nautical miles). The aerials nodded up and down at 20-30 cycles per minute.
Only the concrete footings remain of the tower. Some curved sections of the concrete tower remain as demolition rubble.

Only concrete sidewalls remain, incorporated into agricultural shed.

Small concrete wall placed opposite entrance to a magazine to deflect a blast in the event of an accidental explosion in the magazine.

Structure built to facilitate operation at the depot, function remains unclear.

The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site was constructed earthwork traverses on brick revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There was a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.
Extant at time of DHP, demolished sometime post 2006

Only concrete base remain. Agricultural shed built on site.

Constructed to facilitate operations on site, larger than surrounding huts, possibly ablutions block. Has agricultural building constructed on it until recently.

Large 186 square metre magazine with concrete walls and earthwork traverse protection. Used to store ammunition and/or explosives. The flat-roofed store had a steel gantry connected to a blast wall to aid loading/unloading of munitions.
Features very similar if not identical to magazines at RNAD Kilnappy

Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door.
Nissen hut constructed during WW2 to facilitate operations though at this stage it is unclear what purpose it served, possibly an office or administration unit.
Structure is intact and in good condition.

Site remains intact though resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Concrete trackway providing access around site.
Approx. 4,800 metres of trackway remain on the site.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. Gun was surrounded by a concrete wall which there were seven integral ammunition lockers. These held the ready-use ammunition stored on on wooden racks. This was a more sophisticated design compared to the batteries in the Belfast and Larne GDPs, as they had dedicated crew shelters built into the design, though one was usually allocated as a maintenance and tool store for the position. The outside of the position was reinforced with earthwork revetments providing additional protection and camouflage.
Site is in good condition but interior is heavily overgrown.

Provided dining facilities for officers.
IN good condition but not in use. Part of derilict industrial site.

Converted to domestic dwelling/holiday home, retains asbestos roof.

This site was used to test fire aircraft machine guns and cannon. Weapons were test fired into a sloping bank of earth, usually held in place by a retaining wall which also helped prevent ricochets. This example appears an expedient version repurposing a frying pan dispersal.
Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)

This brick operations room was constructed in the grounds of Stormont to provide a protected facility for the civil government which was resistant to enemy air attack. It was constructed of concrete filled brick walls and a concrete slab roof.
The site is relatively intact but recently the flat roof has been replaced with a modern pitched roof.
PRONI MPS/1/1/8 War Room at Stormont Castle

Structure relating to operation f radar station, local have noted that it was where radar antenna was located but this structure is not found at other CHL stations. Function remains unclear.
Low concrete platform remains in relatively intact condition.

The 38 metre diameter dispersal is over-grown but survives in good condition.

This post retains its original window frames but the AC roof and frame are missing and the post is heavily overgrown.

This site is composed of a concrete revetted firing trench with two concrete and brick shelters used for ammunition storage.
The site is heavily overgrown with only a few sections of exposed concrete but probing suggests the site remains in good condition.

Small brick structure providing toilet facilities.
Heavily overgrown, only small section so upstanding wall remain.

Brick water tank holding emergency water supply for fire fighting.
Remains in relatively good condition with some original pipework

A workshop for general maintenance of equipment with storage areas and workbenches. These workshops were positioned to service hangars dispersed around the airfield. They contained a battery charging room, W/T store, office, workshop, instrument section office, auto-control shop, instrument repair and two flight equipment stores.
Site was demolished circa 2020, only concrete base and rubble remain.

Concrete walled structure, roof replaced, converted into dwelling/holiday home

At the start of WW2, the WW1 vintage coastal batteries at Kilroot and Grey Point forts were fully manned, and an examination service was established at Belfast Lough. There had been some changes during the inter-war years, as defensive strongpoints were added to Grey Point, whose wall was now pentagonal. Grey Point also received two searchlight positions (known as Defence Electric Lights) and a new battery observations post. Changes continued to be made during the war. Searchlights (re-designated Coast Defence Searchlights) were added to Kilroot. Furthermore, concrete shelters for the Mk VII guns were added due to the increased vulnerability of coastal batteries to air attack. Four guns were insufficient to protect a major port like Belfast. Therefore, two new batteries were built during 1940; one at Larne, County Antrim and the other at Orlock, County Down. The Orlock battery was established in August with an initial emplacement of one 6-inch Mk VII gun, with a second added by January 1941. In February 1941 the Orlock battery, known as C coast battery, took over ship examination duties from the battery at Grey Point.
The battery was armed with 2 Mk. VII 6 inch breech-loading guns housed in concrete shelters. It would have had a battery command/observation post, magazine, generator shed and coastal searchlight positions.
Three features remain intact. The two gun houses and a coastal searchlight position.

Used house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.
The brick compound is intact but heavily overgrown

Position where trainee crews unlimbered gun to start firing procedures. US troops armed with M3 37mm Anti-tank gun, British with 2 pounder Mark IX gun. Push from point to take position on edge of bluff to take aim at target track 370 metres distant.

Reported by local that this was a refrigerated store for meat.

The site was constructed during WW1 to accommodate the training needs of troops stationed in Ireland prior to being sent overseas. The site remained in use during WW2, and continues to be used by the British Army. Originally a 600 yard range it is now only used to 300 yards.
The site is largely intact and still in use.

This site is totally obscured by vegetation, but investigation by probing suggests the runway surface remains underneath the vegetation. This section is approx. 258m long, from an original length of just over 1,000m.

Cookstown ROC post

Sydenham Airfield
This 135 metre long wharf was constructed during WW2 to facilitate loading and unloading operations at the airfield including aircraft onto and off aircraft carriers.
Site is intact and appears in good condition.
Map
DHR 00082-000 Sydenham airfield 1952_001

This site was a steel blister hanger construction used to house the free gunnery trainer. This was used to train aerial gunners how to report and target enemy aircraft. This was achieved by projecting illuminated silhouettes of enemy aircraft on a target screen inside a darkened hangar.
The trainee sat in a mock-up of a powered turret mounted on a steel frame at eye level central to the curved screen. This gave the impression of flying, aided by the projection of clouds and sound track. The turret was positioned inside a larger frame which also mounted the target projector, a control desk and seat for the instructor.
When the trainee fired at the target a spotlight shone to show where the shots would have struck. The target silhouettes were projected with a yellow do showing the correct target point to be fired at, but this was hidden to the trainee by a yellow filter on the turrets gunsight. The instructors could then assess how accurate the trainees shots were by comparing the projected light of the gun with the yellow target dot.
To accurately simulate real life the gunner could hear the sound of his aircraft engines and the report of his guns when 'fired'.

The site is infilled and overgrown but appears to be intact.

Narrow concrete trackway providing pedestrian access around site.
Though not visible, probing and AP evidence suggests approx. 230 metres of track remain intact under the sod.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the VHF receiver block. Precise function unclear but may have been a guard house.
Only concrete base and wall footings remain.

This is the western fortified perimeter wall. The walls are part of the original design and construction of the fort. They have been altered in a minor way since, to give access to the land to the west (doors in the north and south bastions). Original defensive loops for rifles have been bricked up. (Probably as part of the alterations and expansion of the late nineteenth century). Openings have been made to access the stores (building 35) to the west of the wall and part of the inner wall of the central bastion has been opened up (presumably to allow boat storage). On the 1854 map there is no building on the central bastion and a small building is indicated at the corner of each bastion (both now gone). On the 1873 map. A dividing wall is indicated on the central bastion and two small buildings (neither now surviving) at the northern end of the bastion and the north western end of the new wall. By 1904 the current building in the central bastion has been constructed and 3 adjoining small buildings (now gone) to the south. In 1955, there are nine buildings in the central bastion. Two of these are indicated on the recent site map and must have been recently removed. We were informed that these buildings functioned as the harbour master’s office during World War II but have been unable to substantiate this comment. Under the walls to the north the made up ground of the fortifications may cover the earlier remains of the siege fortification of Col O’Neills cannon battery from the 1690’s.
Structure is intact and in good condition.
HM file for HB01/09/002 W

Only concrete hardstanding remains, Site is used for aircraft fire fighting training exercises.

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing WAAF accommodation.

This 125 foot/38 m concrete dispersal remains in good condition though there are dumps of spoil/hardcore along its edges.

This is a double finger park with two hardstandings.
One park remains visible and intact whereas the second is obscured by grass cover appears only as a grassmark after a period of hot dry weather.

The site is in good condition though it has been re-clad in modern sheeting and the door guide-rails removed. It has been repurposed to industrial use by the owners.

A prefabricated air raid shelter construction of a steel pipe with a steel revetment protecting the entrance. The whole structure would have been covered in with a layer of soil with only the entrance visible. The emergency exit is at the opposite end.
Site is heavily overgrown but appears largely intact.

For reasons of safety the bomb stores were sited away from the main airfield and living sites. Stores were usually grouped according to type of weapons. This store held incendiary bombs, designed to destroy targets by starting fires as opposed to explosive blasts. It also held pyrotechnics such as flares.
The brick and concrete structure is in relatively good condition. The site also retains part of its original earthwork traverse to rear of structure.

Well dug to provide water to station, covered with concrete capstone.
Site remains intact and secured with concrete cover.
George Busby, The spies at Gilnahirk (Donaghadee, 2017)
Web page https://frontlineulster.co.uk/gchq-gilnahirk-station/

Flight offices is where aircrew waited for call to action. It was also an office where day to day unit administration was carried out.
Only concrete base remains, though heavily overgrown

This was constructed to provide office and administration functions for the US Navy Base 1 Europe. It has been reported there was a large operations map room on a lower level, with a possibility that this may yet exist, though this remains unconfirmed.
Traces of the footings can be found in the bushes at the east end of the lawn.

Room in base of the castle keep converted into an air raid shelter, emergency escape in northern wall.
Room remains intact however traces of shelter are now gone.

Section of track enabling aircraft to access finger park dispersals
Approximately 25 metres of trackway remain.
Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/Langford Lodge
USAAF Station 597 website langfordlodge.webs.com/

RAF Eglinton
Living site for personnel, not show on RAF maps but appears in Luftwaffe reconnaissance photos.

172 metres of concrete runway with turning circle remains in good condition,

Magilligan Musketry Camp
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation.
Structure used to house office for training unit administration.
Structure remains in good condition, it is currently used as a presentation/conference room
Binevenagh and Coastal Lowlands Defence Heritage Mapping Survey (2019), by Ulidia heritage Services for the Binevenagh and Coastal Lowlands Landscape Partnership

Provided accomodation for WRNS and also recreation rooms.
Structure is in good condtion, though many windows have been sealed with modern block work. Retains original windows and roof.

Site used to repair and maintain station vehicles.

When the camp was established the main house was used to accommodate senior officers.

Short section of track, 92 m long, in good condition. Used to store bales of silage.

While the Chain Home radar formed the backbone of the radar coverage for the UK, it had significant gaps in its coverage. When flying at low level (c. 450 metres) enemy aircraft could avoid detection entirely. In response, the system of Chain Home Low radar was developed using early coastal defence radars, which had been used to detect coastal shipping. The initial layout used two aerial, one to transmit (Tx) the other receiving (Rx), rotating in tandem. This was later replaced by the improved Air Ministry Experimental Station (AMES) Type 2 radar set with a combined transmitting/receiving aerial beside an operations block.
The radar station at Bishops Road was in place by November 1940. The first phase of the site was erected on the southern side of Bishop’s Road. The core of the site was the transmitter and and receiver blocks, which were supported by a complex of Nissen huts, stores, shelters and gun posts. Later, likely 1941, the joint Tx/Rx Operations Block and powerhouse on the northern side of the road were built.
There are substantial remains of the first and second phase of the site with transmitter and receiver blocks and the combined Tx/Rx block on the other side of the road.
Colin Dobinson, Building Radar: forging Britain's early-warning chain 1935-1945 (London, 2010) Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004) The Radar Pages at www.radarpages.co.uk Frontline Ulster at

The standby set house is the last remaining structure of the communal site. It provided emergency power for crucial sections of the airfield should the main power supply fail. When operational this would have housed two diesel generators, two 3,000 gallon fuel tanks, a switch-gear chamber and a transformer chamber.
The brick and reinforced concrete structure is in relatively good condition with a modern steel door providing access to the generating hall, which is now repurposed as a construction company. In recent years the rule storage chamber to the rear has been demolished

Hard-standing for the parking, maintenance, loading or refuelling of aircraft. Built post-war.
In good condition, grass growing through expansion joints. Used as go-cart track.

The sites displays characteristic fieldworks prevalent in static trench warfare of WW1. There are 'sawtooth' communication trenches and crenelated 'Greek key' trenches, which formed the fire trench. The traverses/crenellations prevented an enemy enfilading the length of a trench with fire.
There is also evidence of WW2 era section post, trenches and post war shell scrapes/slit trenches.
The site is extensive and overgrown with a likelihood that thee are many phases of WW1, WW2 and Cold War military training present.
There are extensive though shallow traces of the trenches across the site.

This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for airfield personnel.

Monrush POW camp
Structure erected to facilitate operations at the POPW camp.
Site remains relatively intact and secure.
Eddie McCartney, 'The prisoner of war camp' in Look Back: Mid-Ulster local History Journal, vol. 6, pp 46-8.

Bombs would only be fused when they were transported to loading onto aircraft. Therefore, fusing point buildings were sited on the trackways from the bomb stores to the perimeter track and dispersals. With doors at both ends, trolley trains loaded with bombs were driven in and each bomb was fused by an armourer. The fused bombs were then driven out the other end of the building and taken directly to their aircraft for loading. This site was termed 'Ultra-Heavy' for fusing large hi-explosive bombs.
The building retains most of its original corrugated asbestos roof, but modern galvanised iron used to repair section on southern end of structure. The fusing shed is now used as a cattle byre. The protective earthwork traverses are no longer extant.

Spring Hill
Structure built to facilitate operations at the camp.

The 675 metres of ptrack remains in good condition.

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected by an integral blast wall.
The site is in relatively good condition although the blat wall has been removed.

The Romney hut (also known as a shed) was designed in Romney House, London by the Directorate of Fortifications and Works at the start of WW2. Primarily used for storage, they could be adapted for canteens, workshops and even cinemas. Semi-circular in section, the hut was a series of tubular steel ribs curved to a radius of 17 feet 6 inches. The were bolted to the foot and connected by steel purlins. The frame was covered by corrugated iron sheeting. The inside of the structure was normally unlined. The hut was composed of any number of bays each 8 feet wide (usually 96 feet long) and an internal span of 35 feet.
This hut is a double-Romney hut as it is twice as long as normal, 192 feet/58.5 metres long. Likely used for storage or as a workshop.
It is in good condition and used for storage by local business.

This section of the main runway is 67m long and constructed of tarmac. It currently holds two agricultural sheds.

The site was built in 1944 apparently to accommodate shore docking by the Short Shetland flying boat. However with the end of the war the new aircraft was not put into production.
The concrete and steel coffer dam dock remains in good condition. The main dock would accommodate the fuselage of the aircraft whereas the smaller docks on wither side would have accommodated the under-wing-floats.

Structure built to facilitate operations at the site, function remains unclear, possibly rest room for station personnel.
Colin Dobinson, Building Radar: forging Britain's early-warning chain 1935-1945 (London, 2010) Neil Redfern, Twentieth-century fortifications in the United Kingdom: vol. III, Site Gazetteers: Northern Ireland (York, 1998)

Blackhead Chain Home Low radar station
The steel reinforced concrete remains relatively intact, with generator plinth remaining in situ. Small amount of damage to upper wall on south-west corner.

Eglinton airfield

Providing toilet facilities for sergeants. Oddly this structure has a small chimney attached to it, not a feature associated with latrines suggesting the sites purpose may have changed durings its active use.
Site remains relatively intact if somewhat overgrown.

Concrete trackway linking hard-standings DHR 78:11 & 12 to perimeter track.
70 m of trackway remain in good condition

Building first indicated on the 1904 Ordnance Survey Map and forms part of the expansion of the base eastwards after new land was purchased in 1891. A purpose built barrack block of a standard military type, there are two other buildings of similar design on the base. The original plan of a long dormitory to either side of a central circulation core has been adapted to provide separate bedrooms without significantly altering the building’s construction or altering the central core. Large return to the rear with toilets, which is different from the other buildings of the type constructed between 1933 and 1955.
Site is intact and in good condition, has been repurposed as commercial office space.
HB file for HB01/09/002AA
HM file for LDY 14:72

The site was a concrete revetted firetench. It would have accommodated a section of troops. It had a series of recesses which could have been used to store ammunition or act as emergency shelters. In 2004 it was partly infilled, but then demolished by the owner. Archaeological traces still likely to remain.
No surface remains visible, though likely archaeological remains survive.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012) Report at

Provided washing, showering and drying room facilities for WAAF personnel.
These structures are in poor condition. Only the lower walls and water tower now remain

Used to dry wet clothes. Normally fitted with tubular steel rails at head height with hooks that slide along the rails for clothing to hang on. The room is heated by radiators served by an adjacent boiler room.
Originally built of brick, only the concrete base remains.

Site is in good condition, It has been re-clad post war.

The brick structure is well-preserved though overgrown. The entrance is protected by a brick blast wall.

The early expansion period armouries (this design in drawing no 707/31). The armoury was used to centralise ammunition storage for the squadrons based at the airfield. The ground floor area housed the armouries, a workshop for turret firing gear and magazine maintenance. There was an ammunition filling room and an ammunition expense (ready use) store.
The first floor housed the photographic section, with workshops and laboratories for developing, chemical mixing, printing and film drying. There was also a photographic instruction room and lecture room.
An AML bombing teacher was also located in this building. The Air Ministry Laboratory (AML) bombing teacher projected a moving map on which the bombardier used a mock bomb sight to hit a target and passed instructions to the pilot, who could alter the course of the ‘flight’ over the map according to instructions from the bombardier, who calculated wind and speed as on a real mission. Timing after bomb release was assessed by instructors to determine the accuracy of the simulated bomb run.
Site appears intact and in good condition. Still in use by MoD.
Airfield Research Group report on site at RAF Oakington

Maghaberry airfield

Site remains intact and in good condition

The structure housed the married officers quarters.
The site is heavily overgrown but map evidence suggest the footings of the structure remain.

For reasons of safety the bomb stores were sited away from the main airfield and living sites. Stores were usually grouped according to type of weapons. This store held incendiary bombs, designed to destroy targets by starting fires as opposed to explosive blasts. This store was designated a Type 'B', which was composed of 2 linear brick stores separated by an earthwork traverse.
The outline of one of the brick stores can be discerned as well as a section of concrete footing and some traces of the earthwork traverse.

This timber-framed galvanised steel shed was used to store wooden framed target and paper target sheets for mounting on the moving target frames/stops behind the markers gallery.
The target shed is in relatively good condition and contained remains of several wooden target frames.

ONly concrete base remains, planters constructed on surface for insect garden

In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps.
Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school, the only remains extant is this red brick structure, its exact purpose remains unclear.
Structure retains original asbestos roof, modern windows and doors added.

The concrete dispersal is one of a group of four. The surface is in good condition though it has dumps of building rubble, spoil and hard-core.

This single park appears intact if somewhat overgrown'

With the outbreak of war with Germany in 1914, the rapid expansion of the army led to a corresponding expansion of training facilities. Part of the training of the recruits required them to practice constructing the types of fieldworks found at the front in France and Belgium. By 1915 trench construction formed a major part of the training of recruits, reflection the prevailing methods of warfare on the Western Front.
The sites displays characteristic fieldworks prevalent in static trench warfare of WW1. Excavations concluded that the site was a Low Command Redoubt designed to station a small garrison of troops for extended periods of time.
The remains are largely subsurface with only shallow depressions marking the lines of trench works.
S Gormley and H Montgomery, Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork (QUB), Ballykinler data structure report (2019)

The concrete structure is in good condition, retains asbestos roof. Has been converted into a holiday home

Monrush POW camp
The camp was constructed to house German prisoners of war. They were held in nissen huts surrounded by barbed wire and guarded by sentries in watch towers. Only a single hut now remains, the rest of the camp is now covered with housing.
Eddie McCartney, 'The prisoner of war camp' in Look Back: Mid-Ulster local History Journal, vol. 6, pp 46-8.

The operations block was the central control for all flight operations from the airfield. Orders were received via a telex room and flight plans, targets plotted on target maps, crew listings and final planning for flight operations took place here. Finalised plans, distress procedures and operational radio frequencies were passed on to the crews in the crew briefing room (DHR 75:132). It was reinforced to operate while under attack and a ventilation system was fitted to provide protection from attack by chemical weapons.
The site remains in good condition, It was converted to re-use as a mechanics shop. The site was locked on the day of fieldwork but previous survey showed the site retained much of the ventilation ducting, soundproofing and signage of original use. There is a private dwelling built on the south west corner.

Structure erected to facilitate operations at the camp, likely a nissen hut.
Site overgrown on day of survey but visible on aerial photos.

Only the concrete hard-standing and manoeuvring yard remain. There are some modern concrete structures on eastern edge, the exact purpose of which is unclear.

Also known as a Turret Gun Sighting Trainer (TGST), this was another use of synthetic training, using images of aircraft projected onto a large concave target screen. It was used to instruct aerial gunners how to lead fast moving aerial targets. Images or silhouettes of German aircraft were projected on the screen and a trainee in a mock-up turret would ‘fire’ the guns with realistic sound and ammunition tracking.
In relatively good condition. This structure was modified during the operational lifetime of the base. A local landowner related how the building was modified to accommodate two fire tenders, requiring the extension and remodelling of the southern side of the structure, and extension of the AC roof. Additional brickwork is clearly visible. Side entrances have been sealed with modern blockwork, as has one of the fire tender bays.

Built sometime after 1943 to replace original control tower (DHR 00025:125)
The watch office (known as the watch office on RAF airfields, but control towers on sites operated by the USAAF) provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Built to designs of the Air Ministry's Directorate of Works and Buildings, as Office for All Commands design, to Drawing No. 343/32. Rendered brick with asphalt roof, the walls are 9 inch thick rendered brick, except the front elevation which is 13.5 inches thick. The ground floor had the watch office to front with duty pilot's rest room, meteorological office, switch room and lavatories to rear. The flat roof and balcony were made of reinforced slab concrete.
The first floor had control room to front, with controller's rest room, PBX and signals office to rear, opening onto passage with access to stairs. The design had smaller windows on the first floor but photos of the control tower suggest these may have been modified during the war to restore the large windows of earlier designs.
Post war a large Visual Control room has been added to the roof of the structure and an extension added to the west elevation.
The site remains intact and still in use by the MoD. The structure appears to have modern cladding and the balcony has been removed.

All the filter material has been removed leaving only the circular retaining wall, heavily overgrown.

The early examples of Chain Home Low sites had separate transmitter and receiving posts. The equipment was protected by surrounding brick/concrete retaining walls. The equipment. This concrete brick compound housed the transmitting antenna, which rotated in tandem with the nearby receiving antenna.
The equipment is long gone but the retaining wall of the transmitter hut remains in good condition. Three sides remain however the southern wall has been removed, likely to enable access to farm machinery.
The Radar Pages at www.radarpages.co.uk Frontline Ulster at

The site is heavily overgrown but appears relatively intact. There is some collapse on western side of structure buy overgrowth has obscured the level of possible damage.

Structure built to facilitate operations on site, likely a Quonset hut used to store supplies.
Only visible as a parch mark on aerial photos.

The War Office requisitioned Creevagh House at the start of WW2. A military hosp[ital was constructed here in 1941-42 for the US Navy. It consisted of wards with supporting facilities. Air raid shelters were interspersed with medical buildings. The medical buildings were concentrated on in the western area, with officer, enlisted and nurses' quarters on the eastern side of the camp. The hospital treated wounded from the nearby naval base and casualties resulting from D-Day in 1944. It also served as a training base for combat navy medical corpsmen.
The huts were removed post-war, but according to the landowner, most, if not all, hut bases associated with the wards and hospital facilities remain in situ under the topsoil.

Only concrete hard standing remains. Post-war there has been another steel framed shed with concrete ramp constructed on the site, the ramp remains but the shed has been removed leaving only base of steel frame.

T2 Hangar erected during WW2to house the Civilian Repair Organisation works. The CRO was established at Sydenham in 1940 to repair damaged aircraft and returned them to front-line duties as quickly as possible. It was staffed by civilian employees of Shorts and Harland.
The site is in good condition though it has been re-clad post war and brick office annex has been added to the north-west end wall.

The site was constructed during WW1 to accommodate the training needs of troops stationed in Ireland prior to being sent overseas. The site remained in use during WW2, and continues to be used by the British Army. It was originally a 900 yard range but is now is a 600 yard range with firing points in 100 yard intervals, a target gallery and backstop.
The site remains in good condition and remains in use as a small arms range, The site has been updated throughout its use and remains a modern military small arms range.

Small stone windmill constructed by German POWs during their confinement at the site.
Small structure remains intact though sails (if they were ever made) are missing.

The 975 metre runway is disused but remains in good condition. An aircraft fire training facility with mock-fuselage has been constructed on the southern end of the runway.

Only concrete base and line of brick remains

This pillbox was one of a series around Rathfriland covering key lines of approach.
The pillbox has been removed but traces of the embrasures made in the existing wall, marked by 2 sections of post-war brick infill.

A radio beacon was established and operated by the RAF. This was to facilitate the delivery of trans-Atlantic aircraft to RAF Nutts Corner. The site had two large masts which broadcast a narrow-beam medium frequency 'Leader' radio beacon. The site was also used as an approach beacon guiding aircraft to the bases on Lough Erne.
The transmitter block remains intact and is surrounded by a collection of antenna bases and concrete holdfasts.

The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. Type A huts were for officers and consisted of 4 rooms and one for servants. Type B huts were for sergeants and were a single room accommodating 8 men. Those for other ranks or airmen accommodated 12 men in a single room. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides
A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing airmen’s accommodation.

Site was used to store ammunition. Built to design 12725/41, this was a Nissen hut surrounded by an earthwork traverse. Noted in 1944 plan as one of 3 'Smith Gun' Ammunition stores.
The nissen hut has been removed but the concrete base and earthwork traverse remain in good condition

Group of at least five military structures associated with the radar station.

Building constructed to house horse and store a coach, first indicated on the 1904 map and is likely to have formed part of the expansion of the base of the east following purchase of new lands in 1891. However the boundary wall may he date from the 1870’s for the main post 1891 expansion is surrounded by a much lower brick wall and fence. This connects into a fragment of the original north east bastion to the east. Building photographed at end of 19th century shows columns along front façade which appear to be the inner row of columns flush with the wall above. The three columns closest to the parade ground at the west are open to a low picket fenced area to the front. It is likely that the building was stables or a coach house extended forward in the late 19th century and further extended in the middle of the twentieth century when converted to a storehouse.
Site is intact and in good condition, extension added in recent years a site redeveloped and repurposed as restaurant.
HB file for HB01/09/002 Q

Whiteabbey Hospital
Nissen hut wards constructed on site during WW2.

Approach lighting was used to guide aircraft in to land on the correct runway in poor or limited visibility conditions. The approach lights, or funnels as they were known, consisted of a group of six lights which were aligned in the direction of approach to a runway (six groups of six on an airfield with 3 runways). They were mounted on poles and shone directly upwards, arranged in a vee-shape with the axis pointing in the direction of the runway.
Only the concrete base and section of wooden upright and steel ducting remains. Not visible on day of field visit but position taken from aerial photos and condition from photos on www.ww2ni.com/countydownairfields
WW2NI website https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownairfields.htm
David J Smith, Britain’s military airfields, 1939-45 (1989)

A ground control intercept radar station was constructed at Ballywoodan in 1941. During the ROTOR radar programme in 1955-6 a control centre was established which worked in conjunction with the radar station on nearby Killard Point (DHR 311). In the 1960 it was improved with the addition of a Type 84 radar becoming a Master Radar Station with responsibility for the Atlantic area. IN the 1980 this facility was replaced with hardened protected structures under the Linesman/Mediator programme.
The complex is composed of a number of structures, some are destroyed but others remain in relatively good condition; 2 HF200 height finding radars (only footings remain), HF Substation, Standby set house and switch-room, administration block, operations block, filtration and air conditioning plant, Type 84 modulator building, radar office and workshop, security post, crane footings, diesel tank plinth, army communications tower, and line terminal building.
The site is in good condition with the majority of the structures remaining in good condition. The radar equipment has long been removed but reuse as stores for farm machinery and sealing of other structure has ensured they building remain
Website https://www.ulsterradar.co.ukBob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008)Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)Colin Dobinson, Building radar: forging Britain's early warning chain, 1935-45 (London, 2010),

HAA batteries were typically armed with four 3.7-inch heavy anti-aircraft guns, which could fire a 28-pound projectile to an effective ceiling of 32,000 feet. The gun crews were directed from the battery command post. The command post provided height, direction and altitude data to the gun pits to enable the gun layers to set the fused to detonate at the correct altitude.
This battery appears to have only two gun position with no trace of the command post. The site may never have been armed.
Only two gun positions remain in situ. The ammunition lockers have been removed from both and the hardstanding for telephone tower built inside one.

Structure of uncertain function, may be kitchin, recreation or mess hall.
Appear intact in aerial photo, no access on day of visit.

The site was constructed during WW2 to accommodate the training needs of troops stationed in N. Ireland prior to being sent overseas. It was a 500 yard range with firing points in 100 yard intervals, a target gallery and backstop. Buttis littered with 03-06 Springfield bullets which were fired by US units during WW2 (standard round for M1 Garand and M1919 machine gun). The site was used post-war, as there are 7.62 mm NATO bullets impacted on the butt. The British army standard rifle was the L1A1, chambered for 7.62mm, in service with British army from 1954-91
The ranger retains remains of the concrete markers gallery, earth butt/backstop and traces of XX firing points.
NA, located from map evidence and dated from analysis of bullets recovered from butt

Castlederg ROC post

After the destruction caused to aircraft assembly lines in Belfast during the air raids raids of 1941, final assembly of aircraft was dispersed to sites outside Belfast, one of these assembly sites was at Maghaberry where two T2 hangers were erected for this purpose. After the war the site was used to scrap redundant aircraft.
The hangar is in good condition but has been heavily modified post-war. It currently houses as distribution warehouse. The frame has been re-clad in modern steel sheeting and a approx 3m tall retaining wall has been concrete wall has been built along the base of the hangar. The brick annex has been modernised into offices for the distribution business.

Only the concrete apron and hardstanding remain. Soil and concrete hardcore have been dumped in the centre of the site.

The trackway was constructed to provide access across the site.
Approx. 100 metres of trackway remain intact.

An agricultural shed has been constructed on the southern end of the 38 metre diameter dispersal but it appears relatively intact.

Hard standing for the parking, maintenance, loading or refuelling of aircraft.
Small 35 metre section of apron remains.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the armament depot. Uncertain function.
Site is largely intact though the south end wall's access may have been enlarged to facilitate use as a store.

The concrete dispersal survives in good condition, though there is some vegetation growing from the expansion joints and cracks in surface. The site is partially covered with dumps of construction blocks and hardcore.

The concrete structure is in good condition, retains asbestos roof and has been converted into a holiday home.

This 565 m section of track is in good condition, though overgrown with moss and grass. Some examples of perimeter track lighting remain along edge of track.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide. This track was constructed when the runways were realigned between 1941-43.
500 m of track remain. The line of the track remains though it appears the track has been widened post war and resurfaced with modern tarmac, though the original concrete likely remains beneath.

Only the loading and unloading trackways remain.

This was a steel shed surrounded by earthwork traverses cut into the hillside and was used to store explosives such as bombs and depth charges.
The concrete base of the store remains as do the surrounding earthwork traverses.

Structure built to facilitate operations at the firing range. Construction similar to structures at target shed but function is unclear.
The fabric of the wood-framed galvanised steel structure is largely present but is in a state o9f collapse.

Approx.. 8-10 huts constructed as part of the camp.

Allows suspended particles to settle out of wastewater as it flows through the tank.
Heavily overgrown but concrete remains with pipe ducting survive in situ.

Provided dinaing facilities
Converted to modern office building, roof and windows replaced with modern upvc and cladding.

St Patrick's Barracks
An army camp was constructed here in 1937, becoming a depot for the Royal Ulster Rifles. This site was used by both the British army (No. 12 Primary Training Centre) and US army during WW2, when it stationed the HQ units of the 34th (US) Infantry division.
The site continued to be used as a barracks post-war, when it was used as the regional training centre for infantry training as the North Irish Brigade Depot. The barracks continued in use throughout the Troubles period but was closed in 2008. The site was sold off and cleared for redevelopment.

This structure used by work services staff. These were civilians employed provide maintenance services at the base.
Only concrete base remains, mostly obscured by grass.

Large nissen hut constructed to to facilitate operations at the armament depot. Uncertain function.
Site largely intact although large section of western endwall has been removed to facilitate storage of vehicles.

This store was of a design developed early in the war, drawing number 5416/40. It was a 30 ft square open platform protected by earthwork traverses. It could store a maximum of 24 tons of high explosive bombs. Aerial bombs and depth charges would have been stored at this site
The site is in good condition with well-preserved earthwork traverses, concrete platform and brick revetments.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersal were normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
Though entirely grassed over probing suggests this dispersal remains intact

Construction was started at Millisle with the intention of establishing a Combat Crew Replacement Centre for the USAAF, however a decision was take to abandon the project before the airfield was completed. PLanned to have the traditional three-runway layout, only one was ever completed.
The site is largely composed of a single runway and the technical area. Only thee buildings relating to the dispersed living sites remain.
A single runway remains in relatively good condition, though the remaining track tapers off on the southern side of Moss Road. The technical area is largely intact and has been repurposed to light industry.

This steel shed was used to store wooden framed target and paper target sheets for mounting on the moving target frames/stops behind the markers gallery. Uncertain date but could be WW1 vintage.

Greencastle airfield

The runway is disused but remains in good condition.

The Type C Hangar (known during the interwar years as a shed) was designed to meet the RAF’s need to house larger aircraft. A hangar was required with a clear span of 150 feet, length of 300 feet and a clear height of 35 feet. This led to the development of the Type C hangar. Early examples were built with brick and steelwork, but in 1936, this was changed to concrete in anticipation of enemy bombing. Doors were arranged in six leaves, with steel plates on both sides. The cavity was filled with gravel to a height of 20 feet to provide protection against bomb splinters. The annexes to either side of the hanger served day-to-day operations, with offices, rest rooms, changing and locker rooms, briefing rooms and briefing rooms. There were also wireless and instrument workshops, armouries, aircraft and equipment store to serve the immediate needs of the ground crews. A change to the design came in 1938 when austerity called for economy of materials and manpower, with greater use of steel cladding and cantilevered roof frames covered with asbestos sheeting.
This hangar is of inter-war design (Drawing no. and construction with liberal use of brick and steel in its construction. It can be dated as 1934 both from its drawing number and that its transverse roof is gabled. After 1934 Type C hangars were normally constructed with hipped roofs.
The hangar is intact and in good condition. It is still in use as a hangar by the MoD.

Unidentified structure relating to RAF maritime operations on site.
The small brick structure remains in relatively good condition. It is now used as an animal shelter

This is a single finger park, formerly part of a 9 park dispersal. It has recently been tarmaced over but owner noted the concrete remains underneath.

The air raid shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. This is an example of a Stanton Shelter. They were manufactured at the Stanton Ironworks Co near Nottingham, England. They could be constructed to any length to suit needs but usually consisted of 18 pre-cast concrete arch-shaped units, bolted together to form a shelter to accommodate 50 people. Stanton shelters can be above ground or semi-sunk and usually had a layer of earth and turf laid over them. Often there was a roof escape hatch but this design has brick blast walls and entrances on either end.
The site is in relatively good condition, one blast wall is intact while the other has partially collapsed or been removed.

Mulberry harbours were developed as a temporary portable harbour to facilitate rapid offloading of troops and material following the D-Day landings in Normandy in 1944. Prior to construction testing was carried out on the Solway Firth.
This structure was known as a Hippos and was part of the original test rigs. However this design did not meet requirements. leading to the development of the Phoenix caisson. This 'Hippo' was later lowed from Garlieston to Larne Harbour where it was used for a development of Curran Quay.
Only part of the bow or aft section remains above the water.

Only lower track remains visible. Traces of upper track ans concrete floors of bomb stores appear in recent aerial photos.

The 489 metres of track remains in good condition. It was truncated by the construction of the Operational Readiness Platforms. resurfaced post war.

Existed in good condition up to 2015, demolished to make was for redevelopment

By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ or loop dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on airframes and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
The concrete dispersal remains in good condition, currently used as a go-cart track.

This small dispersal was extant in 2017 but has since been destroyed .

Provided access to series of 7 frying pan dispersals
The 896m of concrete trackway remains intact bit somewhat obscured by overgrowth of grass and moss. There is no visible remains of the frying pan dispersals. It is bisected at 2 points by a rocket sled test track.

Site remains intact though partially resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Provided toilet facilities for airmen.

These shallow tanks would have contained filters beds of sand and gravel which would have drained water away from solid sewage sludge. Once suitable de-watered the waste would destroyed on site.
The concrete beds are overgrown but appear in relatively good condition.

This site was used to station units guarding the entrance to the camp. Site could also be used to detain prisoners.

Sick annex proved storage rooms for sick quarters.
The annex is in good condition with its original asbestos roof and windows.Site secured with modern steel sheeting. It is heavily overgrown with ivy on its eastern end.

Provided accommodation for non-commissioned officers. Built on site of WW2 huts.
The concrete structure is in good condition, it has a modern roof and has been incorporated into a community/scout centre.

Constructed of reinforced concrete, the coastal pillbox was sited to provide defensive fire using machine guns along the length of the beach firing through embrasures in the concrete wall. The concrete was thick enough to provide protection against bullets and shell splinters but was not thick enough to withstand direct fire from artillery and heavy guns. This pillbox appears to be a variant to designs seen along Co Down coast, this is likely to suit rocky topography. It has 5 firing embrasures and an entrance in the rear wall this was secured with a steel door, however since the original DHP report this steel door has been replaced with modern concrete brickwork.
Sitting on a rocky eminence at the southern end of Newcastle beach, the structure remains in good condition. Access could not be gained on the day of fieldwork. The steel door has been removed and the entrance sealed with concrete brickwork

Site was in final stages of demolition during day of site visit.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire
This site is brick and concrete revetted trench with a central concrete ammunition storage shelter. There were two bays within the shelter. The site got its name from the distinctive flattened W form.

Blackhead Chain Home Low Radar Station
While the Chain Home radar formed the backbone of the radar coverage for the UK, it had significant gaps in its coverage. When flying at low level (c. 450 metres) enemy aircraft could avoid detection entirely. In response, the system of Chain Home Low radar was developed using early coastal defence radars, which had been used to detect coastal shipping. The station was equipped with the improved Air Ministry Experimental Station (AMES) Type 2 radar set with a combined transmitting/receiving aerial mounted on the roof of the operations block. The site at Blackhead was originally a Coast Defence radar manned by the army but was handed over to the RAF in May 1942 under the Triple-Servie agreement which saw radar coverage for shipping and aircraft amalgamated, becoming a Chain Home Low station. However, as the war progressed there was less need for radar coverage in the western UK and unnecessary stations were decommissioned and the site was dismantled, likely in 1944.
The site consisted of an operations block with the radar aerial mounted on the roof. there was a standby set house and supporting ancillary structures.
The operations block remains as des the standby set house. Concrete platforms remain on site showing trace remains of support buildings. Concrete platforms remain on the hill above the site which local report as the site of the antennae but they are not of a type associated with the types of radar typically found at CHL stations.

This workshop building was used to provide instruction to workshop personnel.
The building is heavily overgrown to the extent that it initially does not appear to be a building but a small copse of trees and bushes. Internally it is in good condition with five small offices/stores with a large central workshop area with workbenches along the sides. There are two pieces of contemporary wall art in the middle room at the southern end of the building.

This concrete water tower was used to store and provide water to the camp.

This contained stores facilities for camera, oil and dope, small bomb containers, a gun cleaning room, the armaments officers office and turret repair and armaments workshop. The current owner related how the site was repurposed as a station reception, security control and small arms during the post-war years.
The structure constructed of brick with cement render with compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof. The structure is in good condition and the owner is refurbishing most of the site for small business use with new upvc windows, lighting and fittings. The site retains sections of the post-war station reception though much of this was vandalised after the station closed. The site also retains the armoury small arms and ammunition cages, with steel access doors. The cages also cover the roof, entirely sealing the area. The structure has been reinforced with a concrete blast-wall along three-quarters of its southern face. This was added to provide protection from attack during the ‘Troubles’ period (1969-98).

Only concrete base remains under the grass

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments
The site remains in good condition and retains all four of its ammunition recesses. There is some colapse and some sumping of debris in the centre of the site.

This dispersal is 18 metres wide and in good condition, but much of it is obscured by an earthwork berm.

Structure built to facilitate operations at the camp.
Only concrete base and overgrown square cavity (possibly drain or stove plinth) remain.

Site constructed during WW2 to provide medical facilities for troops. Composed of at least 10 long nissen huts.

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire., could be used as a fire trench or communication trench to access weapon pits. This example had very poor lines of sight and may have been an air raid shelter for local houses

Site housed US Army base HQ, providing offices for officers, their staff and clerks.
In good condition with original roof. The site has been sealed and windows boarded up by the owner.

Structure built to facilitate operations at the station.
Only concrete platform (obscured by grass) remains.

In good condition, retains original roof, joined with second hut to form modern office space.

Provided washing and showering facilities.
Gable ends and sidewalls remain, the site is heavily overgrown.

Provided toilet facilities for personnel.
The structure is well-preserved and maintained. Was locked on day of vivit. All the window have been sealed post war.

This hanger retains its original cladding, though the western doors have a modern roller shutter fitted. The hangar is leased by Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council for use as a waste recycling depot.

Constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut, function unclear.

A military camp was constructed on the site during WW2 to provide accommodation for military personnel. Likely a series of nissen huts with brick domestic structures providing ablution and mess facilities. Approx.. 16 structures originally on site. Only two huts remains.
A single Nissen hut remains in good condition. A second brick structure may have been incorporated into a dwelling.

This brick and concrete store was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. A steel gantry connected to a blast wall, which was used for loading and unloading the store.

Site resurfaced with modern tarmac but concrete likely remains underneath

Compound used to store coal for heating stoves.
The Radar Pages at www.radarpages.co.uk Frontline Ulster at

Nissen hut providing accommodation for other ranks/airmen.
No access but visible on aerial photos, only concrete hut base remains.

Structure built to facilitate operation of the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear.
Site recorded during original DHP, demolished during field clearance circa 2012

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing officer’s accommodation.

Approximately 920 m of track-way intact, though warehousing buit on one small section and overgrowth has obscured much of southern end.

Barracks erected to provide accommodation for troops.

Site used to house prisoner in detention cells , attached to the rear of the guard house.
HB file for HB01/09/002 E

Clandeboye Estate
Brick structure erected to facilitate operations on site. Function remains unclear.
Sections intact though large parts replaced with modern blockwork.

Narrow Water Castle
Structure built to facilitate operations at the site.

The small square brick enclosure is in good condition but heavily overgrown.

Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a light machine gun, wither a Vickers gun on a tripod or a Bren Gun. However it would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
Extant at time of DHP however demolished circa 2001.

This is a low-level brick structure to provide quick and relatively safe shelter from blast. The structure is open topped so it was of little use from a direct hit or aerial strafing
The brick structure is in good condition but heavily overgrown.

The site is heavily overgrown with partial collapse of the wall.

DHP report noted "telephone device" mounted on pole beside kilns to provide early warning of nuclear attack.

Ardnaveigh
Brick structure erected during WW2 to facilitate operations at the camp. It has been suggested this may have been a mess facility, unable to confirm this.
The structure has lost its roof in recent years and appears to be in an advanced state of collapse.

Structure built to facilitate operations on site, likely a Quonset hut used to store supplies.

This was a small square pillbox sit and embrasure facing northwest along the runway. It had the remains of a steel turnbull mount used to mount a Vickers or Bren machine gun.
The site was demolished in 2004 though archaeological remains are likely.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012) Report at

Site appears largely intact however it is almost entirely obscured by overgrowth.

Structure largely intact retaining its original steel window frames and asbestos roof.

Described in DHP report as double 50 person surface shelter.
Reported non-extant in original DHP report

By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ or loop dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on airframes and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
The concrete dispersal remains in good condition, overgrown in sections with moss and grass growing from expansion joints.

The site is in good condition and retains its original blast walls on wither end and steel ventilator cover on the roof.

Trackway provided access to frying pan dispersals, engine test stands, firing range and compass rose.
The concrete track is 10m wide and 770m long. Though overgrown in large sections the track remains in relatively good condition.

Ely Lodge
The grounds of Ely Lodge were requisitioned by the War Office to house troops during WW2. The camp was constructed by US units, initially to billet personnel for US Navy flying boat operations on Lough Erne, however it was eventually occupied by US army units. The HQ, 1st and 3rd battalion, 168th Inf. Regt, 34th (US) Inf. Div. were based there in 1942. These troops were sent to North Africa as part of Operation Torch. They were replaced by 2nd Battalion, 13th Infantry Regt, 8th (US) infantry Division. The site was returned to civilian use after the war.
Many temporary and brick structures were constructed across the island with potential for hut bases to remain in the wooded areas.
Internet reports suggest some features may remain, such as hut bases, air raid shelter and wall art.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The low walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments. This site followed an early design as there are no shelters for the crews at the position.
Site was intact and in relatively good condition at time of DHP, demolished by owner in 2011 to return field to agriculture.

This 100 m of track is in good condition. It is a car park for the weekly market.

Site appears intact and well-maintained. Repurposed as a domestic store.

The concrete structure has a compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof and retains its original windows.

Structure erected to facilitate operation of bombing range, function unknown.

The detonator store housed explosive detonators for grenades (stored nearby at DHR 32:228).
The site is a made of precast concrete arches. Known as a Stanton shelter, which was usually built as an air raid shelter, this site has a dividing brick wall inside, creating two compartments accessed from either end.

The F4U Corsair was introduced by the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm in November 1943 to replace its cumbersome two-seat fighters and stop-gap naval fighters such as the Hawker Sea Hurricane and the Supermarine Seafire. Over 2,000 Corsairs would eventually be supplied to the United Kingdome during WWII.
This is the wreckage of a Vought Corsair of the Fleet Air Arm, serial number JT 693, which crashed on 9 October 1944 after suffering engine failure. The pilot, Sub. Lieutenant C. H. Schwenger of No. 1843 Squadron (Royal Navy), survived.
Though heavily corroded, large section of the nose, wings and parts of the tail section can be seen at low tide.
The Second World War in Northern ireland at https://www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt3.htm

Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the camp. Located beside the kitchen suggests that this may have been a mess/canteen.
Substantial parts of this brick structure remains though it is in a dangerous state of partial collapse.

Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. In this case the pillbox protected the approaches to the rear of Line B (stopline) which ran from Lough Neagh to Carlingford. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.
The maximum thickness of the walls is 135 cm, which meant the position was considered shell-proof. Their roofs are significantly thinner, approximately 30 cm thick, suggesting the positions were designed to resist direct flat-trajectory gunfire (field guns and tanks) rather than indirect high-angle artillery fire from mortars and howitzers. Entry is via a door at the rear which was protected by a concrete blast wall (now missing).
William Foot, Beaches, fields, streets and hills: the anti-invasion landscapes of England, 1940 (York, 2006)Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008), N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

Sited near the watch office, the signal square facilitated air traffic control signals warning pilots of the prevailing condition and precautions to be taken during landing and take-off. Though signals could be sent using radio transmissions, pyrotechnics, lamps and flags, the majority of signals were displayed on this 40-foot square black concrete square edged in a one-foot white border.
No visible remains, appears as a grassmark after periods of dry hot weather.

This structure housed tool stores and a workshop relating to the nearby hangars.
Only trace of foundation remains by side of the trackway.

The site housed a Mk. VII 6 inch breech-loading gun on steel hold-fast. The gun could fire a 100-pound armour-piercing shells 12, 600 yards. The gun was mounted on a concrete platform which had ready use ammunition magazine , used to store shells and propellant charges. The gun positions at Magilligan were unlike the others in N. Ireland as they were not fitted with protective gun houses as the sandy ground would not support the weight.
There are no above ground features visible but probing suggests there are remains buried under the sand.
John W Blake, Northern ireland in the Second World War (Belfast, 2000)

In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps. Eight of these camps were erected near Ballymena. Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school.
The site consists of a number of brick structures and supporting outbuildings. The camp would have had a large number of nissen huts housing displaced families and the school however these have been removed post war. The site now consists of two upstanding structures, their original function in the camp is unclear. During the original DHP during the 1990s this site contained the original gateway, a nissen type structure and water tower however these have been removed for farmland reclamation.
Only two structures remain though hut bases may remain below the grass cover.

The steel pen allowed flying boat to be inspected and serviced out of the water. The pen , which had brick sidewalls, covered only the front end of the aircraft.
The steel shed has been removed leaving only the concrete footings and one of the brick sidewalls. This has been incorporated into a post-war storage shed.

The main workshop building was an attempt to centralise workshop requirements in a single structure. Two main workshops are connected by an annex, with a smaller central workshop. The facility would have contained an air-frame repair shop, an engine store and the annexes may have functioned as a machine shop and welders shop.
The structure constructed of brick with cement render with compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof. The original site had two main workshops and a smaller annex between them, but the central building is roofless and in poor condition. The two main buildings are in good condition. The eastern structure has been modernised with upvc windows while the western workshop has been repurposed as a car mechanics garage.

Large concrete wall placed opposite entrance to a magazine to deflect a blast in the event of an accidental explosion in the magazine (DHR 192:017)
Provided blast protection to magazine in event of accidental explosion.

The strongpoint consisted of 2 pillboxes connected by and ammunition/command element room with a single observation post. Similar to DHR 00087:004)
Sea wall built over site, possibility of some remains incorporated into structure of sea defences.

Typically used by the Royal Navy air station, typically used as an electrical repair shop equipped with specialist rigs and tools. Uncertain if added during WW2 or after.
Appears in good condition. Site sealed by fencing.
Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Earl Hilton, 1995)

A concrete trackway which provided access through the site.

Rear wall is braced with wooden beams.
Site is heavily overgrown but largely intact.

Aldergrove originally had four runways but this layout was altered when the site was rebuilt between 1941 and 1943. This was one of the four original metalled runways.
Some traces visible but mostly appears as a grassmark after period of dry warm weather. Approximately 425 metres visible.

Brick structure built as part of searchlight battery, function is unknown.
Structure remains relatively intact ad retain original window frames, though the roof has collapsed.
www.ww2ni.com/county-down-part-1

During World War II aircraft were considered to be vulnerable when on the ground, either from air attack or from possible ground attack. Precautions were taken to prevent any loss of aircraft when not in action. As a result aircraft were often held in dispersed pens located around the perimeter of the airfield but with access to the main runways. The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site was constructed earthwork traverses on concrete revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There was a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.
The site was relatively intact until 2004 when it was demolished by the owner, largely overgrown the site consists of rubble on the surviving hardstanding.
Report at

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing officers accommodation.

This was a double finger park with two hardstandings, however one has been removed.
One of the two park hardstandings remains in good condition.

Braithwaite sectional steel water tank designed to hold 30,000 gallons of fresh water to supply needs of camp. The water was drawn from the lough.
The tanks is well maintained and in good condition.

RAF Ballykelly
An earthwork traverse with 20 bays to store conventional munitions. Built sometime between 1945 and 1955.

The airfield was first opened with a grass airstrip but this was one of two concrete runways constructed in 1940-1. This was runway 13/32. Soon after the runway was realigned (14/32), and this runway was used as a parking hardstanding.
The 800 metre runway is largely intact, though the western end has been redeveloped with the expansion of the aircraft factory. However, the turning circle is clearly visible on the western end, though this is now used as a car park. There is a circular dark patch on the eastern end of the runway which, according to local informants, make the site of a runway repair after the bombing raid in 1941.

This single storey structure was used to house a single fire engine (known as a fire tender) tasked with firefighting and rescue on the airfield
The structure is composed of brick with cement render and a compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof. It is in good condition. Its windows have been sealed and a modern steel door fitted.

Range used for aerial bombing practise.
Island used as target for practise bombs, normally small 8.5 or 12 pound smoke and flash bombs.

Bombs would only be fused when they were transported to loading onto aircraft. Therefore, fusing point buildings were sited on the trackways from the bomb stores to the perimeter track and dispersals. With doors at both ends, trolley trains loaded with bombs were driven in and each bomb was fused by an armourer. The fused bombs were then driven out the other end of the building and taken directly to their aircraft for loading. This site was termed 'Ultra-Heavy' for fusing large hi-explosive bombs
Only concrete hard standing and track-way remain.Used to store silage bales.

For gathering and treating casualties, may also have doubled as air raid shelter
Only concrete base remains, demolition rubble nearby

Provided toilet facilities for base personnel.
Small latrine block in relatively good condition. Broken fragments of porcelain furniture can be found inside, also remnants of original stall doors.

Eganagh Rectory
Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door.
Hut constructed to facilitate operations at the site.

Site retains sidewalls and gable ends, heavily overgrown.

The Wireless Telegraphy (W/T) Operational Instruction Centre consisted of 2 buildings where crew were instructed in the operation of wireless sets, direction finding navigation. One wing contained instruction and instrument rooms and a number of cubicles containing Harwell Boxes. These were small boxes in which a pupil sat. It was fitted with appropriate radio equipment. Instructors sent signals down a line, simulating reception conditions and simulated homing beacons. The trainer allowed students to be taught intercommunication skills and the used of Direction Finding loops. Bearings and homing, maintenance of W/T equipment, frequency changing, fault finding and communication with ground W/T and D/F stations could all be taught. To add realism this could all be carried out while a loudspeaker played the roar of synchronised engine noise.
A direction finding simulator could be fitted which allowed crews to practise wireless and celestial navigation, with pupils in cubicles with projected images to simulate visual navigation while aided by W/T signals.
One block remains in good condition, though it has a replacement rood. The connected corridor and adjoining building has been demolished leaving only the concrete footings.

Structure constructed to house pumping equipment to draw water out of the Braid River, supplying water to the camp.
Structure remains relatively intact though the pumping equipment has been removed. There is some remaining pipework leading to the adjacent water tank.

An day of fieldwork site was obscured by slurry and soil, but later aerial photos suggest the eight park dispersal is intact. Is part of a larger 'snowflake' with 24 dispersals.

This section of runway is an eastern remnant of the original main runway. Originally 1,830m long, this section is approximately 1,000m long. It is the best preserves section of runway on the airfield, though perhaps 50% of its length is obscured by overgrowth.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide.
There is 850m of perimeter track remaining in this northern section. It is constructed of poured concrete surfaced with bitumen. Large sections are partially obscured by berms of earth/demolition rubble.

Quadrant towers were used to house observers who would rate the bombing performance of trainees on the bombing range. This structure is composed of a single cabin supported on four brick columns.
Site overgrown but in relatively good condition.
Mike Osborne, Defending Britain: Twentieth-century military structures in the landscape (Stroud, 2004).

The superstructure of the hangar has been removed and only the concrete aprons and hardstanding remain. Two 85 metre chicken houses have been built on the concrete hardstanding.

The gallery is a trench protected by a concrete mantlet and earthwork berm. Roof was fitted but now missing, only supports remains. A system of raiseable target frames sat behind the gallery but this on no longer in situ. Frames raised target sheets into line of fire, then lowered where marker then noted hits on target to show accuracy of firing.
The markers gallery mantlet is mostly intact though the target frames were removed post war.

In relatively good condition, pitched roof added, likely used as shelter for animals or agricultural shed.

Used to control traffic in and out of Communal site A
The structure is two concrete bollars with a recees on top to accept rising barrier.

Providing bathing and toilet facilities to personnel.

Concrete base of structure, possibly nissen hut to accommodate soldiers.
PRONI file FIN-19-24-44, Website https://www.ww2ni.com/countyarmaghpart2.htmImages provided by developer

Building built as part of the original group around the parade ground and is labelled as the ‘Officers’ Mess Room’ on the 1854 Ordnance Survey Map. This may account for the decorative detail around the openings of this building in contrast to its neighbours around the square. With the creation of a new larger Officers’ Mess in 1903, this house functioned as officer accommodation. At the time of closure in 2003 it functioned as the base medical and dental centre.
HB file for HB01/09/002 D

Only short section of access track remains and that is heavily overgrown.

The gymnasium could be used as an indoor sports hall, lecture room, cinema or dance-hall. It was one large room with an annex to one side housing stores and dressing rooms.
The site remains in good condition though it has been refaced with modern brickwork, the roof has been recovered and the side annex replaced. Superficially the site appears modern but interior inspection shows the WW2 vintage brick face. The raised narrow windows have been sealed with brick post-war.

This is a linear strongpoint position and part of a defensive cluster. It is made of reinforced concrete and likely includes observation posts and pillbox positions. However, most of the site was buried when it was first identified in 2004.
The site has been ploughed and planted with potatoes, there were no visible features.

This site provided accommodation for sergeants.

A workshop for general maintenance of equipment with storage areas and workbenches.
Site is in good condition. The northern end of the structure has been converted into a domestic dwelling.

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire., could be used as a fire trench or communication trench to access weapon pits. However, given poor sight

Office accommodation for the administration of the attached motor transport unit.
Structure appears in good condition though it has a modern replacement roof and windows.

The structure held housed technical classes for trainee crews.
The building has been converted into a pub and bookmakers. Modern porches, render and roofing make this superficially appear entirely modern, but the exterior supporting piers clearly indicate the buildings wartime origin.

Recreation facility for WRNS on communal site B
In good condtion, refurbished into industrial and retail units.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restriction on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive snowflakes, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This is a group of 4 finger parks
Remain in good condition but obscured by surface vegetation.

Structure built as part of searchlight battery, function is unknown. Likely a Nissen hut.

This structure used by work services staff. These were civilians employed provide maintenance services at the base.
Only concrete base remains, largely obscured by grass.

Site provided toilet facilities for officers.
Site is in good condition, windows and one door sealed.

A large flight shed constructed by Shorts Harland for the manufacture of of Short Stirling bombers. The site was hit by two 250 kg high explosive bombs damaging and destroying several aircraft on 15-16 April 1941. This damage was repaired and the site continued to produce aircraft throughout the war.
Site is in good condition and continued to be used for aircraft manufacture by
Guy Warner and Jack Woods, In the heart of the city: The history of Belfast's City Airport 1938-1998 (Belfast, 1998)

Gosford Castle
Group of approx. 10 nissen huts constructed to facilitate operations at the site.
Removed post war, bases visible in RAF images 1952

The post was constructed in the inter-war years to house auxiliary coastwatchers. Coastwatcher were responsible for maintaining observation of coastal waters, monitoring shipping and curtailing coastal smuggling.

Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.
Entry is via a door at the rear which is protected by a concrete blast wall. A small embrasure allows the rear of the position to be covered by small arms fire. It retains a steel shutter which would have been closed to prevent incendiary weapons such as flamethrowers from entering the position.

Site provided bathing facilities for officers.
Structure is largely intact and has been converted into an agricultural store. Recently the owner has raised the level of the western end of the roof using wooden trusses and supports.

Hard-standing for the parking, maintenance, loading or refuelling of aircraft.
The apron is largely intact though recently construction stared on a new RNLI lifeboat station, which has removed approx. 0.4 hectare of hardstanding.

A steel-framed general-purpose store.
The site is heavily overgrown, but likely the concrete base remains.

This was a Ministry Of Supply (MoS) living hut. It was unusual in that it had canted sides unlike most other timber huts. It was a simple wooden frame construction. The gable ends were made of 5 sections of light timber stud work framing which were bolted together. It was clad with plasterboard, the external face was felted. Each hut was normally 60 feet long. There were 3 alternative internal arrangements.
1: A large open plan dormitory for 19 airmen and single bedroom for an NCO.
2: Quarters for 10 sergeants or airmen , with 4 double bedrooms and 2 single bedrooms arranged along a central corridor.
3: Quarters for 6 officers with a servants bedroom at the rear.
This was an MoS barrack hut to accommodate airmen.

This wooden receiver tower was part of the Kilkeel Chain Home radar station. One of two used to receive incoming radar signal reflected back from airborne targets.
The four concrete footings for the tower remain intact.

The British had developed an air defence network called The Dowding System – named for Fighter Command’s Commander-in-Chief Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding. It brought together technology, ground defences and fighter aircraft into a unified system of defence. It not only controlled the fighter force, but other elements of the defence network as well, including anti-aircraft guns, searchlights and barrage balloons.
The Royal Air Force (RAF) organised the defence of Britain into four geographical areas, called ‘Groups’. N.Ireland was covered by No, 13 Group. Groups were further subdivided into sectors. The main fighter airfield in each sector had a Sector Station, which was equipped with an Operations Room from which the fighters were directed into combat.
The Sector Operations Rooms received incoming raid information at the same time as Fighter Command HQ and the Groups. Sector Headquarters were responsible for scrambling aircraft, and guiding them to intercept incoming enemy aircraft.
RAF fighter group No. 82 was responsible for the air defence of N. ireland by 1941. The Kircubbin site was responsible for defence of the Belfast sector, however the group was abolished in 1942 and RAf operations moved to the senate room in Stormont and the Kircubbin site closed.
This was a large concrete and brick structure which housed offices, communications rooms and the plotting room. WAAF Plotters worked in teams of about ten, tracking the size and direction of incoming raids. They received information on enemy raids from radar stations and the Observer Corps, and raids were tracked using wooden blocks displayed around a large table. These blocks showed the name of the raid and an estimate of its strength, and arrows placed behind each block showed the raid’s direction. The blocks were colour coded to indicate how up to date the information was. Friendly aircraft were plotted in a separate room.
Group Tellers and the Royal Observer Corps passed information to the Plotters, who placed markers on the appropriate map location. When Group ordered squadrons to intercept a raid, they sent the order to the appropriate Sector Headquarters. Once received, Sector personnel confirmed the order and scrambled their aircraft.
The information the WAAFs plotted was used to direct squadrons into action by the Senior Controller, who was responsible for the squadrons based at his sector station, and the Assistant Controller, who kept up communications with other squadrons.
The windowless 2-storey structure had 3 entrances protected by blast walls and remains of ventilators on the roof. It was approximately 40 metres long and 15 metres wide.
The structure remained in good condition until it was demolished by the owner c. 2006

This hangar was designed by the Ministry of Public Buildings and Works and erected in the mid-1960s to house Shackleton maritime reconnaissance aircraft, the site then being part of the RAF’s Coastal Command. The hangar became operational in 1966. Its function was not to store aircraft but rather to provide shelter, heat and light for their inspection, servicing and repair. The hangar was subsequently used for aircraft maintenance and later used by the Army as a vehicle store and service depot. The innovative cantilever design was to provide a large uninterrupted space into which aircraft could taxi under their own power. The hanger is approximately 220 metres long by 48 metres wide and is comprised of steel cantilevered frames and clad in aluminium panelling. The north face of the structure is composed of steel clad horizontally moving doors which can enable the entire length of the hangar to be opened. Portions of the interior have been subdivided by the army with brick walls.
The site remains in good condition and is well maintained.

The battle headquarters (BHQ) was, to all intents and purposes, an underground office used by the control and direct the airfield defences. Most were of a standard design with an above-ground concrete observation post with a narrow ground-level vision slit. Below ground, it contained an office, telephone room (known as a Private Branch Exchange or PBX), and a room for messengers and runners.
The site was intact until 2004 when it was demolished by the owner, however archaeological remains are likely to remain.

Belfast City Hospital
Belfast City Hospital was declared a Class A/Group 1 casualty receiving hospital at the start of WW2. Numerous nissen hut structures were erected to provide additional wards/facilities.
John Hedley-Whyte, Debra R. Milamed, 'Battle of the Atlantic: Military and Medical Role of Northern Ireland (After Pearl Harbour)', in Ulster Medical Journal (83:3), 2015, pp 182-187.

Provided heating for buildings on site. Would have held boilers and fuel storage tanks.
The brick structure is in good condition and retains its chimney. Has been extended to rear to accommodate fish processing business.

This was a storage hit, approx. 28 metres long and 10 metres wide.
Only the concrete base remain on which a modern replacement storage shed has been constructed.

Site was used as headquarters for United |States Army Transportation Corps during WW".
Site was requisitioned during WW2 and returned to civilian ownership post-war. It is now a commercial property.
Historic Buildings report for HB26/27/024
After the Battle magazine, no. 34 (1981)

The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Described in original DHP report as 'underground Anderson air raid shelter for Thomas Street. Entrance filled with earth. Concrete roof now covered with chip stones'.
Uncertain of condition, called several time with no answer. Uncertain if site is within yard of 1 Thomas Street or area to rear.

A camp constructed to house troops during WW2. A sample testing suggests many hut bases remain to be located in this area.
Overgrown but with a high potential for concrete bases to remain.

This single storey structure was used to house a single fire engine (known as a fire tender) tasked with firefighting and rescue on the airfield.
The site is in relatively good condition. Almost half of the roof has collapsed and the interior is largely overgrown. The original window frames remain in both sidewalls.

This steel transmitter tower was used to in conjunction with a second tower to transmit radar signals to detect aerial targets.

Operated by the NAAFI (Navy Army and Air Force Institute), the shop stocked local foodstuffs and goods which could be purchased by base personnel.

The Bailey bridge was designed by Donal Bailey i 1940-41. It was a pre-fabricated steel truss bridge and was used extensively by the British and US military. The steel elements were small enough to be carried in a truck and could be constructed by hand with simple tools and without need of heavy equipment. It was strong enough to carry contemporary tanks and could be narrow pedestrian or wider vehicular brides of almost any desired length.
38 metre span Bailey bridge in good condtion.

The structure is largely intact though in a decaying state. The roof is intact though the original doors are now missing.

The magazine was of a prefabricated design produced by the Armco International Corporation of Middletown Ohio, and sometimes referred to as Armco huts. Measuring 20' x 50', the structure is a curved steel hut with steel end walls, covered with a layer of earth to provide extra protection, which was then seeded to provide a level of camouflage. Ventilation was provided in the headwall to prevent condensation within the magazine.
Structure is largely intact, some slumping of earth from the roof. It is used as an agricultural store.

This site was abandoned and grassed over after the layout of the airfield was changed between 1941-43, likely as it was now too close to the new alignment of the north-south runway (DHR 0025:003)
Site only visible as a grassmark in aerial photos.
Visibility

Site consists if 2 finger parks. Nothing visible on visit but in discussion with landowner he noted dispersals were covered with soil post-war, leaving concrete dispersals intact under the grass.

Site remains in good condition, it was converted to use as a pig pen post war but is now disused.

Toome airfield
Living site for personnel. Had mostly barracks with ablutions blocks and latrines.

Site appears intact though entirely resurfaced with modern tarmac and infilled.

This contained stores facilities for camera, oil and dope, small bomb containers, a gun cleaning room, the armaments officers office and turret repair and armaments workshop.
This building is secured and appears structurally intact with little or no damage to the roof. Entrances have been bricked up post war and the main access doors secured with chains.

The shelter has been incorporated into the walls of a modern cattle byre, The concrete roof, blast wall and entrance have been removed. Only possible to identify from inside the byre as outer wall has been rendered.

The operations block was the central control for all flight operations from the airfield. Orders were received via a telex room and flight plans, targets plotted on target maps, crew listings and final planning for flight operations took place here. Finalised plans, distress procedures and operational radio frequencies were passed on to the crews in the crew briefing room (DHR 75:132). It was reinforced to operate while under attack and a ventilation system was fitted to provide protection from attack by chemical weapons.
Much of the operations block has been removed and the retaining walls used as supports for the steel framed shed, however the flight tote board, used to track daily flight operations remains painted on one of the walls.

As a fighter satellite station for RAF Ballyhalbert, Kirkistown was not as well served with facilities. No control tower was built, therefore fighter satellite stations tended to have much smaller watch offices. Therefore flight operations were controlled from the PBX and signal office, which together provided functions elements within a control tower. The PBX was a telephone exchange facilitating telephone communication relating to air traffic control, flight operations and meteorological information.
The brick and concrete structure is in good condition. It is very similar in design to the battle HQ found at Ballyhalbert (DHR 28:21), but it has a window opening in the west facing wall. It has three rooms, the largest of which has a large window and two smaller chamfered windows. The entrance is protected by a brick blast wall.

Series of 50+ nissen huts running along treeline.
possible sub-surface remains of hut bases remaining inside treeline.

Structure built to facilitate operations on site, likely a nissen hut.
Visible on aerial photos, hut base may remain sub-surface.

The Argory
The Argory was requisitioned to accommodate troops by the War Office during WW2. US troops were stationed her, initially soldiers of the 10th Inf. Regt, 5th Inf. Division, after departing to take part in Operation Torch in North Africa the billets were occupied by elements of the 654th Tank Destroyer Batt. in October 1943. A hutted camp was erected in the grounds north of the house.
Camp removed post-war. Graffiti remains in one of the outbuildings.

The guard house was the main point of access and egress from the airfield, where visitors reported providing their authorisation for entry, and where they signed out on leaving. Airmen reported here with leave passes before they were allowed off station. The guard house also held prisoners prior to their appearance before their section officers or CO.
The site has been demolished leaving only the site footings. The structure was extant in 2008 but has been demolished in advance of redevelopment

Greystone Chain Home Radar Station
The Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes is a company created by the British government on 9 December 1920 to run recreational establishments needed by the British Armed Forces, and to sell goods to servicemen and their families.
The structure housed the NAAFI which provided canteen and recreation facilities for airmen. It usually contained a kitchen, dining room and games/recreation room.
The structure remains largely intact and in relatively good condition. It retain its original asbestos roof though most of the windows have been sealed and rendered. It is used as an agricultural store.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)

This site was used to house a Coastal Artillery Searchlight. One of three sited at the fort, it was primarily used to spot and track approaching enemy vessels. Original called Defence Electric Lights (DEL), they were redesignated Coast Artillery Search Lights (CASL) in WW2. This site was constructed in 1936.
Site remains in good condition. It is secured by a steel door and grilles on the windows. It is currently undergoing conservation works.

This small brick shelter was used to store fire fighting equipment for immediate use. The store was sited beside the paraffin and motor transport petrol stores (now removed).
The small brick structure appears largely intact.

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected by an integral blast wall.
In relatively good condition, the emergency escape section of the wall has been removed, as have the concrete benches.

Site used to house a generator which provided power to the camp. Land owner noted use but other s suggest it may have held a water tank though there is no evidence of a water tank apparent.
The small brick structure is largely intact though several sections of wall have been removed to enable repurposing as an animal shelter.

Site has been resurfaced with modern tar,ac but likely remains intact.

Airfield bomb dumps were designed to store high explosive bombs, incendiary bombs, fused bombs, tail units, bomb components and small arms ammunition. As would be expected they were sited well away from the technical area. The bomb store was serviced by a double track-way, one of which was slightly higher than the other. The upper track was 12 feet wide and allowed lorries to unload munitions into the stores, whereas the lower track widened to 20 feet to accommodate tractors and bomb trolley trains. The stores were built with a slight slope, using gravity to enable easier loading from the upper track while bombs were taken from the lower track. Designated 1212/43, the store consisted of a series of four 40-foot square open storage areas protected by 25 foot thick and 6-foot high earthwork traverses. Each storage area was designed to accommodate 50 tons of explosives. Bombs were driven on trolley trains to the fusing points before being taken out to aircraft for loading.
The upper track of the store remains and used as track to Agivey Church, the earthwork traverses remain as low undulations in the adjoining field.

A large workshop for maintaining the onsite radar equipment. It is attached by a corridor to the administration block
The brick structure is in good condition and secured by a large double door on the northern end.

Group of five nissen huts constructed during WW2 as part of Silverwood camp.

Used house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.
Site was intact on previous fieldwork but modern aerial photos suggest site may have been removed

The 40m diameter hard-standing is in good condition, tough it is obscured with a large dump of tyres. Possibly 10% has been truncated by field reclamation.

The administrative centre of the airfield. It had offices for the commanding officer, the adjutant and the engineer, chief accounting officer and their supporting clerks.
Externally the site appears heavily overgrown, making it difficult to discern any structure at all. The single storey temporary brick building has a central corridor with offices on either side, most of which have communication hatches in their dividing walls. Many of the rooms are filled with rubble or discarded furniture. Despite outward appearances, the structure is in good condition with on some collapse of the roof on the eastern end of the structure.

Divis Firing Range
The site was constructed c. 1943 to accommodate the training needs of troops stationed in N. Ireland prior to being sent overseas. It was a 600 yard range with firing points in 100 yard intervals, a target gallery and backstop. Post war a range control and target shed was added. The site continued in use into the 1970s or 80s.

This concrete dispersal is 18 metres wide is obscured by overgrowing vegetation, dumps of spoil, tyres and concrete. It is unclear if the dispersal survives intact but sections are visible through the overgrowth.

Ballymena Regional Government Headquarters
The UK government recognised during the early 1980s that N. Ireland lagged far behind Britain when it came to nuclear preparedness. It was noted in one document that preparedness was many years away ‘if ever’. Therefore plans were drawn up to construct three purpose built emergency headquarters. The first and largest would be house the RGHQ and Northern Area emergency centre at Woodside Road Ballymena with 225 staff. Plans were made for sites at Craigavon and Omagh but these were never constructed.
The principal emergency government body was the Regional Government HQ under an appointed commissioner. This was to provide the highest level of regional control with powers to ‘regulate all goods and services in Northern Ireland (whether publicly or privately owner), to establish priorities as to tasks and the allocation of essential supplies, and to direct the use of all resources including manpower. The Regional Commissioner and staff were to be housed in the purpose built bunker at Ballymena.
The structure was equipped to provide a protected environment for 30 days. They were rated to withstand and blast overpressure of 5 pounds per square inch and give a radiation protective factor of 400. They could also withstand conventional attack, 300 lbs TNT at 6 metres and 1000 lbs at 25 metres. They could filter air for 30 days and the bunkers overpressure system combined with door seals was designed to keep chemical contaminants. It was not envisaged that there would be much need to exit the bunker during this thirty days. Therefore minimal decontamination facilities were provided at the airlock, which allowed individual egress via the ventilator shafts for the purpose of sampling the outside environment of taking scientific readings.
The bunker at Ballymena is a semi-sunk design, 100m long by 40 m wide, with thick reinforced concrete walls and bermed over with 3 metres of earth. The upper level given over to domestic functions and the lower to operations. The structures on the roof are the air intakes.
From the outside it is almost non-descript, possibly confused with an underground reservoir, but on entering the main steel blast door, it becomes a world that combines familiar and mundane with ominous all at the same time.
The upper storey houses the dormitories and domestic facilities to cater to the day to day needs of the staff. The lower level holds operational functions of the RGHQ, with the communications centre, kitchen, canteen, conference rooms and a number of offices.
The north eastern end of the facility houses the plant room housing diesel generators, switchgear, ventilation system and filtration room with access to the air intake and filtration towers on the roof.
The site has two main entrances protected by steel blast doors, an emergency exit on the south-west end and a survey hatch on the roof.
The site remains well-maintained and in excellent condition with pant, equipment and kitchen facilities all in good condition.
N J McCamley, Cold War secret Nuclear Bunkers (Barnsley, 2002)

pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is visible on contemporary aerial photographs and appears as a series of defence positions, possibly 3 or 4.
No surface remains visible but archaeological traces likely remain.

Structure relating to operation of the searchlight battery, function remains unclear.

The tarmac frying pan dispersal is moderately overgrown with grass but is in good condition.

Built as part of communal area, function remains unclear.
Part of the communal area the exact purpose of these building are unknown. The eastern structure appears to have been a latrine with four waste outfall pipes. It appears to have been an annexe to the western structure, but the connecting corridor has been removed and the wall sealed. The longer building is used as a byre, but it retains the original drop ceiling and light fittings. Without original plans it is difficult to be sure of its function.

Deerpark Bridge
As part of the defence plan for Norther Ireland there as a plan for prepare demolition of bridges across major waterways to slow down/channel the advance of the invading force. Demolition cambers were fitted to or cut into bridges. At short notice explosives could be brought to the site and placed in the pore-pared chamber and detonated to destroy the bridge.
The Deerpark Bridge was part of the prepared demolition scheme on Line E- Carnlough to Lough Neagh stop line. Eight demolition chambers were cut into the two central piers of the bridge.
The chambers remain intact (though military infrastructure long-removed) are still clearly visible. Often chambers would be filled in post war but not in this case.
N Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol 3, Site Gazetteers: Northern Ireland (CBA)

This barrack block provided accommodation for sergeants and other ranks in the Woman’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) according to local informant who was a child when the base was occupied. It was formerly a Laing hut, made of a wooden frame and plasterboard covered in felt sheeting to weatherproof. The roof is supported by wooden trusses. This hut would have had 24 beds and, as it was a WAAF site, a chemical toilet, airmen were expected to use external toilets. After the base closed the huts were reused as emergency housing for evacuees from Belfast.
Though the site appears original, post-war a second wall of concrete blocks was constructed inside the plasterboard walls, which were then removed. Therefore while the walls are post war additions, the window frames, roof trusses, asbestos roof panels and concrete hard-standing are original. Roof vents were added for post war for coal fired stoves. The site has been repurposed into a workshop/storage unit..

Erganagh Rectory
Aerial photo shows nissen hut intact.

Site remains in relatively good condition, although the structure has lost its doors. Repurposed as an agricultural shed/builders store.

Area of concrete hardstanding constructed to provide parking or storage area for army camp.
Approx. 108n metres of hardstanding remains intact.

RAF Long Kesh
Site contained 13 structures, mostly nissen huts, used to accommodate troops designated to defend the airfield in the event of a ground attack. Noted as 'Defence Living Site B' on contemporary maps.
Wartime NI at

Small structure built to facilitate operations at the site, function unknown but likely a latrine.

Site constructed to facilitate operations at the station, likely the base of an aerial.
Only concrete base remains. May have been base of radio mast or anchor point.

With the outbreak of war with Germany in 1914, the rapid expansion of the army led to a corresponding expansion of training facilities. Part of the training of the recruits required them to practice constructing the types of fieldworks found at the front in France and Belgium. By 1915 trench construction formed a major part of the training of recruits, reflection the prevailing methods of warfare on the Western Front.
The sites displays characteristic fieldworks prevalent in static trench warfare of WW1. There are crenelated 'Greek key' trenches, which formed the fire trench. The traverses/crenelations prevented an enemy enfilading the length of a trench with fire.
There are extensive and clear remains in situ with a max depth of approx. 1.5 metres with the clearest section running for over 115 metres east-west, though the complex of fieldworks is much more extensive.

Structure relating to the operation of the naval gunnery range, function unknown.
The site remains in good condition, repurposed as an agricultural store.

Erected to accommodate the crew of HAA battery. Examination of photo (DHR 00022-000 Heavy anti-aircraft battery 1946-001) shows narrow windows suggesting this was an ablutions block.

Fivemiletown ROC post
A network of 1,518 underground monitoring posts were built across the UK to house the volunteer staff from the Royal Observer Corps (ROC), who, in the event of a nuclear attack, were tasked with recording the blast yield, location and drift of radioactive clouds caused by the detonation of Soviet nuclear weapons. There were 58 of the small underground posts evenly distributed across Northern Ireland. A crew of three could operate for three weeks. Their results would have been transmitted to a regional ROC group headquarters, which for N. Ireland was the 31 Group HQ (DHR 310) in Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn..
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator (BPI) which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated mater post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
Site is largely intact though ventilation shaft has been damaged, leaving just the base and part of the shaft. Access shaft has lost louvres and has had an animal watering tough mounted on it. BPI has lost its baffle plate.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/fivemiletown-roc-post/

Divis firing range
This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters. This was the 300 yard firing point.
Slightly raised compacted soil marks out firing point.

Only concrete base remains under grass cover

By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ or loop dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on airframes and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
The concrete dispersal remains in good condition, some dumping of farm waste.

The dispersal appears to have been subject to significant traffic during the redevelopment of the MAze site resulting in the destruction of much of the site, strip of broken concrete remains.

Approximately 370 metres of tarmac surfaced track remains in relatively good condition.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This dispersal had 3 finger parks.
The site remains relatively intact although one park has been removed for land reclamation. The remaining two are used to store silage bales.

Provided facility for playing squash, normally composed of lobby area with viewing gallery and squash court playing area.
Appears in good condition, secured with modern door.

Royal Navy Armaments Depot Kilnappy early in the war to provide facility for safe storage of explosives such as depth charges, shells, gun cartridges and torpedoes for the Royal Navy. The site was primarily for storage of munitions before being distributed to service units. However, there were also laboratories or shell examination rooms where ammunition could be inspected after return from operations or after long-term storage.
The site remained in use by the Royal Navy into the 1960 and was occupied by the British army into the 1990s when the site was closed.
The 47 acre site was original composed of a large number of magazines, stores, heavy traversed laboratories, ancillary buildings, guardhouses and protective blast walls. In recent years perhaps 30% has been demolished and the land returned to farmland, however there remains 12 magazines with additions structures of uncertain function.
Although a significant proportion of the facility has been lost in recent years a substantial number of structures, some protected by heavy concrete blast walls and revetted earthwork protection remains
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000)Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (English Heritage, 2000)website www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt1.htm

Mount Stewart
Graffiti cared in a tree by personnel stationed at the site in 1940.
1: RAF
1940
JGA
OXTON
B'HEAD
2: Victory
is
ours RAF
Carving is clearly visible on tree bark.
Ulster Archaeological Society survey report at

This was an approx. 250-metre-long deep-water wharf constructed by US work crews in the summer of 1941. It provided for the loading and unloading US Navy ships and was later extended with s refuelling wharf, which carried fuel from the nearby fuel farm in three steel pipelines.
Many of the wooden piles remain in situ. However, the structure has suffered significant damage since the site was photographed in 2007, with much of the walking being lost and sections in a state of collapse.

Noted on plans as an Engine house this site provided electrical power to a number of building in the camp.
Site remains intact and in good condition. It has a replacement roof and modern windows. It has been repurposed by the MoD and is now used as a dry goods store.

Ballywalter ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated mater post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
The site remains intact though there are some ventilation louvres missing from the main access shaft. The original cantilevered steel hatch remains in situ.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/ballywalter-roc-post/

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is shown on the Ballyhalbert Defence Plan map as having 2 pillboxes and two slit trenches.
No traces visible, but possibility of subsurface remains of pillboxes and slit trenches.

This was a small dispersal hangar designed in 1941. Normally found at Aircraft Storage Units and Satellite landing grounds, though in this case it is nowhere near any airfields or aviation units.
It is constructed of a series of A frames spaced 12.5 feet apart with a a pitched truss roof clad in galvanised, though this type appears to have sidewalls and roof covered in compressed asbestos cement sheeting. The door open into projecting door guides supported by outrigger though these are missing, possibly they were never added.
The structure appears is good condition and is used for storage.
https://www.ww2ni.com/countyarmaghpart2.htm

Quonset huts constructed to accommodate enlisted personnel.
The site is overgrown in parts, but the potential for buried hut bases or air raid shelters remains

The structures were reported by locals as the site the radar station antennae, however when operation the CHL rotating antenna would have been located on the roof of the operations block, not on the hill above. the structure appear to be military in origin and their proximity to the CHL station suggests they wee related but their exact function remains unknown.
A series of eleven concrete plinths with traces of steel mounting brackets.

Office for clerks and timekeepers, housed in Nissen hut.
Only hut base remains, heavily overgrown.

Brick structure relating to operation of firing range.

Structure built to facilitate operations at the site, likely a nissen hut.

Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at depot. Curved roof structure, likely a store.

This site appears of a more rudimentary design than posts built elsewhere in N. Ireland, with the central plotting room composed of curved sheeting holding a concrete roof, with a brick office. The office has a reporting widow looking out over the predictor/height finder compound.
The layout of the structure remains intact though all the rood structures have collapsed in on the site.

The armoury had an office for the Station Armament Officer and another for his subordinate. Most of the building was taken up by the Small Arms Store containing small arms for ground defence, such as Enfield rifles, Sten sub-machine gun, Bren light machine guns and pistols. All, except the pistols, were placed in purpose built racks with the pistols in lockable cupboards beneath. A workshop for the servicing of Small Arms was also within the building. It was usual to have a built-in masonry cupboard with a steel door containing ready-use quantities of Small Arms Ammunition.
Only a small section of the concrete footings remain

Site of hut bases constructed along the hedge line, remains may survive in undergrowth or sub-surface.

In 1942 Downpatrick racecourse was used to billet troops from the US 1st Armoured Division. They included the 1st Battalion, maintenance company and B company Tank Destroyed Battalion.
Traces of a number of hut bases and concrete hardstanding remain.

Camp constructed during WW2 to house troops. This may have been related to operations at the heavy anti-aircraft battery located in Finaghy.
Huts removed post-war, no visible remain.

An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. Therefore, this site had 72,000 gallon bulk storage for aviation fuel. The site held six steel tanks, 30 feet by 9 feet covered by earth, which was held in place by a brick retaining wall. Pumps would have serviced fuel tankers which accessed the site via the roughly circular access track.
The site retains its circular perimeter track. Two brick pump houses are on either side of a large brick and earth retaining wall, used to store the six 12,000 gallon storage tanks. It is likely the steel storage tanks have been removed for scrap.

Masserine army camp
A torpedo manufacturing and testing facility was developed at the site in 1942. Post-war the site became a Royal Navy Armaments Depot Antrim. The British army Royal Engineers took over the site in 1974. From 1993 the Royal Marine used the site to conduct security operation on Lough Neagh. From July 2008. The site passed to the British army but was closed down in 2010. The current owners are Randox laboratories.
The site retains structures remaining when the army left. Several WW2 nissen type structures remain, a slipway, a troubles-era watergate and most prominently the torpedo range control building.
No visit possible as it is a secure site but the identified section remain in good condition. The torpedo range structure is ruinous with only the concrete frame remaining.

Camp constructed during WW2, it's precise function remains unclear.

Structure built as part of the technical site, function is unknown.

Moira Castle
The grounds of Moira Castle were requisitioned by the War Office in WW2 and a camp was constructed on the site to house troops. Trace of the camp were still visible on aerial photos from 2010, but agricultural improvements removed the last four hut bases.
Faint traces of roadways may be discerned as cropmarks.

Circular gun emplacement used to train anti-aircraft gunners. Likely mounted a light AA gun or heavy machine gun in air to ground role due to small size.
Concrete platform and demolished remains of surrounding wall in situ.

Drumquin ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ

The T-series (transportable) hangars were developed from 1940 to replace the now obsolete Bellman hangars. Constructed of a steel frame and galvanised steel cladding the T1 was similar to the more common T2, but smaller, 90 feet wide, 175 feet long with a clear height of 19 feet.
Only concrete hardstanding remains. Used to store wood chips.

Provided facility for playing squash, normally composed of lobby area with viewing gallery and squash court playing area.
This has now been converted into offices for a solar panel installation company. The exterior has been covered in a modern render and a new porch and entrance added.

Dundrum ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
Website at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/dundrum-roc-post/

The T-series (transportable) hangars were developed from 1940 to replace the now obsolete Bellman hangars. Constructed of a steel frame and galvanised steel cladding the T1 was similar to the more common T2, but smaller, 90 feet wide, 175 feet long with a clear height of 19 feet.
Only the concrete hardstanding remains. Has recently been repurposed as a storage yard for heavy plant and steel pipe work.

The magazine was of a prefabricated design produced by the Armco International Corporation of Middletown Ohio, and sometimes referred to as Armco huts. Measuring 20' x 50', the structure is a curved steel hut with steel end walls, covered with a layer of earth to provide extra protection, which was then seeded to provide a level of camouflage. Ventilation was provided in the headwall to prevent condensation within the magazine.
Only footprint and traces of earthwork traverses remain.

Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut serving as barracks.
Only concrete base remains, under grass cover, located using probing.

Only concrete base remains, modern/renovated nissen hut erected on base.

ONly gable ends and one sidewall remain.

This was a Ministry Of Supply (MoS) living hut. It was unusual in that it had canted sides unlike most other timber huts. It was a simple wooden frame construction. The gable ends were made of 5 sections of light timber stud work framing which were bolted together. It was clad with plasterboard, the external face was felted. Each hut was normally 60 feet long. There were 3 alternative internal arrangements.
1: A large open plan dormitory for 19 airmen and single bedroom for an NCO.
2: Quarters for 10 sergeants or airmen , with 4 double bedrooms and 2 single bedrooms arranged along a central corridor.
3: Quarters for 6 officers with a servants bedroom at the rear.
This was an MoS barrack hut to accommodate airmen

Was used as an army camp by British Territorial army and US army.
It is still used as Territorial Army depot. Though site has been altered there may be several structure remaining of WW2 vintage.

Ballymartin CHL satation
Site is in good condition, access blocked with rubble.

This 180 m of track remains in good condition

After the destruction caused to aircraft assembly lines in Belfast during the air raids raids of 1941, final assembly of aircraft was dispersed to sites outside Belfast, one of these assembly sites was at Long Kesh where two T2 hangers were erected for this purpose.
The T2 (‘T’ for transportable) was developed in 1940 to replace Bellman Hangars. They were of a modular design meaning they could be dismantled, moved and reassembled elsewhere. Constructed of steel lattice portal frames and clad in galvanised corrugated iron. The T2 became the standard temporary hangar for the RAF, and over 900 were built during the war. They were considered temporary structures with a limited design life, but many remain on airfields throughout the United Kingdom. This site is exceptional in the level of preservation and expansive window sections running along both sidewalls. Post war the site was used for prison riot training and vehicle storage. The structure is now home to the Ulster Aviation Society's aircraft collection.
The hangers, blast shelters and pillbox are scheduled monuments
The hanger and annexes are in good condition as the site is subject to ongoing refurbishment.

The Type 14 radar was an advancement of the Type 7 (DHR 32:231), which was susceptible to jamming and could not detect low-flying aircraft. The Type 14 could detect aircraft at 50 feet at 20 miles, 1,000 feet at 50 miles and aircraft at 6,000 feet could be tracked out to 90 miles. The aerial (25 feet by 8 feet) was mounted on a steel gantry over a brick plinth, with supporting struts mounted in concrete blocks.
The brick plinth remains surrounded by 4 concrete bases used to support the steel gantry.

Newtownards airfield
Living site for personnel. Had 15 structures, mostly barracks with ablutions and latrines.

Allows suspended particles to settle out of wastewater as it flows through the tank.
The structure is overgrown but appear intact.

Killylane wireless station
Site controlled, monitored and logged wireless traffic through the station.
Structure remains in relatively good condition though all the window frames have been removed and damage to the roof allows water to enter the building.
Frontline Ulster at www.frontlineulster.co.uk/signal-station-killylane/

Provided bathing and showering facilities for sergeants and airmen.
Much of the structure has been removed with only the footings, gables and sidewalls remaining.

An incinerator used to burn dried decontaminated waste.
In good condition with original windows, kept locked by owner.

Ardmore boat yard
The site formed part of a base of operations for civilian contractors, hired to service the target systems on the bombing ranges on Lough Neagh. They were also responsible for salvaging crashed on the lough.
The site is a collection of galvanised steel sheds, mooring blocks, jetty and slipway.
There are substantial remains in various states of repair. A 24 foot span Nissen hut remains on site though its exact function remains unclear. The slipway is heavily overgrown.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.Photographs from 1944 show that a blister hangar was erected on the dispersal. Blister hangars were small arched dispersal sheds, made of wood or welded steel, and were used for the maintenance and storage of aircraft with small wingspans. They were clad in steel sheeting and had quick-release canvas curtains on either end.
The 45m diameter hand standing is in good condition. There is no trace of the blister hangar. At some point post war a concrete block structure was built on site but only the footings remain. The site is currently used to store silage.

This 25 yard range was used to test fire machine guns and cannon. The majority of World War airfields were equipped with gun butts, used for the testing and alignment of aircraft guns, and for airmen to test shooting skills. A large brick structure supported by brick buttresses acts as a retaining wall for the sloping earth/sand backstop. A shelter would have faced the earth and brick butts, however this has long since been removed.
The brick retaining wall remains in good condition though it is overgrown. The sand backstop has either slumped or been removed.

Large 195 square metre magazine with concrete walls and earthwork traverse protection. The brick store was used to store ammunition and/or explosives. The flat-roofed store had a steel gantry connected to a blast wall to aid loading/unloading of munitions.

The plinth supported a large steel fuel tank containing diesel to supply the generators in the standby set house.
The steel fuel tanks has been removed leaving the concrete bund and four supporting plinths.

The gallery is a trench protected by an earthwork mantlet and earthwork berm. A system of raiseable target frames sat behind the gallery . Frames raised target sheets into line of fire, then lowered where marker then noted hits on target to show accuracy of firing.
Intact and still in use, though target system likely modernised over the years of use.

A small two stall facility providing toilet facilities for personnel.
IN relatively good condition. This structure has lost its original door and window furniture and the dividing wall has been removed, likely to facilitate its reuse as an animal shelter.

ONly concrete base and gable ends remain.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
Small part of access track remains, heavily overgrown.

This linear fieldwork dug as a means of concealment from enemy observation and protection from enemy fire. Likely main function was a communication trench to allow troops to move about area around battery under cover. Plotted by HED surveyors in 2015. Uncertain of dating.
This shallow trench runs for approximately 20 metres downslope from the fort.
Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork (QUB), Data structure report No. 108, Excavations at Grey Point Fort, Co Down (2015)
Historic Environment Division GPF trench survey 2015

The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. Originally 1,428 metres when constructed the runway has been extended post war to accommodate civilian airliners.
The runway is intact but has been resurfaced post-war.

Magilligan Musketry Camp
Site accomodated 14 enlisted troops
Structure remains in good condition, it has been repurposed as a print workshop
Binevenagh and Coastal Lowlands Defence Heritage Mapping Survey (2019), by Ulidia heritage Services for the Binevenagh and Coastal Lowlands Landscape Partnership

Provided washing and latrine facilities
Only concrete base remains, recent demolition rubble nearby

Provided washing and bathing facilities for sergeants and enlisted men.

Site was extant until 2012, removed sometime after.

Prospect House
Prospect house was requisition during WW2 to house troops. The camp was composed of dozens of Nissen huts as barracks and stores, with sturdier brick ablution blocks.

Barrage balloons were used as a form of air defence. They were large balloons filled with hydrogen under which were hung steel cables into which low-flying aircraft could collide. When raised, they forced enemy aircraft to fly at higher altitudes, making them more vulnerable to attack by friendly fighters and anti-aircraft guns. Equipment typically consisted of a tether, winch and concrete tethering blocks to secure the balloon.
No visible remains as the site is heavily overgrown.

Provided toilet facilities for officers.
This site is relatively intact, though the roof may be in some danger as concrete blocks have been placed along it to hold the modern roof in place.

This site has a local amendment to the design as two semi-sunk crew shelters have been constructed. The site has the remains of two machine gun posts, which would have been used for ground and air defence.
The site is relatively intact though some of the structures are in advanced state of dereliction, such as the command post and ammunition store.

In good condition id somewhat overgrown, the structure has lost a few courses of brickwork on its southern wall

Montalto
The Montalto estate was requisitioned by the war office to base troops during WW2. A temporary camp was erected to house troops providing accommodation and domestic facilities.
Hut bases may remain in the undergrowth.
PRONI 1952 aerial photo in file AM/1/5/11C/4101-4150

Also known as a Gas Cleansing Station. This structure was established by the Air Raid Precautions (ARP) to provided cleaning facilities for their staff in the event of a gas attack. Larger centres would be equipped to provide for civilians affected by chemical attacks. Inside there was split into male and female areas for undressing, showing and dressing, with bins provided for contaminated clothing. Air locks were established between each section to prevent contamination.
Original DHP report.
Information on decontamination centres at
and

Site was used for inspection of munition after return from operational units or during long-term storage of munitions.
Sitem appears intact and in good condition.

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing sergeants accommodation.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The concrete hard-standing is in good condition, though it is obscured as it was incorporated into a larger aircraft parking apron (DHR 32:220) post war

This concrete block was used to control/block vehicular access along the road. Steel beams would have been inserted into the recesses in the concrete , closing the road. It would have been part of a local defence scheme and covered by defensive fire.
Only the bock on the southern side of the road remains.
Website https://www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart2.htm

The modern road has been built on top of the perimeter track, its line is defined by the modern road, how much of the original fabric remains underneath is unclear. Approx 550 m in length.

Nissen hut providing accommodation for officers.

Provided shelter for guard detachment controlling access to the site.
Brick structure converted for use as domestic storage

Barracks providing accomodation for 60 WAAF personnel.
Approximately half the original structure remains in good condition. It has been refurbished with a replacement roof and windows. Repurposed as a group camping facility.

Site of approx. 40+ structures, both brick and temporary huts. Used as barracks, stores, mess and ablutions blocks.
May be remains obscured in the undergrowth.

Structure housed facility for pumping water from adjacent well to the station.
Site remains intact ans retains some remains of pump.

The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site is constructed earthwork traverses on brick revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There is a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.
Extant at time of original DHP. Demolished in advance of housing development c. 2004-8

Ballyedmond
Series of five groups of six nissen huts, likely used as barracks.

Only small section of concrete apron survives, large obscured by vegitation.

Magazine with surrounding concrete blast walls for protection. The brick store was used to store ammunition and/or explosives.

Appears in relatively complete condition but heavily overgrown

Used to store explosive bombs. This site had six brick storage sheds surrounded by earthwork berms and blast wall traverses. Sited away from airfield and accommodation sites for reasons of safety. Each of the brick and concrete sheds had a high level steel gantry with a block and tackle for lifting bombs in and out of the structure.
Traces of the access tack and concrete floors of the storage sheds can be discerned on aerial photographs as grass marks after long periods of dry weather. Subsurface remains may exist as well as traces of the slumped earthwork traverses.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments.
The retaining walls and ammunition recesses have largely collapsed and been covered by soils and grass cover. The steel holdfast for the gun remains at the centre of the position.

Structure built to facilitate operations on site, likely a nissen hut.
Visible on aerial photos, hut base may remain sub-surface

Appears to be site of a storage depot. Four large storage sheds are shown on site .

Structure housed an electrical transformer used to regulate the transmission of AC electrical current.
This site housed a transformer to step up or down electrical current.
The centre is overgrown but the brick wall is in relatively good condition and retains steel brackets for mounting barbed wire on wall tops.

Lisgoole
Structure built to facilitate operations on site, exact function is unclear. Location suggests is may be part of a pumphouse or water pumping system.
Only small concrete base with pipe recesses remains.

Benburb Priory
Group of approx. 14 Nissen huts used to facilitate operations at the site.

Gun laying (GL) were developed to provide range and altitude data of attacking aircraft. This fire control data was used to direct the battery's four 3.7 inch guns. To avoid or minimise the effect of ground clutter the early sets (Mark I and Mark II) were mounted on a raised platform and surrounded by a 130 yard diameter GL mat, consisting of a mesh of steel wires. This mat provided a false datum and allowed radar operators to get the best from these early radar sets. The Mk I and II radars were mounted on wheeled trailers, therefore the inclined ramp allowed the trailer to be positioned on the platform. The GL Mk II could see aircraft at 50,000 yards, track continuously at 30,000 yards and control the HAA fired at 14,000 yards.
The Structure was a shallow inclined which allowed the radar equipment to be rolled up onto the square platform. This would have been surrounded by the GL mat.
Original DHP report John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001) N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

The small brick and concrete shelter protected the crew tasked with operating the decoy site during a raid. It was equipped with a telephone and switch gear used to control the ignition of the flame groups. Its main entrance was protected by a blast wall and an emergency escape hatch is on the roof. The blast wall was demolished post war.
Site is overgrown but intact though blast wall was removed post-war.
https://www.ww2ni.com/greaterbelfastpart5.htm

Built to the west of the Shorts-Harland aircraft assembly sheds, the purpose of this structure is not clear.
The structure survives to just above window level, the roof is missing and the window sealed with a steel plate.

Only brick revetted base of structure remains.
Image clipped from Carryduff Historical Society Facebook Page (21/05/2021) also https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart5.htm

This tarmac dispersal has some spoils and somewhat overgrown but is in otherwise good condition

Structures related to airfield, purpose unknown. Shown on contemporary maps and photos.

Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a light machine gun, wither a Vickers gun on a tripod or a Bren Gun. However it would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements,
The structure has been amended from the original design with the addition of a wide non-staircased embrasure covering the eastern approach to the site.
The small square pillbox has five embrasures, the four small embrasured have staircasing to prevent ricochets entering the position, however the large embrasure facing east does not. The walls are approximately 35 cm thick, indicating the pill box was designed to be bulletproof but not shell proof.
The south and west t faces have been reinforced with concrete buttressing to add protection to the most vulnerable areas. An outer wall protects the entrance to the pillbox The entrance would have been secured by a steel door, though this is now missing.
Internally there are steel guide rails remain on all the embrasures but the steel shutters survive on only the east face of the pillbox. The steel shutters were designed to protect the occupants from blast and attack from flamethrowers.
Stenciled on one of the internal walls is "1st. Peter. 5th Ch. 8th Verse" This refers to a passage from the Bible which reads "'Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour'.
The structure covered the potential crossing point at Kilrea weir.
The site is intact and remains in good condition.

With the outbreak of war with Germany in 1914, the rapid expansion of the army led to a corresponding expansion of training facilities. Part of the training of the recruits required them to practice constructing the types of fieldworks found at the front in France and Belgium. By 1915 trench construction formed a major part of the training of recruits, reflection the prevailing methods of warfare on the Western Front.
The sites displays characteristic fieldworks prevalent in static trench warfare of WW1. Located during Lidar survey and plotted from the results.
Surface remains, located on lidar survey.

Store used by Home Guard (also known as Local Defence Volunteers) to keep equipment.

Only concrete base remains under the sod

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are normally 50 feet/14 metres wide.
The site retains its original length of 236 m, the original bitumen surface also remains intact.

On the day of field visit the landowner was in final stages of demolishing the site and removing the rubble.

Hard-standing for the parking, maintenance, loading or refuelling of aircraft. This was the parking apron for visiting aircraft.
The site is 195m by 60 m area of concrete hardstanding, in good condition though significant growth of moss and grass through expansion joints.

Large concrete wall placed opposite entrance to a magazine to deflect a blast in the event of an accidental explosion in the magazine

The site was composed of an angled trench revetted with concrete. It had brick and concrete ammunition/shelter bays on either end.
Destroyed to make way for housing development in 2000

This structure hosued teh NAAFI canteen also a recreation room and ironing room.
In good condtion, refurbished with modern roof and windows with modern annex built on western end.

Site remains in good condition but interior is heavily overgrown.

Ballyscullion House
Main house was used as a HQ and officers quarters during WW2.

This was the waste water treatment works for the camp. Originally built with 4 filter beds and a settling tank, it was expanded during WW2 with the addition of t circular percolating filters and associated tanks and beds.
Site is overgrown with no visible remains.

Concrete and brick surface shelter often with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
Extant at at the time of original DHP, now demolished.

940 m of track largely remains in good condition, however the section from the raceway to the main road is potholed and in much poorer condition.

Military camp constructed during WW2, likely to accommodate troops. Approx. 15 nissen type huts.
Demolished post war and site removed entirely by quarry expansion.

The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ

Magilligan Coastal Battery
The fall of France in June 1940 meant German U-boats could use French ports, forcing supply convoys from the US to use the more northerly approaches to the UK. As de Valera denied Britain use of the treaty ports, the Foyle became the focus of naval and aviation efforts to protect the vital shipments of food, arms and fuel, and neutralise the German submarine threat. The Royal Navy and later US Navy built new port facilities on the Foyle, and defences were constructed to protect the bases from airborne and naval attack. An emergency coastal battery was erected beside the Martello tower at Magilligan. Two 6-inch Breech Loading (BL) Mk VII guns, which could each fire a 45-kilogramme shell over 14 kilometres, were installed to either side of the tower, with magazines, searchlights, command post, support and barrack buildings. An observation post constructed on the tower’s gun platform, and later a 12-pounder Quick Firing (QF) gun was added 180 metres south of the main battery. Unlike the other batteries in N. Ireland, the Magilligan guns were not protected from air attack by concrete gun houses, as the soft sand could not support the weight of the structures. Today the dunes have reclaimed much of the land around the tower, making it is difficult to identify what structures have been removed post-war, and what have been obscured by the sand. Only the two platforms and crew shelter for the 12-pounder remain visible. An observation post set on the Martello tower was removed by the HED (then Environment Agency) during the 1980s.
The site was armed with two Mk VII 6 inch breech loading guns (as at the other coastal batteries around N. Ireland, but was also armed with a third gun, a 12 pounder Quick Firing gun (QF). It was equipped with two coastal searchlight positions. Each 6 inch gun position had its own crew shelter. Gun cartridges and shells were stored in their own concrete stores. The site was surrounded by dannert wire entanglement and the crews were housed nearby in nissen huts. The pub and hotel were requisitioned as accomodation and for battery administration. Much of the battery has been either removed or is now obscured by sand.
Two gun positions and magazines with a crew shelter for the more southerly 12 pounder QF gun are now visible. Small sections of concrete, likely parts of the magazines can be seen near the martello tower.
John W Blake, Northern ireland in the Second World War (Belfast, 2000)

A brick structure used to inspect, maintain, service and make ready for use airborne radar sets. These sites were often afforded extra security due to the secrecy surrounding advancements in radar technology during the war.
https://www.wartimememories.co.uk/midlands2.html

The operations block contained the operations room with the plotting table, Plan Position Indicators (radar screens) and communications equipment. It also had a room containing the radar transmitter and control equipment.

Lamella construction originated in Germany during the 1920. The name derives from ‘Lamellendach’ or ‘segmented roof’. The rights were acquired in Britain by Horsley Bridge & Engineering Company in 1929. Lamella construction was a large net-like steel framework of diamond shaped lattice. This formed a curved arch with a span of 50m, height of 10m and length 91m. The framework was covered with steel sheeting. Due to its design the structure did not require internal supports therefore floor space was maximised. The Lamella hangars at Aldergrove are the only ones of their type in Ireland
Visibility

Barrack block used to accommodate enlisted airmen. It was formerly a Laing hut, made of a wooden frame and plasterboard covered in felt sheeting to weatherproof.

The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. The runway was initially 1,400 metres but was extended to 1,940 metres to accommodate the longer take-off of the B-24 Liberators stationed there. Post war this was lengthened again to 2,280 metre, likely to facilitate RAF heavy bombers such as the Avro Vulcan.

The airfield was first opened with a grass airstrip but this was one of two concrete runways constructed in 1940-1. It was later extended from 980 metres to 1,850 metres.
The runway has been resurfaced pot-war but remains intact.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The 45m diameter hard-standing is in good condition but obscured by large dumps of spoil.

Site provided washing and bathing facilities.

Glenarm ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
The site is relatively intact but has suffered damage in recent years, The ventilation shaft at the main hatch has been badly damaged and the mount for the ground zero indicator lies upturned beside the hatch.
Website www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/glenarm-roc-post/

Only one concrete sidewall remains, incorporated into agricultural shed.

This building served as a lecture hall with projection equipment, demonstration benches and display boards. Usually intended for training of Aircrew on the Armament systems of the type of aircraft to which they were to be assigned although much of the role equipment was common such a 0.303 inch Browning Machine Gun and mountings, bomb carriers and release equipment, and bomb types. The six small rooms would have been designated typically for office, drawings, armament equipment store and armament classrooms each classroom containing related armament equipment for gunnery and bombing included electrical controls.
This single storey temporary brick structure consists of a block of six self-contained classrooms or instruction areas. The rooms have a raised concrete and brick platform at one end. All but one have had their original windows blocked. Their original entrances expanded, likely to enable access for agricultural machinery or farm animals. There is a separate office/classroom annexe on the southern end of the structure. However, this was inaccessible as both doors were sealed, one with brick, the other with a wooden door. This area is currently used to store silage. The steel frame and asbestos roof panelling appear intact.

The gymnasium could be used as an indoor sports hall, lecture room, cinema or dance-hall. This was also equipped with a projection room allowing it to be used as the base cinema.
The steel shed has been removed but the brick projection room remains intact if overgrown on the northern end of the site.

390 m of track-way remain in good condition

Aircraft were refuelled using mobile tankers, which were refilled from the bulk storage sites. An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. This site had four to six above-ground steel fuel tanks (12,000 gallons capacity) holding 48,000-72,000 gallons of aviation fuel. around which ran an elliptical roadway and one or two fuel pump houses. Pumps would have serviced the fuel tankers which parked on the circular hard-standing.
Site identified by distinctive circular track, though this has been resurfaced with modern tarmac.

This finger park appears intact if overgrown.

This brick and concrete store was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. A steel gantry connected to an opposing wall, which was used for loading and unloading the store.

Housed boilers and water pumps to provide heating to the surrounding barrack huts.
The brick and concrete structure remains in good condition. Entrance on west wall sealed but entrance on north wall open. Contemporary water pumps remain in situ.

Dungannon Park
The grounds of Ballynortthland park were requisitioned to house troops during WW2/ A camp was constructed which was use to accommodate elements of the 8th (US) Infantry Division and was later converted to a POW camp holding German prisoners.
PRONI aerial photo on file AM/1/5/64B/1-50

The lubricants store was separate from the main stores as it housed dangerous liquids in a fireproof cubicles.

A ‘Tannoy’ system was introduced on RAF stations in 1940, and it was used to communicate instructions to personnel across the airfield via loudspeakers across the airfield. These were connected to the amplifying equipment which was found in the Speech Broadcasting Building, which kept the amplifiers in a temperature controlled room. The structure is in good condition and retains its original blast wall, though an entrance has been opened post-war in the south wall and it has modern render.
Site was extant in 2017 but recent aerial photos suggest the site has been demolished

This brick faced reinforced concrete pillbox has seven embrasures with staircasing to prevent ricochets entering the position. Its walls are 48 cm thick making the pillbox bullet proof but not proof against heavy weapons. It retains the remains of steel rails on the inside of the embrasures. These would have mounted steel shutters which could be closed to prevent incoming bullets, grenades and flamethrowers from entering the position.
This position would not have been isolated but supported by fieldwork and infantry trenches and section posts. Presumably the forest around the site matured post-war as tree growth would have obscured fields of fire rendering the position useless.
Pillbox, part of local defences.
The site is overgrown but in good condition, retains some of its internal steel shutters

Group of 3 finger parks but only one finger park visible. Landowner noted that the dispersals were covered in soil post-war, leaving concrete dispersals intact under the grass

Established to support operations as part of the US Naval Base 1. Construction began at Clooney and Rossdowney in 1943. The Clooney site was composed of a HQ building, communications centre, receiver building, barracks and a large antennae field. The site remained operational post war, expanding its role to provide communication support for US and NATO ships, and providing a military communications link between the US and northern Europe. The site was closed in 1977

This block of two semi-detached houses was constructed to provide married accomodation for two warrant officers. and their families.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Still in use by MoD.

A prefabricated air raid shelter construction of a steel pipe with a steel revetment protecting the entrance. The whole structure would have been covered in with a layer of soil with only the entrance visible (though total absence of soil overburden may suggest this site was never covered), the air vent and the emergency exit at the opposite end. May have been repurposed to store gunpowder.
Structure appears intact although the soil overburden has been removed.

Brecart Lodge
brick structure constructed to facilitate operations on site, function unknown.

This structure was built to test fire and synchronise aircraft machine guns and cannon. The recess would have been filled with a sand backstop into which the guns were fired.
The brick structure is in good condition though it is overgrown and been subject to some dumping. Originally the recess would have been covered, but the sheeting is now missing, leaving the steel roof frame exposed.

This was an MoS barrack hut to accommodate officers

The small steel craft was used to ferry munitions to and from aircraft on the water.
The all-steel craft is heavily overgrown and badly corroded.
The Second World War in Northern Ireland at https://www.ww2ni.com/cofermanaghairfields.htm
Boats of the Royal Air Force marine branch at http://www.rafboats.co.uk

This 653 metre track is intact and in good condition.

Gun laying (GL) were developed to provide range and altitude data of attacking aircraft. This fire control data was used to direct the battery's four 3.7 inch guns. To avoid or minimise the effect of ground clutter the early sets (Mark I and Mark II) were mounted on a raised platform and surrounded by a 130 yard diameter GL mat, consisting of a mesh of steel wires. This mat provided a false datum and allowed radar operators to get the best from these early radar sets. The Mk I and II radars were mounted on wheeled trailers, therefore the inclined ramp allowed the trailer to be positioned on the platform. The GL Mk II could see aircraft at 50,000 yards, track continuously at 30,000 yards and control the HAA fired at 14,000 yards.
Site remains intact and in relatively good condition.

Only concrete base and loading ramp remain.

Grey Point fort was constructed 1904-07 as one of two coastal forts to protect Belfast Lough, its sister fort was constructed at Kilroot on the opposite shore of the lough (this was completed in 1910). The battery was armed with two Vickers and Maxim mark VII six inch breech loading guns, firing ‘en barbette’, which had a maximum range of six miles. The outbreak of World War I in 1914 necessitated an expansion of the facilities at the fort. Additional barrack huts, mess, offices and ablutions were constructed just south-west of the boundary wall. Throughout the war the position was manned by the Antrim Royal Garrison Artillery.In 1936 two coastal searchlight positions were added during the interwar period, known as Defence Electric Lights (DEL) they allowed the battery to identify and engage targets at night. The battery was also improved with the construction of a two-story battery observation post, which could also control the searchlights.On 26 August 1939 the fort was set on a wartime footing, becoming fully manned and an Examination Service was established by 2 September, whereby the identity and destination/intention of vessels was checked. This led to the battery opening fire on the coastal steamer SS E. Howard on 5 September. Unaware that was had been declared the vessel failed to respond to signals. A plugged shell was fired across its bows, compelling rapid compliance by the Howard’s crew.The battery was manned by the 188th (Antrim) Heavy Battery (Royal Artillery), with 214 all ranks. War had changed Since WW1, and the threat to the battery was not just from the sea, aerial attack was a real possibility. Therefore, during winter 1939-40 concrete gun houses were added to the gun emplacements. In addition a third searchlight position was added to the battery. However the battery was downgraded in 1943 as the examination role was moved to the battery at Orlock Point. The fort was maintained post war and in 1954 a ramp for a No 3 Mark 2/7 Anti-aircraft radar was constructed, but less than two years later the government announced the end of coast artillery, as any seaborne threat could be countered more effectively by naval and air forces. The battery was disbanded, and by 1957 the guns had been removed and scrapped. The fort was incorporated into Crawfordsburn Country Park and, after a period of restoration the fort was opened to the public in 1987.In the 1990s two Mark VII guns re reinstalled at the site. A gun from Spike Island, Co Cork was re-sited in 1993, and in 1999 a second gun completed the restoration of the battery's armaments.
The site maintains most of its original structures and remains one of the the best-preserved 2oth century coastal batteries in the country. The site retains the fire command post, battery observation post, gun emplacements, magazine, crew shelters and coast searchlight positions. Moreover, the areas around the perimeter wall is crossed by defensive trenches and gun positions.
The site is in excellent condition retain most of its original structures.

The small brick and concrete shelter protected the crew tasked with operating the decoy site during a raid. It was equipped with a telephone and switch gear used to control the ignition of the flame groups. Its main entrance was protected by a blast wall and an emergency escape hatch is on the roof. The blast wall was demolished post war.
Site is overgrown but in good condition.

Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack .

Castlegore Gibraltarian camp
In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps. Eight of these camps were erected near Ballymena.
Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school.
Only two small structures remain, one has been identified as a cold meat store the other is unidentified.

Though overgrown the site appears in good condition.

Described as the harbour masters office, it was constructed within what was originally built as a fuel yard for storing coal. The harbour master was responsible for enforcing the regulations of a particular harbour or port, in order to ensure the safety of navigation, the security of the harbour and the correct operation of the port facilities.
Site is intact and in good condition, it has been repurposed as a restaurant.

Aldergrove originally had four runways but this layout was altered when the site was rebuilt between 1941 and 1943. This was one of the four original metalled runways.
Site only visible as a grassmark in aerial photos.

The grounds of Loughbrickland house were commandeered by the War Office during WW2 and used to house troops. A camp was constructed which accommodated troops from the Royal Artillery and the 5th Belgian Infantry Brigade. The grounds were returned to civilian use after the war. A single brick structure remains standing, though huts bases may remain sub-surface.

King's Park army camp
Camp constructed to accommodate troops. Noted that elements of the Ulster Light Anti-Aircraft Battery, Royal Artillery and Royal Artillery 3rd Searchlight Regiment Royal Artillery were raised here in 1939.
Consisted of a series of Nissen and wooden huts, redeveloped post-war.

The structure was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy.

Destroyed c. 2012-16, removed to make way for anaerobic digestion plant.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, field works and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire.
This concrete pillbox is composed of a single fighting position with two staircased embrasures facing west and north. An observation slit faces south and the entrance is in the east face protected by a concrete blast wall.
The pillbox is in good condition though access is obstructed by vegetation.

The dispersal has been truncated by the construction of an agricultural shed, perhaps 30% remains intact.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks.
Only the perimeter wall remains. Traces of the ammunition lockers can be discerned on the platform inside the position, as can the hole in the walls where the wooden ammunition rack were fitted.

The main machine shop was based on the design for the Equipment Depot Stores. The machine shops and propeller testing and overhaul facilities were housed in this building. The five abutting bays housed sections for heat treatment, foundry and welding, propellers, hydraulics and carburettors, and accessories and armament.
The structure is listed grade B1. This is a building of historical interest due to its association with the Second World War as well as being of local interest as part of the development of the Langford Lodge estate. The value of the building is enhanced due to its rarity, being reputedly one of the few examples, and possibly the only surviving example, of a war-time hangar in the United Kingdom
The large hangar with 5 bays is in relatively good condition and retains it original light fittings and gantry cranes. However the cladding is corroded and large growths of ivy are covering the eastern corner of the structure.

Site was in final stages of demolition on day of site visit.

Spring Hill
The house and grounds at Springhill were requisitioned by the war office to house troops during WW2. A camp composed largely of nissen huts initially housed the Berkshire Yeomanry and 119th Regiment Royal Artillery, but after they left the camp housed 112th
(US) Engineers with Company L 519th Quartermaster Regiment at the end of 1943.
The US army was segregated so white troops were stationed in the house whereas black troops were billeted in the nissen huts at the Tower Hill Camp.
The US troops had left by summer 1944.
The sole remains of the wartime construction is five or six concrete hut bases, whereas the main house is now a National Trust property.
The house is preserved in good condition however only the concrete bases remain of some structures at Tower Hill.

A change in NATO policy in the 1970s changed tripwire defence against the Warsaw Pact to that of ‘flexible response’, whereby aggression by the Soviet Union would be met by a proportional response rather than nuclear retaliation as a first option. This called for an early warning network which was capable of operating while under attack. Consequently, a hardened Control and Reporting Post (CRP) and smaller wireless transmitting stations were constructed.
Transmitter/Receiver (Tx/Rx) station constructed in the early 1980s in response to changing strategic stance of NATO. RAF facilities were ‘hardened’ to resist conventional attack. This bunker, used to maintain base communication is similar to one sited on the southern end of the airfield (DHR 32: 44). This site maintained communications with the Sector Operations Centres in England.
The reinforced concrete structure remains in good condition. The walls appear approximately 0.75m thick. There appear to be vents on the roof. Main door is sealed with modern concrete blocks. The structure retains its original green paint scheme.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This 37 metre diameter dispersal is in good condition.

The site was commandeered to house troops during WW2. The structure was best known for housing troops from the US 82nd Airborne division. The owner noted that officers were housed in the upper rooms whereas the lower rooms were used form offices/stores.
The cellar area retains much graffiti and military stencilling/signage .
The house remains occupied and in good condition. The owners are planning to open a small US WW2 museum in the cellar.

Ballyhalbert airfield
M & E plinth
No visible remains saving an M & E plinth on north end of site

Road constructed to bypass northern end of runways
265 m of concrete road remain in good condition. It is now a private road.

For gathering and treating casualties, may also have doubled as air raid shelter
Substantial remains survive but entire northern wall has been removed exposing interior.

The motor transport sheds were used for the maintenance of motor vehicles. The number of bays varied on the size and activity of the station. The two facing lines of bays were separated by a manoeuvring yard. This is oddly a third set of bays facing away from the yard.
The structure is constructed of brick with a compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof. It has four vehicle bays.

The station offices were the administrative centre of the airfield housing support staff and clerks and pay office.

Storage depot used to store supplies during WW2. Likely occupied by US Quartermaster Depot Q-111F 1943-44.

This small square concrete pillbox had a single visible staircased embrasure with a nertance at the side protected by a concrete blast wall.
Site was demolished by the owner in 2004 though there are likely archaeological remains.
BBC report at

Concrete trackway providing access to firing points for trainee anti-tank gun crews
Approximately 300 metres of track way remains relatively intact though overgrown and showing some surface damage.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. It was equipped with concrete benches and was designed to accommodate 25. Opposite then entrance the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
Destroyed to make way for housing development in 2000

The administrative centre of the airfield. It had offices for the commanding officer, the adjutant and the engineer, chief accounting officer and their supporting clerks.
Site was intact in 2017 but has since been demolished.

The brick structure is in good condition but heavily overgrown.

The site was commanded for military barracks during WW". Between 15th March 1944 and 22nd April 1944 218th Replacement Company (67th Replacement Battalion) US Army were based here.
Site has been largely removed, only a few concrete hut bases and a part of the water treatment works remain.

Military structure built during WW2, possibly associated with Belgian troops stationed in Seapatrick.
Structure largely intact though may have had its roof replaced post-war.

The radar station set house was constructed to ensure the station could continue to operate if the mains power supply failed. The centre of the structure was a large generating hall housing a single diesel generator. It was fuelled by an elevated day tank which was refilled from a large diesel storage tank from an adjoining room. The entire structure would have been protected with an earth revetment this has been removed
Site is largely intact with remains of earthwork protection remaining on the roof. The site retained its original windows until the 1990s but these have now been sealed with modern blockwork.

Clandeboye Estate
Structure erected to facilitate operations on site.

Prefabricated structure known as the van complex, it contained the numerous High Frequency (Short Wave) transmitters; Low Frequency transmitters and microwave relay equipment.

Sited beside a 19th century Coastguard signal station, the post was constructed in the inter-war years to house auxiliary coastwatchers.
Coastwatchers were responsible for maintaining observation of coastal waters, monitoring shipping and curtailing coastal smuggling. The posted was extended during WW2 when a fortified brick observation post was added.
Site appears intact and in relatively good condition.

Sire remains in good condition, some dumping of spoil on western end.

An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. Therefore, this site had 72,000 gallon bulk storage for aviation fuel. The site held six steel tanks, 30 feet by 9 feet covered by earth, which was held in place by a brick retaining wall. Pumps would have serviced fuel tankers which accessed the site via the roughly circular access track.
Only a small section of souther access track remains. Assessed from aerial photo.

The 146 m of perimeter track remains in good condition though overgrown with moss and grass growing from expansion joints.

The gallery was a shelter protected by a concrete manltet and earthwork berm. A system of raiseable target frames sat behind the gallery. Frames raised target sheets into the line of fire, then lowered where marker then noted hits on target to show accuracy of firing.
Only the slumped earthwork berm remains in situ.

Quonset hut used to house a refrigeration unit for keeping medical supplies cold.

This site was used to house a Coastal Artillery Searchlight. One of three sited at the fort, it was primarily used to spot and track approaching enemy vessels. Original called Defence Electric Lights (DEL), they were re-designated Coast Artillery Search Lights (CASL) in WW2. This site was constructed in 1936.
The site remains in relatively good condition. It has two levels. The searchlight was mounted on the upper storey.

Nissen hut providing accommodation for sergeants.

Site constructed to facilitate operation of LAA post.

Site providing dining facilities for officers.It was converted into a Public house post-war.
Only concrete base of structure remains.

Maghaberry airfield
The administration area held structures housing the command elements of the base including the station headquarters, operations block and crew briefing room.
https://www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

Refurbished with modern steel roof, shutter and side doors.

By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ or loop dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on air frames and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
This is the remains of 2 dispersals truncated by the construction of the race track, yet what remains is in good condition, currently used to store tyres.

Aircraft were refuelled using mobile tankers, which were refilled from the bulk storage sites. An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. This site had six 12,000 gallon steel tanks, 30 feet by 9. Two Pumps would have serviced the fuel tankers which parked on the circular hardstanding.
A single pumphouse remain, the other and the concrete trackway have been removed. This single pump house remains in relatively good condition and trains sections of the pump's steel manifold.

Concrete trackway providing access through camp.
Approx. 70 metres of trackway remains intact.

Only concrete base remains, agricultural shed built on the site.

The windows have been blocked with wooden planks and the roof replaced with modern metal sheeting, but the structure remains in relatively good condition.

Structure is largely intact and secure. It has been fitted with modern steel security doors and is used as a store by MoD,

No visible on the ground, appears as a grass mark/cropmark after long periods of warm dry weather.

Constructed to house troops at the camp.
Entirely overgrown but owner noted several hut bases remain in the undergrowth.

Only concrete hardstanding and track remain, heavily overgrown site is used to store transportable steel cabins.

Gosford Forest Park
Like most other large demesnes in N. Ireland Gosford was requisitioned during WW2 to house troops. A large camp was constructed in the demesne. It had British & US troops stationed there and parts were also used to hold German prisoners of war, at what was known as POW camp Number 10. The troops and POWs left at the end of the war, after which the huts and buildings were auctioned off.
The site had over 10050 nissen huts and dozens of large huts and brick buildings but these were sold off for scrap after the war in a public auction.
Though the camp was once very large there are now only ephemeral remains with 5 hut bases in the woods, an intact nissen hut and a small ornamental windmill constructed by the German POWs. There is a great likelihood of more hut bases remaining within the forested areas.

The Fromson hangar is a small arched hangar designed and manufactured by a Canadian company, Fromson of Byfleet in England. Similar to a blister hangar, it was used as an aircraft storage shed at Royal Naval Air Stations. It had four bays, each 17 feet 6 inches wide. Used to store small aircraft it had a clear door height of 17 feet.

As a fighter satellite station for RAF Ballyhalbert, Kirkistown was not as well served with facilities. No control tower was built, therefore for communication pilots were contacted by radio, lamps and large signals placed in the signal square (no longer extant at Kirkistown). The signals office would have held wireless equipment and stored ground signals and lamps.
The brick and concrete structure is in good condition. The doorway is protected by a brick blast wall. The structure is sealed with a locked wooden door. A post-war window has been added to the east wall. It is used to store domestic furniture.

This 400 metre section of perimeter tract has largely been resurfaced with modern material, original fabric visible along the edges of the road.

Ballywalter Airfield
Site has been obscured by plantation of trees but appears to be a strongpoint with an ammunition recess.
Brick structure with ammunition recess, may be similar to other strings points on site but difficult to discern due build up of earth overburden.

The dispersal has been resurfaces but appears that the original fabric remains underneath. The site is used to park lorries, trailers and cars.

The ground of Ballywillwill house were used to establish a military camp for US army units during WW2. Units known to be based there were 3rd Battalion, 1st Armoured Division
Two Supply Companied, 1st Armoured Division and 5th Medical Battalion. It was also a US army Quartermaster Depot, Q-111BW.
A small number of hut bases and concrete tracks remain.

Only 20 m section of access trackway remains.

Surface remains though overgrown/obscured by grass cover. Greater extent can be seen in aerial photos taken during periods of warm dry weather. Approximately 170 metres of original length of 850 metre runway.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed. As Ballyhalbert was a fighter station its dispersals are much smaller, 60 feet/18m.
This 18m diameter dispersal remains in good condition. It is one of the smallest found in NI, likely due to the small size of the aircraft (fighters) based at Ballyhalbert.

A major feature of the war effort in NI were training facilities established to provide realistic instruction and training for army, air force and naval personnel. There were many scores of mortar, artillery and live firing ranges across NI, however air to ground bombing training required targets to be offshore or in the large expanse of the waters of Lough Neagh.
Targets were moored offshore, but to ensure the pilots found their targets, a large concrete arrow pointing towards the range was constructed as a final navigational aid showing the direction of the range targets. This was undoubtedly painted white to ensure pilots could find it. Beside this sat a quadrant tower. This was used by instructors to evaluate the accuracy of the trainee pilots and bombardiers.
The target marker was a large concrete arrow, 23 m long and arms 8 m wide pointing in the direction of the bomb target range.
Quadrant tower observing bombing runs on range
The arrow remains in good condition though occasionally obscured by grass and gravel washed ashore in stormy weather.
Mike Osborne, Defending Britain: Twentieth-century military structures in the landscape (Stroud, 2004), pp 199-201.

Only concrete base remains under grass cover.

The site was a storage depot during WW2, initially built for the British is came under the control of the US military at the end of 1942 when it became General Depot G-10-1.
The camp was split in two by the Desertmartin Road, with most of the stores located on the west side of the road. From the end of 1943 it became Quartermaster Depot Q-111 M.
The site was composed of possibly 36 large Iris huts with associated roadways and offices.
Much of the concrete hardstandings remains but only 5 of the Irish huts remains upstanding on site.

Only area of hard standing remains, concrete covered with modern layer of tarmac. Used to site holiday caravans.

Hut constructed a part of military hospital facilities, exact function unclear.
Sit was in good condition until demolished circa 2018.

Narrow 5 metre trackway, likely to accommodate vehicular traffic, added post-war.
250 metres of trackway remains intact and in good condition.

548 metres of track remain in good condition.

Site was used to store flare cartridges. Built to design 2169/43, this was 2 Nissen huts separated by an earthwork traverse.

Site is heavily overgrown but hardstanding appears intact in sections used as a storage yard, Also may be extant sections of shelters in overgrown areas.

Concrete plinth constructed to mount a fuel tank.

This was a storage hit, approx. 28 metres long and 10 metres wide.
Shed demolished c. 2020-2021. Only the concrete base remains on which a modern replacement storage shed has been constructed.

Searchlights were used to target enemy aircraft and guide in anti-aircraft fire. The could also be used to aids aerial navigators during night flying operations. Normally composed of 1-3r searchlights enclosed by earthwork berms, predictors to guide lights supported by barracks for the crew and generators buildings.
There were 2 intact structures reported in the Defence heritage project. One has been recently demolished to make way for a domestic dwelling.

The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. The runways were all 50 yards wide, but three differing lengths, 1,300 yards, 1160 yards and 1000 yards.
42m section of main runway on northern side of track.

The grounds of Ballygarvey house were requisitioned by the War Office during WW2. A camp was constructed here and was used to barrack US military units in 1943-44. Field Force Replacement Depot 6, Casual Detachment 26 was stationed here as was Company A, 307th Quartermaster Sterilisation Unit.
Online reports suggest some traces of structures remain in the undergrowth.

Ballyedmond Camp
The site became the base for the 2nd and 3rd battalions of the US 10th Infantry regiment, 5th Infantry Division from October 1943 until they left in July 1944.
The site was composed of a large collection of temporary structures such as nissen huts. The layout has been recorded on the ordnance Survey 5th edition for the area. All structures have been removed, only a few section of concrete trackways are identifiable as wartime features.,
Only a few sections of concrete access track remain.

This small square pillbox has recently been incorporated into environmental and beachfront works. The site is largely obscured by an ornamental wall but the site appears intact. It has a single stair-cased embrasure looking east over Curren Strand.
Site has been obscured but appears intact.
CBA, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol. 3, site gazetteer: Northern Ireland
Original DHP 100 report.

RAF Eglinton
During World War II aircraft were considered to be vulnerable when on the ground, either from air attack or from possible ground attack. Precautions were taken to prevent any loss of aircraft when not in action. As a result aircraft were often held in dispersed pens located around the perimeter of the airfield but with access to the main runways. The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site is constructed earthwork traverses on brick revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There is a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.
Site was intact until it was removed during the early 2000s. Site overgrown, trace remains may survive.

This was known as the Waterside battery, designated LO1 as part of the Derry GDA. It was armed with just two 3.7 inch HAA guns in the south end of the field with the domestic building adjacent to the road. Development in recent years c 2012-17 has redeveloped much of the site.

The control tower (in this case Drawing no. 12779/41), known as the watch office on RAF airfields, but control towers on sites operated by the USAAF, provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Almost square, the control tower was 35 ft by 33 ft. 6 in. This design came about due to a need for a standardised plan for control towers and became the most common type used for air traffic control during WWII. The ground floor contained the metrological section and tele-printer room with the control tower at the front. Above this on the first floor was the controller’s rest room, signals office and the control room with access out onto the balcony.
Until recently the control tower had been reused as a private dwelling, but was purchased by an adjacent business and subsequently demolished leaving concrete footings only.

The main store was a facility for the storage of non-technical items such as clothing and technical equipment such as aircraft components. All incoming material was unloaded into a receiving bay where it was logged and stored away to be issued when needed. The left-hand wing was a general technical store whereas the right hand stored non-technical material. Local informant related how during post-war use the site was converted into an officers and enlisted mens club.
The structure is of brick and cement render with a compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof. It is in good condition though there has been some alteration of the original internal layout to accommodate modern use as a mechanics workshop and store.

While the site was operational during the ‘Troubles’ period, a concrete blast wall and steel screening fence was constructed to secure the site from attack.
The concrete blast wall runs for 40m along the edge of DHR 32:70. Steel I-beam uprights remain of the security fence on the opposite side of the road.

Provided toilet facilities for station personnel.
The majority of the building is intact although the roof is missing. The site is heavily overgrown.

Brick barrack block designed to accommodate 15 other ranks and 2 NCOs. Built possibly c. 1923 but not WW2 austerity style construction.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Roof and windows hare modern replacements but structure repurposed and still in use by MoD.

Low-level shelter of brick construction to provide emergency shelter in the event of an air attack. It is semi-sunk to provide an additional level of protection. A brick blast wall protects the entrance.
The site is overgrown but remains in good condition.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the depot, precise function unknown.
Structure largely intact, corroded galvanised steel sheeting falling away from the frame.

Ardglass ROC post

Site intact though partially resurfaced with modern tarmac.

This red-brick structure was originally constructed as the Commanding officers quarters, completed in 1889.
Appears to be intact and in good condition.

Enniskillen ROC post
Site Description The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ. This post was closed in 1991. Older photos of this site from the original DHP show a dome on the ventilation shaft marking this site as a Master Post. One post in each cluster was equipped with a VHF radio and antenna to keep in contact with the group HQ should the land lines fail.
This post has a dome on the ventilation shaft marking it as a master post.
The site is in good condition though the fixed survey probe mount is missing.
Subterranea Britannica report at https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/enniskillen-roc-post/

Brick structure noted as 'Fuselage room', fuselage mockup in which trainees could sit at their assigned stations, pilots, navigator etc, connected by inter-comm and practice the procedures they would experience on missions.
No access so assessment made from recent aerial photos. Site appear intact with original roof.

This 44 m diameter dispersal has been truncated by later development, leaving approximately 50% intact. This is in relatively good condition if overgrown with grass and moss.

The motor transport shed were used for the maintenance of motor vehicles.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Still in use by the MoD.

Remains of military structure built postwar, function unknown.

Recorded on contemporary map as general purpose hut, may have been used for storage or maintenance at Machine gun range.
This 16 ft span, 36 ft long hut appears in relatively good condition, though there is some dame to the roof sections and some degree of collapse visible. Used as a store.

Lisnagarvey Transmitter
The site was opened in 1936 to transmit mediumwave signals for the BBC regional broadcasting. The transmitter was included in the network of broadcast facilities to provide the Wartime Broadcasting Service.
The site was equipped with generators to provide emergency power and staff were protected by the installation of a fallout shelter under the main generating hall.
The site may also have been included as part of the Backbone nationwide emergency communication system during the Cold War.
A modern surface shelter was constructed to the north of the main building.
The art-deco style brick building remains in good condition and continued to be used as a transmitting station. The site retains the original Blaw-Knox cantilevered aerial. The original fallout shelter remains under the transmitter hall and has an emergency escape tunnel which opens out to the car park.
Site remains intact and in good condition
Duncan Campbell, War plan UK (London, 1982)

This is the northern section of the perimeter track. It is poured concrete with expansion joints and sections surfaced with bitumen. Some elements of the Mark II taxiway lighting remain. The mark II system was standardised in 1941. 1,312m remain of the eastern section of perimeter track, but overall it curved around northern edge of airfield forming a continuous 2,550m section of track.

Presumably a site to store footstuff, though storing food at the technical site rather than domestic site does appear odd.
Site remains in relative good condition, it retains the original roof and windows. However it appears to becoming steadily overgrown.

The site was constructed to allow troops to practice small arms such as rifles, pistols and machine guns.
Plotted from OS six inch map, shows markers gallery, butt and one firing point. Modern maps suggest traces of the markers gallery and butt remain.

Trackway used to tow target screen and dolly for rifle training against moving targets. The structure may also have been used during WW2 as a towed target range for tanks and anti-tanks gun training.
Switchback railway track is corroded but remains are extant
Original DHR file SM 7 Dow 44:64 Philip Orr, Ballykinler camp: The first seven decades, 1900-1969 ((2012), H Montgomery and P Logue, Excavations at Ballykinler training estate, for Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork (QUB) 2016

The airfield was first opened with a grass airstrip but two concrete runways constructed in 1940-1. This 800 metre was the third, constructed when the east-west runway (13/32) was realigned.
The runway is largely intact though it is no longer used by the airport. this is a 500 metre section as it is truncated by a truck park.

only concrete base remains under the grass

Noted as an aerial bombing range in DHP report
Site inaccessible on day of visit, however examination of aerial photos shows no visual remains.

Lamella construction originated in Germany during the 1920. The name derives from ‘Lamellendach’ or ‘segmented roof’. The rights were acquired in Britain by Horsley Bridge & Engineering Company in 1929. Lamella construction was a large net-like steel framework of diamond shaped lattice. This formed a curved arch with a span of 50m, height of 10m and length 91m. The framework was covered with steel sheeting. Due to its design the structure did not require internal supports therefore floor space was maximised. The Lamella hangars at Aldergrove are the only ones of their type in Ireland

Military structure, likely an Iris or Romney hut used as a store.
Resurfaced with tarmac, concrete likely remains underneath

Concrete trackway servicing dispersed living site 5.
Approximately 80 meters of track remain intact though obscured by vegetation.

This concrete dispersal is overgrown but otherwise in good condition.

Gallery used to mount paper or steel targets.
Linear depression and slumped earth mound are the trace remains of the target gallery.

The site is in relatively good condition, one blast wall is intact while the other has partially collapsed or been removed.

This is the north section of the fortified perimeter wall. The walls are part of the original design and construction of the fort. They have been altered in a minor way since along three quarters of their length .Original defensive loops for rifles have been bricked up. (Probably as part of the alterations and expansion of the late nineteenth century). The wall has been part demolished along the remainder. On the 1854 map a magazine is indicated behind the hospital in the central bastion and a small building is indicated at the corner of the north west bastion (both now gone). The north east bastion is clearly the stables area and exercise yard. By 1904 the alterations and removal of walls along the eastern portion of the wall has been carried out and new buildings have been constructed along the perimeter. The wall appears unchanged after that time to the interior of the fort, but during the Twentieth century suburban dwellings fronting onto Browning Drive have progressively occupied the area outside the wall to the north. Under the walls the ground may cover the earlier remains of the siege fortification of Col O’Neills cannon battery from the 1690’s.
HB file for HB01/09/002 X

Store for specialist protective clothing such as rubber gloves, gas capes, rubber boots and gas mask in the event of an attack with poison gas.
Structure in relatively good condition. There are three storerooms, one cluttered with rubble but the other two large storerooms are clear. Though overgrown from the outside the structure is in relatively good condition. The steel roof trusses are intact as are most of the internal ceilings.

Down Royal Race Course
During WW2 most large estates were requisitioned by the War Office for accommodating and training troops. The huts at Down Royal appear on a post-war RAF aerial photo.
Traces of huts have been removed post war as race course has been developed.
PRONI aerial photos AM/1/5/92D/81-120, Website https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart5.htm

Most of the runway has been removed. Narrow tracks remain to the east and west of a full dwith section 175 metres long.This is obscured by broken runway debris and farm buildings.

Only concrete base remains, section truncated by domestic garden.

A narrow concrete track provided pedestrian access around the site.
Approx. 90 metres of trackway remains intact.

The site was relatively intact until 2004 when it was demolished by the owner, largely overgrown the site consists of rubble on the surviving hardstanding. Some remains of concrete revetment of centraltraverse.

A group pf nissen huts constructed to facilitate operation at the camp, likely barrack huts.
A group of 11 huts were constructed in this area and some remains can be discerned with probing, however in time available it was not possible to identify individual structures.

Four groups of six hut bases constructed to facilitate operations at the site. Likely barrack huts.
https://gitrailni.com/gitrail/mourne-park/

Strongpoint constructed to brick with reinforced concrete composed of 2 pillboxes, central ammunition room/command post and an observation post with a single entrance on the northern end protected by a blast wall.
The site remains in good condition though it is heavily overgrown. Some of the brick shuttering has fallen away on the northern end, exposing the reinforced concrete core.

The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ.
This site was a master post receiving reports from posts at Kilrea and Cushendall.
Site remains in good condition, though the ventilation shaft has lost its concrete capstone. The access shaft is sealed.
Website https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/ballymena-roc-post/

The pillbox was sited overlooking Portrush harbour to the north and Mill Strand to its south. The pillbox was constructed in a stone wall which provided good local camouflage. the single remaining embrasure was stair-cased to prevent incoming fire ricocheting into the position. The site appears to have been fitted with internal steel shutters, which could be closed to prevent weapons such as flamethrowers entering the position.
Only the northern stair-cased embrasure and internal shutter remains.

Runway layout was traditionally three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. However, given the prevailing winds at Mullaghmore only 2 were built, with only a section of a third constructed, the rest was completed as perimeter track.
The exceptionally long 1,800m runway remains in relatively good condition along its length, though there has been some construction and dumping along on its surface, some sections are obscured by overgrowth.

Provided washing, showering and latrine facilities for sergeants and airmen.
Site remains in good condition, it is used as an agricultural store. Most windows sealed with modern blockwork.

Provided accommodation for naval ratings. Likely nissen huts

This long brick structure housed navigation lecture rooms where trainees were instructed in all aspects of aerial navigation.
The structure is 38m long and 9m wide built of brick, rendered in cement with a compressed asbestos sheet roof. The site could not be directly accessed as it was secured by a fence but appears to be well maintained.

The operations block was the central control for all flight operations from the airfield. Orders were received via a telex room and flight plans, targets plotted on target maps, crew listings and final planning for flight operations took place here. Finalised plans, distress procedures and operational radio frequencies were passed on to the crews in the crew briefing room. It was reinforced to operate while under attack and a ventilation system was fitted to provide protection from attack by chemical weapons.
The operations block is relatively intact. Large entrances have been opened up on the south, east and northern sides of the structure and several dividing walls have been knocked though converting the building for use as a cattle byre. This Ops Room had windows fitted, odd but not unheard of for a 15586/40 design, though puzzling in a structure which was provided with blast walling to protect the external doors. Windows and doorways have been sealed with concrete blockwork. The north-west corner of the building housed the boiler room, A/C plant room and ventilation system. The defences against gas attack are still visible as the tall narrow ‘chimney’ is actually an air intake. This would have drawn in clean air from above a gas cloud and used to maintain a higher than ambient air pressure within the operations clock, thereby keeping poison gas out. There are still some remains of this ventilation system to be found throughout the site.

Airfield bomb dumps were designed to store high explosive bombs, incendiary bombs, fused bombs, tail units, bomb components and small arms ammunition. As would be expected they were sited well away from the technical area. Large explosives such as depth charges and torpedoes were kept in open storage and serviced by two parallel tracks. The store consisted of a series of four 30-foot square open storage areas protected by 25-foot thick and 6-foot high earthwork traverses. The stores were built with a slight slope to enabled easier loading from the upper track while bombs were taken from the lower track.
Only 120 metre section of lower track remains.

Aircraft were refuelled using mobile tankers, which were refilled from the bulk storage sites. An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. This site had four above-ground steel fuel tanks (12,000 gallons capacity) holding 48,000 gallons of aviation fuel. around which ran an elliptical roadway and one or two fuel pump houses. Pumps would have serviced the fuel tankers which parked on the circular hard-standing.
A steel market shelter has been built over the site but traces of the concrete trackway can be seen in-situ in the floor of the new structure.

Starfish decoy sites were used from 1941 as a means to divert bombing raids from their intended targets. The Starfish sites replicated the effects of successful bombing raids by replicating the effects of fires from targets that had been set alight by preceding bomber waves. The starfish site was composed of a series of fire types, from simple basket fires (wooden crates filled with scrap wood soaked in turpentine) to more sophisticated crib fires, boiling oil fires and grid fires which controlled the rate of ignition and could simulate explosions by introducing water to burning oil. These were arranged in groups and often surrounded by circular or linear trenches to prevent the whole decoy igniting at once. Each group was controlled from a shelter which had a telephone to receive orders and electrical switchgear to control igniters. Throughout a raid the decoy groups were lit sequentially to simulate spreading fires. One night of controlled burning could consume up to 50 tons of fuel.
Site consisted of a number of fire groups, normally composed of a number of types of fire decoys such as basket fires, boiler fires and grid fires surrounded by firebreaks. These were controlled from two control shelters.
The fire groups are long gone but the two control shelters remain in relatively good condition.

This battery was designated as LO 3. A decision was taken in March 1941 to improve the city's AA defences and construction of LOs 3, 4, 5 and 6. However, as the threat of German air attack receded the anti-aircraft defence was scaled back. By July 1943 LO3 was noted as 'unmanned'.
The site retains the main ammunition store which is used as an agricultural shed. The battery was served by a nearby domestic and accommodation site. The is a single upstanding brick structure and a number of concrete hut bases.
The site remains in good condition, retaining all its gun emplacements, battery command post, ammunition store and radar ramp in good condition. and is likely the best preserved HAA battery in N. Ireland.

Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. In this case the pillbox protected the approaches to the rear of Line B (stopline) which ran from Lough Neagh to Carlingford. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.
Entry is via a door at the rear which is protected by a concrete blast wall.
The site is overgrown but in good condition.
William Foot, Beaches, fields, streets and hills: the anti-invasion landscapes of England, 1940 (York, 2006)Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008), N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

Aircraft were refuelled using mobile tankers, which were refilled from the bulk storage sites. An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. This site had six above-ground steel fuel tanks (12,000 gallons capacity) holding 72,000 gallons of aviation fuel. around which ran an elliptical roadway and one or two fuel pump houses. Pumps would have serviced the fuel tankers which parked on the circular hard-standing.
Only the line of the elliptical track can be discerned and this has been resurfaced with tarmac.

The brick compound is intact and retains its original blast wall. The site has been roofed and half doors added to repurposed it as a hay/feed store.

Tyrone county hospital was extended during WW2. It was designated as a casualty receiving station as part of an emergency hospital scheme in 1939.
John Hedley-Whyte, Debra R. Milamed, 'Battle of the Atlantic: Military and Medical Role of Northern Ireland (After Pearl Harbour)', in Ulster Medical Journal (83:3), 2015, pp 182-187.PRONI file AM/1/5/37A/0201-0240

Latrine providing toilet facilities for female (WAAF) personnel
Only hut base remains, barely visible under overgrowth and spoil.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The low walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments. Though constructed in 1941, this site followed an early design as there are no shelters for the crews at the position.
Site remains largely in good condition, with much of the retaining wall surviving. Visit showed some evidence for recent damage to northern face with part of the top course of blockwork fallen.

Tanks used to settle residual solids in effluent. Final effluent may then be polished through sand filters prior to discharge.
Though heavily overgrown , there appears to be some surviving remains underfoot.

IN 2004 the small concrete pillbox was intact but largely obscured by earth overburden, with only the firing embasure visible.
In 2004 it was demolished by local landowner however archaeological traces should remain.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012) Report at

Larne Coastal battery
The concrete structure was used to store ammunition, either a shell store or cartridge store. These would have been passed out a hatch in the northern end of the structure, but this has been obscured by a post0war extension.
Site remains in good condition, it has been repurposed as a store.

Large section remains intact though heavily overgrown, however perhaps 50% of the structure has been demolished post-war.
ohn Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000)

The location of Northern Ireland on the western edge of the United Kingdom suggested that the region may be insulated from the threat of German bombing raids. Plans laid down by the government in London for the defence of Britain and Northern Ireland assumed that air defences in England would protect the province. After the Munich crisis of 1938, A re-evaluation of air defences recommended that Belfast be protected by a single fighter squadron, twenty-four heavy (HAA), and twenty-four light anti-aircraft (LAA) guns. Nevertheless, with the advent of war, Belfast was considered an unlikely target for German raids. Consequently, few guns were committed to the defence of the city and none were supplied to protect the rest of the north. The fall of France in June 1940 brought Northern Ireland well within the range of air attacks from German bases in northern France. Therefore recommendations were made to double the strength of the gun defences in the province, but shortages of equipment meant that on the eve of the air raids on Belfast in the spring of 1941, Belfast was defended by sixteen HAA guns (in four batteries), and six LAA guns. The damage and human toll inflicted by the Luftwaffe raids on the nights of 15 April and 4-5 May was devastating, with over 1,000 people killed and almost half the housing stock of the city rendered uninhabitable. Shocked into action by the appalling loss of life and damage to industry, the anti-aircraft defences were significantly reinforced. Four Gun Defended Areas (GDA) were established; Belfast, Larne, L’Derry and Lough Erne. Twelve HAA batteries surrounded the periphery of Belfast, while seven HAA batteries were built around L’Derry and the Foyle estuary, and two each at Larne and Lough Erne. This battery had a dual role, as it was also included in defence scheme protection the lough from naval attack. As long as there was no aerial threat the guns were expected to engage surface targets indicated by the fire control officer at Greypoint Fort (DHR 00315:000)
This site is heavily overgrown. It retains remains of all four gun emplacements and map evidence suggests some remains of the battery command post. The initial DHP report and photos showed extant remains but the site has become heavily overgrown. Thereroe, remains must be inferred from map and aerial photographs. Where entry through vegetation was possible traces of concrete bases could be discerned.

Nissen hut providing accommodation for sergeants

A steel-framed general-purpose store.

This is approximately 100 metres of concrete trackway providing access to the fuel store (now removed).
The trackway remains in relatively good condition though obscured by vegetation.

The concrete structure contain two rooms and sits directly behind the gun site. The site contained the ready use stores for the MkVII's ammunition. This came in two parts, the 100 pound explosive shell and the cartridges containing the propellant charges. It was standard practise for these to be stored in separate storage rooms or lockers. One of the rooms retains its original steel door. The structure was joined to the gun house with a timber and felt roof post war.
Site remains in good condition, with one one room converted into a domestic store.

This 16 ft span nissen hut provided accommodation for enlisted men.

Three wind bring military structure built to facilitate ATS barracks, exact function unclear.
IN good condition retaining original windows and roof.

The site is overgrown and appears to have been infilled in the past but appears intact.

Structure stored fresh water supply for the camp.
Extant at time of original DHP, structure was demolished c. 2019.

This provided washing and showering facilities for senior non-commissioned officers.
The concrete and brick structure retains its original windows and brick boiler house with raised water tank.

The site was commandeers for stationing troops during WW2. Troops from the US 2nd Batt, 6th Armoured infantry regiment and 16th Armoured Engineer Batt, (1st (US) Inf Division) were stationed here. In 1943 the site was home to HQ and HQ battery, 5th (US) Infantry Division artillery, 19th Field Artillery batt. (5th (US) Infantry Division), also 46th and 50th Field Artillery Battalions (5th (US) Infantry Division).
There are no upstanding remains but almost 30 concrete hut bases remains scattered across the park and golf course.

This was a steel shed and used as a main store to hold technical items, components and spare parts.
Only the heavily overgrown concrete bae remains.

This was the house of the Master Gunner or the permanent staff responsible for the maintenance of the armament. Built at the same time as the original battery. Later became quarters for married personnel.

This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters. This was the XXX yard firing point,
The position is in relatively good condition, the steel posts and revetments are visible.

There was some flying from Nutts Corner before the outbreak of World War II but it was little more than a grass airstrip. The site was selected in the summer of 1940 as the site of a new large airfield to be used by RAF Coastal Command in their fight against the German U-Boat threat and long-range commerce raiding by aircraft like the Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor. No 120 Squadron reformed at Nutts Corner on 2 June 1941 and the first operations being flown on 20 September 1941. Yet the aerodrome was noted to have several limitations, notably the 1,600 yard runways which were thought marginal for safely operating B-24 Liberators, who often only had 50 yards to spare when taking off fully loaded. Consequently, during 1942-3 the main runways were extended to 2,000 yards. In addition to being an important base for Coastal Command the site was also designated as a trans-Atlantic Reception Centre for aircraft arriving from the US. The site was used as an Operational training Unit for transport crews and at the start of 1944 briefly became a satellite airfield for RAF Aldergrove while improvements were made to Aldergove’s runways. In 1945 Nutts Corner became a centre for Training Area Flying Control, covering aircraft flying in the north of Scotland and north-west Atlantic, with its HF-DF site acting as a fixer station, enabling lost aircraft to be located when triangulated with station at Stornoway, Prestwick and Doncaster.The Royal Navy took over the airfield in May 1945 when it was commissioned as HMS Pintail, but it saw little use and was returned to the RAF in April 1946. The site became Belfast Airport at the end of 1946 and remained in operation until 1963 when services were moved to Aldergrove. The site is now used for go-cart racing, poultry houses and a weekly market.
The site is composed of the standard 3-runway layout surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks and dispersals. Beyond the airfield there were 15 dispersed camps which were primarily for accommodating the base personnel, but also had communal areas, sewage treatment works and the base Wireless Telegraphy site and the HF-DF site.
Though a road has been constructed along one runway, much of the runways and perimeter tracks remains in relatively good condition. Though much of the technical site has been demolished for post-war industrial use many of the dispersed site have remains, primarily concrete hut bases and air raid shelters.

Small open air observation post according to DHP report. Polygonal brick and concrete structure. My have been auxiliary coast watching post.
Site remains largely intact but overgrown. Within scheduled area of promontory fort.

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
The site is in good condition. The entrances are sealed with modern concrete blocks.

This 44 m diameter dispersal appears in good condition. An access road has been laid through the middle of the site but the concrete fabric may remain underneath.

Site appears intact from aerial photos, no access to site on day of vivit.

Hard-standing for the parking, maintenance, loading or refuelling of aircraft.
Remain intact, resurfaced with modern tarmac. It is now the site of weekly market.

Moyola Park
The grounds of Moyola Park were requisitioned by the war office to house troops during WW2. It housed HQ elements of the US 82nd Airborne Division from Dec. 1943-Feb. 1944.
No visible remains on modern aerial photos.
John P. McCann, Passing through: The 82nd airborne Division in Norther Ireland (Newtownards, 2005)

All the filter material has been removed and approximately half of the circular retaining wall demolished. It is used to store building materials.

Tracway connection loop dispersals (DHR 78:13-18) to perimeter track.
Concrete track surfaced with tarmac, 82 m of track remain in relatively good condition if somewhat overgrown with grass growing from expansion joints.

Site appears mostly intact though heavily overgrown, steel headwall is missing.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This dispersal had 8 finger parks.
Approximately six of the parks can be discerned though these have been obscured by dumping of soil, building rubble and broken concrete (likely remains of destroyed finger parks).

The grounds of Orangefield House were requisitioned for camps to house troops during WW2. A camp was constructed billeting US and British troops. Part of the camp was converted to use as a POW camp., known as Camp 161.

Described as a pillbox in original DHP report.

Loughbrickland House
Site of hut bases, remains may survive in undergrowth or sub-surface.

Toome airfield
Living site for personnel. Had mostly barracks with ablutions and latrines.

The lubricants store was separate from the main stores as it housed dangerous liquids in fireproof cubicles.
The structure constructed of brick with cement render with compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof. It has been converted into a domestic dwelling with large upvc windows. On the day of visit it appeared like the site has not been lived in for some time.

Site held offices for general administration of site
Formerly part of a 3 block administration complex, the single remaining structure is in good condition and retains its original windows. Two large entrances were opened in the southern end of the structure post war. It had been repurposed by the owner as offices but is now used for storage.

Only concrete base remains with slumped earth overburden surrounding site on three sides.

Concrete trackway providing access through Site 3 (Communal)
This narrow path of poured concrete is one of the few remains of the communal area.

A concrete trackway providing access across the site.
Approximately 90 metres of track remain but the site is so heavily overgrown it was difficult to assess its condition.

Magilligan 'musketry camp'
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation.
This site was used to station units guarding the entrance to the camp. Site could also be used to detain prisoners.

Formerly a 8 park dispersal, only the sentral hardstanding remains.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restrictions on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive ‘snowflakes’, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This was a group of 4 finger parks.
Formerly comprised of 4 finger parks, the parks have been truncated by land reclamation for agriculture.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The 45m diameter hardstanding has been truncated by the construction of the race course, approx. 60% remains in good condition.

Constructed of poured concrete with expansion joints. Much of this section of runway has been destroyed by the construction of the Bishopscourt racing circuit. This small section is 25m wide and 112m long. The small section remaining survived in good condition.

Ballywalter Airfield
Ballywalter airfield was a satellite landing ground for flight operation for 23 Maintenance Unit at RAF Aldergrove. despite challenging crosswinds the site opened in June 1941. With two grass airstrips, it was infrequently used for first few months then became fully active for the rest of the war. The site closed in March 1945.
Much of the airfield has returned to agricultural use, with maize planted on one airstrip and the other on western side of the road nw pasture. Seeral defensive strong points remains in the trees on eastern side of airfield.

Concrete hardstanding, often surrounded by chain link compound. For storing fuel for use in the camp, likely coal to for stoves.
Only traces of approach road and concrete hardstanding remain as a modern dwelling has been constructed on the site.

A series of practice trenches identified on lidar survey. Uncertain date either WW2 or WW2

A small brick structure to provide shelter to units on guard duty at the site.

Structure appears intact if obscured by grass cover.

Site of a group of 8 finger park dispersals arranged in the distinctive 'snowflake' layout. Not visible on day of visit but landowner claimed dispersal covered by soil post war, leaving the concrete dispersals intact under the grass.

A small brick structure separate from the larger store for keeping flammable materials such as oil and paint.

An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. Therefore, this site had 72,000 gallon bulk storage for aviation fuel. The site held six steel tanks, 30 feet by 9 feet covered by earth, which was held in place by a brick retaining wall. Pumps would have serviced fuel tankers which accessed the site via the roughly circular access track.
Only a small section of the circular track remains.

The 46 metre diameter dispersal is in good condition. Additional concrete hardstanding added post-war.

A small rectangular fieldwork excavated to provide protection to machine gun section. This one constructed to cover Helen's Bay beach.
The site is overgrown but relatively intact. The structure was excavated bu the Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork (QUB) in 2014. Sections of the galvanised steel roof were found in the position during the excavation, and eight .22 cartridge cases were located within the site, though no other dating evidence was found.

Site provided accommodation for 14 enlisted troops
Site remains in good condition, it has been repurposed as a gymnasium.

Structure built to facilitate operations at the site, function remains unclear but may have been a plinth for an antenna.

Concrete trackway providing pedestrian access around the camp.

The brick structure is in good condition but overgrown.

Provided accommodation for Naval ratings. Likely nissen huts

An army camp was established at this site during WW1 to train elements of the 36th Ulster division during 1914-15 before being sent to France. The site was composed of dozens of wooden huts in a north and south camp. The site was cleared post war but was again used to billets troops as a military camp was constructed on the same site during WW2. The camp was opened in Nov. 1943 as an Ordnance Maintenance Depot (known by the US forces as Camp Pinetum) and later a a vehicle park.
At least two structures and several hut bases remain on site, also the road network remains as an outline of the original WW1 camp.
PRONI AM/1/5/9D/4135-4174, Irish Defence Forces archive file IE/MA/MPD/AD119286-010 viewed at

Trackway connection loop dispersals (DHR 78:99) to perimeter track.
62 m of trackway remain in good condition

This concrete tank is filled with water providing an emergency supply for firefighting.
Site remains intact and in good condition

Inside to the right of the entrance there is a contemporary doodle/graffiti of a man's face in profile.
The site is overgrown but in relatively good condition. It retains the original doors and the inner steel work appears in good condition.

Nisse type structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear.
Extant during original DHP, demolished c. 2019.

This is a small brick structure with an asbestos roof used to store ammunition. It's lack of protective concrete walls or earthwork traverses suggests it may have only contained, small quantities of ammunition or explosive components such as detonators.

Tollymore Park
The house and grounds of Tollymore Park were commandeered by the War Office to accommodate troops during WW2. US troops were stationed here from 1942-44. These included the 47th Armoured Medical Batt (1st US Armoured Div.), and later signal and HQ troops from the 5th (US) Inf. Div.

Purpose built accommodation for married soldiers and their families based on a standard plan used at the time in barracks constructed by the Ordnance Board. Located as far from normal barracks as possible with a school between . Separate self contained flats were accessed from the external walkway at ground and first floors. Accommodation consisted of two bedrooms, a living room and kitchen and toilet facilities in the return. Storage for bins etc was in the return at each gable. Building’s overall external appearance is little altered from the time of construction (chimneys have been removed, doors blocked up, external stairs replaced). The internal plan because of its loadbearing construction has been little altered though an off centre corridor has been opened up to allow remaining rooms to become single bedrooms. The name 'Benbow' is a legacy of the use of the barracks as a Joint Air and Naval anti submarine training base following WWII and relates as with other named buildings on the site to either senior Naval or RAF personnel.
HB file for HB01/09/002 DD HM file for LDY 14:72

With the advent of the Cold War, the British airborne nuclear forces became vulnerable to preemptive strike. Therefore, the V-force bombers and interceptors were dispersed to airfields around the UK. These bases became host to either two or four aircraft. In order to minimise take-off times, Operational Readiness Platforms (ORP) were constructed at the dispersed bases between 1958 and 1963. The increased threat from ballistic missiles led to the construction of ORPs at the end of runways to further improve reaction times to fifteen minutes’ readiness. This policy was known as ‘quick reaction alert’.
The ORP is a 210m long by 45m wide concrete hard standing offset to the main runway. There is a small dump of tyres at one end but it remains in good condition.

Quonset huts were a prefabricated hut first manufactured in the US to fulfil a need for a lightweight hut that could be assembled quickly without skilled labour. Based on the Nissen hut they were normally a 16 foot span and 36 foot long.
Site constructed to facilitate operations at the camp.
Site remains intact and in good condition. used to store hay.

Omagh Airfield
Opened in 1918 the ite was home to 105 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps, arriving 19 May 1918. It operated RE.8 and then F.2b aircraft. 105 Squadron moved to Oranmore in 1919 resulted in decommissioning of site.
A level grass stip suppoted by tented hangars and troop accommodation.
BBC new report at www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-35000942
Martyn Chorlton, Action Stations Revisited, vol 7 (2012, Manchester)

Brick structure providing toilet facilities for nearby barracks
Only base remains with some porcelain fitting embedded in the topsoil.

Vault in Castle converted to 50-person air raid shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack
Traces of emergency hatch in roof of the vault, returned to used as storage room after the war.

he T2 (‘T’ for transportable) was developed in 1940 to replace Bellman Hangars. They were of a modular design meaning they could be dismantled, moved and reassembled elsewhere. Constructed of steel lattice portal frames and clad in galvanised corrugated iron. The T2 became the standard temporary hangar for the RAF, and over 900 were built during the war. They were considered temporary structures with a limited design life, but many remain on airfields throughout the United Kingdom.
This hangar was used as a production facility for Short Stirling bombers. Its northern sidewall has an original brick annex housing offices.
The hangar was destroyed in an arson attack during the Troubles, however it retains the original brick annex. A small brick structure on the roof of the annex may be an Air Raid Precautions fire watching hut.

Kilskerry ROC post
Site Description The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
The site is relatively intact though it has lost its ventilation louvres. The base of the concrete mount holding the access shaft has split.
Subterrania Britannica at https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/kilskerry-roc-post/

Trackway providing access to barracks on dispersed living site.
137 m of concrete trackway remains in relatively good condition

Camp constructed during WW2 to house service personnel. Composed of a number of brick structures and nissen huts providing accommodation and domestic facilities.
Removed post-war, redeveloped as industrial estate.
PRONI RAF aerial photo in file AM/1/5/49B/3191-3230

During the interwar period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
Site largely covered by soil overburden yet examination of aerial photographs suggest the site may remain underneath.

Approximately 1,090 metres of track remain intact, large sections have been resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Magilligan Heavy Anti-aircraft battery
The Londonderry Gun Defended Area was one of four established in Northern Ireland and initially consisted of two heavy anti-aircraft batteries. Further defences were installed as the strategic importance of Derry increased, and five more heavy anti-aircraft sites were established, one of which was LO7 (Magilligan). LO7 battery was positioned to protect ships coming through the narrows. As the Allies gained the upper hand in the war, the threat of German attack receded. Gun defences around the city were reduced, and the battery at Magilligan was finally closed in February 1944
The heavy anti-aircraft battery LO7 from the Londonderry Gun Defended Area (GDA) on Magilligan Point is in excellent condition. It retains all its most significant features that define its use. Moreover, its importance to the defence heritage in the region is increased due to its survival as part of a group of HAA batteries in the Londonderry Gun Defended Area.

This was a raised rectangular concrete plinth used by shooters to brace in firing positions, with lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters and instructors.

Only sections of concrete and galvanised steel sheeting remains.

Ballykelly airfield opened at the start of June 1941 when the RAF established a Coastal Command Development Unit even though the airfield was as yet unfinished. Throughout the war, Coastal Command flew anti-submarine patrols and air-sea rescue flights. The runways were extended in 1943 to facilitate the longer take-offs required by B-24 Liberators. After the war Ballykelly operated as the Joint Anti-submarine School, during which time the RAF flew the Shackleton maritime patrol aircraft which became synonymous with flight operations out of Ballykelly. During the late 1950s, Ballykelly was part of a programme to disperse the British V-Bomber force to optimise the survival of the British nuclear bomber force in the event of a first strike by the Soviet Union. From the early 1970s the Army had operated Army Air Corps helicopters from Ballykelly and on 2 June 1972 the station came under Army control and was renamed Shackleton Barracks. The site was closed in 2008 and sold to the MJM Group for redevelopment.
The airfield is largely preserved in it runways and network of perimeter tracks and dispersals, Many of the World War 2 vintage structures have been removed and all the dispersed living sites have been demolished and replaced with post war Ministry of Defence housing for service personnel. The site is divided into the upper and lower camps. The lower camp encompass the airfield whereas the upper camp is comprised of the modern army barracks and administratie buildings.
The runways, perimeter tracks and dispersals are well preserved but many of the WW2 structures have been removed. Most recently the operations block and speech broadcasting building have been demolished by NI Water Service as it plans to develop a reed bed water treatment works in the area. All it original hangars remain but have been reclad. The control tower remains in good condition, as does the large cantileverd hangar which was used during the Cold War to service Shackleton maritime patrol aircraft.

The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door
Provided dining facilities for enlisted battery personnel.
John W Blake, Northern ireland in the Second World War (Belfast, 2000) Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003) Frontline Ulster at frontlineulster.co.uk/magilligan-musketry-camp/

Provided accommodation for senior non-commissioned officers. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters.
Concrete construction, retains original windows. Compressed asbestos sheeting roof.

Parachutes became standard issue in the RAF from 1927. They had to be regularly inspected, normally on a monthly basis. Condensation was an issue as it caused the parachute to shrink, therefore they had to be dried in a room with constant temperature and dust-free ventilation. Moreover, they had to be suspended from their apices without any part touching the floor. Parachutes were suspended from the highest part of the ceiling to dry with the aid of a pulley system. When dry they were lowered, placed on a table for repacking then stored on racks.
Only the lower parts of the walls now remain. This structure has been seriously degraded since a field inspection in 2006 when the roof and internal stowage racks were in situ.

Store for specialist protective clothing such as rubber gloves, gas capes, rubber boots and gas mask in the event of an attack with poison gas.
Site remains in good condition. It retains the original roof. Access is secured with modern steel doors and roller shutters. A modern roof and cladding has been added to the western end of the building.

This small square concrete pillbox was largely obscured by soil overburden. Two embrasures or vision slits were visible but it was mostly buried.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012)BBC report at

Site consists of a rectangular earthwork enclosure. Though unidentified the sites size suggests it may have been the site of the generator house.
Site survives as an approximately square, low bank of earth

Possible military structure built to facilitate operations at the site. Reported as WW2 structure by member of staff.
https://www.lennonwylie.co.uk/CampbellCollegeWW2.htm
Site Visit Carried Out? Yes
Date Surveyed 4/15/2022

This 700m section of runway remains in good condition.

The Young Men's Christian Association provided recreational and refreshment facilities for troops stationed at bases and on the front lines. The provided mobile and static canteens serving tea, sandwiches and cigarettes to base personnel.
Only the steps to the building and concrete base now remain.
https://www.ymca.org.uk/about/history-heritage/ymca-and-ww2

The site was a barracks/billet for the Auxiliary territorial Service. The was the women's branch of the British army during the Second World War. Established in 1939, it exited until 1949 when it merged with the Women's Royal Army Corps.
The service took over many support tasks such as drivers, radar operators, anti-aircraft battery crews and searchlight operators, freeing up able-bodied men for combat units.
The site consists of three remaining structures whose precise function remains unclear.
Three structures remains in good condition though appear disused.

Site used to house guard detachment within radar station, controlled access to and from site.
Site appears largely intact and in relatively good condition.

The site appears to be the base of a temporary hut built to service the HAA battery. The purpose is unclear but likely a barrack hut to accommodate the battery personnel.
Only concrete base remains obscured by grass cover.

Building built as a barrack block in 1875 as part of the first phase of expansion of Ebrington Barracks beyond the original fort. A similar block to the west existed until the late 1970s but was demolished. The building has been utilised as offices for a considerable period, as evidenced by the fading paintwork signs. Formerly the divisional drafting office, it is was the barracks post office at the time of survey.
Called Cunningham block during its time under Royal Navy command.
Site is intact and in good condition, has been repurposed as offices.
HB file HB01/09/002 J

Used to store personnel's coats, cloaks and outerwear. The facility was heated as the structure had a small brick chimney.

Only he central hardstanding remains. Sometime between 2008 and 2013 all the fingerparks were removed for land reclamation.

Structure in north west bastion behind the canteen, uncertain function but reported on site as having been previously a latrine block.
Site is intact and in good condition, currently under renovation.

The armoury had an office for the Station Armament Officer and another for his subordinate. Most of the building was taken up by the Small Arms Store containing small arms for ground defence, such as Enfield rifles, Sten sub-machine gun, Bren light machine guns and pistols. All, except the pistols, were placed in purpose built racks with the pistols in lockable cupboards beneath. A workshop for the servicing of Small Arms was also within the building. It was usual to have a built-in masonry cupboard with a steel door containing ready-use quantities of Small Arms Ammunition.

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing sergeants' accommodation

Mess hall providing kitchen and dining facilities for officers

The structure remains in good condition and retains its original galvanised steel cladding. Remedial work has replaced corroded sections around the base of the hangar.

Military structure relating to accommodation site for anti-aircraft battery.

An incinerator used to burn dried decontaminated waste.
Site is heavily overgrown, only walls and chimney remain.

Brick barrack block designed to accommodate 18 enlisted men. Built possibly c. 1923 but not WW2 austerity style construction.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Roof and windows hare modern replacements but structure repurposed and still in use by MoD. Incorporated into larger structure.

Two central pumping houses flanked by semi sunken fuel tanks covered in earth with brick retaining walls. The southern tanks have been removed leaving a small pond, the northern tanks may have been removed but it is difficult to discern as the area is heavily overgrown, sections of the brick retaining wall remain.

During the early stages of WWII, air controllers used Chain Home radar to position fighter aircraft, normally with an accuracy of around five miles. However, this was not accurate to ensure an intercept in poor weather conditions or at night. While more exact intercepts could be achieved by directing the radar aerial at the target, this would prevent the radar from continuing to track other target plots. Consequently, there was a clear need for dedicated radar sites and controllers for vectoring in fighters on incoming enemy aircraft.
GCI became active at Lisnaskea in October 1942.
Site would have consisted of a radar aerial, operations block, power room and ancillary support structures.
Mostly concrete basses remain, with a single small upstanding structure of uncertain function.

The Romney hut (also known as a shed) was designed in Romney House, London by the Directorate of Fortifications and Works at the start of WW2. Primarily used for storage, they could be adapted for canteens, workshops and even cinemas. Semi-circular in section, the hut was a series of tubular steel ribs curved to a radius of 17 feet 6 inches. The were bolted to the foot and connected by steel purlins. The frame was covered by corrugated iron sheeting. The inside of the structure was normally unlined.
This hut has been repurposed as a fitness studion.
https://www.wartimegilford.com/

Concrete tanks constructed to treat wastewater from the camp.

It was initially envisioned that Cluntoe would base units from RAF Bomber command and construction work was started in December 1940. However, it was found surplus to requirement and construction was slow, with work completed in June 1942. The airfield was a standard three runway design with a perimeter taxiway and ’frying pan’ hard standings, technical site, four T2 hangars, a suite of ‘synthetic’ trainers, as found on Operation Training Units elsewhere in the UK. The dispersed living sites were erected on higher ground to the west of the airfield.
The entry of the United States of America into the war in December 1941 saw a new need for flight facilities. The establishment of the US 8th Air Force in England revealed their crews’ lack of preparedness for flying in poor weather or the practicalities of operating in a warzone. The base was taken over by 8th Composite Command to establish a Combat Crew Replacement Centre (CCRC) at what was now designated Army Air Force Station 238 in August 1943.
Before the arrival of US units, the facilities were expanded to provide increased aircraft storage. Ministry of Aircraft Product (MAP) hardstanding (sometimes known as snowflake of finger parks) to the north and east of the main runways to provide storage for up to 100 aircraft before dispatch to combat units.
4 CCRC began training crews in November 1943, and by February the following year, 57 B-17 crews had passed through as well as 45 pilots from 311th Ferrying Squadron and 103 radio operators. B-24 crews started training at the airfield from late February 1944. Combat veterans returning to the US were employed as instructors teaching new crews destined for operations in the UK and Europe.
The training unit was redesignated 2 CCRC in March 1944 and instruction in all aspects of the flight crews’ specialties, continued until operations began to be run down in August, with the CCRC being finally closed in November. The base was transferred from the USAAF to the RAF on 8 November. The RAF had little use for the airfield. Therefore the base remained on a Care and Maintenance footing until it closed to flying in June 1945.
The airfield remained a reserve airfield for the Fleet Air Arm after the war. It was reactivated and refurbished by the RAF during the Korean War (1950-3) when on 1 February 1953, 2 Flight Training School opened. The school operated until June 1954, when it returned to England. The airfield remained as a reserve station but was finally closed in 1957.
Large sections of the airfield remain in good condition. All the runways, despite significant levels of overgrowth, dumping and some redevelopment, remain in relatively good condition. The perimeter trackway is 1 of only 2 intact and is unique that it is entirely accessible to the public. Many aircraft dispersals have been retained.
The instructional site had three synthetic training structures in situ. The AML bombing teacher (single) is the only one in N. Ireland that has been converted into a private dwelling. The Norden Bombsight vault, a uniquely American structure, and a well-preserved (Operations Block. The eponymous control tower, while altered to permit access to the rear, overall the building is in very good condition when compared to other similar sites around N. Ireland.
In contrast there are relatively few structures remaining from the dispersed living sites

Described as a 'Public Works Warehouse', the structure was used to store materials used for construction on the site.

The watch office (known as the watch office on RAF airfields, but control towers on sites operated by the USAAF) provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Built to designs of the Air Ministry's Directorate of Works and Buildings, as Office for All Commands design, to Drawing No. 12779/41. Rendered brick with asphalt roof. The ground floor had the watch office to front with duty pilot's rest room, meteorological office, switch room and lavatories to rear. The first floor had control room to front, with controller's rest room and signals office to rear, opening onto passage with access to stairs. The design allowed large windows overlooking the airfield.
The site is in good condition. It retains the veranda though the hand rails and staircase to the roof are now missing, The structure has been converted to a domestic dwelling.

The structure is composed of two long temporary brick buildings. This site retains its original roof and windows, though several sections of the walls have been removed to facilitate access for farm animals and machinery. The site is now used as a cattle byre.

The sites displays characteristic fieldworks prevalent in static trench warfare of WW1. There are crenelated 'Greek key' trenches, which formed the fire trench. The traverses/crenellations prevented an enemy enfilading the length of a trench with fire.
Evidence of trenches visible on aerial photos and lidar survey.

Only concrete base and loading ramp remain, agricultural shed built on base.

Brick military structure built to facilitate operations at the depot, function remains unclear,

Provided washing and showering facilities for base personnel.

Access could not be gained but images from third party websites show the brick structure is protected by a blast wall. A concrete plinth sits in one room while a second room contain traces of contemporary switch=gear.
https://www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

Light anti-aircraft (LAA) guns are smaller, faster firing weapons deployed to engage fast low-flying aircraft. The size and type of weapons deployed at these site could be light machine guns on simple mounts, to 20mm Oerlikon gun to the 40MM Bofors L40 gun. Unlike heavy AA guns which were deployed in batteries of four or eight, LAA guns tended to be deployed individually.
The site mounted a single LAA gun with ancillary structures.

Area of concrete used to park/store aircraft.
The site is overgrown but appears intact

This provided accommodation for the flight commander, flight sergeants, pilots’ restrooms and locker rooms. Additionally, offices were provided for flight clerks, administration officer, defence officer and a range of storerooms.
Heavily overgrown and unable to be viewed on day of fieldwork. However, aerial photographs show concrete hard-standing remaining.

This is the northern section of the perimeter track. It is poured concrete with expansion joints and sections surfaced with bitumen. Some elements of the Mark II taxiway lighting remain. The mark II system was standardised in 1941. 1,238m remain of the northern section of perimeter track, but overall it curved around eastern edge of airfield forming a continuous 2,550m section of track.

Site appears intact though appears to be dumping on site.

The 44 m diameter dispersal appears to be in good condition but is obscured by significant quantities of dumping.

The site was designated as the Wartime alternative HQ for the Department for Economic Development in event of a nuclear exchange. The structure housed a government training centre at the time, it is now a commercial/light industrial unit.
PRONI file DFP war plan 1984-1988 DFP/6/119 A

The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. The runway remains in good condition.
This is a 1,490m section of the original 1,825m runway. 43m wide, it is composed of section of poured concrete surfaced with tarmac. Grass and weeds a growing from the expansion joints along its length.

A workshop for general maintenance of equipment with storage areas and workbenches. These workshops were positioned to service hangars dispersed around the airfield. They contained a battery charging room, W/T store, office, workshop, instrument section office, auto-control shop, instrument repair and two flight equipment stores.
Site has been demolished recently, only concrete base remains.

Structure sat beside the crew shelter. Also known as a Royal Artillery store or RA store, it was used to store gun and instrument parts.

Only concrete hard-standing and steel door guide-rails remain and approximately 50% of the site has been grassed over. A small breeze block silage store has been build on part of the site.

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with the entrance protected by an integral blast wall.
Structure remains in good condition. The emergency exit on the north facing wall has been enlarged to create a second entrance, likely to allow access to farm animals or storage of farm machinery.

The grass airstrip was established as a satellite landing ground for 23 Maintenance Unit based at Aldergrove. The first aircraft landed there in March 1941. The site closed in winter and reopened in May 1942 when the ground was dry enough to land aircraft safely. The airfield was used by some units for training and to store aircraft for the maintenance unit at Aldergrove. It was returned to civilian use after the war.

Approx. 300 metres of concrete trackway providing access across the site and to the former antennae fields.
Approx. 300 metres remain relatively intact.

Magilligan Coastal Artillery Battery
This is the number three gun platform of the battery, which had mounted the 12-pounder Quick Firing (QF) gun on a steel pedestal. In the centre of the platform is the steel holdfast for the gun. Underneath are four ammunition lockers for the storage of ready to use 12-pounder shells.
The site is in relatively good condition with ready-use ammunition lockers and steel holdfast for the gun still in place.

A low section of brick wall and concrete footings is all that remains. Difficult to assess as heavily overgrown with garden plants.

The Wireless Telegraphy station, otherwise known as W/T, used radio to maintain long range communication, using Morse code and teletype. The building housed the transmitters and would have been surrounded by an array of aerial. WT sites were normally sited away from the main airfield and technical site. The structure was surrounded by an earthwork berm which provided some protection from air attack.
The structure is in relatively complete condition though the roof has been replaced in sections with modern sheeting which has subsequently suffered storm damage. An entrance has been widened to allow agricultural re-use. Approximately 50% of the protective earthwork berm which surrounded the structure remains in situ.

Desercreat Farm
Site was used to house E company, 505th Parachute infantry Batt., 82nd Airborne Division from 1943-44.
Only concrete bases remains, largely covered in moss.
John P McCann, Passing through: The 82nd Airborne Division in Northern Ireland, 1943-44 (Newtownards, 2005)

The structure appears in good condition with its original galvanised steel cladding. It is used for commercial storage.

Single storey structure used to accommodate administration personnel for maintenance wing.
The structure, subdivided into eight rooms, is in poor condition. The roof and supports is missing leaving the interior open to the elements. The building may have been repurposed after its initial construction as the windows were significantly narrowed.

Approximately 180 metres of trackway remains, the two dispersal hardstandings have been removed.

Part of the initial construction of the Barracks Complex and labelled on the 1854 map as ‘stores’. Main block of building remains as indicated on this map and larger scale 1874 survey. Enclosed courtyard to rear only accessed from the building as originally constructed. Smaller yard also to rear at western corner accessible from yard to west of building. Lean-to against this gable clearly indicated on 1874 map. Lean-to at the central section of the block indicated on the 1933 and 1955 maps though structure now removed and no trace appears to survive. Photograph from early part of twentieth century indicates a pitched slated roof with colonnade below. Courtyards to the rear largely unchanged on the 1955 map. Subsequently the new site HQ building was constructed to the front and various low-level flat-roofed extensions were constructed to the rear.
Site restored and redeveloped.
HB file for HB01/09/002 F

Concrete base of structure, likely nissen hut to accommodate soldiers.
Only concrete base remains, heavily overgrown

Site of accommodation or administration blocks associated with the station.

The rendered brick structure had three original entrances, two are now sealed with concrete blocks. The large access in the south-facing wall, has been enlarged, likely to enable parking of farm machinery. It has a concrete slab roof supported by steel beams. There are traces of internal dividing walls but these have been removed. The remains of two concrete beds remain in the floor, suggesting the site held two generators. There are significant cracks in the remaining walls but there does not appear to be any danger of structural collapse.

Provided cooking and dining facilities for officers.
This is a complex of six structures in varying degrees of dilapidation. All but one have lost sections of the asbestos sheeting rood and the westernmost structure is largely open to the elements

The site was constructed during WW2 to accommodate the training needs of troops stationed in N. Ireland prior to being sent overseas. It consisted of a target/markers gallery, butt and firing points.
The site has been redeveloped as a private target range with three new ranges constructed in recent years.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersal were normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
This 25 m diameter dispersal is in good condition though overgrown with moss.

The Type F shed was designed in 1916 as a steel-framed side entry seaplane shed. The walls could be clad in asbestos or steel sheeting. The single pitched structure to the rear of the hangar accommodated workshops and offices. Many of the Type F were removed from royal Navy Air Service seaplane sites and re-erected at RAF training schools. The Hangar was designed with a clear height of 8.5 m, a span of 30m and 61 m in length.
Based on hanger designs from World War 1, this is the stations only side-entry hangar. Its is different from the usual design as it has brick endwalls, whicher were usually steel frame clad in sheeting. This type of hangar was normally only found at Coastal Command stations.
Site in good condition, it has been clad in modern sheeting but otherwise intact. It is still in use as a hangar by the MoD.

This concrete dispersal is 18 metres wide forms part of the access road to the administration area of the race course. Slightly truncated by modern road the dispersal remains in good condition.

Site appear intact though resurfaced with modern tarmac

This runway is part of a less common 2-runway layout as a third was not permitted by the surrounding hilly topography. Originally 1, 625 meters long and 45 metres wide.
Approximately 510 metres of runway remain though most has been resurfaced. Only small parts of the south-western end retain the original surface,used a steel storage yard.

Larne ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
The site in in good condition and retains all its original structural features, including ventilation louvres, survey probe and BPI baffle..
Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)Website https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/larne-roc-post/

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the armament depot. Uncertain function.
Site remains relatively intact, repurposed as an argriculturalstore.

Concrete trackway providing access around the camp
Approx. 260 metres remains relatively intact.

Site appears intact but resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Site appears to be in good condition, resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Stuart Hall
A camp was established here in 1941 to provide emergency housing for evacuees from Belfast who had been made homeless by the bombing attacks on the city during April and May of that year. Possibly 200-300 evacuees were housed her in c. 50 nissen huts.

The sites displays characteristic fieldworks prevalent in static trench warfare of WW1. Located during Lidar survey and plotted from the results.

Approximately 1,660 metres of track remain though resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Site sat between two main store and held rubber store, but also acd as a general store and housed stores office.
Site remains in good condition, retains original roof and windows.

Camp erected during WW2 to house troops manning the battery.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1596 (Belfast, 2003) K.W Maurice-Jones, The history of coast artillery in the British army (London, 1957)

The site is heavily overgrown, but examination of photos taken during defence heritage project and aerial photos suggest there are some remains under the vegetation, though it is unclear if any of the retaining wall remains.

The main store was a facility for the storage of non-technical items such as clothing and technical equipment such as aircraft components. All incoming material was unloaded into a receiving bay where it was logged and stored away to be issued when needed. The left-hand wing was a general technical store whereas the right hand stored non-technical material. Central area contained a fitting space and local produce store. Built to a much more robust inter-war expansion period design (drawing no 2057/34).
Site is intact and in good condition. Still in use by MoD.

A shelter for small detachments of troops on guard duty.
The picket hut is in poor condition. The roof is mission and perhaps 50% of walls remain standing, but they are overgrown and in disrepair.

Eglinton airfield
Living site for personnel. Had approx. 50 structures, mostly barracks with ablution, latrines and six air raid shelters

The track is concrete surfaced with tarmac, this c. 950 m section of track is in good condition.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012)Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/WW2NI website at WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

The slipway is a concrete ramp into the water which enabled aircraft to be removed from the lake for servicing/repairs.
The concrete slipway remains in good condition.

A workshop for general maintenance of equipment with storage areas and workbenches.

Down Royal
Erected to accommodate troops.
Visible in aerial photograph, appeared to have been removed post war.
PRONI aerial photos AM/1/5/92D/81-120

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The 38m diameter concrete hard-standing appears in good condition though largely obscured by moss and vegetation. It is bisected by an agricultural track.

Hut constructed to facilitate operations at the camp.
Internet sources suggest this site is largely intact but is missing the end walls, which have been removed, likely to facilitate reuse as an agricultural shed.

The winch house held winding equipment and engine used to tow the target dollies along the target railway.
The brick and concrete structure is sunk into the ground to protect it from stray shells during training. The winding equipment and cables appear to have been mounted on the roof and fed through a hole in the roof to steel axels. The remains of the winding reels remains in situ albeit heavily corroded. The heavily corroded remains of a car can also be found inside the structure.

A concrete plinth for mounting a steel fuel tank. This would have provided fuel to the generators in the standby set house.
The plinth remains intact but the fuel tank is missing.

Romney pre-fabricated hut, likely used as a store.

The site is largely intact but in poor condition.

Small brick structure provided toilet facilities for personnel at Dispersed Living site 5.

By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ or loop dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on air frames and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
This is a 58m section of track-way. What little remains is in good condition. Within hairpin bend of racetrack, overgrown on some sections and some patching with tarmac.

Large concrete blast wall constructed to protect the camp from an accidental detonation in the laboratory area.

Brick structure provided washing and showering facilities for enlisted airmen.

Site Description Structure built to facilitate operations at the site, likely a nissen hut providing accommodation to service personnel.
Structure built to facilitate operations at the site, likely a nissen hut providing accommodation to service personnel.

No trace of the tanks or pump house survive, only the circular hardstanding remains

Barrack block comprising 11 barracks, two ablution blocks and boiler house. Built post-war. Also unidentified complex of structures in the field immediately west of site.

Provided accommodation for officers. This was described as a ‘portable hut’ design, likely made of wood and plasterboard/plywood.

Only concrete base remains with pile of demolition rubble.

Ballywoodan GCI station
Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the radar station, exact function is unknown.
The structure is largely intact on its northern end, whereas the southern end appears to have incorporated a Nissen type structure with curved roof which as now been removed. Repurposed as an animal shelter.

This is the western end of the secondary runway 09/27. It is constructed of tarmac surfaced with bitumen laid on hard-core base. This section is approximately 480m long and bisected by the Downland Road.

Approximately 290 metres of perimeter track remain. Access not possible on day of visit therefore it remains uncertain if it has been resurfaced.

Only impression where site stood now evident

This site provided accommodation for 14 enlisted troops.
Site remains in good condition, it is used as a workshop.

Brick military structure likely constructed to facilitate operations at the nearby sector operations room.
The walls are intact though badly decayed in places and the roof is in a state of collapse.

Limavady airfield
Living site for personnel. Had14 structures, mostly barracks with ablutions, latrines and air raid shelters.
Latrines, sole remaining building of dispersed site

The pen provided protection for dispersed aircraft and their crew from air attack. There were two types used during the war, Type B and E. Both consisted of two bays separated by a central spine, but this is a Type B, distinctive because of the curved/cranked outer arms. The site is constructed earthwork traverses on brick revetments with a 25-man air raid shelter to the rear of the pen, with the entrance in the apex of the bays. There is a third emergency exit to the rear. The pen could hold two aircraft.
The site is in relatively good condition, though sections of one of the outer arms has been removed. The brick shelter to the rear is intact.

In relatively good condition. Access has been opened in the rear of the structure to allow use as an agricultural store.

Store used by Home Guard (also known as Local Defence Volunteers) to keep equipment.
Site is intact and in good condition if somewhat overgrown.

This 445 metre section of track remains intact and in good condition, resurfaced post-war.

Structure appears relatively intact although there has been some damage to the edges of the concrete roof.

Shot section of 38 m of oringinal loops remain

Decoy sites were employed to draw off bombers from their intended targets by using systems of light (QL decoys) to simulate airfields, town or docks. Networks of flame sites (QF decoys) could also be used to simulate targets that had been hit by previous waves of attacking bombers. The lighting system was controlled and powered from generators housed in a protected bunker.
This is a control shelter of a QL light decoy site to an Air Ministry design CTD 151/41. It has a short access corridor with rooms to the left and right of equal size. The room to the left was the site's control room which contained switches to control light decoys such as simulated open doors, poorly blacked out skylights and to give a general impression to overhead bombers of a target with poor blackout discipline. It has an emergency escape hatch in the roof. The other room contained generators used to power the light decoys. The generators are long gone but a concrete generator bed remain.
The site remains in relatively good condition though the equipment has been removed when the site was decommissioned. The entire control room would have been mounded over with earth to provide camouflage and protection from blast, but this has all been removed.
Colin Dobinson, Fields of deception: Britain’s bombing decoys of World War II (London, 2000)

Only the concrete base remains with a small section of what may be a concrete plinth.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the site though function remains unclear.
Site appears to be intact an din good condition.

The guard house controlled access to and from the camp, with responsibility for providing security for the entire station. The guardhouse also had facilities for short-term detention of prisoners. In later years this structure also housed the barracks armoury, with secure storage of small arms and ammunition.
Site is intact and in relatively good condition

This brick-faced (the inner core of the walls is steel reinforced concrete) pillbox would have held a section with a light machine guns, wither a Vickers gun on a tripod or a Bren Gun. However it would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements. It has seven embrasures providing all-round defence.
The running guides for the steel shutters remain in place. Shutters were fitted to prevent explosives being placed in the embrasures and stop flamethrower bursts from penetrating the position. However suffocation remained a possibility as flames consumed the oxygen inside the pillbox.
This pillbox is unique in N. Ireland as it is the only known example to have been fitted with an anti-ricochet wall. This stopped rounds that entered an embrasure from passing through the position, protecting the troops manning opposite embrasures.
The site is in good condition and well maintained by the owners, Glentoran FC., who have erected a small plaque on the outside of the position.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: the fortifications of Ulster, 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)

3.2 kilometer trackway provided access to the main site and the transmitter at the peak of Benbradagh Mountain. Known locally as American Road due to its association with the USN site.
Track remains in relatively good condition.

Dozens of nissen huts were constructed in this area to house base personnel. This area is heavily overgrown but it appears many if not most of the dozens of huts constructed in this area may remains as overgrown concrete hut bases.
Sampling the area suggests dozens of hut bases bay remain extant under the undergrowth in this area.

Compacted area marks out location of firing point.

Known as Camp Keady the former mill buildings were repurposed as a billet for the 3rd Batt, 9th Regiment of the 2nd (US) Infantry division. Troops occupied the mill buildings and a Super Robins Hangar was constructed on the site, likely used for storage or vehicle maintenance.
Large sections of the mill are derelict though parts are still utilised by a local business. A Super Robins Hangar remains onsite in good condition.

Sire appears intact on aerial photos, no access on day of visit.

Lisgoole
Structure built to facilitate operations on site, exact function is unclear. Possibly picket post controlling access to site.
Sit largely intact with original roof and window frames. Large crack on western corner.

The substation provided power a correct levels for the High Frequency height finding radars.
The site of brick and cement render is in good condition. One room is accessible and contains remains of old cabling but all equipment is gone. A second room is locked and secured by original wooden door.

The structure is largely intact though it is heavily overgrown and the steel headwall is badly corroded. The entrance is covered by a steel farm gate. The site is used to store farm machinery.

Military camp constructed during WW2, composed of scores of Nissen huts. Precise function of camp is unclear. Camp sat on both sides of Gloucester Avenue, Larne.

Structure provided accommodation for officers

RAF Toome
Nissen hut facilitated operations at a dispersed living site, its exact function is unclear.
The curved roof of the structure remains but the eastern end wall has been removed to allow its reuse as an agricultural shed.

Sick quarters provided medical care for personnel on base. In addition to wards it had barracks for orderlies and an ambulance garage/mortuary.

No visible remains but subsurface archaeological remains may survive.

This concrete water tower was used to store and provide water to the camp.
The tower remains largely intact but has been converted into a domestic store.

This T2 has been re-clad and used by Acheson and Glover to store concrete products. Additional access has been opened on the western sidewall.

Ballyscullion House
Ballyscullion House was requisitioned by the War Office during WW2. Its grounds were used to house troops, initially British (4th Batt. Northamptonshire Regiment) then American. The main house was used as a HQ and officers quarters. Part of the site included a parachute drying and servicing unit. The site was returned to civilian use after the war.
House remains in good condition in private ownership, some hut bases remain.

A greenhouse for propagating plants

Area designated a training rea for live firing of small arms and light support weapons like machine guns and 2-inch mortars.

This site is designated a West Coast Type C Receiver block by its layout. Constructed of reinforced concrete, it was protected by earthwork revetments. The receiver room contained receiver sets fitted with cathode ray tube consoles which displayed incoming signals reflected by airborne targets. The operator used a goniometer to interrogate height and direction data form the incoming signal. This data was then passed to a plotter who calculated the location of the target on a plotting map.

This small tarmac dispersal is partially obscured by dumped soil, but remains in good condition.

Military structure, likely a nissen hut used to house troops.

Barrack block used to accommodate officers. It was a Nissen hut design, type ‘C’. They came in spans of 16 foot or 24 foot. Designed in 1915 by Canadian, Col P. N. Nissen, these prefabricated structures were purchased in large numbers as an alternative to brick construction, and became one of the most common structures built during World War 2. They were semi-circular in section, and normally built in multiples of 6 foot sections. They were constructed of steel ribs covered with sections of curved steel sheeting held in place by straining wires. The ends could be either brick or timber.
This hut has a span of 16 foot and was 36 feet long. The site remains in relatively good condition. The door in the eastern end-wall is a post war replacement and an opening has been made in the western wall. This has been sealed with a meatal sheeting.

Brick building to provide kitchen and dining facilities
Only concrete footings outlined with brick course remain.

Scarva House
Camp constructed to facilitate operation of the fuel depot. Hut bases visible on post-war aerial photographs.

The surface is in relatively good condition though the segments on the left and right of the dispersal have been removed.

Small brick structure for storing small arms ammunition for use in ground defence of station.
Heavily overgrown but appears concrete base may remain in situ.

Only concrete base and come brick courses remain.

Sire has been redeveloped but sections of dispersal remains along the edge of the car park.

Linear ‘Stop-Lines’ were built to support the coastal defences. These were intended to restrict and contain the movement of enemy armoured formations. Canals, river, anti-tank ditches and obstacles were protected by pillboxes, infantry trenches and anti-tank guns at key crossing points, with other bridges and culverts prepared for demolition should the enemy threaten the line. Eight stop-lines were constructed in NI. They were all concentrated east of the River Bann, with the river and the Newry Canal providing the main obstacle bisecting N. Ireland. Line A ran from the Bannmouth on the north coast to Toome where the Bann enters Lough Neagh. Line B started at the Bannfoot on the southern shores of Lough Neagh and followed the line of the River and the Newry Canal to Carlingford Lough. A sequence of lines (C to H) supported lines A and B, and fell back on the Belfast Defence Scheme which was a perimeter of forward defended localities, observation posts and roadblocks. However, this strategy was quickly seen to be flawed, as any penetration of the line compromised the whole defensive scheme. By autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland, fortified with pillboxes and roadblocks. This pillbox is placed to cover the crossing point of the Newry canal.
This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.
The entrance at the rear of the position is protected by a concrete blast wall.
The site is overgrown but remains in good condition.

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Described as small private air raid shelter constructed on brick with concrete slab roof in rear garden of domestic dwelling'
Uncertain though rise in garden appears to be remains covered over with earth.

Site used to pump water away from sewage site.
Some remains of concrete walls and steel pipe fittings remain

This was the site of the US Navy HQ established in 1942 as part of the US Base 1 Europe. Several existing structures, such as Talbot house, were commandeered, and new buildings were constructed. These included a heavily fortified concrete shelter, a guard house, communication masts and an administration building.
Most of the US-built structures have been removed. However, there are traces of the administration building on the lawn in front of the main Magee College building.

Searchlights were used to target enemy aircraft and guide in anti-aircraft fire. The could also be used to ais aerial navigators during night flying operations. Normally composed of 1-3r searchlights enclosed by earthwork berms, predictors to guide lights supported by barracks for the crew and generators buildings.
Site likely had 1-3 searchlights with supporting buildings

Site appears intact if somewhat overgrown.

Provided toilet facilities.

A ‘Tannoy’ system was used to communicate instructions to personnel across the airfield via loudspeakers across the airfield. These were connected to the amplifying equipment which was found in the Speech Broadcasting Building. The entrance was protected by a blast wall.
Site was intact until 2004 when it was demolished by the landowner. Only concrete base remains.

The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides
This 24 foot span nissen hut was used to store foodstuffs and equipment for use i the adjoining mess hall.
In good condition retaining its original windows and inner lining walls. Used as an agricultural store.

Communications tower used to maintain communications with Army HQ at Thiepval Barracks, Lisburn.
Site is a concrete tower with a platform on which communications antenna was mounted. A control cabin/substation is located at its base.

The site is a group of 9 finger parks arranged in the distinctive 'snowflake' pattern. Only one dispersal was visible on the day of visit, and it was covered with animal waste. Discussion with the landowner suggest the dispersals were covered with soil post war but the concrete remains intact under the grass.

Constructed to facilitate operations on the site, may be a magazine.

Originally constructed within the grounds of Rockport House as a camp to accommodate troops, the camp was converted to house German prisoners of war, and renamed Camp 173.
The camp was demolished post war leaving only the concrete hut bases. Site heavily overgrown, likely more hut basses remains in the undergrowth.
PRONI RAF aerial photos on file AM/1/5/9D/4175-4214

A 16 foot span Nissen, 36 feet long providing sergeants accommodation

A prefabricated air raid shelter construction of a steel pipe with a steel revetment protecting the entrance. The whole structure would have been covered in with a layer of soil with only the entrance visible. The emergency exit is at the opposite end.

Brick structure shown in aerial photos of site just after WW2. Without a field visit its function remains unclear.

Series or stage huts/sheds constructed as part of the depot. Uncertain of use.
DHP report,

The site appears largely intact, though truncated at it western side where it should join the perimeter track.

Only concrete aprons and hardstanding remain.

Nissen huts erected to accommodate troops. Approx. 6 visible on post war aerial photo.
Probing of site suggests a number if not all remains in situ.

As the possibility of war increased in the late 1930s, the government determined the greatest threat to the civil population in the coming conflict would be air attack. The Air Raid Precautions (ARP) was established as a volunteer organisation. It was the cornerstone of civil defence. Its members distributed gas masks and policed the blackout. Heavy curtains and shutters were required on all private residences, commercial premises, and factories to prevent light escaping and so making them a possible marker for enemy bombers to locate their targets.
During raids the ARP managed air raid sirens, guided people towards shelters, reported damage and rescued those trapped in collapsed buildings. In concert with the National Fire Service, Police, Fire Guard and Women's Voluntary Service they formed the Civil Defence Services and worked to minimised the effects of bombing raids.
The town hall was used to house the ARP office, which was used as a control centre, responsible for issuing air raid warnings and coordinating fire and rescue services after an attack.
Building was returned to use as a civic building.
Peter Shire, ARP and civil defence in the Second World War (Oxford, 2011)

The site was a concrete revetted firetench. It would have accommodated a section of troops. It had a series of recesses which could have been used to store ammunition or act as emergency shelters. Largely infilled in 2004.
In 2004 it was partly infilled, but then demolished by the owner. Archaeological traces still likely to remain.
BBC report at

In relatively good condition, full original length of approximately 1,000 metres remain, however traffic has caused significant potholing in many area of the track, the southern end is in poor condition. Known as Mullanhoe Road.

Secure building designed to store blueprints of aircraft and aircraft parts.
In good condition, Post war the structure has been modified and repurposed as an explosives store.

The protected brick and concrete sleeping shelter was designed to accommodate pilots and ground crew assigned to night scramble duties. They were located close to the dispersals and fighter pens. In the event of an emergency the pilots and crew did not have far to get to their aircraft. It could be accessed from either end.
Site appears intact, though blast porch may have been removed. Structure sealed with modern steel door.

This site had 48,000 gallon bulk storage for aviation fuel. The site held four steel tanks, 30 feet by 9 feet. Pumps would have serviced fuel tankers which accessed the site via the roughly circular access track.

This structure was related to the operation of the heavy anti-aircraft battery, its function is unknown.

Provided access from dispersals to airfield.
100 metres of trackway remain in good condition, incorporated into road network of caravan park.

This long nissen hut (approx. 67 metres) was one of six making up a complex of wards at the military hospital. It remained in good condition and had been used for storage until it was demolished to make way for a car park .

During WW2 the Belvoir Estate was commandeered by the War Office. A Naval Armament depot was constructed with over 100 huts and stores. The River Lagan was used to move mentions, mostly naval shells and torpedoes from the depot to Belfast harbour.
Only coffer dam wharf remains.

An ordnance depot was established at Kinnegar during WW2. IN 1942 it was home to 109th Quartermaster Batt. (Service company) and also the 314th (US) Quartermaster Motor Transport Supply Depot. A POW camp was also erected at the site to hold German prisoners. The POW camp was demolished post-war but the camp remains a British Army logistical base to the present day.
The site has been expanded and altered over the years but at least 10 contemporary WW2 structures remain including six long prefabricated stores, likely Romney Huts.
https://archives.wartimeni.com/location/co-down/holywood/

Erected to accommodate airmen stationed at Greystone radar station
DHR 00168-000 Greystone Chain Home Radar Station-1942_004

The 44m in diameter concrete hard-standing remains in good condition. Several hold-fasts for securing aircraft in windy conditions can bee seen in the surface of the dispersal. Sections are obscured by dumps of rubble and building hardcore, probably the remains of demolished dispersals from adjoining fields.

This single storey structure was used to house a single fire engine (known as a fire tender) tasked with firefighting and rescue on the airfield.
Site appears in good condition. It is well maintained and its roof is a modern replacement.

Used to store explosive bombs. This site had two brick storage sheds surrounded by earthwork berms and blast wall traverses. Sited away from airfield and accommodation sites for reasons of safety. Each of the brick and concrete sheds had a high level steel gantry with a block and tackle for lifting bombs in and out of the structure.
The annotation "FS" on the RAF map suggests this may have been the fusing shed where bombs were fused before issue during missions and defused before return to stores if they returned unused.
Normally there are no visible traces of this site but the access track appears as a grass mark during prolonged periods of dry weather.

Also known as a Compass Swing, the compass rose was painted on a circular concrete pad and was aligned to magnetic north. It was used by aircraft to calibrate their magnetic compass. The entire aircraft could be turned to align the aircraft's compass reading with those painted on the edge of the rose.
Small size suggests the site was used for fighter aircraft.
Hardstanding appears intact, track out to site only appears as a grassmark n some aerialphotos.

Concrete trackway providing pedestrian access around the camp.
Approx. 100 metres of trackway remain, more may be in situ below the sod.

The main house was commandeered for use as officers quarters. It was returned to civilian uses after the war.

The 117 m of perimeter track remains in good condition though overgrown with moss and grass growing from expansion joints.

Visibility

Also known as a canteen on contemporary maps, this site provided dining and kitchen facilities for personnel stationed at the airfield.
Built to 1930s expansion period design, this site remains intact, still in use by MoD (though modern use unknown)

Provided bathing facilities for WRNS
In good condtion, refurbished and used as a childrens nursery. New windows and roof fitted.

This brick and concrete store was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. The store had steel doors (now missing) and a steel gantry connected to a blast wall, which was used for loading and unloading the store.
The site remains in good condition, it has been repurposed as a cattle shed.

This site housed offices for the day-to-day administration of a number of squadrons. Contained within the building were the crew rooms, which gave crews somewhere to rest and relax while waiting on call at the dispersals.
This complex is composed of 4 sixteen foot span nissen huts connected via a central corredor. It is in relatively good condition though heavily overgrown.

Structure built to facilitate operations on site, exact function is unclear. May have been used for vehicle inspection/repair.
Structure is largely intact and secured though heavily overgrown.

The runway is almost 2,000 yards long. Though there has been some light industrial buildings built on the runway and dumping (spoil and building rubble), the fabric of the runway is largely intact.

Concrete and brick blast shelter constructed when site was in use as a quarry, extracting material for construction of naval facilities.
Structure appears intact however largely buried by dumped spoil.

Provided accommodation for officers. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters
Concrete walled structure, modern roof, converted into dwelling/holiday homes.

This site represents a change in government policy away from stoplines to defended nodal points as Kilrea was designated as a garrison town with roadblocks and pillboxes defending the approaches to the town.
The square brick and concrete pillbox is set into the southern boundary of a church and graveyard. It has three staircased embrasures to prevent ricochets entering the position. The structure was entered by a door at the rar of the site but this has been filled in with soil overburden. Remains of steel shutter rails can be seen on the inside. The steel shutters were designed to protect the occupants from blast and attack from flamethrowers.
The south facing embrasure was bricked up during the Troubles after security forces were attacked from the position.
The site is heavily overgrown but appears to survive relatively intact and in good condition.

An existing farm outbuilding was commandeered and reused as a belt filling section of the armoury. Belts of machine gun ammunition were filled using belt-filling machines which placed bullets into the belt from a gravity fed hopper.
The structure has had a replacement galvanized roof added post-war but this has largely collapsed. The interior is overgrown. The only features remaining likely to be have added sue to its function are the steel security bars added to the windows.
Demonstration of belt filling at www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=CadHhobV8hc

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing airmen's accommodation.
Only concrete base remains, box planters erected on surface as part of insect garden.

Thick wooden poles erected in lines to prevent airborne-glider landings on the mudflats. Identified during inter-tidal survey
MRD 148:019 Identified during inter-tidal survey.
Not visible on day of survey but reported in the maritime survey as 'These anti-aircraft defences consist of two parallel rows of wooden posts, similar to MRD 148:15. They begin in an area of badly eroded salt marsh and run across flat, sandy foreshore in a north/south alignment. The posts are fairly evenly spaced, and some lean out sharply, away from their counterparts in the opposite row. It is uncertain whether this is deliberate, or is a result of erosion. A total of 64 posts are contained in the two rows, which are about 85m in length. Posts measure between 8cm and 15cm in diameter, and between 10cm and 30cm in height. The spacing between the posts is approximately 3.84m, and between the rows 4.0m. A further 42 similar posts lie about 25m north-east'

Pontoons were used to ferry supplies and munitions to flying bats as it was safer to arm aircraft like the Short Sunderland after it had entered the water. This is a group of three pontoons abandoned post-war.
Pontoons appear intact if overgrown with weed and subject to deterioration.

Cushendall ROC post
The site is in good condition with its main hatch, bomb power indicator baffle and ventilation shaft intact, however the ventilation louvres have been removed and sealed with concrete. The access hatch is sealed with a robust steel cover. The concrete plinth on which the hatch sits has cracked and started to fall away from the shaft.
Website www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/cushendall-roc-post/

This structure provided showering and bathing facilities.
The structure has significantly collapsed along its central section but the northern 30% retains its original windows and asbestos sheet roof. There is also a stack of asbestos sheeting sitting near the entrance. Within the collapsed area the structure is heavily overgrown.

Site appears intact if obscured by grass cover.

Drumbo ROC post
Site Description The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Land line communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated mater post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
Site remains in relatively good condition and retains its original hatch. The ventilation louvres are missing as is the baffle plate for the Bomb Power Indicator.
Subterrania Britannica website at https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/drumbo-roc-post/

The early examples of Chain Home Low sites had separate transmitter and receiving posts. The equipment was protected by surrounding brick/concrete retaining walls. The equipment. This concrete brick compound housed the receiving antenna, which rotated in tandem with the nearby transmitting antenna.
The retaining wall and covered access survive relatively well though the southern section of the wall has been removed, likely to facilitate storage of agricultural machinery or stores.
The Radar Pages at www.radarpages.co.uk Frontline Ulster at

This was an underground refuge to protect the crew and engineers working at the station in the event of a nuclear exchange. It is accessed via a door in the floor of the main transmitting all. It has an emergency escape tunnel leading out into the car park. At the time of visit is was being used for storage.
Duncan Campbell, War plan UK (London, 1982)

Large 195 square metre magazine with concrete walls and earthwork traverse protection. The brick store was used to store ammunition and/or explosives. The flat-roofed store had a steel gantry connected to a blast wall to aid loading/unloading of munitions.
Site appears intact and in good condiiton.

Housed bathing facilities for officers
In relatively good condition. retains original boiler, roof and water tower. Heavily overgrown in sections, may have been converted to bar in post war use.

Sandy Bay Flying Boat Station
Narrow wooden jetty used by craft to service flying boat moorings.
The deck has long gone leaving only the wooden piles.
WW2NI at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

The station retains the original Blaw-Knox mast, which was commissioned on 20 March 1936. It is the only known example remaining in western Europe. Originally 475 feet in height, it has been slightly shortened to accommodate a change in broadcast frequency.
Duncan Campbell, War plan UK (London, 1982)

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the armament depot.
Demolished c. 2017 for housing development

Providing access to barracks, likely built post war
73 metres of concrete track remain, largely obscured by grass

A small brick structure used to house a water pump.
A small overgrown brick structure remains in situ.

This is the southern section of the perimeter track. It is poured concrete with expansion joints and sections surfaced with bitumen. Some elements of the Mark II taxiway lighting remain. The mark II system was standardised in 1941. This section is 288 m long.

Structure designed to protect occupants from blast and splinters from nearby explosions during an air raid.
Site appears intact in front garden of a domestic dwelling. It has been secured with a modern steel gate.

Ballykelly
Site was extant in 2017 but appears to have been removed for agricultural field clearance

Structure erected to facilitate operations on site. Function remains unclear.
Structure was relatively intact until recently, appears to have been demolished sometime between 2019 and 2020.

Site remains in good condition, slightly overgrown.

During the early stages of WWII, air controllers used Chain Home radar to position fighter aircraft, normally with an accuracy of around five miles. However, this was not accurate to ensure an intercept in poor weather conditions or at night. While more exact intercepts could be achieved by directing the radar aerial at the target, this would prevent the radar from continuing to track other target plots. Consequently, there was a clear need for dedicated radar sites and controllers for vectoring in fighters on incoming enemy aircraft.
Ballydonaghy was operational by January 1943.
Site would have consisted of a radar aerial, operations block, power room and ancillary support structures.
Only concrete bases remains at the site of the radr with some upstanding remains of possibly a domestic/accomodation structure 300 metres to the north.

Only concrete base remains with animal shelter built surface.

Montalto
The Montalto estate was requisitioned by the war office to base troops during WW2. A temporary camp was erected to house troops providing accommodation and domestic facilities.
PRONI 1952 aerial photo in file AM/1/5/11C/4101-4150

Described in DHP report as a sandbagged position.
Reported as non-extant in original DHP report

The only remaining feature in recent years was the ammunition store and radar ramp, however the radar ramp was demolished in advance of development in 2010.

This site does not appear on the original WW! maps of the battery but its construction suggests it was an operational part of the battery during WW2. Its function during this time is uncertain.
Site remains intact. It has two seaward facing windows protected by steel shutters.

Site remains in good condition with original roof and windows. It is used as offices for recycling business.

The site was used to mount a Mark VII six inch breech loading gun. The gun is mounted on a steel pedestal and fires over a concrete barbette with a sloping concrete glacis. It was supplied from a ready to use supply of ammunition. This was stored in a series of nine recesses, five held 20 cartridges each, four stored 25 shells each. These were protected by steel doors (now missing). Shells and cartridges were fed into the gun position from the magazine below via separate hoists.
The guns had an effective range of approximately six miles. Ammunition came in two parts. The explosive shell weighed 100 pounds and was propelled by a separate cartridge. this was cordite packaged in a silk bag.
In 1940 new concrete gun houses (known at the time as shields) were erected to protect the guns and their crews from aerial attack.
The site is in good condition. It was re-armed with a Mk VII gun in 1993.

This was the underground HQ and command post for the GOC of British forces in NI during WW2. It is a cut and cover construction with two nissen huts constructed inside and excavated pit then covered with soil. It was accessed vis a small stairway but this has been sealed with brickwork. There is also an emergency escape shat covered by a concrete slab.
The site is split into four sections pertaining to
1/A/Q office which dealt with supply and logistics
2/GS (I) Office, which dealt with intelligence
2/ G (Ops) Operations room
4/the GOC''s office.
Access was not possible during the duration of the survey though a site visit during the original Defence heritage project showed the site to have been largely intact if a bit waterlogged, with wooden and steel fittings subject to corrosion and decay in the damp environment.

Part of the system of controlling fighter aircraft, a very High Frequency (VHF)/direction finding network was established. Direction finding equipment at these sites allowed pilots to calculate their position by transmitting a signal that was fixed by triangulation. The sites consisted of a small transmitter and receiver block each with a 90 foot aerial. This was the site of the transmitter block.
No visible remains but probing suggests subsurface traces of the concrete footings remain.

Workshop for armourers working on aircraft ground maintenance crews. Used for aircraft gun cleaning and general equipment and ammunition maintenance.
Only concrete base remains, though heavily overgrown

Constructed to facilitate operations on site. Owner suggested it may have been part of a vehicle inspection pit.

The original 1,200 metres of track remains, largely resurfaced with tarmac. The original concrete likely survives underneath. Known as Kinrush Road.

Site resurfaced with modern tarmac but concrete likely intact beneath.

This 150 foot/46m dispersal is totally overgrown but remains intact beneath the sod cover.

The site remains largely intact,though there has been damage caused to the northern section where a channel has been cut away.

Site of camp providing for domestic needs of troops manning the battery
Quarry warehouse constructed on site post-war.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1596 (Belfast, 2003) K.W Maurice-Jones, The history of coast artillery in the British army (London, 1957)

The site remains relatively intact, it is now used as an agricultural store.

Military camp constructed during WW2, likely composed of nissen huts, its precise function remains unclear.
Removed post-war. Traces may remains sub-surface

The ramp remains in good condition however the field boundaries defining the extent of the GL mat has been removed in recent years (possibly c. 2019)

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments
The site remains in relatively good condition, retaining the full circuit of its walls and all ammunition recesses, though there is collapse on the western wall.

Site appears intact on aerial photographs

There is also evidence of WW2 era section post, trenches and post war shell scrapes/slit trenches.
There are shallow but extensive remains in this area.

A concrete and brick structure designed to protect from blast an shell-splinters from near-misses. This civilian shelter was described as having benches down the side walls and protected by blast walls on either ends.

Narrow Water castle

Military hut constructed to accommodate the crew of the HAA battery. Exact function uncertain, likely barracks
Only hut base remains and it is heavily overgrown, some traces of brickwork on southern end.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. It was equipped with concrete benches and was designed to accommodate 25. Opposite the entrance was the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
The brick shelter is in good condition and is sealed with wooden pallets. It is abutted by a modern agricultural storage shed.

Military camp constructed during WW2, likely composed of nissen huts, its function remains unclear. Hutted site lined the field boundary.

Sited at the eastern edges of dispersed Site 8, map evidence suggests this is a picket post, but the design is not the same as other picket posts on airfields elsewhere. Moreover the style of the brickwork is dissimilar to that on the rest of the airfield. At this stage of survey it is unclear if this is a structure related to airfield activity.
This is a square brick and cement render structure with a concrete roof and steel framed windows. There are vent bricks and possibly a steel hatch in the roof, features atypical of a picket post.

130 metre section of perimeter track, possibly 50% resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Camp constructed to house troops manning the HAA battery.

The site is a smally rendered brick hit. It does not appear on the MoD maps of the airfield but local farmer who was a child when the site was operational noted he remembered aerials sited around the hut. This suggest it was either a wireless telegraphy hut or a High Frequency radio direction finding site fir guiding aircraft back to their home base.

Linear ‘Stop-Lines’ were built to support the coastal defences. These were intended to restrict and contain the movement of enemy armoured formations. Canals, river, anti-tank ditches and obstacles were protected by pillboxes, infantry trenches and anti-tank guns at key crossing points, with other bridges and culverts prepared for demolition should the enemy threaten the line. Eight stop-lines were constructed in NI. They were all concentrated east of the River Bann, with the river and the Newry Canal providing the main obstacle bisecting N. Ireland. Line A ran from the Bannmouth on the north coast to Toome where the Bann enters Lough Neagh. Line B started at the Bannfoot on the southern shores of Lough Neagh and followed the line of the River and the Newry Canal to Carlingford Lough. A sequence of lines (C to H) supported lines A and B, and fell back on the Belfast Defence Scheme which was a perimeter of forward defended localities, observation posts and roadblocks. However, this strategy was seen to be flawed as any penetration of the line compromised the whole defensive scheme. By autumn of 1940, the defensive policy had shifted away from stop-line defences to garrison towns/nodal points (built-up areas such as villages and towns, fortified as strong points) which would obstruct an enemy along its line of advance. There were twenty-seven nodal points designated throughout Northern Ireland, fortified with pillboxes and roadblocks.
Pillbox constructed to guard access to and from town centre. Heavily camouflaged as derelict lorry.

Randalstown ROC post
The site is in relatively good condition although in recent years it has lost the louvre on the ventilation shaft.
Website https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/randalstown-roc-post/

The runway layout is the traditional three runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. The runway remains in good condition.
The concrete and tarmac runway survives to its full original length of 280 m, however the grass section of the runway has been truncated by the construction of the Newtownards ring-road. An 18m wide strip has been resurfaced to facilitate light aircraft and micro-lights.

A long Quonset hut that was used as a dining facility for officers.
Traces appear as a parch mark on aerial photos.

Camp constructed to house military personnel during WW2. May have been associated with ordnance depot on the opposite side of road. Approx. 20 huts.

Concrete trackway providing access to firing points for trainee anti-tank gun crews
Approximately 220 metres of track way remains relatively intact though overgrown and showing some surface damage.

Bannvale House
Bannvale House was requisitioned by the War Office to house troops during WW2. From Oct 1943-Mat 1944 the site was used to house elements of the 6th (US) Cavalry Regiment.

This 400 metres of track remains in good condition, it is a private road providing access to 2 dwellings.

Used to house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V. Usually enclosed by square brick compound.

Steel-framed general-purpose store
Only the concrete base remains. Obscured by soil overburden from nearby construction.

Camp contained RAF barracks, ablutions and sick quarters.

Flight crews coming from their respective Fight Training Schools were qualified to fly and operate aircraft, they were no ready for operational units until they became familiar with the types of aircraft with which their operational squadron was equipped. Operational Training Units (Combat Crew Replacement Centres for the USAAF) were designed to train crews on the aircraft they would fly on operations. An instructional site housed a suite of synthetic trainer which could simulate flight operations on the ground in safety and under the supervision of instructors. The AML bombing teacher projected a moving map on which the bombardier used a mock bomb-sight to hit a target and passed instructions to the pilot, who could alter the course of the ‘flight’ over the map according to instructions from the bombardier, who calculated wind and speed as on a real mission. Timing after bomb release was assessed by instructors to determine the accuracy of the simulated bomb run.
Access could not be gained as the site is secured inside a solar farm. However, images from other websites (see sources of information) show the site to remain in good condition, with internal steel stairways.The upper floor retains plinth for mounting moving-map projector, lamps and traversing motor. A section of the asbestos sheeting roof appears to have been lost. Oddly a 'base batter' type reinforcement has been added to the structure suggesting thee may have been some structural integrity issues in the past.
https://www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

Intact and in good condition, repurposed as an animal shelter

Only hardstanding remains, largely obscured by dumped timber

The operations block was the central control for all flight operations from the station. Orders were received via a telex room and flight plans, targets plotted on target maps, crew listings and final planning for flight operations took place here. Finalised plans, distress procedures and operational radio frequencies were passed on to the crews in the crew briefing room. It was reinforced to operate while under attack
The structure is in good condition and well-maintained as it has been converted into a cafe servicing the caravan park.

Northern Ireland Regional War Room
In the early 1950s the government began a programme of constructing protected regional commissioners offices, known as War Rooms. The site was designed to act as a hub of government as central government control was expected to be compromised under nuclear attack conditions. The site was expected to protect the commissioner and their staff, collect and filter incoming information and disseminate decisions for action outside the site.
By the later 1950s, therefore, a new plan was devised consisting of ‘Regional Seats of Government’ (RSG), larger structures able to hold a staff of around 300, with upgraded communications systems. As a result the Mount Eden Park facility was replaced in c.1958-59 by an RSG at Gough Barracks in Armagh City.
The two storey war room was designed around a central map and information filtering room. around which could be found offices, dormitories, plant rooms, a telephone exchange, canteen and assorted stores, toilets. The walls were constructed of thick (poss 1.5 metre) reinforced concrete. An elaborate air filtration system was fitted to keep out radioactive dust., but could also filter out gas /chemical weapons.
The structure is in good condition,.It is currently used for document storage by the Courts Service
Listed Building entry for HB26/18/099
Subterranea Britannica entry at

Pellipar
A newtwork of concrete trackway providing access around the site.
Approximately 600 metres of trackway remain in good condition.

Used to dry wet clothes. Normally fitted with tubular steel rails at head height with hooks that slide along the rails for clothing to hang on. The room is heated by radiators served by an adjacent boiler room.

For reasons of safety the bomb stores were sited away from the main airfield and living sites. Stores were usually grouped according to type of weapons. This store held incendiary bombs, designed to destroy targets by starting fires as opposed to explosive blasts. This store was designated a Type 'C' which stored ordinance in the open on a concrete hard-standing surrounded by a c-shaped earthwork traverse, faced with another straight traverse on the opposite site of the access road.
Though overgrown the concrete hard-standing and earthwork traverse's remain in good condition.

Omagh Courthouse
The site was designated as the Wartime alternative HQ for the NI Courts Service in event of a nuclear exchange.

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire. This position is approx. 30 metres long
Ephemeral traces of trench still visible,

Smaller nissen type structure used to store small arms ammunition for the battery's defence unit.
Enwalls were upstanding in 2004 but have since collapsed, traces of galvanised steel sheeting remain in situ.

The defence sites at St Angelo appear to be more dispersed across the landscape due to the hilly topography breaking lines of sight, necessitating more defensive clusters than is normally seen at WW2 airfields.
The site is heavily overgrown but appears to be a small square pillbox, similar to those (now demolished) on the western side of the airfield (eg. DHR 80:018).
The structure, shile overgrown, appears intact.

Only concrete base/base hardcore remains under the grass.

Military camp constructed during WW2, likely composed of nissen huts, its function remains unclear.
PRONI RAF aerial photos file AM/1/5/9A/3001-3040

Thick wooden poles erected in lines to prevent airborne-glider landings on the beach.
Approx. 13 pole visible on day of survey.

The main store was a facility for the storage of non-technical items such as clothing and technical equipment such as aircraft components. All incoming material was unloaded into a receiving bay where it was logged and stored away to be issued when needed. The left-hand wing was a general technical store whereas the right hand stored non-technical material. The taller central structure was the fabric store. This could accommodate large out-size aircraft components as well as rubber and bedding stores. To the rear was the packing/unpacking area and receiving bay.
The site appears in good condition, it has been repurposed as a mechanics shop.

The concrete structure has a compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof and retains its original windows and brick chimney. A large bush is growing on western gable

With the advent of the Cold War, the British airborne nuclear forces became vulnerable to pre-emptive strike. Therefore, the V-force bombers and interceptors were dispersed to airfields around the UK. These bases became host to either two or four aircraft. In order to minimise take-off times, Operational Readiness Platforms (ORP) were constructed at the dispersed bases between 1958 and 1963. The increased threat from ballistic missiles led to the construction of ORPs at the end of runways to further improve reaction times to fifteen minutes’ readiness. This policy was known as ‘quick reaction alert’.

Constructed to facilitate operations at the site.
Aerial photographs suggest the structure is intact.

Site remains in good condition, although gun floor is entirely obscured by vegetation.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the hangars.
This 780m section of perimeter track is in good condtion

In good condition though earthwork reverting around structure has been removed

This was built to an inter-war design (Drawing no. 723/34), resulting in much greater attention to detail and architectural licence with the design and use of building materials.
On 19 July 1941 a Bristol Blenheim aircraft returning from a training flight hit wires during a low-level pass, crashing into the NAAFI killing a six crew and ten on the ground, including six women who worked in the NAAFI.
The structure was repaired/rebuilt after the accident.
The building is in good condition and well maintained. Still in use by MoD.

The Bailey bridge was designed by Donal Bailey i 1940-41. It was a pre-fabricated steel truss bridge and was used extensively by the British and US military. The steel elements were small enough to be carried in a truck and could be constructed by hand with simple tools and without need of heavy equipment. It was strong enough to carry contemporary tanks and could be narrow pedestrian or wider vehicular brides of almost any desired length.
The original span was demolished by the British army but later replaced with a bailey bridge. Put in place by British army with construction of a permanent vehicle checkpoint.
Structure appears intact and in good condition.

Ballyedmond Camp
Concrete trackway provided access across the camp.
80 metres of track appear relatively intact.

The small brick compound remains in relatively good condition though it is overgrown with vegitation. It retains original barbed wire in situ.

Running east to west for almost 1,270 metres, the runway is largely intact. Farm buildings and dumping of soil has obscured significant lengths of the runway, however the fabric appears to survive undisturbed.

East Twin Island Fort
The position at East Twin Island was developed in response to a perceived threat of saboteurs using boats to enter Belfast docks. A small hutted camp was established in 1912 armed with two machineguns, which protected both the Victoria and Musgrave channels. However, with the outbreak of war in 1914 this was seen as inadequate and the fort was reinforced with the addition of two 12-pounder Quick Firing (QF) guns. These were mounted on two square concrete towers connected by a steel walkway. Construction of two searchlight positions (onw within the fort, the other on West Twin Island) allowed the guns to engage targets at night.
The site was handed over to the Belfast harbour Commissioners in 1921. However, war in 1939 saw the site reactivated as three 75mm anti-aircraft guns were mounted from the at or near the site..
The construction of the dry dock in 1964 removed all traces of the fort.
Construction of dry dock removed all traces of the fort.
Bill Clements, Defending the north: the fortifications of Ulster 1798-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)
RAF Photos held at PRONI, file AM/1/5/92A/121-160
https://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/en/image/XAW019187

A barn/agricultural shed has been constructed on the 38 meter diameter concrete hardstanding, but the dispersal remains in good condition.

Site was constructed beside the district hospital. Aerial photograph shows long nissen hut wards, typical of WW2 military hospitals.
PRONI aerial photos from 1951, taken by RAF, file AM/1/5/9D/4245-4268

Provided toilet facilities for base personnel.

This office was used to brief and debrief flight crew before and after flight operations.
Formerly site of a wooden structure, only the concrete base remains.

Barrage balloon were used as a for of air defence. They were large balloons filled with hydrogen under which were hung steel cables into which low-flying aircraft could collide. When raised they forced enemy aircraft to fly at higher altitudes, making them more vulnerable to attack by friendly fighters and anti-aircraft guns. Equipment normally consisted of lorries and concrete tethering blocks to secure the balloon.

The site appears to be in relatively good condition. Site was secured on day of field visit therefore closer inspection not possible.

The site is in relatively good condition with some original internal doors remaining. Part of the roof is missing and the boiler room annex has collapsed. Post war the owner fitted agricultural machinery which led to the removal of the projection floor and the first floor containing the projection table and lamp mount.

This site was abandoned and grassed over after the layout of the airfield was changed between 1941-43, likely as it was now too close to the new alignment of the north-south runway (DHR 0025:003)

The small brick and concrete shelter protected the crew tasked with operating the decoy site during a raid. It was equipped with a telephone and switch gear used to control the ignition of the flame groups. Its main entrance was protected by a blast wall and an emergency escape hatch is on the roof. The blast wall was demolished post war.
Structure is largely intact though overgrown.
https://www.ww2ni.com/

Likely surrounded by a wire fence only the concrete hard-standing remains. It is littered with hard core and rubble.

This site contained the High Frequency Detection Finding equipment, known as Huff Duff for short, was a radio transmitter used to guide aircraft over long distances. Tracking aircraft could be difficult overland, therefore stations could tune into the transmissions of friendly aircraft. Bearings were sent to sector control stations where a number of bearings from different HFDF stations could triangulate the positions of friendly aircraft. It was a key piece of technology in the air defence network that enabled effective command and control of fighter aircraft when airborne. HFDF was also used to guide aircraft back to their home fields. The equipment was housed in a three storey tower, wooden to avoid electromagnetic interference on the equipment.
This is an octagonal brick blast wall which enclosed the wooden tower which held the HFDF equipment and operators. The tower is gone but some concrete footings remain within the enclosing wall.

This concrete dispersal is slightly overgrown but in good condition.

The grounds of Pellipar House were requisitioned during WW" and the grounds used as an ammunition depot. Three large concrete magazines and concrete trackways remain.
Three large magazines and associated trackways remain in situ.
Site Visit Carried Out? Yes
Date Surveyed 4/8/2022

The magazine was of a prefabricated design produced by the Armco International Corporation of Middletown Ohio, and sometimes referred to as Armco huts. Measuring 20' x 50', the structure is a curved steel hut with steel end walls, covered with a layer of earth to provide extra protection, which was then seeded to provide a level of camouflage. Ventilation was provided in the headwall to prevent condensation within the magazine. The magazines at Fincarn were used to store five and three inch naval shells, torpedo warheads, depth charges and small arms ammunition. These were brought to the US navy operating base at Lisahally.
Site remains in relatively good condition, although the structure has lost its doors. Repurposed as an agricultural shed/builders store.

Ballygolan House
Site of a military camp constructed during WW2.

Irvinestown ROC post
This site is relatively intact though the survey probe and bomb-power indicator baffle have been removed. The ventilation louvres are missing and the steel hatch as been replaced with a concrete slab fitted in 1988.
Subterrania Britannica at https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/irvinestown-roc-post/

Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the site. Likely a nissen hut used as a barracks.
Concrete base remains under the sod level.

This site was built to facilitate operations at the camp, its exact purpose is unclear. This site is different from the usual hut as it has a braised brick foundation wall.

This is a 50,000 gallon capacity water tank built into the hillside to provide water to the airfield and adjoining camps.
The concrete water tank is intact and in good condition.

This 360 m length of this section of perimeter track is in relatively good condition. Constructed of poured concrete surfaced with bitumen, much of its surface is now overgrown.

The Bellman hangar was designed in 1936 as a temporary facility capable of being erected or dismantled quickly by unskilled labour with basic equipment. Time taken to erect one hanger was estimated at 500 man hours. From 1938-40, around 400 were constructed across the UK. Built in two sizes, this hanger was drawing number 8349/39, the smallest of the type. It may also have been slightly lower, with a 17 foot clear height instead of the usual 25 feet.
Only the concrete hardstanding remains. Stable blocks and an agricultural shed have been built on the western side.

Provided washing, showering and latrine facilities
The site is in good condition but has been altered post-war. A new corrugated galvanised steel roof has been added and the ablutions annex has been joined to the main block with modern brickwork. The entrance has been sealed as have all the windows.

The Wireless Telegraphy station, otherwise known as W/T, used radio to maintain long range communication, using Morse code and teletype. The building housed the transmitters and would have been surrounded by an array of aerial. WT sites were normally sited away from the main airfield and technical site.
Access was not permitted and the site is heavy overgrown, but aerial photographs suggest there are some remains extant.

Ardnaveigh House
A camp was established during WW2 which was occupied by US troops, notably 3992 Quartermaster Truck Company. Only two structures remains, which has been suggested were an ablutions block and mess facilities.
The ablutions block is overgrown but largely intact, the second structure has lost its roof in recent years and is now in poor condition. Subsurface remains may exist of other structures.

On-street concrete and brick entrances for basement air raid shelters. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the armament depot.
Demolished c. 2017 for housing development.

Site was constructed to provide fallout protection to engineers working the station during a nuclear exchange. This was likely built to replace the underground shelter inside the main building. It has one main door and an emergency escape hatch.

Small section of 4 park dispersal remaining. Parks truncated by development of caravan park.

The site is heavily overgrown, but examination of photos taken during defence heritage project and aerial photos suggest there are some remains under the vegetation, though it is unclear if any of the retaining wall remains

Mill and later dying works converted to use as a Royal Navy victualling stores depot. The site was returned to civilian use after the war.
The majority of the mill structures remain intact if in disrepair.

Structure erected to accommodate crew of HAA battery. Precise function unclear, likely a barracks.
Site heavily overgrown, only concrete base remains

Landing pad for helicopters flown into site. The helipad provides a clearly marked hard surface away from obstacles where such aircraft can land safely.
The helipad hardstanding is intact but the marking have weathered away.

The compass rose was painted on a circular concrete pad and was aligned to magnetic north. It was used by aircraft to calibrate their magnetic compass, the procedure was called a compass swing, and involved turning the entire aircraft on the hardstanding.
Site appears intact though no trace of marking are apparent.

Designed and built by Teeside Bridge and Engineering, these small hangars were constructed mainly on Royal Navy Air Service airfields to accommodate folding wing aircraft. Sliding doors were provided only at one end. There were two types, 50 feet long and 70 feet. This site is the larger 70 foot type.
The site appear in relatively good condition, retaining its original cladding.

Randalstown Market Yard
Randallstown market yard was used to billet troops from the Royal Electrical and Mechanical engineers, later US troops
Large nissen type structure used to facilitate military operations.
Site in relatively good condition, repurposed as a mechanics shop.

Road constructed to bypass northern and eastern sections of runway
241 m of concrete road remain in good condition, it is now a private road.

This site is designated a West Coast Type C Transmitter block by its layout. Constructed of reinforced concrete, it was protected by earthwork revetments, but these have been removed, with the only traces of the earthworks remaining on the roof. It has two opposing entrances leading to the transmitter room and adjoining air-conditioning and heating plant room. The transmitting sets produced significant quantities of heat, therefore, a ventilation system was required. The feeder outlet bay allowed cables to pass from the transmitter block to the steel transmitter aerials, carrying high voltage radio frequency power. At least one, possibly two reinforced concrete ventilation stacks in the roof.
The entire structure is coated in a thick layer of bitumen designed to prevent moisture seeping into the building.
Though the earthworks have been removed the structure remains in relatively good condition.

Not visible on day of survey, plotted from aerial photos.

A network of thick wooden poles erected in lines to prevent airborne-glider landings on the beach. Erected in grid line lines.
Remains of pole protruding from the sand, most only stumps but some over 2 metres in height. six clusters visible on aerial photos.

Long open-sided for servicing/repairing British Overseas Airways Corporation aircraft

Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected b y integral blast walls. This example was divided into 4 separate rooms with their own entrances and emergency escape hatches in the internal dividing walls.
Site remains in good condition, it was converted to use as a pig pen post war but is now disused. Heavily overgrown.

Gosford Castle
Hutted camp constructed to facilitate operations t the base, likely barracks.

Brick compound used to house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.
The brick compound is relatively intact.

Main gateway used to control access to and from the refugee camp.

Provided washing and bathing facilities for sergeants and airmen.
The site is in good condition as it retains its original asbestos roof, vents and some window frames. It has been repurposed as a cattle shelter.

Structure is in good condition retaining original steel roof vents. The northern wall entrance has been enlarged post-war to allow access to farm machinery.

A structure used to store ammunition or explosives. Normally a semicircular steel structure covered in a layer of earth.
Site heavily over grown but the potential for surviving features remains

Sydenham Airfield
One of six built at the start of WW2 at Sydenham, this is the only one now remaining.
Brick offices built on western end possibly post war.
Re-clad post-war the site remains in good condition.

The concrete structure is in good condition, retains asbestos roof and some original windows. Has been converted into a holiday home.

Large area of hard-standing, possibly constructed with intention to site a hangar but it was never completed.
In relatively good condition, used as a lorry park, traffic may be erroding the surface

Only concrete hard-standing and approach track remain, heavy obscured by large dumps of spoil and rubble.

The gymnasium could be used as an indoor sports hall, lecture room, cinema or dance-hall. The annex on the eastern end of the hall could be converted into a chapel with vestry. The whole building could be converted into a church using folding wooden partitions and sliding rails. Wooden seats could be laid out in the sports hall to accommodate the congregation.
The site is well preserved and maintained. Access could not be gained as it was secured by a perimeter fence. The roof of the main building has been replaced with modern sheeting, but the annex retains the original asbestos sheeting and vents. Upvc windows fitted. It is now used as an Orange hall.

Erected to accommodate the crew of HAA battery. Examination of photo (DHR 00022-000 Heavy anti-aircraft battery 1946-001) shows narrow windows suggesting this was an ablutions block.
Heavily overgrown, only concrete base remains.

Office for the Royal Navy Regulating Branch (now Royal Navy police) and office of the Master at Arms and responsible for enforcing regulations and discipline . Composed of 2 nissen huts with a brick veranda.
Most of the site is in good condition, though one of the nissen huts has been demolished leaving only the concrete base and single gabel.

Provided toilet facilities for personnel.
Refurbished and well-maintained, this site is used as a store.

Site remains largely intact, part of the steel head wall has detached and the steel door are missing. Repurposed as an agricultural store

Range butt which acted as backstop/bullet catch on rounds fired downrange.
But was contracted of soil and rubble piled against a natural slop, parts of the south end may have been removed.

There is 259 m of perimeter track remaining in this southern section. It is constructed of poured concrete with expansion joints and surfaced with bitumen/tarmac.

Military structure used to facilitate operations at the site.
https://www.ww2ni.com/cofermanaghairfields.htm

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The 45m diameter hardstanding is in good condition but access truncated by race track, used to store tyres and building rubble.

A small target range used for small arms practice. Lack of information makes precise dating difficult, could be WW2, could be inter or post war used by the security forces.
Sections of the butt remain as well as the firing points.

This linear fieldwork dug as a means of concealment from enemy observation and protection from enemy fire. Likely main function was a communication trench to allow troops to move about area around battery under cover. Plotted by HED surveyors in 2015.
This shallow trench runs for 64 metres and runs behind by the machine gun emplacement (DHR 315:018).
Historic Environment Division GPF trench survey 2015

This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for airmen.

Structure accommodated dining facilities for service personnel.
Site has been renovated on recent years, with removal of front porch and rendering of exterior walls.

Single storey structure used to accommodate administration personnel for maintenance wing.
Overgrown and sealed with modern steel doors.Windows sealed with galvanised steel sheeting. The roof has been replaced with modern sheeting with sections in a state of collapse.

Also known as a Gas Cleansing Station. This structure was established by the Air Raid Precautions (ARP) to provided cleaning facilities for their staff in the event of a gas attack. Larger centres would be equipped to provide for civilians affected by chemical attacks. Inside there was split into male and female areas for undressing, showing and dressing, with bins provided for contaminated clothing. Air locks were established between each section to prevent contamination.

Only the concrete sidewalls and footings remain.

Approximately 650 metres of track remain. Difficult to tell overall condition due to heavy plant traffic, eastern section in good condition.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
The structure has been incorporated into the perimeter wall of what was formerly Donegall Pass police station. Only one side and one endwall remain, the rest has been demolished.

Site intact though surfaced with modern tarmac and area between adjoining dispersal infilled,

Th-s square pillbox has one visible embrasure, which was stair-cased to prevent incoming fire ricocheting into the position. This has been sealed with concrete post war. The pillbox retained its original steel door, which allows entry into the site from the east side. The pillbox has been incorporated into a beachfront café, obscuring the west facing wall and possibly covering a second embrasure.
CBA, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, vol. 3, site gazetteer: Northern Ireland
Original DHP 124 report.

This site is composed of a concrete revetted firing trench with a concrete and brick shelter used for ammunition storage.
The site remains in largely good condition although an extension of the adjacent factory resulted in the removal of a section of the fire trench.

Magilligan 'Musketry Camp'
The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation.
Structure was used as a store.
Structure remains intact, still used as a prison store.

This small galvanised steel shed was used to store the wooden framed target used at the range. Daubed on the inside is the notice 'John Boyd. Range Warden 1941'
The shed is intact and still contains a number of wooden target frames. It would have been protected by am earthwork or concrete mantlet but this has been removed.

Unidentified structure only base remains

The site is heavily overgrown but in generally good condition retaining its original roof, window frames and some internal fittings. Significant crack in north west corner wall of structure.

Recreation/Games room run by the YWCA. This was formerly a Laing hut. Originally designed in 1940, the hut consisted of standard prefabricated lightweight timber wall sections bolted together. Externally the wooden frame and plasterboard was covered in felt sheeting to make the structure weatherproof. Inside, the walls were lined with plasterboard. The roof was made of corrugated asbestos sheeting supported by wooden trusses.

The site was original that of the North of Ireland Shipbuilding Company, which established a ship yard there in 1912. As the Royal Navy needed to expand its facilities the site was taken over by the navy as part of HMS Ferret, providing much-needed maintenance and repair facilities. The site was run by Harland and Wolff, which constructed. The graving dock was lengthened and the facilities expanded.
The shipyard closed in 1946 but a military presence was re-established during the Troubles with the construction of Fort George, a British army base. This was closed after the end of the Troubles and the site cleared for redevelopment. The only remaining feature is the wharf.
The site was composed of a large number of stores and workshops with a 140 metre wharf.
Only the concrete wharf remains but this is in good condition.
websites
http://historyhubulster.co.uk/royal-navy-world-war-ii/
http://www.theyard.info/yards/londonderry/londonderry.asp

This site is a group of 8 finger parks in the distinctive 'snowflake' layout. Site not visible but discussion with landowner suggests dispersals covered by soil post war, leaving the concrete hard-standing intact beneath the grass.

RAF Castle Archdale was opened in early February 1941, with Supermarine Stranraers and later Saunders-Roe Lerwicks being flown, carrying out ocean patrols and anti-submarine duties. The Lerwicks proved unsuitable and were quickly replaced by the more capable Consolidated PBY Catalinas. It was flying one of these Catalinas of 209 Squadron that Flying Officer Denis Briggs (co-piloted by US navy Ensign Leonard Smith) spotted the KMS Bismarck on 26 May 1941, sealing the ships fate. 201 Squadron arrived in September 1941 bringing Short Sunderland aircraft flying Atlantic patrols. Sunderlands were flown from Castle Archdale until the last operational flight in May 1945. Post war 230 squadron operated from the base until September 1946.
The base has been converted into a country park and caravan park, with most of the upstanding structures removed, though the operations room (converted into a cafe and tourist centre) and filter house remain . The hardstandings which held the hangars and aircraft sheds are now used as caravans sites. The bomb stores survive in good condition. The domestic sites have been largely removed leaving ephemeral traces in the many concrete nissen hut bases.
Joe O'Loughlin, Catalinas and Sunderlands on Lough Erne, ireland in World War 2 (2013)

This tarmac dispersal is slightly overgrown but is in good condition.

This hut is a double-Romney hut as it is twice as long as normal, 192 feet/58.5 metres long. Likely used for storage or as a workshop.
Site is in good condition, used as a workshop by local business.

Remains in relatively good condition with pipework in-situ. Some dumping inside.

Site was intact and in good condition until it was demolished by the owner in September 2018.

Provided latrine facilities for sergeants and airmen
In good condition, remains of porcelain urinals, used as shelter for cattle.

Storage depot used to store supplies during WW2. Likely occupied by US Quartermaster Depot G-10-8 1942-43, and Engineer Depot E-510 1943-44. Consisted of approx. 10 large Romney/Iris storage sheds.
Traces of trackways visible on aerial photos but sheds removed post-war.

Structure appears to have been part of a series of small-arms ranges built at Kinnegar site, late 19th C. Shown on 3rd, 4th and 5th edition OS maps.
Modern mapping suggests remnants of butt remain within overgrowth.
https://archives.wartimeni.com/location/co-down/holywood/

Some of concrete track and hardstanding remain within the area redeveloped as an army base (Moscow Camp), during the Troubles. This has now been removed leaving only hut bases and the remains of the WW2 hardstanding. Destroyed by April 2020.

Little remains of the hangar site, only concrete access track remains and it is heavily overgrown.

Springfield ROC post
The post is largely intact, though the ventilation louvres are missing from the main hatch. The ventilation shaft has been removed .
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/springfield-roc-post/

A circular filter bed, often filled with stone, used as a filter bed for sewage treatment.
The cast iron mount for the rotating arms and brick bed remain intact.

The runway layout is the traditional three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. The runways were all 50 yards wide, but three differing lengths, 1,300 yards, 1160 yards and 1000 yards.
A small section of exposed runway at the eastern end of the race circuit. Constructed of poured concrete surfaced with tarmac. Areas of tarmac have worn away to expose concrete underneath, the area is bisected by a tyre wall.

Scarva House
Scarva House was requisitioned by the War Office during WW2. A fuel storage depot was sited on the estate, along with ancillary structures.
PRONII aerial photo in file AM/1/5/11C/4151-4200

Access could not be gained to the site as construction of a solar farm has sealed off the area behind security fencing, but analysis of aerial photographs shows 80 m of the perimeter track remains, though this has had solar electric panels erected on it.

A steel storage shed used to store clothing.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012) Joe O'Loughlin, Catalinas and Sunderlands on Lough Erne, Ireland in World War 2 (2013)Breege McCusker, Castle Archdale and Fermanagh in World War II (1993)Joe O'Loughlin and John Hughes, Fermanagh in the Second World War at Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/

Site Description
Site Description Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle.
Entry is via a door at the rear though this is no longer accessible as it has been blocked with building rubble.
The pillbox would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements

Only concrete base and loading ramp remains, chicken shed built on base.

The site is in relatively good condition. Discussions on site revealed perhaps 50% of the structure has been re-clad with replacement galvanised sheeting.

This 450 meters of trackway remains intact and in good condition, resurfaced post war.

Structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear. Likely a nissen hut to accommodate refugees.

The structure remains in good condition, it is used as a store for the Gasworks Museum.

Provided toilet facilities for aircrew and ground crew while on station at the dispersal pens
Entirely overgrown on the ground, visible in aerial photographs, only concrete base remains.

Low-level shelter of brick construction to provide emergency shelter in the event of an air attack. It is semi-sunk to provide an additional level of protection. A brick blast wall protects the entrance.
The concrete benches and internal roof support have been removed and the shelter is now used as a store. A larger access has been opened in the wall facing the doorway, where the emergency escape hatch was formerly located.

This structure was used to safely train troops how to prepare and deploy hand grenades. It consisted of a concrete shelter, likely used to store unfused grenades and provide shelter for personnel from a training classes who were waiting their turn to use the range, while not exposing them to grenade splinters from the range. Solders throwing grenades on the range would stand in one of possibly three stalls (site was heavily overgrown), after throwing the trainee would duck behind the concrete parapet.
The structure is intact and in relatively good condition. The walls of the concrete shelter are covered with carved graffiti from troops who have used the structure for training from WW2 and post war.

No visible remains, however owner claimed the concrete remained intact beneath the topsoil.

The Link trainer (named after its inventor Edwin Link) provided a cheaper and safer alternative to training pilots in instrument flying than flying than flying an actual aircraft. The trainer consider of a circular wooden cubicle, painted with a landscape as would be seen from 2000 feet. At the centre was a mock-up fuselage with a cockpit equipped with basic instruments and flight controls. Movements of the plane were simulated by powerful bellows under the 'aircraft'. Night flying could be simulated by putting a blacked-out hood over the cockpit. Connections led from the trainer to an instructors desk where a trolley called a 'tracking crab' recorded the time and rate of movement of the fuselage. The instructors desk had duplicate flying controls which enabled them to assess the trainees pilots flying ability. Blocks could accommodate a number of students at the same time.
The installation at Killadeas had 4 cubicles

A circular tank constructed of brick lined with pumice stone, used to filter sewage from site.

A 90 metre tall steel mast used to transmit radar waves to detect aircraft. This was one of four at Castlerock

Only concrete base remains covered by grass.

This brick faced reinforced concrete structure was constructed as a series of fighting position connected b y short corridors.
Site is entirely obscured by heavy overgrowth and only discernible by probing. Reports on www.ww2ni.com show photographs of the interior suggesting that the site is largely intact.

The classroom housed lectures on the technology and performance capabilities of enemy aircraft.
The structure is in good condition and well-maintained. It has been repurposed as a store for light industry company.

Facility for washing a bathing.
This brick structure with cement render retains its original asbestos roof. There have been some modern repairs on the eastern end. The south facing sidewall has been re-rendered and modern UPVC windows installed. The structure is now used as a store/workshop.

Concrete trackway providing access to and around Communal Area 1.
243 metres of trackway remain in relatively good condition , though obscured in sections aby overgrowth.

The structure was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. The structure is set into a cut in the hillside and protected by heavy concrete traverses at the entrance of the cut.

Site remains in relatively good condition though windows have been sealed with modern brickwork.

Store for food stuffs for use in mess, also meat store so likely contained refrigeration units.
In relatively good condition, retains original window frames and roof.

Waringfield House
A hospital was established as Waringfield House in June 1942. It was used by US and British medical units and could accommodate 900-1,000 patients. The site remains a military hospital after the war, until the Ulster Military Hospital was transferred to Musgrave in 1963. The site became derelict and was demolished to allow housing development on the site. Only traces of the associated sewage treatment works remain.
Elements of the water treatment works remain.

A concrete trackway providing access to the stores.
Approx. 325 metres of 5.5 metres wide trackway remains in good condition

Small concrete structure, often similar in design to the larger ammunition store, with a curved concrete roof. Used to store small arms ammunition for site's defence forces.

The concrete dispersal is in good condition, has been incorporated into post-war aircraft parking/maintenance apron (DHR 32:219)

Colebrooke
Colebrooke was requisitioned by the War Office to accommodate troops during WW2. US troops were billeted there from 1942-1944. Troops from 3rd Batt, 135th Inf Regt (34th (US) Inf Div) initially there but troops from 8th (US) Infantry Div. stationed there from 1943-4.
Site of barracks and support buildings such as ablutions and mess facilities.

Small private air raid shelter constructed of concrete then covered with a layer of soil. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Accessed via steps on the eastern end, possible ventilation pipe at the other end of shelter. Steel handles on eastern end on interior wall suggest the site may have been built with an emergency escape hatch.
Brough to attention of fieldworker by locals while searching for location of DHR DHR 00220:000.

Small brick structure to provided shelter to guard details controlling access to and from the dispersed site.

The site does not appear on the original plans of the fort but is clearly related tot he operation of the site. It may have been added when the gun houses were constructed and relates to these. However, at this time it function remains unclear.

This site was constructed after the site became operational. It was used to conduct out-of-water service and repair boats/tenders that were used at the station.
The site is in good condition and is used to store small boats by the yacht club.

Structure erected to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear. Vents in roof suggest it may have been an ablution block.
Structure appears relatively intact with original asbestos roof. Repurposed as agricultural store/animal shelter.

The Barrack Master was responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the barracks. Building erected in 1841 as part of the original design of Ebrington Barracks. Marked as ‘Barrack Master’s House’ on the 1854 Ordnance Map, it fulfilled this function until 1947. Then it became the Admiral’s House of HMS Sea Eagle. It was extended to the south by a bay crossing the boundary wall in the 1870’s.
HB file for HB01/09/002 H

Uncertain function, may be a fire tender shed with plinth for a water tank
The structure is in relatively good condition, all window and entrance (exception a single door) have been blocked with modern brickwork

This building brought together the instrumentation needed for effective fire-control of the four HAA guns. It is a semi-sunk partially roofed structure, with open bays overlooking the guns, holding the height-finder, predictor and telescope. Inside was found the plotting room, telephonists and offices. The plotting room was the core of the structure and was used to receive and process raid data from telephone and radar. This data was used to calculate information to direct the fire of the battery guns. This site appears of a more rudimentary design than posts built elsewhere in N. Ireland, with the central plotting room composed of curved sheeting holding a concrete roof, with a brick office. The office has a reporting widow looking out over the predictor/height finder compound.
The structure is relatively intact, retaining the plotting room and offices along with the exterior enclosures for the ranging and siting equipment

Structure provided toilet facilities for enlisted airmen.
Approximately half the concrete hard-standing remains, and an upright urinal.

Single storey structure used to accommodate administration personnel for maintenance wing. Also known as Maintenance Wing HQ.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. This site is shown on a contemporary map. it was composed of six defensive position on Islandreagh Hill surrounded by barbed wire entanglements.

The site has been truncated by a domestic dwelling, leaving perhaps 25% of dispersal and small section cut by a road.

Rest site used by crew of nearby High Frequency Direction Finding (Huff Duff) equipment.
The small brick structure is in relatively good condition with its original asbestos roof supported by wooden rafters. Heavily overgrown, the structure's roof has been penetrated by ivy,allowing ingress of water.

Structure relating to operation of firing range.

The site was constructed to enable anti-aircraft gunnery to be trained firing live rounds at towed targets or drogues. Appears to have consisted of four firing stands/gun emplacements in an oddly square layout as opposed to a more usual line.
The circular positions were surrounded by enclosing concrete walls though these have been removed or demolished.
The gun emplacements remains though these have been levelled and some concrete hardstandings and a low brick structure, the construction of which suggests it was built during WW2 and likely associated with operations at the site.

This section of secondary runway is 280m long. Large quantities of soil and overburden currently obscure much of the site.

Concrete trackway providing access round site, specifically the former mess area.

Site housed pump for pumping water from site.
In good condition, with original windows. Camper below ground floor could not be accessed due to dumped furniture.

The store was constructed to house dangerous liquids and oils which required fire-proof storage. The building stored different material on one of four fireproof cubicles. It stores dirty oil, oil filters, clean container store, a clean oil store, a lubricant store and inflammable store.

Portadown Fire Station
The site was designated as the Wartime alternative HQ for the NI Fire Authority in event of a nuclear exchange.
Remains a fire station and fire authority HQ.

The grounds of Killynether House were requisitioned by the MoD at the start of WW2 as a site to station troops and remained under military control until 1949. One large area of concrete and three hut bases remain.
One large concrete hardstanding and three hut bases remain

The structure remains in good condition.

Castleroe
A military camp was constructed in the grounds of Castleroe during WW2 to house military personnel. The camp was composed of a number of prefabricated huts connected by concrete trackways.
The site was redeveloped post-war, however some section were left undeveloped therefore the possibility of subsurface traces remains.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The 45m concrete hard-standing is in good condition.

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. This air raid shelter is semi-sunken with a main entrance on the southern end with a brick and concrete blast wall.
The shelter has been largely obscured by rubble and earth overburden but appears in relatively good condition, The concrete benches remain inside.

Site located on lidar survey, surface remains extant

Heavily overgrown, approximately 50% of brick enclosure remains.

This 125 foot/38m dispersal remains in good condition but is largely obscured by overgrowth of grass and moss. Clearer on aerial photo than ground photography. At the end of a 87m trackway.

Built as part of communal area, function remains unclear.
This structure retains its steel frame and asbestos roof. Sections of wall have been replaced with rendered concrete blocks. And large entrances have been opened on the east and west-facing walls. Internal concrete block walls have been erected. It is used for domestic storage.

Only the concrete hard-standing remains, overgrown with moss and used to store redundant farm machinery.

Gilnahirk radio intercept station
Small concrete plinth. Structure sits on the edge of the western aerial field associated with the station and may be an aerial anchor point.

Hard standing for the parking, maintenance, loading or refuelling of aircraft. Built post-war.

Described in original DHP report as a system of bunkers and brick-lines communication trenches on either side of rod leading to beech Hall.
The site was heavily overgrown, therefore no sites could be identified on day of fieldwork

Concrete wall placed opposite entrance to a magazine to deflect a blast in the event of an accidental explosion in the magazine.
Site appears intact ad in good condition.

Static water tank used to provide water for firefighting in event o failure of mains supply

The T2 (‘T’ for transportable) was developed in 1940 to replace Bellman Hangars. They were of a modular design meaning they could be dismantled, moved and reassembled elsewhere. Constructed of steel lattice portal frames and clad in galvanised corrugated iron. The T2 became the standard temporary hangar for the RAF, and over 900 were built during the war. They were considered temporary structures with a limited design life, but many remain on airfields throughout the United Kingdom. This example is the short, 13-bay variant, 135 feet /41 metres in length.
This site is in good condition. It has been re-clad post war.

Hard standing for the parking, maintenance, loading or refuelling of aircraft. This is the western section that terminated in a circular hardstanding. This may have been part of a compass rose. The compass rose was painted on a circular concrete pad and was aligned to magnetic north. It was used by aircraft to calibrate their magnetic compass, the procedure was called a compass swing, and involved turning the entire aircraft on the hardstanding.
Only 0.11 hectare sction of hardstanding remains.

Building first indicated on the 1904 Ordnance Survey Map with a dashed projection along ¾ of the south façade suggesting a colonnade as surmised in the external description. Projection also indicated on the 1955 and 1977 maps. The building may have originally been designed as a guardhouse. The boundary wall behind stops at this point and the site expands beyond to St Columb’s drive. This wall may be a fragment of the original north east bastion of the fort from its angle and from inspection of earlier maps. (This is not obvious on site because of its connection to a later wall to the west). The building sits to one side of the main spine road to the rear of the original fort.
Site is intact and in good condition, it has been redeveloped as commercial office.
HB file for HB01/09/002 N

Structure provided dining and accommodation for officers. Building constructed in 1904 as part of the eastward expansion of Ebrington Barracks, a purpose built officers mess it is of a standard design built by the Ordnance Board. In Northern Ireland a similar though larger building exists at Palace Barracks, Holywood (HB23/17/012). The ladies annex to the south is first indicated on the 1933 Ordnance Survey map. The rear L shaped extension was constructed between the 1955 and 1977
HB file for HB01/09/002 K

Provided accommodation for army troops station to defend the radar site.

Hutted camp to accommodate troops/offices needed for administrating the depot. Small group of approx. 10 Nissen huts.
Hut bases may remain under the grass cover.

Large Nissen hut constructed to facilitate operations at the site, uncertain function.

Offices used to house civilian station warden. They were responsible for the supply of domestic services on site, such as utilities (solid fuel, electric, gas and water. They also had responsibility for building repairs, inspection of barrack furniture (repair when required) and storage, issues and receipt of barack furniture.

Providing toilet facilities personnel stationed at dispersal site.
On good condition, the structure retains original rendering. It has been repurposed as a store.

Langford Lodge had been selected by the Ministry of Aircraft Production as a satellite landing ground but with work underway, there was a change in policy and the site was chosen to establish a United States Army Air Force depot. Hangars, workshops stores were built, and dispersed hutted camps were established to house 2,600 employees of the Lockheed Overseas Corporation which was contracted to run the depot. Its contrition was prioritised over all other building projects in N. Ireland. The base opened in August 1942 and the site renamed AAF Station 597. The base became a key centre for modification and repair of USAAF aircraft in the European theatre. Huge numbers of aircraft came through the base, with 3,250 re-assembled or modified, 11,000 serviced and almost half a million aircraft components overhauled. The airfield was returned to the RAF in 1946. The site is now owned by RLC Langford Lodge who manufacture ejector seats for Martin Baker. The site includes a 1,700m rocket sled track used for testing ejector seats.
Control tower, also HB20/14/031 Main workshops and HB20/14/014 Gartree Church
The site retains a significant number of original structures, albeit often modified to suit modern needs. The runways and perimeter tracks are intact and in good condition.

A narrow strip of runway remains and runs for 207 metres along the field boundary

Sydenham Airfield
This hanger was one of the first two constructed on the airfield when it opened in 1938. Built to a non-standard civilian design, the two hangars serviced Belfast Harbour Airport during WW2.
The site appears intact though it has been re-clad post war.

Every station was provided with medical facilities with wards to accommodate all ranks. The sick quarters would have held a ward, an operating theatre and a dispensary, with facilities and offices for the station medical officer and dental officer.
The site is laid out in a 'H' plan and survives in good condition. The structure has been sealed and the windows boarded due to the hazard of asbestos inside.

The watch office (known as the watch office on RAF airfields, but control towers on sites operated by the USAAF) provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Built to designs of the Air Ministry's Directorate of Works and Buildings, as Office for All Commands design, to Drawing No. 12779/41. Rendered brick with asphalt roof. The ground floor had the watch office to front with duty pilot's rest room, meteorological office, switch room and lavatories to rear. The first floor had control room to front, with controller's rest room and signals office to rear, opening onto passage with access to stairs. The design allowed large windows overlooking the airfield.
The structure remains in a good state of preservation. A large access has been opened in the ground floor rear of the building and an internal wall has been removed but otherwise the control tower is well preserved. Many of the original window frames are intact, though the owner has secured them with corrugated iron sheeting. Access can be gained to the veranda which retains part of the original railing. The access stairway from the veranda to the roof has been removed. There is evidence for drinking and fire setting by local youths on the first floor, which led the owner to secure the stairway with fencing wire.

Structure relating to operation of the searchlight battery, function remains unclear.
Structure extant in original DHP project. Demolished in recent years to clear vision splays for adjacent dwelling development.

The siren was used to alert the population of an impending raid. Every town and city in UK was equipped with dual-tone sirens. Attack warning were signalled by a changing tone siren while the all-clear was signalled by a single tone.
The siren was likely a rotary fan type used throughout the UK. Reported mounted on a plinth on the roof of the town hall.
Noted in report as removed in the 1980s.

The War Office purchased the grounds of the Bishop's Palace in 1887 for the erection of a military barracks. The first structures were completed in 1897. A description in 1897 noted seven blocks, each housing 84 men. There was a guard house, officers and NCOs quarters, reading and recreation rooms, and supporting service corps quarters, stores and messes. The barracks were occupied throughout WW1 and remained in use though the inter-war years, WW2, the Cold War and the Troubles with much expansion and improvement of the facilities.
The site remains in use by the MoD, though the camp has been earmarked for closure.
Clock tower and officers mess are listed
The barrack blocks, messes, clock tower and motor-transport buildings remain intact and in good condition.

On day of fieldwork site was obscured by slurry and soil, but later aerial photos suggest the nine park dispersal is intact. Is part of a larger 'snowflake' with 25 dispersals. Farm built on south-east corner of site.

This dispersal sits at the entrance to a private dwelling and complex of farm buildings. A gate and wall has been built on the site, but on rather than through the concrete hardstanding, which survives in good condition.

Provided kitchen and dining facilities
Three main clocks survive in good condition, with some damage to roof of most western block. The site has been sealed and the windows boarded due the hazard of asbestos.

The air raid shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. This is an example of a Stanton Shelter. They were manufactured at the Stanton Ironworks Co near Nottingham, England. They could be constructed to any length to suit needs but usually consisted of 18 pre-cast concrete arch-shaped units, bolted together to form a shelter to accommodate 50 people. Stanton shelters can be above ground or semi-sunk and usually had a layer of earth and turf laid over them.

The runway layout is the traditional three runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted.
The concrete and tarmac runway survives to its full original length of 624m. An 18m wide strip has been resurfaced to facilitate light aircraft and micro-lights.

Runway layout was traditionally three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. However, given the prevailing winds at Mullaghmore only 2 were built, with only a section of a third constructed, the rest was completed as perimeter track.
190m of runway remains in good condition though overgrown with grass and moss, it has a storage yard built on the southern end. This is the full extent of the third runway that was constructed as prevailing winds mean a decision was made not to complete the third runway.

Structure erected to facilitate operations at the army camp, function unknown.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed
This concrete dispersal is 18 metres wide is obscured by a large dump of earth spoil but appears in good condition. It is access by a 71 metre concrete track running north from the perimeter track.

Structure used to maintain battery arms and equipment by the battery's artificer.
Structure remains intact and in good condition. Repurposed by current owners. May have been enlarged/extended during inter-war years.

Area of camp with many hut bases shown in 1951 RAF aerial photo.
Redeveloped post war, traces may remains in woodland.
PRONI RAF aerial photos on file AM/1/5/9D/4175-4214

Approximately 60% of site remains as truncated by grass on n-western side.

Blister hangars were small arched dispersal shed, made of wood or welded steel, and were used for the maintenance and storage of aircraft with small wingspans. They were clad in steel sheeting and had quick-release canvas curtains on either end.
Only concrete hard-standing remains, large dumps of spoils surrounding site.

Concrete water tank, part of a series of three structures, local informant noted they were part of the Q site operations but exact function remains unclear.

This building of a three bay-garage design, held equipment used to aid night-flying operations such as gooseneck flares, beacons and floodlights. Gooseneck flares were used to mark out flare paths during night landings.
The structure is in good condition. Usually constructed with three bays, this example has only two, with the third either modified to hold a window or modified at a later date after its initial construction. The roof of compressed asbestos sheets and steel trusses is in good condition, though several ridge tiles are missing. The windows on the southern wall and door on west wall have been sealed with concrete blocks. It is now used as a shelter for livestock.

HAA batteries were typically armed with four 3.7-inch heavy anti-aircraft guns, which could fire a 28-pound projectile to an effective ceiling of 32,000 feet. The gun crews were directed from the battery command post. The command post provided height, direction and altitude data to the gun pits to enable the gun layers to set the fused to detonate at the correct altitude. Most batteries had a ramp and platform nearby which held the gun laying (GL) radar. A polygonal mat surrounded the GL radar, marking the area of the false datum, which was composed of a wire mesh and was needed to generate a false horizon for the primitive GL radar sets. This site was unusual in having 8 gun pits in stead of the usual 4.
The original DHP report noted 4 gun pits, command post and ammunition magazine, however the landowner removed most of the site in 2011 leaving only the magazine as an agricultural store.

Omagh RPC post
Report in Subterranea Britannica at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/omagh-roc-post/

This was a group of 9 finger parks though only 6 are now extant. The site has an agricultural shed build on part of it and 2 of the finger parks are used to store silage.

This site was composed of a concrete revetted firing trench with a concrete and brick shelter used for ammunition storage.
Only the top of the shelter/store is visible above ground, however the concrete revetted fire trench may remains under the surface.

Site provided accommodation for enlisted men.
John W Blake, Northern ireland in the Second World War (Belfast, 2000) Bill Clements, Defending the North: The fortifications of Ulster 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003) Frontline Ulster at frontlineulster.co.uk/magilligan-musketry-camp/

Steel radar reflector used as an aid to navigation.

This 25 m diameter dispersal is in good condition but overgrown with moss and grass.

Concrete platform for parking vehicles on the range.
Original DHP report Websites www.frontlineulster.co.uk/portmoon-anti-tank-range/ www.ww2ni.com/county-antrim-part-1

A steel framed structure that was designated as a 'Utility building' on US plans of the base. May have been used as a store or workshop.
The site was extant at the time of the original DHP, it has since been demolished, and the site redeveloped.

Providing dining and kitchen facilities for personnel.
In relatively good condition. Retains original roof and window frames.

Magilligan 'Musketry Camp'
A rifle range was first established at Magilligan in 1898 and in 1909 the army established a tented camp but this was later removed to Ballykinler, Co. Down. In 1912 the army built two ranges and the start of World War I in 1914 saw increased use of the site as troops were trained before dispatch overseas. The even greater demands of World War II saw further expansion of the camp, and by 1941 the Musketry Camp was erected 160 metres north-west of the main camp. It remained in its original form until at least 1967, but by 1971-2 the camp was repurposed as an internment camp and then incorporated into the newly established HMP Magilligan. Nine of the Nissen huts appear to be from the original musketry camp.
The site is now HMP Magilligan, with original WW2 Nissen huts interspersed with modern prison structures.
Nine huts remains from original camp, they have been repurposed to prison use.

Part of the entrance blast wall has been removed, as has the internal concrete seating, but overall the structure is in relatively good condition.

For the support and servicing of aircraft guns, it had a specific layout to include an office, a large workshop with metal topped workbenches for aircraft gun servicing. Separate was a room for the making-up pf ammunition belts with sequenced rounds and hand cranked belt positioning machine to ensure correct alignment of cartridges were used.
The structure is in relatively good condition though some panels of roofing are missing and most of the window frames have been removed. Partial collapse of roof on south end of structure. Modern concrete block patching at southern end but significant cracking above doorway suggesting likely collapse of south gable.

Concrete trackway providing access to camp.
Approx. 170 metres of track remain intact.

The magazine was of a prefabricated design produced by the Armco International Corporation of Middletown Ohio, and sometimes referred to as Armco huts. Measuring 20' x 50', the structure is a curved steel hut with steel end walls, covered with a layer of earth to provide extra protection, which was then seeded to provide a level of camouflage. Ventilation was provided in the headwall to prevent condensation within the magazine.

Site constructed to provide accommodation for the crew s of the HAA battery.
Site was heavily regraded c. 2004, no remains visible or likely.

The Norden bombsight was one of the most secret instruments brought to Ireland during the war and was surrounded by exceptional levels of security. It could measure the bombers ground speed and used an analogue computer to calculate a bombs impact point based on prevailing fight conditions. Furthermore, the sight was connected to an autopilot which could make in-flight corrections during the bomb run. This promised unprecedented levels of bombing accuracy. Consequently, the sight was considered of vital wartime importance. When not in use the bombsights were immediately returned to the store. Any maintenance needed was carried out inside the store, and when this was completed the sights were placed inside a vault secured by a steel door. The store was climate controlled to protect the delicate mechanism. As the Norden bombsight was not used by the RAF the stores are particular to USAAF controlled airfields.
The Norden bombsight store at Toome sat next to the base Headquarters and Operations Room (now removed) and retains its original features. There are bars on the windows and the original steel door to the vault remains. It has concrete benches on which the sight would have been serviced and there are two vents on its exterior which helped maintain a controlled climate within the store. The structure is now used as a stable but overall it is in good condition

This was an MoS barrack hut to accommodate sergeants.

This was a communal air raid shelter constructed to give shelter to factory workers in the event of an air attack. Unlike most shelters in Belfast this shelter was entirely subsurface. It was composed of a number of corridors (possibly 4-6) approx. 15 metres long laid out in a grid pattern with the remains of a chemical toilet facility at the end of each corridor. There may have been access to the factory floor however this had been sealed post war. This site was visited in advance of proposed redevelopment in 2007, when access was via a manhole in the car park. It was flooded to calf level, but was relatively clear of debris or rubble.
No follow-up visit was made and the site was redeveloped. It is unclear what happened to the site. Options are it was cleared pre-development, filled in, or remains under the car park.

Bisected by the field boundary, the concrete dispersal appears in good condition.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. This site is shown on a contemporary map. it was composed of six defensive positions surrounded by barbed wire entanglements. Three overlooked the road junction while three more sat to the rear of the field.

Magilligan camp
This small brick bomb store was used to secure grenades.

Small brick structure with flat concrete roof, normally with two rooms protected by steel doors. Used to store flare cartridges

Structure erected to facilitate operations at the site, function remains unclear.

Concrete slipway used by seaplanes to enter and exit the water.

Group of three nissen huts constructed to facilitate operations at the radar site.
PRONI aerial photo in AM/1/5/60A/411-464

Omagh county hall (as it was known as at the time) was designated as an Area Emergency Centre in event of a nuclear exchange. Staff posted here would be responsible for co-ordinating essential services at local level led by the district council clerks. Quite unclear what their tasks would be but suggestions were collection and dissemination of information, advice on protective measures, determining local priorities and most ominously ‘organising tasks contributing towards survival’.
This function was an interim measure as it was planned to be moved into a purpose built structure similar to the RGHQ at Ballymena, however this was never constructed.
Building remains in use as office space.

Provided toilet facilities for airmen
In relatively good condition. The roof has been replaced with modern corrugated iron, while window frames are original.

Site used to house army guard detachment within radar station.
Structure appears in good condition with its original roof and window frames.

In good condition but heavily overgrown, used to store agricultural vehicles.

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire. This long curved communication trench connected the mains defensive position to the road. Uses a low rise to protect it from observation from across the river.
Only partially visible on aerial photos.

Site of appox. 14 huts., likely barracks
No remain visible on AP but sub-surface traces may remain.

Chain Link fence supported by galvanised steel bent atm posts, some marked with US Navy Base 1 designation.
Large stretches of the original fence remain in relatively good condition around much parts the perimeter of the site (originally approx. 3,500 metres constructed)

Starfish decoy sites were used from 1941 as a means to divert bombing raids from their intended targets. The Starfish sites replicated the effects of successful bombing raids by replicating the effects of fires from targets that had been set alight by preceding bomber waves. The starfish site was composed of a series of fire types, from simple basket fires (wooden crates filled with scrap wood soaked in turpentine) to more sophisticated crib fires, boiling oil fires and grid fires which controlled the rate of ignition and could simulate explosions by introducing water to burning oil. These were arranged in groups and often surrounded by circular or linear trenches to prevent the whole decoy igniting at once.Each group was controlled from a shelter which had a telephone to receive orders and electrical switchgear to control igniters. Throughout a raid the decoy groups were lit sequentially to simulate spreading fires. One night of controlled burning could consume up to 50 tons of fuel.
Site consisted of a number of fire groups, normally composed of a number of types of fire decoys such as basket fires, boiler fires and grid fires surrounded by firebreaks. These were controlled from two control shelters. The crews were housed in a series of nissen huts sited to the west.
The two control shelter remains in relatively good condition. The landowner reported that the fire groups were sited in the field opposite them.

Provided washing and showering facilities for troops.
Structure is overgrown, most of the roof is missing and there are several large cracks in the masonry and dangerous lintels.

Large eight bay motor transport building used for maintenance and storage of motor vehicles. Likely built inter-war of during WW2.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide. This section of track was constructed after the initial construction phase of the airfield when the main runway (DHR 28:1,3) was lengthened.
There is 830m of perimeter track remaining in this northern section. It is constructed of poured concrete with expansion joints.

This 249 metres of track remains in good condition.

Site provided for domestic, entertainment and recreational needs of the personnel stationed at the airfield, with gymnasium, NAAFI, mess halls, grocery and barbers, formerly 29 structures on site.
Education block, last structure remaining of communal site
Only 1 structure remains, the education block

Contained boilers and fuel store for heating system, providing heat to nearby barracks
The brick structure is in good condition, with original doors and chimney in situ. Now used as a domestic/community store.

Parachutes became standard issue in the RAF from 1927. They had to be regularly inspected, normally on a monthly basis. Condensation was an issue as it caused the parachute to shrink, therefore they had to be dried in a room with constant temperature and dust-free ventilation. Moreover, they had to be suspended from their apices without any part touching the floor. Parachutes were suspended from the highest part of the ceiling to dry with the aid of a pulley system. When dry they were lowered, placed on a table for repacking then stored on racks.
This feature had degraded considerably since it was first recorded on the DHP in 2004. The roof has been lost allowing the growth of vegetation within the structure, around the doorway and along the wall tops.

Roughly half of this site remains, with a single fourteen-bay transport shed remaining. It retains all original window frames and steel roof trusses but sections of the asbestos cement sheet roofing are missing and other sections are badly deteriorated. The folding wooden doors are no longer extant.

Retains much of its original fabric but the south wall gas been removed and sections of the west sidewall patched with modern concrete block-work.

The structure was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. The structure is set into a cut in the hillside and protected by heavy concrete traverses at the entrance of the cut..
Structure remains largely intact although sections of the galvanised sheeting have fallen away from the steel frame of the nissen hut. Site heavily overgrown.

This linear fieldwork dug as a means of concealment from enemy observation and protection from enemy fire. Likely main function was a communication trench to allow troops to move about area around battery under cover. Plotted by HED surveyors in 2015. Uncertain of dating.
Approximately 25-30 metres of shallow trench (approx 0.75 m deep and 1.2-1.5 m wide. Overgrown with vegetation.

This general site was formally an artillery barracks, built in 1797 as a replacement for a pre 1757 barracks. In 1883 two new large accommodation blocks were built, as well as this particular building- a gymnasium. In 1909 the complex (‘Victoria Barracks’) accommodated 10 officers and 182 soldiers, with quarters for 32 married soldiers and their families. 1,000 men could be garrisoned in all, and when required a further 3,000 could be housed under canvas he barracks was largely destroyed during the Blitz of 1941, . The site remained in a ruinous state until the 1950s when it was cleared and subsequently filled with new housing and several tower blocks built over a ten year period from the mid 1950s to the mid 1960s.
The Gymnasium escaped major damage in 1941 and was spared demolition. In the 1960s and 70s it was occupied by the Belfast Education and Library broad [?and used as a store], but in c.1979-80 was converted to a community centre, with a two storey extension added to the eastern side
Known locally as 'The Reccy'.
Relatively large single / 1½ storey brick built gabled hall of 1883, with large octagonal roof light turret and tall chimneystacks, originally a gymnasium belonging to a large army barracks complex.
The site is intact and in good condition, it is used as a community hall.
HED Historic Buildings entry for HB26/49/008

Site of wooden Laing hut. No visible features on field visit but aerial photographs suggest concrete hardstanding remains.

Approx. 32 poles visible on day of survey

Larne Coastal Battery
The concrete structure was used to store ammunition, either a shell store or cartridge store. These would have been passed out a steel hatch in the southern end of the structure which is still extant.
Site is in good condition and has been repurposed as a store.

The structure is set into a cut in the hillside and protected by heavy concrete traverses at the entrance of the cut..
The site is overgrown but largely intact, it has been repurposed as a cattle shed.

A concrete trackway constructed top provide pedestrian access around the site.

This feature was part of the target gallery on which the target frames were mounted.
Only the brick base f the gallery remains.

The Structure is a shallow inclined which allowed the radar equipment to be rolled up onto the square platform. This would have been surrounded by the GL mat (now removed).
The site remains in good condition,though there is some loss of brickwork on one of the plinth piers.

This site operated as a photographic laboratory. It had rooms for washing, drying, printing, developing, chemical mixing, a darkroom, paper and film store and a workshop. The building also accommodated an open plan projection and lecture hall. Post war it was repurposed as the Belfast Airport Club.
Only the footprint of the structure remains littered with demolition rubble, concrete footings may survive below.

The site was designated as the Wartime alternative HQ for Northern Ireland Electricity in event of a nuclear exchange.

RNAS Maydown has two rather than the normal three runways, (there was not enough room for a third) both 150 feet wide, the were concrete surfaced with bitumen. The main runway ran roughly east-west and was 1650 yards long, the second roughly north-south was 1350 yards long.
This 310 metre section of the secondary runway appears relatively intact though most of it has been resurfaced with modern tarmac

The main arched body of the structure is intact as tbe badly corroded remains of the headwall is still extant, however the rear endwall has been removed to facilitate the sites reuse as a cattle shed.

Camp constructed during WW2, it was the home barracks for the home defence battalions of the Roya Ulster Rifles. The site remains in use by the army as a reserve depot for the Scottish and North Irish Yeomanry.

Concrete hardstanding, likely used for storing equipment or parking vehicles.
Hardstanding appears intact and in relatively good condition.

Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at depot. Curved roof structure, likely a store.
Intact in 1998, collapsed in 2008, demolished 2009-10.

The hangar has been removed, only the concrete footings and some traces of the steel guide-rails for the hanger doors remain,

The Type C Hangar (known during the interwar years as a shed) was designed to meet the RAF’s need to house larger aircraft. A hangar was required with a clear span of 150 feet, length of 300 feet and a clear height of 35 feet. This led to the development of the Type C hangar. Early examples were built with brick and steelwork, but in 1936, this was changed to concrete in anticipation of enemy bombing. Doors were arranged in six leaves, with steel plates on both sides. The cavity was filled with gravel to a height of 20 feet to provide protection against bomb splinters. The annexes to either side of the hanger served day-to-day operations, with offices, rest rooms, changing and locker rooms, briefing rooms and briefing rooms. There were also wireless and instrument workshops, armouries, aircraft and equipment store to serve the immediate needs of the ground crews. This design is from 1938 when the galbed ends of the transverse roof was changed to hipped roofs.
SMR Reference
Site remains intact and in good condition. Still in use by MoD.

This concrete dispersal is obscured by a build-up of grass and moss but is otherwise in good condition.

A circular filter bed, often filled with stone, used as a filter bed for sewage treatment.
Normally no visible remains but appears as a grass mark after long periods of dry weather

The small brick and concrete shelter protected the crew tasked with operating the decoy site during a raid. It was equipped with a telephone and switch gear used to control the ignition of the flame groups. Its main entrance is protected by a blast wall and an emergency escape hatch is on the roof.
The site is largely intact though some effort was made to remove the structure in the past as the blast wall has been toppled (now on the roof) and part of the concrete roof damaged.

Large 644 square metre magazine with concrete walls and earthwork traverse protection. The site was used to store ammunition/explosives for use by the Royal Navy. Two storage structures remains inside the protective traverses however it is difficult to ascertain if these are contemporary WW2 structures of have been built later.

Quonset huts constructed to accommodate enlisted personnel.
The site is overgrown but the potential for buried hut bases or air raid shelters remains.

The site is so heavily overgrown it is difficult to assess the overall size and form, bit from maps the position appears more linear, likely includes pillbox type fighting positions.
Appears in good condition if heavily overgrown.

Gosford Demesne
This grass airstrip was constructed during WW2 to facilitate flights by light aircraft to and from the camp at Gosford Castle.

Cluntoe airfield
Living site for personnel. Had mostly barracks with ablutions and latrines.

Designated U13, the Silverstream HAA battery differed from others as it has 8 gun position rather than the usual 4, though it is unclear if it was ever armed with 8 guns.

Concrte hard-standing and track in good condition

Somewhat taller than most pillboxes this structure was constructed of reinforced concrete. The coastal pillbox was sited to provide defensive fire using machine guns along the length of the beach firing through embrasures in the concrete wall. The concrete was thick enough to provide protection against bullets and shell splinters but was not thick enough to withstand direct fire from artillery and heavy guns. This pillbox appears to be a variant to design DFW3/24 as there is no anti-ricochet wall inside and It has 7 firing embrasures and an entrance in the rear wall. 5 embrasures have recesses which may have housed ammunition or condenser doe a water-cooled machine gun. The side and rear embrasures are slightly higher than the three the front facing embrasures.
The pillbox is in good condition with traces of steel shuttering remaining in-situ on the inside faces of the embrasures. There are 4 concrete posts which would have held a platform for mounting the machine gun tripod. The entrance is sealed with concrete as are all but one of the embrasures.

This store was of a design developed early in the war. It was a 30 ft square open platform protected by earthwork traverses. It could store a maximum of 24 tons of high explosive bombs.
This are has been subject to much earth moving during the construction phase of the prison, leading to significant alteration of the topography of the area, however, the regular shape and steep angle of the earthworks suggest this is the site of the bomb store. The site is heavily overgrown making accurate assessment of remains difficult.

The post was constructed in the inter-war years to house auxiliary coastwatchers. Coastwatcher were responsible for maintaining observation of coastal waters, monitoring shipping and curtailing coastal smuggling.
The site is intact an in good condition.

Larne Coastal battery
Nissen hut type structure attached to magazine, likely used for ammunition handling/preparation.

Provide dining and kitchen facilities for Petty officers
In relatively good condition, sections refurbished and re-roofed but annex to rar parts of collapsed nissen with bolers.

This concrete store was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. It has three discrete rooms, formerly secured with steel doors, the site may have store small explosive components such as detonators or fuses.
Structure remains relatively intact though it is now missing steel security doord.

This site operated as a photographic laboratory. It had rooms for washing, drying, printing, developing, chemical mixing, a darkroom, paper and film store and a workshop. The building also accommodated an open plan projection and lecture hall.
The site appears to survive relatively intact though there is some evidence for roof collapse, The structure is heavily overgrown to the extent that it is difficult to get a proper idea of actual condition.

Aircraft were refuelled using mobile tankers, which were refilled from the bulk storage sites. An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. This site had two above-ground steel fuel tanks (12,000 gallons capacity) holding 24,000 gallons of aviation fuel. around which ran an elliptical roadway and one or two fuel pump houses. Pumps would have serviced the fuel tankers which parked on the circular hard-standing.
Only concrete track remains, has been infilled with concrete to create a parking area.

Small brick structure built to facilitate operations at the site. Suggested in www.ww2ni.com that it was an ammunition store but use remains unclear.
Structure appears intact, used as a store.

The shelter is in good condition if a bit overgrown. All entrances have been sealed with modern concrete blocks.

Site contained a steel storage tanks for diesel fuel to supply onsite generators. The tank was mounted on a concrete plinth and surrounded by a concrete bund.
The steel fuel tank has been removed after the site closed however the plinth and bund remain in situ.

Small concrete bridge constructed to allow access from bomb stores to the airfield

This was a nissen type structure enclosed by earthwork traverses. It was used to store small arms ammunition and/or grenades for ground defence.
Only the concrete base and earthwork traverses remain.

A tarmac dispersal, it is entirely overgrown but probing has determined that the site remains intact and likely in good condition.

The estate was requisitioned during WW2 and an ammunition/ordnance depot establishes to store explosives and ammunition. With the entry of the US into the war in 1941 American ordnance units were also based here. The only upstanding remains are ten explosive/ammunition magazines.
There are the remains of 10 prick and earthwork magazines remaining in relatively good condition but heavily overgrown. One has been converted into a clubhouse.
DHP report, Wayne D. Cocroft, Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (English Heritage, 2000)websitehttps://www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart3.htm,

The house and grounds at Cromore were requisitioned by the war office to house troops during WW2. various units were based there including the replacement companies, but the most noted unit was the 508th Parachute Infantry regiment, part of the 82nd Airborne Division. Only traces of the base remains such as some concrete hut bases and a concrete plinth used to mount a fuel tank.
Some concrete bases and a fuel tank plinth.

Site provided for domestic, entertainment and recreational needs of the personnel stationed at the airfield, with gymnasium, NAAFI, mess halls, grocery and produce store, formerly 12 structures on site.

In good condition, retains its original asbestos roof and some window frames. Used as an agricultural store.

Building constructed as part of the original fort complex in 1841. Labelled on the 1854 Ordnance Map as ‘canteen’ it was a simple rectangular block without any return to the rear or porch to the front. The bastion behind was enclosed by a wall flush with the east gable containing the arch noted on site. On the larger scale 1873 map it is clear that though the arch into the bastion exists, the building had not at that point been extended west over it to the boundary wall. A photograph from this period taken from the city indicates the rear fenestration of the building as it is today with the central bay of windows dropped for a staircase.
HB file for HB01/09/002 U

Small structure providing services to base personnel.

Series of huts protected by revetments and trenches, shown on 1942 images but not the RAF 1941 site plans.

The site at Ballyclare was used as a supply depot by US troops from 1942-44. The 397th (US) Engineer Supply Company was based there 12/05/1942-7/01/1943. They were replaced by the 467th Engineer Maintenance company then the 229th Chemical Base Depot Company. The site was demolished post-war.
A single concrete platform from one of the stores remains and another hut base and trackways are visible as parch marks during periods of dry weather.

A circular filter bed, often filled with stone, used as a filter bed for sewage treatment.
The circular filter in in working condition.

Accomodation for station Commanding Officer
In relatively good condition if heavily overgrown

Concrete trackway providing access to perimeter track from hangars
The 8 metre wide track remains in relatively good condition, though overgrown in sections.

This 44 m diameter dispersal appear in relatively good condition. It has temporary offices located on the southern end. The site has been subject to significant levels of traffic leading to cracking on the dispersal and approach track.

Lisnabreeny American Military Cemetery
The site was opened in December 1943 to inter the remains of American servicemen who died on duty in Northern Ireland. From 194305 148 servicemen were buried here. They included men from the US Army and Navy but most were members of the US Army Air Force. They had died from natural causes, accident and during training, with about 40 killed in air accidents. The cemetery was closed in 1948 and the remains repatriated or re-buried at the Cambridge American Cemetery.
The cemetery was well-maintained and the graves laid out in rows of 25. A whitewashed driveway lined with cherry trees led from the red-brick entrance to the grave plots. A flagstaff stood at the end of the drive.
Only the red-brick entrance now remains, which leads to the site of the modern memorial. Though disinterred, the burials likely left an archaeological signature in the soil.

Group of approx. 12 nissen huts constructed as part of the ammunition depot.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the armament depot. Uncertain function. Structure strongly built with protective blast walls at each entrance suggesting site may have been used for explosive filling, extraction or examination.

The watch office (known as the watch office on RAF airfields, but control towers on sites operated by the USAAF) provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Almost square, the control tower is 44 feet 9 inches by 37 feet 6 inches and was the largest wartime design. Initially, it was intended to have an all-timber first floor, but a shortage of wood resulted in only the control room and balcony being made of timber. The ground floor contained the metrological section and teleprinter room with the control tower at the front. Above this on the first floor was the controller’s restroom, signals office and the control room with access out onto the balcony.
The ground floor contained the watch office, forecast room, teleprinter room. Lavatories, restroom and switch room. The first floor housed the signals office, restrooms and the large control room. This was the heart of the control tower and held the plotting board, aerodrome lighting control board and the aerodrome state board. The stairs continued to the roof and the balloon filling room.
The structure is largely intact and in relatively good condition though in recent years it has become heavily overgrown.

Small brick structure with flat concrete roof, normally with two rooms protected by steel doors. Used to store flare cartridges. This example was surrounded by earthwork traverses to protect from blast.
Normally no visible remains but appears as a grass mark after long periods of dry weather

Provided bathing and showering facilities for officers.
The structure appears in good condition, it retains its original window frames and asbestos roof.

Army camp constructed during WW2 to house troops. Was later converted to use as a prisoner of war camp. Redeveloped post war. Approx. 100 huts on site.
Contemporary map, passed to project from NI War memorial building staff.

Seco hut providing VIP accommodation.

The steel pen allowed flying boat to be inspected and serviced out of the water. The pen , which had brick sidewalls, covered only the front end of the aircraft.
Only partial section of concrete base remains behind the yacht club offices.

In good condition, retains its original roof, has been joined with other barracks (DHR 42:124) to create modern office space.

Trench protected by an earthwork berm on which targets were mounted. Marker then noted on target to show accuracy of firing
No visible trace but likely subsurface remains and contamination of soil with spent bullets.

The site was a concrete revetted firetench. It would have accommodated a section of troops. In 2004 it was partly infilled, but then demolished by the owner. Archaeological traces still likely to remain.

This section of runway is an eastern remnant of the original runway. Originally 1,000m long, this section is 481 m long with caravans lining its edges.

The control tower provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. It contained a meteorological office, watch office and a control room from which all landing and take-offs were controlled. There was a radio room for maintaining contact with aircraft and a teleprinter room.
The structure is in good condition and retains its original (and unique) inward sloping windows designed to reduce glare.

Site appears intact, resurfaced with modern tarmac

This was known as the ring-main plinth, it held equipment and switch-gear for transforming the main incoming electrical supply for the camp.
The small brick structure in in poor condition with significant cracking in all walls and over the door lintel.

Carrickfergus Castle
In 1940-41 eight rooms within the castle ground were converted to 50-person air raid shelters. Each was fitted with a brick blast wall at the entrance and several has emergency escape hatches cut into their roofs. The were lit with either eclectic light where possible or hurricane lamps. They were also fitted with rudimentary toilet facilities with brick screens sheltering chemical toilets. The shelter alterations were removed n 1949.
The rooms were returned to their original condition, with only traces of the alteration visible i the roofs and some brickwork remainsing.

Network of trackways servicing dispersed living site
Approximately 260 m of narrow trackways remain in the field though largely obscured by grass.

The site is in good condition but heavily overgrown.

Resurfaced with modern tarmac but concrete likely remains beneath.

Groups of Nissen huts constructed during WW2 to house troops.

This concrete ramp was used to entry and recovery of maritime craft into the river.
Site remains in relatively good condition.

Landing pad for helicopters flown into site. The helipad provides a clearly marked hard surface away from obstacles where such aircraft can land safely.
The tarmac helipad is 24m in diameter with some markings still visible. It is somewhat obscured by overgrowth and dumped building materials.

The steel pen was open-sides and allowed flying boat to be inspected and serviced out of the water.

The strongpoint was constructed on the sea wall with four firing positions, 2 facing the mud flats and 2 covering the airfield. There is a central room which may have housed the command element and ammunition storage.
This was the SMR designation given to the site. The site was designated DHP 46 during the Defence heritage project but has been incorporated under DHR 87 as a feature on Newtownards Airfield. The site is scheduled.
The site remains in good condition. When the sea wall was strengthened the site was incorporated into the new sea wall during which the entire southern face was buried. Though corroded the remains of 4 steel Turnbull mounts can be seen in the embrasures, This was used to mount machine guns. A steel safety fence has been constructed on the roof.
Information on Turnbull mounts, see

Living site for personnel. It had 53 structures, mostly barracks with ablutions blocks and latrines.

The stricture is in good condition, though an external wall of one of the ammunition lockers is missing, causing the roof to develop a significant crack.

Also known as the Fire Command Post. This was the tactical headquarters of the fire commander, who had operational command of the batteries at Greypoint, Kilroot, Orlock, Larne and Magilligan. The single story concrete structure held the fire commanders office. The structure also contained the battery plotting room, which would receive target data from the battery observation post. The plotting room calculated the targeting information into aiming solutions/directions for the battery guns.
The site remains in good condition. it is well-maintained and currently used as a small museum.

Flight crews coming from their respective Fight Training Schools were qualified to fly and operate aircraft, they were no ready for operational units until they became familiar with the types of aircraft with which their operational squadron was equipped. Operational Training Units (Combat Crew Replacement Centres for the USAAF) were designed to train crews on the aircraft they would fly on operations. An instructional site housed a suite of synthetic trainer which could simulate flight operations on the ground in safety and under the supervision of instructors. The Air Ministry Laboratory (AML) bombing teacher projected a moving map on which the bombardier used a mock bomb sight to hit a target and passed instructions to the pilot, who could alter the course of the ‘flight’ over the map according to instructions from the bombardier, who calculated wind and speed as on a real mission. Timing after bomb release was assessed by instructors to determine the accuracy of the simulated bomb run. This is a rare example of a double bombing teacher with 2 training suites.
This structure housed two AML bombing teachers but is now used as a cattle byre. It is in relatively good condition. Two large entrances have been made in the east wall. The concrete landing levels have been removed from both trainers, as have the staircases to the projector room level. The projector level windows are blocked up but light from the stairwell suggests there is damage to the corrugated AS cement roof panels.

Runway layout was traditionally three concrete runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted. However the airfield was never completed with only a single runway being partially completed before the site was closed
Approximately 800 metres of runway remains south of the Moss Road. However the runway was never constructed to full width. At the northern end it is 17 metres wide (complete it should be approx 46 metres wide), tapering to 10 metres.

The T2 (‘T’ for transportable) was developed in 1940 to replace Bellman Hangars. They were of a modular design meaning they could be dismantled, moved and reassembled elsewhere. Constructed of steel lattice portal frames and clad in galvanised corrugated iron. The T2 became the standard temporary hangar for the RAF, and over 900 were built during the war. They were considered temporary structures with a limited design life, but many remain on airfields throughout the United Kingdom. This hanger has single storey brick annexes along both sides.
The site is in good condition though it has been re-clad with modern sheeting. It has been repurposed to industrial use and offices by the owners.

The structure is in relatively good condition, though there appears to be some loss of galvanised steel cladding from the real gable exposing the framework beneath.

Provided washing and toilet facilities for troops and civilian workers of Lockheed Corporation.
Brick with concrete slab roof supported by steel I-beams. Retains most of its original window frames. All internal fitting removed.

Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.
Site is in good condition, the entrance to the rear of the structure has been blocked with brushwood.

This small approx 17 metre wide dispersal appears to be intact but obscured by vegetation.

Ballyhalbert airfield
Fuel compound; Ablutions block
All structures removed saving ablutions block and fuel compound on south end of site

This site was used as a rest shelter by the gun crews while on duty. They could relax in safety but still be ready for action.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Is used as a staff locker room by current owners.

The Type C Hangar (known during the interwar years as a shed) was designed to meet the RAF’s need to house larger aircraft. A hangar was required with a clear span of 150 feet, length of 300 feet and a clear height of 35 feet. This led to the development of the Type C hangar. Early examples were built with brick and steelwork, but in 1936, this was changed to concrete in anticipation of enemy bombing. Doors were arranged in six leaves, with steel plates on both sides. The cavity was filled with gravel to a height of 20 feet to provide protection against bomb splinters.
The annexes to either side of the hanger served day-to-day operations, with offices, rest rooms, changing and locker rooms, briefing rooms and briefing rooms. There were also wireless and instrument workshops, armouries, aircraft and equipment store to serve the immediate needs of the ground crews.
This design is from 1938 when the galbed ends of the transverse roof was changed to hipped roofs.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Still in use by MoD.

Kilwaughter Castle
Structure constructed during WW2, to facilitate operations t the site. Function remains unclear.

This small square concrete pillbox was largely obscured by soil overburden. Two embrasures or vision slits were visible but it was mostly buried.
Site was destroyed by owner in 2004 but archaeological remains are likely.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012)BBC report at

The concrete structure has a compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof and retains its original windows and brick chimney.

Only sections of low wall, concrete floor and parts of the surrounding earthwork traverses remain.

Airfield bomb dumps were designed to store high explosive bombs, incendiary bombs, fused bombs, tail units, bomb components and small arms ammunition. As would be expected they were sited well away from the technical area. The bomb store was serviced by a double track-way, one of which was slightly higher than the other. The upper track was 12 feet wide and allowed lorries to unload munitions into the stores, whereas the lower track widened to 20 feet to accommodate tractors and bomb trolley trains. The stores were built with a slight slope, using gravity to enable easier loading from the upper track while bombs were taken from the lower track. Designated 1212/43, the store consisted of a series of four 40-foot square open storage areas protected by 25 foot thick and 6-foot high earthwork traverses. Each storage area was designed to accommodate 50 tons of explosives. Bombs were driven on trolley trains to the fusing points before being taken out to aircraft for loading.
The stores remains in good condition with both concrete access tracks, four stores, earthwork traverses and concrete loading ramps in situ. There is the rusted remains of a vehicle in one of the storage ares, it is unclear if this is a vehicle associated with airfield operations.

The site was a series of fire decoys. Each group was composed of a number of different flame decoys such as fire baskets, boiler fires and grid fires. Each group was surrounded by a shallow trench to act as a fire break ensured fire from one group would not spread to the other groups, as a decoy would bit lit sequentially to simulate a spreading fire.

Cloughmills ROC post
Site Description The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ. This site was a master post.
Site is intact and in relatively good condition but it is heavily overgrown.
Website www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/cloghmills-roc-post/

The structure remains in good condition. The tall wooden doors are missing but its roof, made of compressed asbestos cement sheeting supported by steel trusses, remains intact, though several ridge tiles are missing on the western end of the roof. The windows in the sidewalls are sealed with modern concrete blocks.

This dispersal retains only one park and the central hardstanding. Three finger parks would removed for land reclamation some tome between 2008 and 2013.

715m of perimeter track remain though resurfaced as part of a racing circuit.

This building served as a lecture hall with projection equipment, demonstration benches and display boards. Usually intended for training of Aircrew on the Armament systems of the type of aircraft to which they were to be assigned although much of the role equipment was common such a 0.303 inch Browning Machine Gun and mountings, bomb carriers and release equipment, and bomb types. The six small rooms would have been designated typically for office, drawings, armament equipment store and armament classrooms each classroom containing related armament equipment for gunnery and bombing included electrical controls.
The site has been truncated by the construction of a modern dwelling, though what remains has been refurbished and converted into a domestic garage.

Provided washing and toilet facilities for officers.
Main structure intact, however site missing fittings, windows and roof.

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire., could be used as a fire trench or communication trench to access weapon pits. However, with poor lines of sight this trench could also have been intended as a shelter during air raids

Large central square in middle of original barrack complex. This open space, which was was used for parades of all sorts, for instance, fatigues, drill, pay, punishment, and the assembly of the guards.
Site is intact though has been resurfaced throughout its time of use.

Site remains in good condition, used as a lorry park

Structure appears intact though function is unclear.

The standby set house provided emergency power for crucial sections of the airfield should the main power supply fail. When operational this would have housed two or three diesel generators, two 3,000 gallon fuel tanks, a switchgear chamber and a transformer chamber.
It is built to a inter-war design (drawing no 10,599/38) and is protected by a surrounding concrete blast wall.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Site is still in use by MoD.

Toilet facilities for other ranks/enlisted airmen.
Only traces on concrete and brick footings remain

Office for handling/processing freight into airfield.

Provided cooking and dining facilities for base personnel.
The structure remains in good condition though it has modern structures added to the original layout. has been repurposed as mechanics workshop.

Only concrete hard-standing remains. Two agricultural sheds and a caravan on site.

This 89 metre section of track remains in good condition. Used as a driveway for a domestic dwellling.

The site was an existing farm outbuilding repurposed to house the Aircraft Servicing Section and the Armoury Fitting Section.
The farm building is largely intact, It has been repurposed as a stable.

Site Description Structure built to facilitate operations at the site.
Only concrete base and some badly corroded steel ribs remain.

Provided bathing and washing facilities for enlisted personnel (ratings in Royal Navy)
IN relatively good condition with original roof, window frames and ventilation louvres on roof. Sections reused by car dealership.

Provided accommodation for airmen.
Piled up with spoil and concrete rubble, only the concrete hardstanding remains.

Site overgrown but probing suggests many hut bases may remain in situ.

The runway layout is the traditional three runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted.
The concrete and tarmac runway survives to its full original length of 980 m. An 18m wide strip has been resurfaced to facilitate light aircraft and micro-lights

The coastal pillbox was sited to provide defensive fire using machine guns along the length of the beach firing through embrasures in the concrete wall. The concrete was thick enough to provide protection against bullets and shell splinters but was not thick enough to withstand direct fire from artillery and heavy guns. Each level has staircased three embrasures but there are no remains of fixtures for mounting machine guns. Moreover, there is little interior room suggesting this may have been an observation bunker.
This split-level pillbox is constructed from reinforced concrete and steel. The site is accessed from a hatch in the roof which leads to the small upper pillbox with a doorway leading to the larger pillbox on the lower level, though this is now blocked with rubble and the lower level is flooded to the level of the embrasures. The entry hatch is missing and the rungs of the access ladder have mostly corroded away. The pillbox is surrounded by rock armouring placed to limit coastal erosion.

Brick structure built as part of searchlight battery, function is unknown. Structure may have been one of the more important features on the site, possibly office or command post given the brick protection afforded the doorways.
Structure remains in relatively good condition retaining its original roof and window frames.

This provided washing and showering facilities for enlisted men.
The structure is in good condition and retains its original asbestos roof. The site retains the boiler house with chimney and raised water tank. The building has been reused to house cattle. This limited the survey carried out on field work as the presence of cows with calves made any closer inspection unsafe.

This was a nissen hut used to store practice bombs used by pilots on training bombing runs. These were normally 11.5 and 25 pound variants. A smoke filled (Titanium Tetrachloride filler) bomb was used during day bombing and a flash filler (Magnesium shavings and gunpowder, or calcium silicide and gunpowder) was used for night bombing practice.
Uncertain condition as no access could be gained during the duration of the survey

This shelter provided accommodation for gun crews while on duty, it is secured with a steel door and all the windows are protected by steel shutters.
Site is in good condition. It is used as a storeroom.

The site appears in relatively good condition, though the integral blast wall has been removed. Closer inspection not possible as site secured by fence.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. It was equipped with concrete benches and was designed to accommodate 25. Opposite the entrance was the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
Site in rear garden of a private dwelling. The blast wall has been removed and the roof is overgrown with ivy but structure in good condition. Secured with wooden door.

This structure was built to an inter-war design, the expansion period for the RAF, which paid greater attention to detail and architectural quality than later more austere designs of the later 1930s and war years.
The structure is intact and in good condition. It is still in use by the MoD.

The Ground Controlled Intercept radar was established at Ballywoodan in 1941. This system was used to track aircraft that had passed inland of the the coastal Chain Home radar system. The operators used radar gide interceptor aircraft to airborne enemy targets. The equipment (in the case of Bishops Court an AMES Type t radar) had a 360 degree view of the sky around the station.
The operations block processed the information received from the radar antennae. It contained a reporting room and housed controllers, who passed flight instructions to aircraft. The northern end of the structure was the administration section and offices. In its original GCI role the structure was known as a 'Happidrome'. This was known as a GCI Final Station and was likely constructed in 1942-3.
The structure of brick and concrete is in good condition, all access has been sealed with modern concrete blocks. A small hole had been made in the western entrance but health and safety did not permit a safe entrance to examine the interior of the building
RAF BISHOPS COURT/KILLARD POINT R8 GCI CONTROL AND REPORTING POST/ULSTER RADAR at Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Colin Dobinson, Building radar: forging Britain's early warning chain, 1935-45 (London, 2010)Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Wayne Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)

The site was used to mount a Mark VII six inch breech loading gun. The gun is mounted on a steel pedestal and fires over a concrete barbette with a sloping concrete glacis. It was supplied from a ready to use supply of ammunition. This was stored in a series of nine recesses, five held 20 cartridges each, four stored 25 shells each. These were protected by steel doors (now missing). Shells and cartridges were fed into the gun position from the magazine below via separate hoists.
The guns had an effective range of approximately six miles. Ammunition came in two parts. The explosive shell weighed 100 pounds and was propelled by a separate cartridge. this was cordite packaged in a silk bag.
In 1940 new concrete gun houses (known at the time as shields) were erected to protect the guns and their crews from aerial attack.
The site is in excellent condition. It was re-armed in 1999.

The aircraft hardstanding of this dispersal has been removed, only 16 metres of the approach track remains but this is in good condition.

Road block used to control access via main gate
Concrete block with channels moulded in it to receive barraier.

Brick water tank used to store emergency supply of water for fire fighting
Brick tank remains in good condition if overgrown,. Filled with stagnant water.

Site was originally constructed as a camp to house troops but was later repurposed as a prisoner of war camp. The huts were demolished post-war.
Hut bases and footpaths may remain sub-surface as parch marks appear during periods of dry weather.

Plinth for a Type 13 height finding radar, which provided height information on aircraft using centimentric radar. The transmitting equipment was housed inside the plinth .
The brick and concrete radar plinth remain in relatively good condition. A concrete plinth remains inside the structure which has a square hole cut in the roof with the steel mount for the radar antenna remaining in-situ.

This 16 foot span hut provided accommodation for airmen.
Concrete base remains, with some traces of dividing wall and corroded remains of steel hut ribs. Heavily overgrown

The 25 yard range was used to test fire machine guns/aircraft cannon and used as a small -arms range. Used for ground defence training using the service No 4 .303 Rifle, Bren Gun LMG, Sten gun and pistols.
Only demolition rubble remains and this is heavily overgrown

Series of 7-8 nissen hut structures , used to accommodate of provide domestic facilities for the battery's crew.
Large area resurfaced, traces may remain in the overgrown portion on northern end of site/

The stable block, known as the top yard, was used to use junior officers and NCOs during WW2. It retains much contemporary graffiti and wall art left by British and US troops.

A Quonset hut used to store corpses for identification or removal for autopsy, burial or cremation.

The site was used repair aircraft instruments, radio sets, spark plug refurbishment and bomb sight repair.
In good condition though rendered post war. Roof may have been placed after it was damaged in a fire, also post-war.

Magilligan Coastal Battery
This part of the site is marked in the 1943 plan as a magazine but at some point during its operational lifetime, it was converted into a gun site. The site has four ammunition lockers underneath the platform with recesses likely meant to incorporate steel doors or shutters.
The platform itself is significantly overgrown and it is only possible to make out the large steel fastening bolts of the holdfast.

Military camp constructed during WW2, likely composed of nissen huts, its function remains unclear. Structue in field appears to have a blast wall protecting doorway and openings made in hedge to allow communication around position. Looks like an anti-aircraft site but no record of one being sited here.
Shows layout of camp from PRONI AM/1/5/9A/3001-3040

Modern airfield structure built on top pf frying pan hardstanding but approach apron and sections of concrete edges on east side appear intact.

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the hangars. The perimeter tracks are 50 feet/14 metres wide. It is concrete surfaced with tarmac.
This perimeter track is well maintained and in good condition. At 1,250m it retains all of its original length.

Constructed with 4 entrances, all are now sealed with modern concrete block-work.

Lartines

Constructed to house section for cleaning dishes and cutlery from the nearby mess.

Site has been truncated by garden and road, approximately 40% of surface remains in relatively good condition.

Military structure constructed to facilitate operations at the site. Likely a nissen hut used as a barracks.

Also known as a helix hut, structure sited at the base of an antenna and contained equipment used to tune the aerial coupling the main power line to the antenna. It may also have housed transformers for aircraft warning lights and lightning protection equipment.
The structure is largely intact though the equipment was removed when the site was decommissioned.

Sick quarters provided medical care for personnel on base. Had and barracks for orderlies and ambulance garage/mortuary.

Dunbarton House
An underground air raid shelter, it was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Local sources relate how the structure was built by British Army engineers for the owner of the local mill who lived in Dunbarton House. It has two access passages though one is sealed. It is a single room with a wooden roof supported by steel beams.
The structure is intact but the wooden and steel roods is slowly collapsing.

This are behind the target was used to catch bullets fired downrange after they passed through the targets (or missed altogether|). It is now obvious due to the contamination of ground by large quantities of lead and copper form the bullet cores and copper jackets of the bullets. Consequently there is little if any vegetation. Bullets litter the ground in this area.

Trackway linking finger park dispersals to airfield
A t-shaped section with 160m of exposed track-way. Landowner noted tracks remain intact under the topsoil.

The airfield at Limavady is unusual in that it has a dedicated powerhouse. Most airfields had a standby generator house to provide emergency power, but powerhouses were called on to provide power for longer periods of operations and the ability to cope with essential and non-essential power loads. This called for a greater number of generators and generating capacity, and the corresponding increased fuel storage.
The site is in a remarkable level of preservation. The steel reinforced structure contains much of the electrical switchgear and four of the five diesel generators on their original engine beds and their electric generators. The structure is heavily overgrown and the southern wall which original enclosed the diesel tanks has partially collapsed.

Much of the 483m length of this section of perimeter track has been obscured by an earthwork berm, however it may remain in good condition beneath the spoil.

The grounds of Brecart Lodge were commandeered by the war office to house troops during WW2. A small army camp was constructed with a number of brick structures and series of nissen huts along the main driveway. Internet source suggests a US engineer company was based there.
An ablution block and other unidentified structure remain intact with a number of hut bases/concrete foundations remaining.

Group of 13 poles visible on day of survey

The site remains in good condition, with original windows in sections and some remaining pulleys for holding suspended parachutes. The outside porch has been removed and replaced with a modern entrance to facilitate its use as a mechanics shop.

Building first indicated on the 1904 map as two separate buildings with a wall between and walls to the boundary where probable toilet blocks are located. Buildings still separated in 1933 but link block constructed in 1955. Toilet blocks and yard walls to the rear removed by 1977. From the architecture it is clear that this is a purpose built school for Army families which, from the maintenance of the yard wall, may have functioned until the 1950s but probably stopped with the Second World War. In conjunction with the married soldiers’ quarters to the north east built at the same time, it is a reflection of the changing nature of barrack life in the early twentieth century with the introduction of families. Later became NAFFI and canteen then repurposed as a store until closure of barracks. Redeveloped for commercial use.
Site is intact and in good condition. Repurposed for commercial use with modern additions to central section.
HB file for HB01/09/002BB

Site appears intact though partially resurfaced wit modern tarmac.

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire., could be used as a fire trench or communication trench to access weapon pits.
Irregular design suggest this may be a WW2 practice position but it is difficult to be sure without excavation.
There is a length of steel track from a British WW2 Cromwell tank sitting adjacent to the position.
Approx. 15 metres of shallow trench remain.

This was an MoS barrack hut to accommodate sergeants.
Only concrete base remains, obscured by large quarantines of slurry.

This store was of a design developed early in the war, drawing number 5416/40. It was a 30 ft square open platform protected by earthwork traverses. It could store a maximum of 24 tons of high explosive bombs. Aerial bombs and depth charges would have been stored at this site.
The site is in good condition with well-preserved earthwork traverses, concrete platform and brick revetments.

A structure used to store ammunition or explosives. Normally a semicircular steel structure covered in a layer of earth.
Site heavily over grown but the potential for surviving features remains.

This dispersal was originally 28m in diameter but has been truncated by approximately half during the construction of the prison boundary. It is heavily overgrown with vegetation but the concrete hard-standing with bitumen surfacing can be discerned through the grass and moss.

Tarmac section of main runway approximately 100 metres long. Currently used as a timber storage yard.

This structure was built to test fire and synchronise aircraft machine guns and cannon. The recess would have been filled with a sand backstop into which the guns were fired.
Site remains in relatively good condition. Structure used to store firefighting and rescue vehicles

Randalstown Camp
In 1914 Lord O'Neill made 80 acres of the Dunmore estate available to the War Office to establish a barracks and training camp for army recruits before dispatch overseas. Construction began in October 1914 and was completed in December of the same year.
A contemporary map shows the camp divided into four named areas: The Mount Camp, Dunmore Camp, Hollow Camp and Ridge Camp. It was composed of dozens of wooden huts fit to accommodate 125 officers and 4,500 other ranks. Practice trenches were cut in areas of open ground and three firing ranges were established to the south of the camp in the Shane's Castle deer park.
It initially billeted the 109th inf. brigade of the 36th Ulster Division. The troops were sent overseas in July 1915, after which the site became a depot for rehabilitating injured troops who, after retraining, were fit to return to active duty. The site remained in use as a convalescent hospital until 1919.
The site was the northern part of the camp called the Mount Camp. There re no surface remains but ephemeral traces can be identified with lidar survey and aerial photographs. Subsurface remains my be extant.
Possible remains visible on lidar survey and aerial photographs.

Local farmer related how borehole sunk as one of three in area to provide water to camp.
Well sealed with steel and concrete cover, steel hand pump remain beside well.

Operated by the NAAFI (Navy Army and Air Force Institute), the shop stocked local foodstuffs and goods which could be purchased by base personnel.
A low section of brick wall and concrete footings is all that remains in situ.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.. This was discovered buried in the abutment of the bridge during work to extend the roadway.
The site is intact but has been burned in the fabric of the bridge extension.The main door was blocked by rubble but emergency hatch exposed during excavation in 2005.
Bernard Lowry (ed), 20th Century defence in Britain: an introductory guide (CBA, 1996)

The structure is largely intact though in a decaying state. The roof is intact though the east end wall is in a state of collapse.

This shallow trench is approx. 30 metres long and saw-tooth in form. Its location in the accommodation are of the site suggests that it is a shelter trench constructed to provide protection to personnel in event of an air attack.
The trench is overgrown but clearly visible, approx. 0.25m -0.5 m deep, it is approx. 30 metres long.

This structure (described in original DHP 23) is roughly pentagonal with a east facing brick firing trench and teo ammunition recesses. The site today is heavily overgrown and difficult to make out any detail safely.
The site appears intact but heavily overgrown.
Original entry for DHP 23

A Quonset hut providing quarters for the base commanding officer, Captain Davis.
Only the concrete base and the chimney breast remain.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000)Richard Doherty, Key to victory: The maiden City in the Second World War (Derry, 1995) Richard Doherty, 'Escort base' in Ulster Local Studies, Vol 16, No. 1 (1994), pp

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The dispersal has been truncated by field reclamation, approximately 40% remains.

Constructed to pump freshwater to the camp

In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps during 1944.
The site consisted of rows of Nissen huts, with each hut divided in two, each side housing a family. There was a canteen, laundry, bathhouse and toilet facilities
There appears to be one upstanding structure and several hut bases with concrete trackways. The site was secured at the time of the field visit. Therefore, no direct inspection could be made.

Intact until 2020, destroyed with construction of housing development.

The structure is largely intact though the eastern end wall has been removed to facilitate its use as a store

Large concrete wall placed opposite entrance to a magazine to deflect a blast in the event of an accidental explosion in the magazine (DHR 192:019)

This 24 foot span nissen hit was used to conduct battery training classes.

The Argory
The main house was requisitioned to serve as officers quarters during WW2, it was returned to civilian use post-war.
Structure is owner by the National Trust

The site was used to filter drinking water pumped from the lough and stored in the tank adjacent.

Sergeant’s quarters provided accommodation to NCOs.
This was site of a Nissen hut structure, now removed only the hut base remains.

Structure relating to airfield operations, function remains unclear.
Only concrete base and small section of brickwork remain.

The buried concrete structure sits between the two gun positions. It housed the battery's main store of shells and propellant cartridges. The main magazine is split by a internal dividing wall, with the cartridge store on one side and the shell store on the other. There are separate manually operated hoists for conveying shells and cartridges up to the gun floor above.
The magazine also has an artillery store room, used to store equipment needed to service and maintain the guns. There is also the lamp room, which held specialised light and lanterns used to safely illuminate the interior of the magazine.
The site is in good condition, it is currently used as a military museum.
The National Archives Kew, Fort Record Book, WO.192/324

.

Lislea Mills
The site of Lislea mills was commandeered to accommodate units f the US military, specifically the 702nd Ordnance Light Maintenance company.
Small brick structure erected to facilitate operations at the site. Suggestions that it was a reception building.
Structure is relatively intact though the roof is overgrown.

Ballyrolly House 'Kinder farm'
In 1933 the then owner of this house, Lawrence Gorman, leased the property and its farm to some of the Belfast Jewish community, who, between 1938 and 1946 set up a camp for young Jewish refugees from the continent. This program was called Kindertransport. Kindertransport (Children's Transport) was the informal name of a series of rescue efforts which brought thousands of refugee Jewish children to Great Britain from Nazi Germany between 1938 and 1940. Following the violent pogrom staged by the Nazi authorities upon Jews in Germany known as Kristallnacht (Night of Broken Glass) of 9–10 November 1938, the British government eased immigration restrictions for certain categories of Jewish refugees.
Before September 1939 the Farm at Millisle had been a training place for young Jews from Europe to learn agricultural skills. Jews were not well versed in agricultural skills so the Farm had been set up for them. By 1939 it was painfully obvious that they were not wanted back in Europe. So the Farm, with Herr Patriasz from Hungary as a manager and teacher, was set up.
Two storey gabled block consisting of two Edwardian houses which are substantially intact although they have lost some historic fabric and detailing, complete with long range of single storey stables to the rear.
This particular farm at Millisle housed over 100 refugees of all ages between 1939 and 1947. Initially they stayed in tents and then a temporary wooden structure which was dismantled in 1947. The farm became a Refugee Resettlement Farm and those who stayed there were trained in agriculture. Many of them went to the local primary school and some remained in Northern Ireland after the war finished. There is evidence that some refugees stayed in the converted stables and possibly in the two houses. These remaining buildings are a link to this important period in European history and to the significant role that Millisle played in saving many war refugees who would otherwise have been taken to concentration camps.
Structure is in a state of decay but largely intact.

Approximately 225 metres of track remain in relatively good condition, sections have been resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Block provided washing and bathing facilities for troops stationed at the camp.
The site is in good condition, it is used for storage.

This structure (often called a aircraft shed) was the first permanent hangar erected at the airfield. Built to design 352/22 (or 362/22 print on document is unclear), this is ia very early design and does not have an official name (though it is similar in construction to the General Service Sheds.
It was one of the early end opening hangars and was built with 2 Belfast Truss roofs. It was constructed early in the 1920's but at some point the roof of the rear section was replaced with a pitched roof.
Structure has been re-clad in modern galvanised steel sheeting but the structure appears intact. Still in use as a hangar by MoD.

The Bellman hangar was designed in 1936 as a temporary facility capable of being erected or dismantled quickly by unskilled labour with basic equipment. Time taken to erect one hanger was estimated at 500 man hours. From 1938-40, around 400 were constructed across the UK. Built in two sizes, this hanger was drawing number 8349/39, the smallest of the type. It may also have been slightly lower, with a 17 foot clear height instead of the usual 25 feet.
Only the concrete hardstanding remains. Demolition rubble is stored at the site. Modern steel gates sit at the south end as well as a steel shipping container. There are some traces of the original steel guiderails for the hangar’s sliding doors.

Site appears intact though resurfaced with modern tarmac and area between adjoining dispersal infilled.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the depot, precise function unknown.
Only remains of low wall, heavily overgrown.

A prefabricated air raid shelter construction of a steel pipe with a steel revetment protecting the entrance. The whole structure would have been covered in with a layer of soil with only the entrance visible. The emergency exit is at the opposite end.
Site is overgrown but appears largely intact.

Designed in 1915 by Canadian, Col P. N. Nissen, these prefabricated structures were purchased in large numbers as an alternative to brick construction, and became one of the most common structures built during World War 2. They were semi-circular in section, and normally built in multiples of 6 foot sections. They were constructed of steel ribs covered with sections of curved steel sheeting held in place by straining wires. The ends could be either brick or timber.
Nissen hut structure erected to accommodate crew of HAA battery. Exact function unclear, likely barracks of storage.

This linear fieldwork dug as a means of concealment from enemy observation and protection from enemy fire. Likely main function was a communication trench to allow troops to move about area around battery under cover. Plotted by HED surveyors in 2015.
This shallow trench runs for approximately 30 metres downslope from the fort.

RAF Bishops Court was built late in the war compared to others in NI, it opened in April 1943. The airfield was originally planned as a Combat Crew Replacement Centre for the USAAF, but the US never took ownership of the site. It was home to No 7 Air Observers School (later renamed 7 (Observer) Advanced Flying Unit) and an Air Gunnery School. The site also served as a diversion site for Coastal Command B-24 Liberators due to its long runways. The (O) AFU was renamed an Air Navigation School, continuing training until October 1947. The site went into care and maintenance in 1948 but was reactivated between 1952-4 as an Air Navigation School. Operational Readiness Platforms were built in 1955 as the site was considered a fall-back base for fighters, but no aircraft were sent.
The ROTOR radar project in the 1950s saw the establishment of a radar control centre on the airfield in conjunction with a site at Killard Point. A type 7 Ground Control Intercept radar was added to the site, then a much larger Type 84 radar after 1964, along with a series of height finding radars, AN-FPS6 then HF 200 radars on concrete towers.
In the early 1980s under the Linesman/Mediator programme a hardened Control and Reporting Post was built on the airfield operating a Type 93 mobile radar. The base was attacked by the IRA in 1989 when 9 mortars were fired into the base. The entire site was closed and sold off in 1991.
Overall the airfield remains in remarkable state of preservation, with many of the structures remaining from World War 2 and the Cold War era of its occupation. Much of the runway and perimeter track survives in good condition. Construction of the Bishopscourt Race circuit has obscured/redeveloped the western end of the airfield, however where new concrete has been laid for pit areas, this has accommodated rater than removed the original dispersals. The radar station remains almost intact, though the height-finding radar towers have been demolished. Much of the WW2 technical area survives in relatively good condition. The hardened Cold War structures remain in good condition and represent a unique collection of buildings in N. Ireland. Many of the remote living sites have been repurposed into holiday homes or commercial premises. Significant areas of runway and perimeter track remain. Considering the survival of multi period military remains this site is a unique in the defence heritage record of NI.
Killard Point radar Station was operated in conjunction with the Type 80 and Type 84 radars at Bishops Court
The site is in a remarkable level of preservation with large numbers of structures from WW2 and the Cold War period, with some amendment/addition during the 'Trouble's
Flat area suitable for airfield construction
David J. Smith, Action Station 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)
Wayne D. Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: Building for nuclear confrontation 1946-1989 (Swindon, 2004)
RAF BISHOPS COURT/KILLARD POINT R8 GCI CONTROL AND REPORTING POST/ULSTER RADAR at
Ulster Radar at https://www.ulsterradar.co.uk/index.htm

Small brick structure built to facilitate operations within the refugee camp, exact function remains unclear. Appears to have been repurposed as a domestic store
Site appears intact and in good conditon.

The concrete structure is in good condition, retains asbestos roof and windows. Has been converted into a holiday home.

The site was constructed as radio station emitting a beacon as part of the Army Airways Communication System. This system has station transmitting a low-frequency signal which aircraft could follow, allowing them to accurately navigate over long distances. Only a single structure remains.
Largely intact though repurposed as an agricultural store with a modern access opened in the south west endwall.

With WW2 over the government felt the Royal Observer Corps had a role to play in aircraft observation and tracking. However, this task became increasingly difficult due to the development of jet aircraft. Therefore new monitoring posts were developed to assist observers. New observation posts were constructed during 1951-2 which provided some level of protection from the elements for observers. They were known as Orlit Posts (after the manufacturers of the pre-cast concrete versions). The came in two versions, the ground level Orlit A and the raised Orlit B. It quickly became apparent that the ROC was ineffective tat reporting high-speed aircraft and it role in the diminished from 1957.
Small brick enclosure, the dividing wall has been removed and the height raised with more modern brickwork and a roof (now collapsed) fitted.
The surrounding wall in intact though the dividing wall has been removed.
Website https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/randalstown-roc-post/

Sullatober Mill
The mill at Sullatober was commandeered for military use during WW2. The site was designated as a Royal Naval detention Centre in 1942 (though it was opened in 1940). Also referred to a Military Detention Barracks, Carrickfergus.
The site was returned to civilian use after the war. It houses a number of commercial properties, though some wartime features can be found, such as steel security doors and security grills covering windows and skylights.

Most remains of the site have been removed and the land returned to agricultural use, only the ammunition store remains.

Bombs would only be fused when they were transported to loading onto aircraft. Therefore, fusing point buildings were sited on the trackways from the bomb stores to the perimeter track and dispersals. With doors at both ends, trolley trains loaded with bombs were driven in and each bomb was fused by an armourer. The fused bombs were then driven out the other end of the building and taken directly to their aircraft for loading. This site was termed 'Ultra-Heavy' for fusing large hi-explosive bombs.
The structure is in relatively good condition and retains its original roof. It is now used to store agricultural machinery.

Constructed of brick, this structure was an Orlit B, raised on legs approx. six feet high. Accessed by ladders, It had a covered shelter/store and an open observation area which held a plotting chart.
The site is relatively intact, though the ladder and some of the bricks have collapsed or been removed since it was abandoned.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/hillsborough-roc-post/

Ivy Lodge
The house and grounds at Ivy Lodge were commandeered by the War Office to house military personnel and a camp was established at the site. This camp was demolished post-war.

The armoury had an office for the Station Armament Officer and another for his subordinate. Most of the building was taken up by the Small Arms Store containing small arms for ground defence, such as Enfield rifles, Sten sub-machine gun, Bren light machine guns and pistols. All, except the pistols, were placed in purpose built racks with the pistols in lockable cupboards beneath. A workshop for the servicing of Small Arms was also within the building. It was usual to have a built-in masonry cupboard with a steel door containing ready-use quantities of Small Arms Ammunition.
The structure remains in good condition and retains its original room and many of the original windows.

Structure of uncertain function sites in barrack area of airfield defence troops.

Only concrete base remains obscured by grass.

Concrete trackway providing vehicular access across the camp.
Approx. 600 metres of trackway remain in good condition.

Small section of concrete trackway which provided access to Communal Site 2.
Only 48 metre section of trackway remains in good condition.

In good condition. Structure retains its concrete benches and ceiling support. The shelter escape hatch can be seen in the opposite wall from the entrance. A quantity of asbestos sheeting is stored on the roof of the site.

The coastal pillbox was sited to provide defensive fire using machine guns along the length of the beach or covering the beach exits, firing through embrasures in the concrete wall. The concrete was thick enough to provide protection against bullets and shell splinters but was not thick enough to withstand direct fire from artillery and heavy guns. This pillbox appears to be a variant to design DFW3/24, it is significantly taller than usual and no anti-ricochet wall inside. It has 7 firing embrasures and an entrance in the rear wall.
The site retains the steel rails and several shutters used to protect the embrasures from incoming fire. The could be closed to prevent fire, especially from flamethrowers, from entering the position. One of the shutters remains on the ground just to the south of the pillbox.
The structure remains in good condition, though the agricultural shed shown in the original DHP report from 1998 has been removed.

A shelter for small detachments of troops on guard duty.
The structure appears in good condition, it retains its original window frames and asbestos roof.

Springtown Camp
The camp at Springtown was constructed to house US Navy personnel. It could house 1,300 in 134 barrack huts serviced by 14 mess halls. it also had many domestic structures such as latrine, recreation huts, laundries, a church and a cinema.
Post war after the US Navy vacated the camp it was occupied by local people needing housing and became the focus of a long running dispute between those housed in the camp and the city's corporation. The camp was occupied for another 21 years.
The site was demolished and redeveloped in the 1960s.

Structure used by Ulster Home Guard to practise drill and take instruction.

65 metre section of perimeter track connecting to the runway (DHR 00080:001) remains intact buyt resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Relatively intact with some remains of pumice filter. Heavily overgrown.

The concrete dispersal remains in good condition., though there is some dumping/fly tipping at the site.

Owner reported the modern farm building was constructed on the base of WW2 era building.

Provided accommodation for non-commissioned officers. Built on site of WW2 huts.
The concrete structure is in good condition, retains asbestos roof and some of its original windows. Has been converted into a holiday home.

Used to settle residual solids in effluent.
The tanks appear to be overgrown but intact.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is visible on contemporary aerial photographs and in a contemporary defence plan is shown with 2 defence positions/pillboxes, 2 slit trenches and an anti-aircraft position.
The area is ploughed over, no visible remains though sub surface remains are likely.

This 55 metre section of track remains in good condition though a section has been resurfaced with modern tarmac.

This 25 yard range was used to test fire machine guns and cannon. The majority of World War airfields were equipped with gun butts, used for the testing and alignment of aircraft guns, and for airmen to test shooting skills. A large brick structure supported by ten brick buttresses acts as a retaining wall for the sloping earth/sand backstop. A shelter would have faced the earth and brick butts, however this has long since been removed, though traces of its concrete base remain.
The brick retaining wall remains in good condition though it is overgrown on its north face and eastern edge. The sand backstop has either slumped or been removed.Though obscured by vegitation the base of the firing shelter remains in situ.

This site was recorded by a defence heritage volunteer as a radio /radar station. There is no further information relating to the form or function of this site. Though the grid reference provided is not entirely accurate, a brief series of field walks located a small complex of concrete hardstanding in the adjoining field. No verified details of function of site
Only traces of concrete hardstanding remain.

Structure constructed to facilitate operations at the armament depot.
Structure largely demolished since original defence heritage project, incorporated into perimeter wall.

The concrete trackway provided access to a complex of 6 frying pan hardstandings and a blister hangar.
The trackwat has been significantly narrowed and no trace remains of dispersals.

Mount Panther military camp
Units of the United States Army were quartered at Mount Panther. The following units were stationed here: 2nd Battalion of the 1st Armoured Association of 1st Armoured Division, the 13th Infantry unit of the 8th Infantry Division and the 21st Field Artillery Battalion of the 5th Division. In addition companies B and C from the 818th Tank Destroyer Battalion, were quartered at Mount Panther between November 1943 and February 1944
The site was composed of largely temporary Nissen huts, only a small number of hut bases remain. Part was removed with the construction of the A2.
Only a small section of overgrown concrete with indistinct hut bases remain.

By 1942 the huge increase in aircraft numbers made the use of ‘frying pan’ dispersals unworkable. Consequently, the dispersals were redesigned into ‘spectacle’ or loop dispersals sited around the perimeter track. They had many advantages over the earlier dispersals, notable they used less material for more parking. Aircraft could taxi onto one end then follow a shallow curve back onto the perimeter track. This reduced the fatigue on air frames and allowed squadrons to be rapidly deployed.
The concrete dispersal survives in relatively good condition but is obscured by 2 large dumps of spoil.

The structure remains in good condition, though the roof has been replaced with a modern sheeting. Used as an agricultural store.

The upstanding structure of the hangar has been removed, only the concrete apron and hardstanding remain. A steel agricultural shed stands in the centre of the site.

Track provided access to frying pan dispersals and the army aircraft salvage site (no longer extant)
The 810m of track remains in good condition though overgrown.

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire. This position is approx. 85 metres long and would have been the main defensive line of the position.
Ephemeral traces of trench still visible, approx. 85 metres long.

Constructed of brick faced reinforced concrete, the coastal pillbox was sited to provide defensive fire using machine guns along the length of the beach firing through embrasures in the concrete wall. The concrete was thick enough to provide protection against bullets and shell splinters but was not thick enough to withstand direct fire from artillery and heavy guns.
Site is heavily overgrown and secured within a waste water treatment works.
Site is overgrown but in good condition.

The location of Northern Ireland on the western edge of the United Kingdom suggested that the region may be insulated from the threat of German bombing raids. However, after the fall of France in 1940, Belfast was within range of German aircraft based in Belgium and France. Belfast and its surrounding are was hit by two major air raids on 15-16 April and 4-5 May 1941.
The crater is approximately 9-10 metres in diameter and a metre deep. Smoothed by 80 years of weathering, the crater was likely made by the surface detonation of a 250 kg bomb, likely during the 4-5 May raid.
The site remains intact and is fenced off as a feature as part of the Stormont estate.
Brian Barton, The Belfast Blitz: The city in the war years (Belfast, 2015)

Appears demolished on aerial photo, only concrete base remains. No access to site on day of visit.

In working condition, still used to treat sewage from factory on airfield site

Searchlights were used to target enemy aircraft and guide in anti-aircraft fire. The could also be used to aid aerial navigators during night flying operations. Normally composed of 1-3r searchlights enclosed by earthwork berms, predictors to guide lights supported by barracks for the crew and generators buildings.
There is no trace of the searchlight position but substantial remains of the domestic site with four upstanding brick structures and two hut bases.

In a change from the design of east coast CH sites, west coast sites separated the substations from the transmitter blocs. They were constructed of reinforced concrete with earthwork revetments. The substation allowed power to be switched from the mains to that generated from the standby set house. The substation has three entrances providing access to two transformer rooms and a room housing switchgear.

Mess, sitting room and office for WRNS petty officers.
In good condition and well-maintained. Roof replaced with modern galvansied steel sheeting. The site has been repurposed as a workshop and light industrial unit.

This site was constructed of a circular revetment of sandbags or earth. Inside a Lewis gun or other light machine gun was mounted on a central gun mount or ointle, allowing for a 360 degree arch of fire. The site could be used for ground defence and close range anti-aircraft fire.
The site when originally recorded in 2004 was a low circular bank, however the site has now been removed.

A ‘Tannoy’ system was used to communicate instructions to personnel across the airfield via loudspeakers across the airfield. These were connected to the amplifying equipment which was found in the Speech Broadcasting Building. The entrance was protected by a blast wall.
The site remains in good condition though the blast wall has been removed. It is used as a domestic store. Access secured by a modern door.

Somerset House
The grounds of Somerset |Demesne were requisitioned by the war office during WW2. A military camp was constructed in the grounds.
Site was demolished post war and much of the grounds have been redeveloped with housing. Some hardstanding remains and hut bases may remain sub-surface.

Also known as a Turret Gun Sighting Trainer (TGST), this was another use of synthetic training, using images of aircraft projected onto a large concave target screen. It was used to instruct aerial gunners how to lead fast moving aerial targets. Images or silhouettes of German aircraft were projected on the screen and a trainee in a mock-up turret would ‘fire’ the guns with realistic sound and ammunition tracking. This example is a double trainer and would have housed 2 screens and mock turrets.
The structure survives in relatively good condition though the internal fittings and external doors have been removed. Sections of the asbestos sheet roofing are missing and there are some concerning cracks on the southern end of the structure suggesting the south gable may fall away at some point.

Site appears to retain some original features. Modern curved steel roofing and concrete block endwalls. Original function remains unclear.

The site is in good condition but overgrown

This barrack block provided accommodation for sergeants and other ranks in the Woman’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) according to local informant who was a child when the base was occupied. It was formerly a Laing hut, made of a wooden frame and plasterboard covered in felt sheeting to weatherproof. The roof is supported by wooden trusses. This hut would have had 24 beds and, as it was a WAAF site, a chemical toilet, airmen were expected to use external toilets. After the base closed the huts were reused as emergency housing for evacuees from Belfast.
Though the site appears original, post-war a second wall of concrete blocks was constructed inside the plasterboard walls, which were then removed. Therefore while the walls are post war additions, the window frames, roof trusses, asbestos roof panels and concrete hard-standing are original. The site has been repurposed as a byre.

Aircraft were refuelled using mobile tankers, which were refilled from the bulk storage sites. Pumps would have serviced the fuel tankers which parked on the circular hard-standing. This site does not appear on WW2 maps therefore it was added post war and may have been 48,000 gallons stored in 4 buried steel tanks. An elliptical roadway ran round the site. There would have been a pump-house but this has now gone.
Only a trace of the elliptical roadway now remains. The steel tanks my be in situ but the site is heavily overgrown.

Similar in function to a compass rose, The compass swing was used by aircraft crews to calibrate their magnetic on board compass. True north and magnetic were painted on the ground and the entire aircraft would be swung to calibrate the aircraft compass with that painted on the ground.

Concrete walled structure, modern roof roof, converted into dwelling/holiday homes.

Section of track enabling aircraft to access finger park dispersals
Approximately 100m of trackway remain. An agricultural shed has bee erected on the line of the track.

Established by the Admiralty Research Laboratory (ARL) as an experimental station using a network of underwater hydrophones to detect enemy submarines. The Admiralty Marine Physical Station was opened in 1953 to provide protection to shipping in the approaches to the Clyde. It was hoped that detection ranges could be up to 100 miles with course and speed date of the target. However, the sound propagation in the waters off Portballintrae were so poor, with detection ranges of only a few mile, leading to the closure and clearance of the site in 1955.
The site was composed of a number of structures accommodating an operations room, offices, workshop and power supply with two naval radars, a Type 974 and Type 275 and steel protected cables running out to undersea hydrophones. The site was cleared after closure.
The only remaining trace of the site is a section of armoured cable running out to se and a section of concrete surfacing on the cliff above it.

Site constructed to facilitate operatio0nas at the Chain Home Low radar station. Uncertain function, difficult to ascertain full extent, may be remains of operations block.
Traces of concrete footings, mounded over with earth.

Appears relatively intact on aerial photo. No access on day of visit.

Roddans point Chain Home Low radar station
While the Chain Home radar formed the backbone of the radar coverage for the UK, it had significant gaps in its coverage. When flying at low level (c. 450 metres) enemy aircraft could avoid detection entirely. In response, the system of Chain Home Low radar was developed using early coastal defence radars, which had been used to detect coastal shipping. The station was equipped with the improved Air Ministry Experimental Station (AMES) Type 2 radar set with a combined transmitting/receiving aerial mounted on a steel gantry just north of the operations block. The site was the first CHL station constructed in Northern Ireland and opened in July 1940.
Site remains relatively intact, all the windows have been sealed with modern blockwork.

The coastal pillbox was sited to provide defensive fire using machine guns along the length of the beach firing through embrasures in the concrete wall. The concrete was thick enough to provide protection against bullets and shell splinters but was not thick enough to withstand direct fire from artillery and heavy guns. This pillbox appears to be a variant to design DFW3/24, as there are no rear facing embrasures, and no anti-ricochet wall inside. It has 5 firing embrasures and an entrance in the rear wall.
The site is in good condition with remains of the steel shutter rails on the inside face of the firing embrasures. There are recesses below each embrasures, possibly for ammunition or holding the condenser for a water-cooled machine gun. There are 4 concrete posts which would have held a platform for mounting the machine gun tripod.

The concrete shelter area remains in good condition but the brick blast walls have been removed from either end.

Hard standing for the parking, maintenance, loading or refuelling of aircraft. Built post-war.
170 metres by 42 metre concrete parking apron in good condition. Appears to be reused as a driving track.

Small brick structure constructed to facilitate operations on site, function unknown.

Girdwood Barracks
The army camp at Girdwood was established during WW2 to house troops. The camp had over 50 prefabricated Nissen hits. Post-wat the site remained as a territorial army centre but became a fortified barracks during the Troubles. It was closed in 2005 and the site has now been redeveloped.

Described as a double 50-person shelter.
Reported non-extant in original DHP report

Site provided toilet facilities for airmen.
Structure remains in good condition, retains original windows.

Narrow concrete trackway providing pedestrian access to hutted site.
Short sections of track remain but may be more extensive as they run to overgrown woodland.

In excellent condition, it appears to have had its roof replaced and one of the entrances sealed with cinder blocks.

In good condition, main door and fittings missing, used to store vehicle tyres.

This is the southerly extent of one of the secondary runways (see DHR 28:2). It is 337m long of concrete surfaced with bitumen. There are large dumps of spoil along much of its length.

This section of 715m of perimeter track is in good condition.
na

Site is in relatively good condition though the blast wall has been removed.

This 25 yard range was used to test fire machine guns and cannon. The majority of World War airfields were equipped with gun butts, used for the testing and alignment of aircraft guns, and for airmen to test shooting skills. A large brick structure supported by brick buttresses acts as a retaining wall for the sloping earth/sand backstop. A shelter would have faced the earth and brick butts, however this has long since been removed.
The structure remains in relatively good condition, the sand backstop has either slumped or been removed.

Dungannon ROC post

This was a Romney hut and likely used as a workshop or for storage.

This three wing structure allowed crews to rest while on duty. The were also used for crew briefings and meetings. Attached was a locker room where they could store flight gear and harnesses, and Mae West life preservers in wooden lockers. It was also used for parachute storage and issue. Though not mentioned, normally the third smallest wing held the drying room with attached boiler room, This was used to dry wet clothing on a series of heated pipes.
Formerly of brick construction, only concrete baes remain.

Originally constructed as a base for US troops, the site became surplus to needs when US troops moved overseas. In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps. One of these camps was at Saintfield. Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school.
Only a few brick structures remains, an infirmary which housed the camp doctor, a small brick food store and another building on the hill which reportedly housed equipment relating to the electrical power for the camp.

This small dispersal was extant in 2017 but now appears to have been removed for field clearance.

Access could not be gained as area was secured by a chain-link fence, however the structure appears to be unchanged from the original DHP report from 1996.

Only the concrete hard-standing remains. Used to store silage bales.

Structure was used to prepare meals from troops stationed at the site.
Structure appears largely intact and secure though with some damage to the south0eastern corner.

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack.
Extant at time of original DHP, the structure has been demolished

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire. Could be untiled as a firing trench by an infantry section.
Distinct sawtooth design visible on Lidar survey
National Trust, unpublished Lidar Survey of Murlough Nature reserve,

Road constructed to bypass the northern end of the runways
438 m of road remains in good condition, it is now a private road.

Concrete trackway providing access to the station.
Approx. 540 metres of trackway remain in good condition.

Structure erected to accommodate the crew of HAA battery, Precise function unclear.

The site is in good condition as it retains all four gun emplacements, ammunition store, radar plinth, generator house and command post. The command post is partially buried and the enclosures which would have held the height finder and predictor have been demolished and pushed in to seal the entrance.

This concrete tank would have provided an emergency water supply for firefighting.
Overgrown with dumping of spoil on site, largely demolished, there may be some traces of the south edge of the tank.

The site is heavily overgrown, but examination of photos taken during defence heritage project and aerial photos suggest there are some remains under the vegetation, though it is unclear if any of the retaining wall remains.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000).
Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001).

Access could not be gained to the site as construction of a solar farm has sealed off the area behind security fencing, but analysis of aerial photographs shows 250m of the concrete runway remains. Much of this has now been obscured by the construction of a solar farm but the surface of the runway can be seen beneath the array.

Built to the west of the Shorts-Harland aircraft assembly sheds, the purpose of this structure is not clear.
The small brick structure remains relatively intact though it has a modern replacement roof.

The brick ands and inners steel sheeting remain intact, however at some point the concrete reinforced roof has been removed and replaced with modern galvanized steel sheeting.

Provided toilet facilities for base personnel.
The structure has lost its roof, windows and door. Used to store agricultural rubble there are still traces of porcelain urinal trough on wall.

The Wireless Telegraphy station, otherwise known as W/T, used radio to maintain long range communication, using Morse code and teletype. The building housed the transmitters and would have been surrounded by an array of aerial. WT sites were normally sited away from the main airfield and technical site.
Sire remains in relatively good condition. The roof is damaged with sections replaced with modern galvanised steel sheeting. It is used as an animal shelter . The roof appears to have been damaged by fire.

his structure was originally a Laing hut, made of lightweight prefabricated wooden wall sections bolted together. Externally the walls were lined plasterboard covered in felt sheeting to weatherproof. Internally the walls were lined with plasterboard. The roof was supported by wooden trusses
Hut provided accomodation for Womens Royal Navy Service (WRNS)

Structure built to facilitate operations at the firing range. Sited behind protective concrete mantlet. May have been store or range control hut. It has collapsed in recent years.
The wood-framed galvanised steel hut has collapsed leaving steel sheets lying on the ground.

Site of low level water tank.
Steel water tank removed, only concrete platform and plinths remain. Plinths were knocked over by owner to prevent injury to local children who had been playing at site.

In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps. Eight of these camps were erected near Ballymena.
Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school. No upstanding remains.

Only concrete base and steel door rails remain. Barn and silage storage area sited on west end of hard-standing.

The manor house at Kilrea was a convent at the start of WW2, but it was commandeered by the War office and repurposed as a military hospital. It later became Detachment A of the 9th (US) Field Hospital. The site was later designated Number 19 Casualty Clearing Station. It was returned to civilian use after the war ended.

Naval facilities were added to Queens Quay at Derry during WW2. These included berthing dolphins, naval stores, maintenance e units, boat repair sheds and a base for motor launches.
PRONI AM/1/5/48 (Aerial photos)
websites
http://www.theyard.info/yards/londonderry/londonderry.asp

The structure constructed of brick with cement render with compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof. Several doorways have been sealed and a modern steel double door has been fitted to the south wall, but internally the structure is in good condition and dry, retaining its original plasterboard ceiling.

In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps.
Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school,

Location of 50+ barrack huts, stores, ablutions and mess facilities.
Traces of hut bases may remain in the undergrowth

Nissen hut workshop used to maintain and service aircraft and equipment.

The site was constructed to accommodate the training needs of troops stationed in N. Ireland prior to being sent overseas. The range does not appear on available maps of WW1 site therefore it is possible it was constructed during the inter-war or WW2 period.

The rendered brick shed is in relatively good condition. The exit on northern end of building has been reduced in size with breeze blocks to create doorway. The southern entrance is sealed with a galvanised iron gate. Most of the original asbestos roof remains, but there are signs of damage and repair with modern iron sheeting, however this too shows signs of damage. A lean-to shed has been added to the western sidewall. The earthwork traverses which flanked the structure have long since been removed. The building is being used to store farm machinery.

No visible remains plotted from RAF aerial photo taken post war.

Structure remains intact and in good condition. Repurposed as a chicken coop.

Original DHR file SM 7 Dow 44:64 Philip Orr, Ballykinler camp: The first seven decades, 1900-1969 ((2012)

Hard-standing for the parking, maintenance, loading or refuelling of aircraft.
Large apron of concrete 225m by 55m adjacent to T2 hanger and Type B1 hangar, in good condition.

The small square pillbox was largely obscured by soil overburden, only a single staircased embrasure was visible.
Demolished by the owner in 2004, archaeological remains are likely to survive.

The ammunition magazine is constructed of a curved, reinforced concrete roof with brick endwalls. The concrete reinforcing alls at either end supported earth butessing, which has now slumped away or been removed. It held the majority of the ammunition stores of 3.7 inch shells to supply the HAA guns. These were held in wooden racks.
The structure is in good condition, though there is some of the concrete scabbing of the surface of the roof section.

This block housed classrooms for instructing air crew.
The structure is in good condition, It has been refurbished and is well-maintained. It is used by a light industry company.

Kilroot Coastal battery
Kilroot Fort was constructed as sister fort to Grey Point fort on the opposite shores of Belfast Lough. Grey Point was completed in 1907 whereas Kilroot was finished in 1910. The battery was armed with two Vickers and Maxim mark VII six-inch breech loading guns, firing ‘en barbette’, which had a maximum range of six miles.
The position was surrounded by a diamond-shaped wall defenced by two large blockhouses projecting into the surrounding dry ditch. The cam-shaped blockhouses could each hold 18 men. For close defence the fort was provided with three .303 Maxim machineguns. This was later reduced to two as one was allocated to the defences of the East Twin Island fort at Belfast.
After the outbreak of war in 1914, Kilroot was made the examination battery for Belfast Lough, which controlled the entry of shipping into the port. The expansion of the fort’s role meant a hutted camp was built just t the north of the fort consisting of a mess, barracks, canteen, ablutions and guardroom, with the entire position enclosed in barbed wire entanglements.
After the end of the war in 1918 the battery was placed on care and maintenance, but as war loomed again in the 1930s the battery was provided with two coast artillery searchlights in 1936 to allow the battery to engage targets at night.
With war imminent, the battery was re-manned on 25 August 1939. Though the battery presented a small target to naval gunfire it was vulnerable to attack from the air. Consequently, two concrete gun houses were constructed during the winter of 1939-40. For anti-aircraft defence the fort was allocated a 3 inch/75mm AA gun, which was used to engage an enemy aircraft on 4 August 1940.
The site was again put into care and maintenance at the end of the war in 1945. The shift in technology and the primacy of nuclear weapons and jet aircraft meant the coast artillery were now redundant. In 1957 the site was repurposed to house army families and the guns scrapped. The site was sold for private development in the mid-1960s.
For may years it was thought the site demolished but fieldwork in 2005 found that perhaps 70-80% of the fort remains intact. Most of the original structures remain though the gun positions, gun houses , the ditch and blockhouses had been removed. A prefabricated office had been erected on top of the brick shelter. The searchlight positions also remained in good condition on the lough shore.
The fort remains largely intact, though it has lost the gun positions, ditch, blockhouses and the hutted camp to the north of the fort.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restriction on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive snowflakes, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland.
Most of the dispersal has been removed leaving traces in aerial photographs, one, possibly two finger parks remain.

Initially constructed as latrines it was used as a store.
Structure is relatively intact though somewhat overgrown.

The Sandes soldiers homes were established as a charitable institution in 1877 to provide accommodation and recreation for soldiers. A central aim was draw young soldiers away from public houses and offer them an alternative centre for friendship, entertainment and self-improvement. The homes provided bedrooms, reading and games rooms as well as canteens and dining rooms for soldiers of all ranks.

For the support and servicing of aircraft guns, it had a specific layout to include an office, a large workshop with metal topped workbenches for aircraft gun servicing. Separate was a room for the making-up pf ammunition belts with sequenced rounds and hand cranked belt positioning machine to ensure correct alignment of cartridges were used.
Only concrete base remains, silage store built on site.

Concrete platform for parking vehicles on the range.
Site is intact if somewhat overgrown, with grass growing through the expansion joints.

Only concrete hard standing and approach track remain

Used to supply water to pump house.
Appears to be in relatively good condition

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. It was equipped with concrete benches and was designed to accommodate 25. Opposite then entrance was the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked.
The brick and concrete shelter remains in god condition and retain it blast wall. The internal seating has been removed and oddly there had been a brick division constructed inside. Post war a breeze-block structure of indeterminate use has been built o the roof.

County Hall, Coleraine
The site was designated as the Wartime alternative HQ for the Valuation and Lands department in event of a nuclear exchange.

The station offices were the administrative centre of the airfield housing support staff and clerks and pay office.
The brick with cement render structure is in poor condition with just three walls remaining. The east wall has been replaced with modern cement blocks. The roof is missing saving a small section of compressed asbestos cement sheeting and steel truss on the western end.

A prefabricated air raid shelter construction of a steel pipe with a steel revetment protecting the entrance.
The structure was covered with earth during construction, but years of leaf litter have covered the shelter entirely. The entrance has been buried but remains as a depression in the surrounding soil.

This is a 560 metre section of runway. It is largely obscured by large dumps of spoil, agricultural sheds and light industry premises, which have been constructed on the runway. However 250 metres of the southern remain clear with 190 metres still surfaced with original tarmac.

Provided accommodation for troops stationed to defend the radar site.

Erganagh Rectory
The house and grounds of Erganagh rectory were requisitioned during WW2. A camp was constructed her and was used to billet the HQ elements of the24th (US) Infantry Division during 1942..
There is at least one nissen hut remaining on site and one brick structure. Aerial photos show several hut bases on site (image from 2010). Internet sources show trenches around the perimeter of the site and concrete plinth, likely for mounting a water tank..

The site is in relatively good condition but overgrown.

Every station was provided with medical facilities with wards to accommodate all ranks. The sick quarters would have held a ward, an operating theatre and a dispensary, with facilities and offices for the station medical officer and dental officer. Typically there would have been 22 beds and quarters for sergeants and orderlies.
The structure is in good condition, it is used as an agricultural supplies shop.

Military camp constructed to house troops or provide stores. Approx. 11 hut bases visible in 1951 image.

Earthwork range butt which acted as backstop/bullet catch on rounds fired downrange. Approx. 3 metre in height. Rage side surface littered with expended rounds, mostly .03-06 Springfield bullets, typical of those fired by US troops during WW2.

Only concrete hard standing surfaced with modern tarmac remains

Tanderagee Castle
The Castle and grounds were requisitioned by the War Office during WW2 to station troops. A camp was built and the site was used to billet elements of the 6th (US) Cavalry and later 28th cavalry, from Oct. 1943-April 1944. The site was returned to civilian use post-war.
PRONI AM/1/5/55A/31010-3150, PRONI File FIN-19-24-36 Tanderagee

This 44 m diameter dispersal remains in good condition though as pedestrian access track cuts through the site, This appears to have caused no damage as it has been constructed on a bed of gravel.

Site appears intact on aerial photos, no access on day of visit.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks.
Only the perimeter wall remain, all internal lockers have been removed and the platform for a telephone mast has been constructed on the interior.

Kilroot fort
This site was used to house a Coastal Artillery Searchlight. One of three sited at the fort, it was primarily used to spot and track approaching enemy vessels. Original called Defence Electric Lights (DEL), they were re-designated Coast Artillery Search Lights (CASL) in WW2. This site was constructed in 1936.
The site remains in relatively good condition. It has two level. The searchlight was mounted on the upper storey. The remains if the steel shutters are still in situ. These would have been closed to protect the searchlight from incoming fire.

This site contained the High Frequency Detection Finding equipment, known as Huff Duff for short, was a radio transmitter used to guide aircraft over long distances. Tracking aircraft could be difficult overland, therefore stations could tune into the transmissions of friendly aircraft. This structure was a rest hut for crews operating HFDF equipment.
The site is overgrown and has lost its original roof, some original steel window frames remain. Interior littered with rubble with demolition rubble to the rear of site.

This site was constructed of a circular revetment of sandbags or earth. Inside a Lewis gun or other light machine gun was mounted on a central gun mount or ointle, allowing for a 360 degree arch of fire. The site could be used for ground defence and close range anti-aircraft fire.
The site remains as a circular bank of earth with central depression.

The battle headquarters (BHQ) was, to all intents and purposes, a fortified office used to control and direct the airfield defences if attacked. The normally consisted of an office, a private branch exchange (telephone room) and messenger room. The most common type was buried but this example is of a rare type built on fighter airfields, satellite stations and training airfields. Designed to drawing number 3329/41, the main office has chamfered windows, one in each wall. The entrance is protected by a brick blast wall.
The brick and concrete structure is in good condition, most of cement render fallen away. Two of the rooms littered with abandoned agricultural fencing and rubble.

Airfield building constructed as part of the technical area. Function unknown.
The structure remains in relatively good condition and retains its original windows. Roof has been removed and site is now overgrown.

Provided accommodation for officers. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters
Concrete walled structure, modern replacement roof, converted into dwelling/holiday homes.

Earthwork range butt which acted as backstop/bullet catch on rounds fired downrange.
Site appears largely intact. Approx. 3 metres in height.

The function of this structure is uclear. It may have been a latrine block or used for storage.
The walls remain but the fitting, windows and roof are missing.

Ardress House
Approx. 70 feet long, the hut has 3 windows on wither side.
Site is intact and in relatively good condition.

Structure built as part of Dispersed Living Site 5, function uncertain.
Appears intact from examination of aerial photographs. No access to site on field visit.

This 44 m dispersal was resurfaced and repurposed as a helicopter landing pad but there is nothing to suggest the original concrete surface has been removed.

The R8 operations block was a prefabricated structure of Seco construction. The operations block processed the information received from the radar antennae. It contained a reporting room and housed both military and civilian controllers, who passed flight instructions to aircraft. The activity was focused on the operations room with its situation map and map showing disposition of fighters, There was also a tote board which showed weather conditions and readiness of squadrons. Surrounding these were radar consoles and there controllers.

Office used to support production at the site.

A circular water tank constructed to provide water to the camp at Stramore.

Two of the original eight finger parks remain at this site. Additional concrete has been laid between the parks to create a larger yard area where silage bales are now stored.

Provided showering and bathing facilities for enlisted airmen.
The brick structure is in good condition and retains most of its original cement render. It has been repurposed for commercial storage.

Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a 2 light machine guns, either a Vickers gun or a Bren Gun. They were mounted on Turnbull mounts ,a type of cradle used to fit a machine gun, allowing it to pivot at the muzzle. The frame of the mounts are still in situ in the embrasures. Each embrasure is flanked by an ammunition recess.The maximum thickness of the walls is 135 cm, which meant the position was considered shell-proof. Their roofs are significantly thinner, approximately 30 cm thick, suggesting the positions were designed to resist direct flat-trajectory gunfire (field guns and tanks) rather than indirect high-angle artillery fire from mortars and howitzers.Entry is via a door at the rear. The position has two machine gun loops with staircased embrasures, designed to prevent ricochets from entering the bunker. The pillbox would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
The site remains in good condition though is overgrown and obscured by decorative planting. It is used as domestic/garden store

Large red brick structure provided healthcare facilities for base personnel and their families.

This site was used to give instruction to trainee aerial radio/wireless operators in simulated flight conditions. This may have been in the form of a Harwell Box. It was a small box approximately the size of the wireless station on an aircraft, fitted with the appropriate radio equipment. Signals were fed down the line, simulating reception conditions and radio beacons allowing the radio operator to take bearings. It helped teach telecommunications skills, fault finding and communications procedures.
To add to the realism a loudspeaker would play continuous desynchronised engine noise and intermittent bursts of machinegun fire.
Only the concrete base wit a fragment of upstanding wall remain.

In good condition, overgrown on western end

Structure built to house ambulance attached to sick quarters and temporary storage of fatalities/human remains on site.
The site survives in relatively good condition. It is missing the large wooden doors to the garage, which is now used as an animal shelter. A large entrance has been made into the mortuary area at the rear, likely to allow cattle access to shelter. The asbestos roof has been replaced with modern steel sheeting.

Concrete walled structure, modern replacement roof, converted into dwelling/holiday

Offices used to house civilian station warden. They were responsible for the supply of domestic services on site, such as utilities (solid fuel, electric, gas and water. They also had responsibility for building repairs, inspection of barrack furniture (repair when required) and storage, issues and receipt of barack furniture.
Site remains intact and in good condition, still in use by MoD.
Trevor Stone, Royal Air Force Logistics during the Second World War: Transformation, Sustainment and Flexibility (2016) unpublished PhD thesis at the University of Exeter.

Structure remains intact though mostly infilled with soil.

A 16 foot span nissen hut providing accommodation for sergeants.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restriction on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive snowflakes, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This is a cluster of 3 finger parks with fourth extended to link with cluster of 9 finger parks (DHR 75:30)
Cluster of 3 finger parks intact but obscured by surface vegetation.

Ballynahinch ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump.Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ.
The site is in relatively good condition and retains its original paint.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/ballynahinch-roc-post/

This structure was built to facilitate operation on site, function remains unclear.
Uncertain if this was an upstanding structure or a concrete plinth for radio equipment.
Joe O'Loughlin and John Hughes, Fermanagh in the Second World War at Joe O'Loughlin, Catalinas and Sunderlands on Lough Erne, Ireland in World War 2 (2013) Breege McCusker, Castle Archdale and Fermanagh in World War II (1993) Website https://www.ww2ni.com/county-fermanagh-part-2

Structure housed offices and equipment to power transmitter with feeds leading to aerial just to the west of structure.
The site is relatively intact though there has been a collapse on the western end of the structure. it is now used as an agricultural store.

Site constructed to act as recruiting office for units based in the barracks. Also known as the “Army Careers Information Office”.
Site appears intact and in relatively good condition.

Postwar it was believed that anti-aircraft guns could be used to defend UK airspace as they had during World War 2. In NI 2 gun defended areas were planned, Belfast and L'Derry. The plan was expanded in the early 1950s as the war in Korea was perceived to be a possible prelude to an communist attack in Western Europe. New anti-aircraft operations room were built at Campsie and Lisburn, with the Lisburn site becoming operational. However, by 1954 it was clear that HAA guns were ineffective against fast jet-powered aircraft and high-level bombers armed with nuclear weapons. IN 1955 Anti-aircraft Command was disbanded the the sites decommissioned. The AAOR at Campsie was never completed.
The structure is a large, two storey construction bunker, with a central planning room around which would have been offices for plotting rooms, officers and clerks, along with rooms housing generators and air conditioning plant. The structure was protected y concrete blast porches and steel doors.
The structure remains in good condition, it has been repurposed as an animal shelter and agricultural store.
Subterranea Britannica report at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/campsie-aaor/

This double air raid shelter has two shelter bays and six entrances, all doorways have been sealed with modern concrete blocks.

This brick-faced (the inner core of the walls is steel reinforced concrete) pillbox would have held a section with a light machine guns, wither a Vickers gun on a tripod or a Bren Gun. However it would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements. It has six embrasures providing all-round defence. The reinforcing on the outer wall below the embrasures reinforced the locations of the ammunition/tripod recess inside the position.
Bill Clements, Defending the North: the fortifications of Ulster, 1796-1956 (Newtownards, 2003)

The structure remains in good condition if somewhat overgrown. Post war a section of concrete brickwork was built on the roof.

A group pf nissen huts constructed to facilitate operation at the camp, likely barrack huts.
A group of c. 10-14 huts were constructed in this area and some remains can be discerned with probing, however in time available it was not possible to identify individual structures.

Concrete trackway providing access to the rear of the Pentad hangar from the parking apron.
141 meres of track remains in good condition.

This building brought together the instrumentation needed for effective fire-control of the four HAA guns. It is a semi-sunk partially roofed structure, with open bays overlooking the guns, holding the height-finder, predictor and telescope. Inside was found the plotting room, telephonists and offices. The plotting room was the core of the structure and was used to receive and process raid data from telephone and radar. This data was used to calculate information to direct the fire of the battery guns. This site appears of a more rudimentary design than posts built elsewhere in N. Ireland, with the central plotting room composed of curved concrete roof, and adjoining office, also with a curved concrete roof.
The command post retains it plotting room and office but all the external compound has been removed/demolished and the central structures have been partially buried.

The site appears to have been used as a military camp during WW2. Approx. 10 hut bases are visible in post-war aerial images. The site has been redeveloped for housing.

Group of six hut bases constructed to facilitate operations at the site. Likely barrack huts.

Steel-reamer general-purpose store.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is shown on the Ballyhalbert Defence Plan map as having 3 pillboxes and two slit trenches.
No traces visible, but possibility of subsurface remains of pillboxes and slit trenches.

Blackhead Chain Home Low Radar Station
Hutted camp associated with the radar station. At least 12 hut sites costructed.

Lisgoole Abbey
The grounds of Lisgoole were requisitioned by the War Office at the start of WW2 and a camp to accommodate troops was constructed there. It primarily stationed medial units. IN 1942 part of the 109th Medical Batt. (34th US Inf. Div.) was based there and in the following year the 8th Medical Batt. of the 8th (US) Inf. Div. was billeted on site.
A small number of brick domestic buildings remain upstanding.

The structure is intact but heavily overgrown.

Gilford Castle
Gilford Castle and its grounds were requisitioned by the war office to house troops during WW2. Troops arrived in Gilford in June 1940 when British troops were stationed in the grounds of the estate. Units of Royal Engineers were stationed there as was part of the 5th Battalion, Royal Irish Fusiliers.
US troops arrived in 1943, as elements of the 6th (US) Cavalry regiment replaced the British. These troops left in May 1944. Belgian troops of the 4th (Belgian) Infantry Brigade were billeted here in 1945. The site was returned to civilian use post-war.
Traces of hut bases and brick chimneys may remain in the undergrowth.

Structure erected to facilitate operations at the station. Exact function is unclear but proximity to fuel tank suggests it may be a fuel pump house.

This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters. This was the XXX yard firing point,

Structure erected to accommodate the crew of HAA battery. Precise function unclear. May have been a store as this area of camp was secured from rest of site by a perimeter fence.

Air Raid Precautions (ARP) was established at the end of the 1930s as the vulnerability of civilian s to air attack became apparent. The ARP was a civilian organisation tasked with mitigating the effects of air attack on the civilian population. They were responsible for distribution of gas masks, enforcing blackouts, reporting damage and rescuing people from wrecked buildings.
The site was used as a report office by the ARP and was used to coordinate information on bombing raids and the deployment of teams for emergency rescue work.
The site is intact and has been repurposed as an office/store for Lisburn castle Park maintenance.
Peter Doyle, ARP and Civil Defence in the Second World War (Oxford, 2011).
https://www.lisburnmuseum.com/virtual-museum/the-home-front/

This pillbox was largely exposed in 1999 but has since then large pats have been covered by sand and the interior filled to the height of the embrasures. The site has four staircased embrasures, which appear to retain the guiderails for the internal steel shutters. Images from 1999 show the pillbox retains its original steel door. Reinforcing on the outer faces of the site suggest the pillbox has internal recesses for machinegun mounts.
The site appears largely intact and in good condition.

Provided dining facilities for personnel.
While the lack of a contemporary map and legend makes identifying features on the communal and dispersed living sites at Toome difficult, the occupant of this house reported that this was a former dining hall which he had renovated, by adding a cavity wall and converting this into a private dwelling.

This pillbox was reported by a member of the public to the Binevenagh and Coastal Lowlands Landscape Partnership Area staff. It is buried in the sand dunes on the eastern end of Castlerock Golf Club and overlooks the mouth of the River Bann. It is difficult to determine the shape or details of the pillbox, as it is almost entirely buried in sand and covered in Marram Grass. Furthermore, it is not clear if this is the pillbox reported as destroyed in Defence Heritage Record DHR 91. Without evidence to determine one way or the other it would be best to record this as a separate site.
Sections of concrete protrude from the grass and sand but is is unclear how much of the site remains, it is possibly intact but at this stage it is impossible to say.

This 39 metre diameter dispersal remains in good condition, it is obscured by soil overburden.

Ballymenoch Park
The Royal Air Force stationed 55 Maintenance Unit Equipment Park based at Ballymenoch House, Holywood between October 1940 and September 1943. This structure was erected to the rear of the site, its wartime function is unclear.
Structure remains intact and in good condtion.

Provided access from dispersals to airfield.
Remains in good condition. It has been incorporated int the road network of a caravan park.

Recorded on contemporary map as general purpose hut, may have been used for storage or maintenance at Machine gun range.
This 16 ft span, 36 ft long hut appears in relatively good condition. Used as a store.

Small brick building related to the operation of the QL decoy site, likely latrines.
Only 2 walls remain, site is largely overgrown.
Colin Dobinson, Fields of deception: Britain’s bombing decoys of World War II (London, 2000)

Jetty used to service RAF maritime craft.
Approximately 15 metres of jetty remain intact, which appear most if not all of the original structure though the wooden deck appears in poor condition.

Facility for washing a bathing.
This brick structure rendered in cement retains approximately 50% of its original asbestos roof, the rest is covered with replacement steel sheeting. Some original windows remains though all the internal divisions have been removed to facilitate its reuse as an agricultural store. A large doorway has been opened in the southern end and it is overgrown in parts with brambles and ivy.

Group of four nissen huts, function remains unclear.
Removed post war, bases visible in 1952 aerial photograph.

The site is relatively intact, though the ladder and some of the bricks have collapsed or been removed since it was abandoned.
Subterranea Britannica report at Cocroft and Roger Thomas, Cold War: building for nuclear confrontation (Swindon, 2004)

378 metres of perimeter track remains in good condition, resurfaced with modern tarmac.

A concrete trackway provided access for aircraft to a blister hangar.
Only visible as a crop-mark on a 2021 google Earth AP.

The airfield opened as a satellite station to RAF Eglinton in the summer of 1942. Spitfires stationed there flew convoy escort duties. These were joined by US fighter squadrons, but all were withdrawn in January 1943 when n the station was closed for the site to be expanded. After expansion the airfield could accommodate 105 aircraft. In May 1943 the site was handed over to the Royal Navy, becoming HMS Shrike. One if its main roles was providing training for MAC-ships, or Merchant Aircraft Carriers. These were large civilian ships fitted with flight decks, enabling the ships to deploy fighter aircraft in anti-submarine roles well beyond the range of land-based aircraft. The Combined Anti-Submarine Training school, run by Royal Navy and RAF personnel remained until July 1944. The site closed in September 1945 but was reopened as a satellite to Eglinton (HMS Gannet) being named HMS Gannet II. The airfield finally closed for good in January 1949.
The site was composed of 2 runways, one 1,6050 yards long, the other 1,350 yards long. The large number of aircraft stationed there meant there was a correspondingly large number of dispersals and fighter pens. Redevelopment of the site in the 1950s by duPont has removed most of the airfield.
Construction of the chemical plant has removed most of the airfield fabric, Some sections of the runways remain and the line of the perimeter tracks is preserved in the road network. The standby set house and air raid shelters from the communal and dispersed site are the only upstanding features remeaining.

Provided facility for playing squash, normally composed of lobby area with viewing gallery and squash court playing area.
Site appears in good condition. It has been repurposed as an agricultural workshop.

The site was composed of three separate pill boxes joined by a concrete revetted trench, The pillboxes were fitted with steel turnbull mounts, used to mount a light machine gun. The pillboxes at either end of the trench had firing embrasures however the central feature did not, suggesting it was used as a command bunker or ammunition storage. The site was destroyed by the extension of the Bombardier factory circa 20019-10.
Demolished during construction of factory in 2009-10.

Provided toilet facilities for sergeants.
Rendered brick structure in good condition with original windows. One door has been sealed.

For preparing meals to be provided in officers and enlisted men's mess.
In good condition, retains original rood but windows sealed with concrete block-work. Had been converted to house gun club but now disused.

The site has been entirely obscured by farm waste but landowner noted during fieldwork that the site is intact underneath.

Large structure, likely built post war. To date the military function of the site remain unidentified.
The structure remains largely intact ut surrounded by later more modern addition.

Structure used to house guards, controlling access to and from the station.

Provided bathing and latrine facilities
Remains in good condition, currently used to store vehicles.

The site was constructed in 1967 by the US Navy in 1967, it provided support for radio communications for the US Navy in the North Atlantic. The site hosted support buildings and a Van complex which housed transmitter equipment and microwave relays. An antenna field was constructed on the side of the mountain and a antenna with helix house erected at the peak of Benbradagh. The site was closed in 1977.
Only the concrete bases remain at the main site, the helix house survives at the top of the mountain. The access track remains in good condition.

Extant at time of original DHP. Demolished in advance of housing development c. 2014

Site remain intact and in good condition.

Victoria Park
Military camp erected to accommodate troops, likely air force personnel from nearby RAF Sydenham.
Composed of a number of nissen huts providing accommodation and domestic facilities.

Small brick structure provided toilet facilities for enlisted airmen.

Acton House
Like many large during WW2, Acton was requisitioned by the War Office to house and train troops. Most troops were housed in a hutted camp composed of largely nissen huts whereas several officers and their staff were billeted in the main house. British, American and Belgian troops were stationed here.
Plotted from post-war aerial photo. Subsurface features may remain.

Killylane wireless telegraphy station
Constructed to provide ship-to-shore communications for the Royal Navy, it continued operating into the post-war period, working closely with the anti-submarine warfare school at HMS Sea Eagle.
The site was composed of a number of structures, which included the transmitter block, headquarters building, generators, operations block, an air raid shelter a guard post and antennae field.
The site remained relatively intact if dilapidated until 2020. Demolition on site has removed all structures except the operations block.
Original DHP reportFrontline Ulster at www.frontlineulster.co.uk/signal-station-killylane/ also The Communicator at

The site is in relatively good condition with all gun emplacements remaining and the battery command post, though there is no trace of the radar ramp. Hut bases of the accommodation site for the crew remain in the field just to the north of the position.

Provided washing and bathing facilities for airmen and sergeants.

This structure held diesel electrical generators, fuel and electrical switchgear and transformer, which provided power to vital parts of the airfield in the event of a failure of the main supply. It has concrete plinths for 3 generators and steel reinforced concrete room. The generators were each rated at 187 Kilowatts. The large generator hall also had a platform holding the switchgear. The two other room were for fuel storage (two 3,000 gallon tanks) and a transformer chamber.
The site appears in good condition, though a modern entrance has been opened in the fuel storage room, likely to enable access for storage of farm machinery.

Barracks erected to provide accommodation for troops

A workshop for general maintenance of equipment with storage areas and workbenches. These workshops were positioned to service hangars dispersed around the airfield. They contained a battery charging room, W/T store, office, workshop, instrument section office, auto-control shop, instrument repair.
Only concrete base remains with some brick rubble. Overgrown with grass.

The site consists of a group of 9 finger parks in the distinctive 'snowflake' pattern. Only 2 dispersal was visible but discussion with landowner suggests the site was covered with topsoil post war suggesting the site is largely intact under the grass. There was some broken concrete on site suggesting some of the hard-standing has been removed/broken up.

The education block housed classrooms and stores for instructing and teaching training units. Theoretical and practical courses could be taught such as maths, technical drawing, internal combustion engines or the theory of flight to name a few examples.
The structure remains largely intact with many original window frames and the original asbestos roof. The structure is overgrown in sections with vegetation penetrating the roof. There has been some collapse of the roof on the northern end.

Gocean Lodge
A small military campo was established in the grounds of Gocean Lodge during WW2. The
The site was cleared post-war but three hut bases are visible on modern aerial images.

The single story structure was used to brief officer and men associated with the watch office and meteorological section. Reuse after WW2 appeared to show that the structure was repurposed as a vehicle shed, with a later dividing wall and three vehicle bays and access ramp.
The structure had decayed significantly. Comparison with photographs taken in 1998 (see http://www.controltowers.co.uk/B/Bishops_Court.htm). The roof has been lost and large sections of the west gable have collapsed.

Used to store explosive and incendiary bombs. Also area where bombs were fused before being brought out for loading on aircraft. Open air and brick storage sheds were surrounded by earthwork berms and blast wall traverses. Sited away from airfield and accommodation sites for reasons of safety, Nutts Corner had 7 bomb stores and 2 fusing point buildings accessed via a narrow concrete trackway.
Only the concrete trackway remains (approximately 750 m) and this is largely overgrown. Bomb stores may have been removed when the area was planted for commercial forestry.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012) Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/ WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

This 610 metre trackway provided access to the northern finger park dispersals.
The track remains in good condition though resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Structure appears largely intact, has been converted into a cattle shed.

This store was the shell magazine for the No. 2 gun of the battery. The concrete structure was semi-sunk and contained wooden racks holding the 6 inch shells.
ONly small traces of concrete can be seen on the site, more remains may be buried by the sand.

Nissen hut provided accommodation for enlisted airmen.

The site was used to store light artillery pieces for use in defending the battery from attack by land. The site was equipped with two 4.5 inch QF (Quick Firing) howitzers and later 25 pounder guns used for ceremonial salutes. It was also used as a small arms ammunition store and used to secure the site's defensive machine guns.
The structure remains in good condition.

The site is in relatively good condition with original cladding . Part of the doors have been removed and replaced with concrete blockwork, possibly a result of corrosion and a need to secure the site.

Only concrete base and loading ramp remains, chicken shed built on site.

Used for the physical training and conditioning of troops.
This single brick wall is all that remains of the assault course.

Also known as MAP hard-standings (Ministry for Aircraft Production), as the threat from German air attack receded, restriction on the parking of aircraft were eased. Finger parks, which sometimes were grouped into distinctive snowflakes, allowed much larger numbers of aircraft to be stored. However, the high-density parking required aircraft to be towed on an off the parks. Somewhat of a rarity in Great Britain, they are found more frequently on airfield sites in N. Ireland. This is a cluster of 4 finger parks
The cluster of 4 finger parks remain in good condition though agricultural buildings and a silage store have been erected on the concrete hard-standing

Brick compound used to house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.

183 metres of narrow concrete concrete trackway providing access to the electrical substation.
183 metres of track remain, largely overgrown with grass.

Boathouse used to store and land small craft ferrying crew to an d from moored flying boats.
Boathouse was part of original Castle Archdale house grounds, repurposed for war role, remains in good condition.

Provided toilet facilities for barracks.

Group of three long nissen wards.

A refrigerated store for meat.

These shallow tanks would have contained filters beds of sand and gravel which would have drained water away from solid sewage sludge. Once suitable de-watered the waste would destroyed on site.
The beds are overgrown but appear in relatively good condition. Some dumping on site.

Provided toilet and washing facilities for sick quarters personnel.
The brick structure is in relatively good condition but is heavily overgrown with ivy.

Site appears intact with spoil dumped on western end.

Aligning north south, the original rear fortifications of Ebrington Barracks made from whinstone (local schist) which survive for ¾ of their original length. The original north eastern bastion is now gone above ground level. The surviving wall appears to have been reduced in height but closer inspection reveals that the land to the east has been raised substantially in its level. This section including any underground remains is part a scheduled monument encompassing the whole star fort.
Remains of the eastern section of the original star fort boundary wall of Ebrington Barracks. Indicated on the 1854 Ordnance Survey as a south east bastion, a central bastion and a north east bastion with a road running to the east outside the wall and connecting to Limavady Road. One building built into the wall near the north east bastion is labelled ‘stables’. On the 1904 map, this building and the adjacent bastion are gone and the boundary, as currently found, is gone. The reason for the infilling of land behind the wall is not clear.
Approximately of the perimeter wall remains.
HB file for HB01/09/002 Y
HM fiel for Ldy 14:72

Lissonoure
The site was used during WW2 to house German prisoners of war, many reportedly were submariners. The site was close din 1945
The original DHP report noted the remains of hut bases in this area though none were observed during fieldwork, however the site is heavily overgrown and features could remains below the scrub and leaf litter.

This double air raid shelter has two shelter bays and six entrances, all doorways have been sealed with modern concrete blocks. Two later doors were cut into the ends of the shelter bays, these have also been sealed.

The site was a concrete revetted firetench. It would have accommodated a section of troops. It had a series of recesses which could have been used to store ammunition or act as emergency shelters. In 2004 it was partly infilled, but then demolished by the owner. Archaeological traces still likely to remain.
The site was demolished by owner in 2004, though archaeological traces are likely to remain.

Located near the NAAFI and airmens mess, the site stores food rations which consisted of a grocery, meat store and bread store. It may also have housed a tailors shop and shoemakers.
Site remains intact and in good condition, it remains in use by the MoD.

Military structure built to facilitate operations at the anti-aircraft gunnery range. Function unknown.

Decoy sites were employed to draw off bombers from their intended targets by using systems of light (QL decoys) to simulate airfields, town or docks. Networks of flame sites (QF decoys) could also be used to simulate targets that had been hit by previous waves of attacking bombers. The lighting system was controlled and powered from generators housed in a protected bunker.
This is a control shelter of a QL light decoy site to an Air Ministry design CTD 151/41. It has a short access corridor with rooms to the left and right of equal size. The room to the left was the site's control room which contained switches to control light decoys such as simulated open doors, poorly blacked out skylights and to give a general impression to overhead bombers of a target with poor blackout discipline. It has an emergency escape hatch in the roof, from which the corroded steel ladder still hangs. There is a wooden bracket to the left of the ladder. A concrete plinth sits in one corner. This would have mounted a small stove used to heat the structure. The other room contained two generators used to power the light decoys. The generators are long gone but the two concrete generator beds remain. Three pipe exit the southwest facing sidewall. These were formerly connected to exterior (and now gone) expansion chambers which helped limit the noise to the generators outside the structure. The remains of the generator exhaust outlet also penetrates this wall.
The site remains in relatively good condition though the equipment has been removed when the site was decommissioned. The entire control room would have been mounded over with earth to provide camouflage and protection from blast, but this has all been removed.

Remains in good condition. Small hole opened in eastern face by combat games club.

This structure was designed to accommodate accommodate large out-size aircraft components as well as rubber and bedding stores. Originally designed to store main-plane complainants which were fabric covered, thus the height
In relatively good condition. One of the original steel window frames remain. Large folding wooden doors no longer extant and sections of asbestos sheeting roof missing. Modern agricultural gates attached to entrance.

Brick structure built to facilitate operations at the site, function remains unclear.
Colin Dobinson, Building Radar: forging Britain's early-warning chain 1935-1945 (London, 2010) Neil Redfern, Twentieth-century fortifications in the United Kingdom: vol. III, Site Gazetteers: Northern Ireland (York, 1998) The Radar Pages at www.radarpages.co.uk Frontline Ulster at

Site appears intact. This feature does not appear on original plans so may have been added later in war, truncated at base by grass.

This intact 1,020 metres of track remains in good condition.

Site accommodated the station commander.
Structure remains in good condition, retains its original roof, windows are sealed with wooden boards.

Traces of site appear on aerial photos but unable to locate on fieldwork due to overgrowth.

Group of seven huts constructed to facilitate operations at the site.

Site has been resurfaced with modern tarmac but likely remains underneath,

RAF Long Kesh
Approx. 430 metres of runway cam be discerned on aerial photographs of the site.

This 1,430 metre runway is part of a less common 2-runway layout as a third was not permitted by the surrounding hilly topography.
The runway remain in good condition, it has been resurfaced with modern tarmac as operates as a regional airport.

This brick faced reinforced concrete pillbox has seven embrasures with staircasing to prevent ricochets entering the position. Its walls are 48 cm thick making the pillbox bullet proof but not proof against heavy weapons. It retains the remains of steel rails on the inside of the embrasures. These would have mounted steel shutters which could be closed to prevent incoming bullets, grenades and flamethrowers from entering the position. The badly corroded remains of the shutters remains on the floor of the pillbox.
This position would not have been isolated but supported by fieldwork and infantry trenches and section posts.
Defending the same bridge
The site is overgrown but in good condition, retains some of its internal steel shutters
www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimpart4.htm

Large 173 square metre magazine with concrete walls and earthwork traverse protection. The brick store was used to store ammunition and/or explosives. It is uncertain if the storage structure within in contemporary with WW2 use or is a later replacement (survey done using aerial photo interpretation as no access to site on the ground).

While the Chain Home radar formed the backbone of the radar coverage for the UK, it had significant gaps in its coverage. When flying at low level (c. 450 metres) enemy aircraft could avoid detection entirely. In response, the system of Chain Home Low radar was developed using early coastal defence radars, which had been used to detect coastal shipping. The station was equipped with the improved Air Ministry Experimental Station (AMES) Type 2 radar set with a combined transmitting/receiving aerial mounted on a steel gantry.
Site opened late 1941, mothballed late 1943-4 and closed 1945.
The remaining site consists of the operations block (now incorporated into an agricultural shed/byre, the standby set house and two air raid shelters.
Operations block, standby set house and two air raid shelters remain in situ.

The site was constructed during WW2 to accommodate the training needs of troops stationed in N. Ireland prior to being sent overseas. It was a 300 yard range with firing points in 100 yard intervals, a target shed, markers gallery and butt/backstop. May have been used post-war to train B-Specials.
The site remains in relatively good condition with the 100 and 200 yards firing pints intact. The markers gallery retains some of the original target rails though earth has slumped into the gallery. The galvanised steel target shed is intact and retains a number of wooden target frames inside.

High level steel water tower holding 60,000 gallons. Filled by a nearby pump house, it provided water by gravity feed to the entire camp.
Only six concrete footings of water tower legs remain.

This structure was originally a Laing hut, made of lightweight prefabricated wooden wall sections bolted together. Externally the walls were lined plasterboard covered in felt sheeting to weatherproof. Internally the walls were lined with plasterboard. The roof was supported by wooden trusses
Provided accommodation for sergeants
This site is noted in the RAF plan as a Laing hut but the walls are solid masonry. This may have been added post war to replace the flimsy and less permanent plasterboard. This technique was seen at barrack sites at Ballyhalbert Airfield (see |DHTR 28: 48& 49). Roof and windows may be only remaining original parts of structure.

Site is relatively intact with some traces of pumice filter in situ.

This is a 990 metre section of the perimeter track on the northern end of the airfield. It has been repurposed into the Kirkistown racetrack and resurfaced with modern tarmac along much of its length, but manager of track reported the original surface survives under the modern addition.

Glenarm CHL radar station
The operations block accommodated all the technical equipment and acted as a combined transmitter (Tx) and Receiver (Rx) facility. The Tx/Rx facility enabled targets to be located more accurately at lower levels and allowed multiple targets to be tracked on a single display. The combined Tx/Rx antenna was mounted on a steel gantry on the roof. The improved CHL mounted a single (10 by 30 foot) rotating aerial. The single array flicked continually from transmit to receive. This had many advantages-simpler construction, ease of installation and maintenance over the earlier double aerials, but also it yielded more accurate plots as the transmitter and receiver aerials lay precisely in line. Range was approximately 100 miles.
This site has been subject to some effort at camouflage by the addition of a brick gable and chimney in a effort to disguise the structure as a domestic dwelling.
Structure remains in relatively good condition. The site may have been subject to some inclement coastal weather as the rear windows were bricked up while the site was operational. Structure has been repurposed as an agricultural store.

Sick quarters provided medical care for personnel on base, also had barracks for orderlies and an ambulance garage/mortuary

The steel tanks and earth overburden have been removed leaving the brick retaining wall which has been repurposed as an agricultural storage area. The collapsed remains of one of the two pump houses remains on the western side. The concrete access track remains though this is overgrown.

Single storey dwelling built on hardstanding. Hardstanding partially removed to create lawn.

The Link trainer (named after its inventor Edwin Link) provided a cheaper and safer alternative to training pilots in instrument flying than flying than flying an actual aircraft. The trainer consider of a circular wooden cubicle, painted with a landscape as would be seen from 2000 feet. At the centre was a mock-up fuselage with a cockpit equipped with basic instruments and flight controls. Movements of the plane were simulated by powerful bellows under the 'aircraft'. Night flying could be simulated by putting a blacked-out hood over the cockpit. Connections led from the trainer to an instructors desk where a trolley called a 'tracking crab' recorded the time and rate of movement of the fuselage. The instructors desk had duplicate flying controls which enabled them to assess the trainees pilots flying ability. Blocks could accommodate a number of students at the same time. This site has two training cubicles.
Locked on day of visit. This structure remains in a remarkable level of preservation and repair.

Derryleckagh House was requisitioned by the war office to billet troops during WW2. A camp was constructed and for a time was used by elements of 2nd battalion, 38th (US) Inf Regt. 2nd (US) Inf. Division.
Most of site cleared post war but reports suggest 2 Nissen huts may remain in situ.

This building was part of the dispersed living Site 3 complex. The exact function is unclear, possibly an administration building.
The structure remains in good condition and has been renovated into modern offices with a replacement roof and UPVC windows,

Only concrete hard-standing remains, an agricultural shed has been built on the southern section.

Netherleigh House
Netherleigh House was requisitioned for war use during WW2 where it was used to accommodate officers serving the the hospital.
Site remains in good condition, it now houses government offices.

The advent of electronic warfare saw N. Ireland protected by a series of radar transmitting and receiving stations which circumscribed the United Kingdom. An invisible fence of radio waves stood watch along the coast, and it was the radars in N. Ireland which covered the western extremities of the UK’s coverage. The Chain Home (CH) system provided the backbone of the RAF early warning system.
A Chain Home radar station established in April 1942. Unlike the large permeant stations at Castlerock or Kilkeel, the station at Newtownbutler was equipped as a Mobile radio Unit, with transportable aerial sand equipment. The site was closed in late1943 or early 1944.

The site has an agricultural shed built on and additional sections of concrete added around it but the original fabric appears intact. Assessment from aerial photo as no access on day of field visit.

A camp constructed to house troops during WW2. A sample testing in the eastern part of the camp suggests many hut bases remain to be located in this area.
Overgrown but high potential for concrete bases to remain.

This site operated as a photographic laboratory. It had rooms for washing, drying, printing, developing, chemical mixing, a darkroom, paper and film store and a workshop.
Section of wall upstanding on the western end of the structure, the rest only remains as a concrete base.

In good condition, used as crew/pit area for race circuit.

Site is intact and in relatively good condition, some spalling of concrete on outer wall.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001) N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998) Richard Doherty, Key to victory: The maiden City in the Second World War (Derry, 1995) Richard Doherty, 'Escort base' in Ulster Local Studies, Vol 16, No. 1 (1994), pp 31-42.

Concrete track appear intact if obscured by grass cover

This was the site of an army camp during WW2. Post-war RAF aerial photo shows a complex of nissen huts and brick structures. The site is now a Territorial Army depot.
PRONI RAF aerial photo from file AM/1/5/50F/4401-4450

The structure remains in relatively good condition. It retains much of its original roof complete with original vents.Sections of the original folding wooden doors which would have divided off the chapel area remain in situ. A large growth of vegetation on the northern part of the building have caused a partial collapse of the roof.

During World War II, aircraft were considered vulnerable when on the ground, either from air or ground attacks. Precautions were taken to prevent any loss of aircraft when not in action. As a result, aircraft were often held in dispersed pens located around the perimeter of the airfield but with access to the main runways.
The site became apparent as a crop mark on a 2021 Google Earth aerial photograph. No surface remains are visible.

The Quonset hut was developed to answer a need ny the US Navy for a lightweight building that could be shipped anywhere and assembled with unskilled labour. The prefabricated structure of galvanised steel had a semi-circular cross section and was similar to the Nissen hut. Developed by the George A Fuller construction company,it was named after its first site of manufacture at the Davisville Naval Construction Battalion Centre, Quonset Point, Rhode Island.
Office used to accommodate administration section for day to day running of site. Housed in a Quonset hut.
The structure is in a state of collapse and advance levels of corrosion. Structure is also heavily overgrown

The runways were surrounded by a network of perimeter tracks providing aircraft access to the runways from the dispersals and hangars. The perimeter tracks are normally 50 feet/14 metres wide.
278 m of trackway remain though approximately 50% of it has been resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Structure designed to protect occupants from blast and splinters from nearby explosions during an air raid.
Noted in original report as Structure built into the side of the house, site appears to be in the same condition as when reported, with small square door providing access to shelter at the side of the house.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The low walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments.
The gun emplacement in in relatively good condition with it enclosing wall intact and four ammunition recesses.

This track was constructed when the runways were realigned between 1941-43.
960 metres of track remain in good condition, though resurfaced with modern tarmac post-war, the original concrete surface likely survives beneath.

Structure used to prepare food for the camp.
The structure is intact though is now a domestic dwelling.
Landowner pers. comm.
https://wartimeni.com/article/evacuees-from-gibraltar/

The site retains the original brick compound and brick blast wall, however the structure is heavily overgrown

Concrete and brick surface shelter with integral blast wall. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Opposite the entrance was the emergency escape hatch, which was a section of wall sealed with a single layer of brickwork, which could be broken through should the main entrance become obstructed or blocked. Smaller than shelters on dispersed living sites, it was designed to accommodate air and ground crews working at the dispersals.
WW2NI website at https://www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

Site Description Structure built to facilitate operations at the site, likely a nissen hut providing accommodation to service personnel.

The concrete hard-standing is in good condition, though it is obscured as it was incorporated into a larger aircraft parking apron (DHR 32:228)

High level steel water tower holding 80,000 gallons. Filled by a nearby pump house, it provided water by gravity feed to the entire camp.
The water tank is no longer extant, only 6 concrete and steel footings remain, obscured by overgrowth.

Six sub-control buildings were built by Belfast council between 1954-6 to support the efforts of the War Room at Mount Eden, Belfast in the event of a nuclear attack. This single-storey structure was constructed of reinforced concrete.
Extant and in good condition at the time of DHP, the site was demolished to make way for housing.
Subterrena Britannica at

The airfield at Belfast was opened by the then Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain on 16 March 1938, operating commercial flights between NI, Britain and the Isle of Man. However, with the outbreak of war civil flying halted and the site was requisitioned by the Air Ministry on 25 November 1939. Originally named RAF Sydenham this was later changed to RAF Belfast to avoid confusion with another airfield.
The facilities were greatly expanded with the construction as aircraft production increased. A unit of the Civilian Repair Organisation was established in 1940 to facilitate the rapid repair and return to service of damaged aircraft.
The airfield was originally designed with a grass landing strip. However, the vast increase in traffic and increasing weight of aircraft required the construction of two concrete runways. 05/23 ran roughly north south (and is still part of the runway today) and 13/31, which was later realigned to 14/32.
Wharves were constructed for the rapid loading and unloading of aircraft from merchant ships and aircraft carriers.
From 1943-44 the Lockheed Overseas Corporation was based at the airfield to assemble and flight test aircraft for the USAAF before sending them to Langford Lodge.
The name of the airfield was changed from RAF Belfast to HMS Gadwall as a shore station of the Fleet Air Arm. A naval air station the main focus of the site was aircraft maintenance and shipment, a base for disembarked squadrons and for fleet air arm units operating on carriers in the North Atlantic. As the war drew on the airfield was used for aircraft storage and maintenance by the Royal Navy.
The station was renamed HMS Gannet III in April 1945. Civilian flight returned to the airfield as the wars end approached in 1945, however these ended as services were transferred to Nutts Corner in 1946.
The 05/23 runway was extended to 1,850 metres in the 1950s. The Royal Navy kept its maintenance yard at the site until it was transferred to the RAF in 1973 and this later closed in 1978.
Passenger flights returned in 1983 and continued to the present day as George Best Belfast City Airport.
The site has been redeveloped with the expansion of the airport facilities and factory premises at Bombardier. The airfield retain much of the runway layout, though the east-west runways have been largely converted to car parks on the western ends. The moist substantial remaining structures are the original hangars from 1938, the Short and Harland hangar and Aircraft Repair Shed, all remaining in the industrial harbour area on the west side of the airfield.
Guy Warner and Jack Woods, In the heart of the city: The history of Belfast's City Airport 193801998 (Belfast, 1998) Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012)

Site remains largely intact and in good condition, some sections pf wall have been removed and holes opened in them by troops on exercise in the past.
John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001) N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998) Richard Doherty, Key to victory: The maiden City in the Second World War (Derry, 1995) Richard Doherty, 'Escort base' in Ulster Local Studies, Vol 16, No. 1 (1994), pp 31-42.

Only concrete base remains under the grass.
Image clipped from Carryduff Historical Society Facebook Page (21/05/2021) also https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart5.htm

This is a single finger park partially build over. Formerly part of a nine park dispersal.

This structure was designed to accommodate accommodate large out-size aircraft components as well as rubber and bedding stores. Originally designed to store main-plane complainants which were fabric covered, thus the height
This example remains in good condition. The original wooden doors have been replaced by steel shutters but the structure is sound and the roof is the original steel frame with asbestos sheeting. The owner uses it to store firewood and dried peat.

RNAS Maydown has two rather than the normal three runways, (there was not enough room for a third) both 150 feet wide, the were concrete surfaced with bitumen. The main runway ran roughly east-west and was 1650 yards long, the second roughly north-south was 1350 yards long. This is the western end of the the main runway.
This a a section of approximately 450 metres of runway in relatively good condition. Roughly have of this is used as a coal storage yard.

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing sergeants' accommodation.
Only the concrete base and some corroded steel ribs remain on site

The guard house was the main point of access and egress from the airfield, where visitors reported providing their authorisation for entry, and where they signed out on leaving. Airmen reported here with leave passes before they were allowed off station. The guard house also held prisoners prior to their appearance before their section officers or CO. The accommodation was split between civilian wardens, the fire party and the station guard.
This structure appears heavily overgrown but remains in relatively good condition. It is composed of two main offices with a shared latrine and what appears to be a detention cell, which has steel bars securing its one accessible window. A small section of the roof in the large room/office has collapsed.

Camp constructed to house army troops assigned to guard the radar stations. Composed of approx. six huts providing barracks, ablutions and air raid shelter.

Large central square in middle of original barrack complex. This open space, which was was used for parades of all sorts, for instance, fatigues, drill, pay, punishment, and the assembly of the guards. The site has been resurfaced since the site was decommissioned and is now used for public perform aces and concerts.
Site is largely intact though resurfaced.

A dwelling now sits where the fuel tanks stood, only the concrete trackway remains

Only the concrete sidewalls and gables ends remain, heavily overgrown.

Sewage pump house for pumping wastewater away from Dispersed Living site 5.
Structure appears relatively intact if somewhat overgrown.

Single structure remains of uncertain function.
Single structure in relatively good condition, used as an agricultural store. Middles section replaced with modern materials or two smaller buildings joined .

The site rmains in relatively good condtion. The roof has been replaced and it is overgrown on its north-east end but most of the exterior rendering is intact and some original widow frames remain in-situ.

Site remains in good condition, Entry sealed with modern roller shutters.

This concrete dispersal has had its northern segment truncated by a field boundary, beyond which the concrete hardstanding has been removed.

During the interwar period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersals were usually 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed. This is a small example of the type, 71 foot/22 metres in diameter.
Site appears to be intact. Oddly this dispersal has two smaller disperals leading from it, an uncommon feature on airfields in N. Ireland

Barracks erected to accommodate troops

This was a collection of structures which catered for the day-to-day administration and maintenance at the airfield. It had stores, workshops and the station HQ.

The concrete hard-standing is in good condition, though it is obscured as it was incorporated into a larger aircraft parking apron (DHR 32:220) post war.

Castlerock Radar Station
The advent of electronic warfare saw N. Ireland protected by a series of radar transmitting and receiving stations which circumscribed the United Kingdom. An invisible fence of radio waves stood watch along the coast, and it was the radars in N. Ireland which covered the western extremities of the UK’s coverage. The Chain Home (CH) system provided the backbone of the RAF early warning system. A typical A typical CH radar site had a transmitter block, with a series (normally four) ninety-nine-metre tall steel transmitting towers, a receiver block around which sat two seventy-three metre wooden antennae (steel receiver towers would adversely affect the radar returns), and an electrical standby set house which provided the power. The masts were supported by tensioned cables anchored to concrete bases and anchoring points. The sites in N. Ireland were consistent with the ‘West-coast’ design which relied on dispersal and concealment for protection.
Five CH stations were established in N. Ireland during the war. The first to be commissioned was at Castlerock, County L’Derry, which opened in May 1942. RAF Castlerock consisted of over forty structures, which included transmitting blocks, receiver blocks, four transmitting aerials, two receiving antennae and barracks facilities for the RAF crews and army units to guard the facility. Since its closure in the early 1950s, site clearance has removed most of the buildings. However, the transmitter block, standby set house and substation/transformer kiosk survive. These are constructed of concrete and covered with earth, providing both camouflage and strength, but the site primarily depended on dispersion throughout the landscape to safeguard from air attack. The transmitter block is in relatively good condition, with all of its internal wall intact, some original doors and fittings, including parts of the air conditioning plant. This was specifically required for this building to draw away heat generated by the radar transmitter. The transmitted block channelled power to the four 325 foot guyed steel transmitter masts, between which hung wire aerial curtains. The reflected radar signals were detected on two 240 foot wooden receiver towers. The surrounding fields contain concrete mast bases and anchors for the steel transmitting masts’ guy wires, and hut bases and a blast shelter remain at the site of the army barracks. There are no visible remains of the receiver block or towers. The radar at Castlerock remained operational into the 1950s when it was kept as a readiness CH site before it was replaced by radars at Murlough Bay, DHR 298 (Co Antrim) and Killard Point, DHR 311 (Co. Down).
The transmitter block, stand by set house and substation remain, as do a number of concrete holdfasts for the antennae 9now removed) and parts of the accomodation site.

Original DHP report as site of house requisitioned as HQ for RAF Balloon Command responsible for siting and maintaining barrage balloons across N. Ireland

Road built to bypass northern and eastern ends of runways.
107 m of concrete roadway remains in good condition if somewhat overgrown.

Glenarm CHL radar station
Brick structure built to facilitate operation at site.
Only small section of wall and concrete remain in field boundary.

Knock-na-more house was requisitioned for military use during WW2 and became the headquarters for the US 34th Infantry Division. It was reportedly visited once by Gen. Eisenhower, supreme commander for allied forces in Europe. After the war it was returned to civilian use as a hotel but was destroyed in a fire during 1990s.
Noted as a laundry on the website www.ww2ni.com, the owner noted it was a latrine during an on-site meeting.
This structure provided toilet facilities for troops stationed at Knock-na-moe.
The structure remains in relatively good condition retaining its original roof and window frames. It is now used as a domestic store. There is a significant crack in the south-west wall.
After the Battel magazine, number 34 (1981), p. 7

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Described in original DHP report as red brick walls 9 inches thick with concrete roof. A window and door , 'chimney cut out of roof' (possibly an emergency escape hatch).
Site could not be located and appears to have been demolished.

Camp constructed during WW2. Composed of approx. 23 Nissen type huts. Closely spaced therefore likely stores.

Small Braithwaite water tank used to provide water to the camp.
Site is intact but steel walls showing signs significant corrosion. Some pipework remains underneath the brick plinth.

Ballyclare ROC post

This structure made of temporary brick construction would have housed technical classes for trainee crews.
It is one of the largest surviving structures on the site and has been repurposed into several units for small businesses such as a gym, car sales and a metal fabrication company. Sections have been reroofed and new windows and metal roller shutters have been installed. Access to the interior of the building was not possible but the overall condition of the structure appears good.

Complex of over 30 nissen huts. Likely a mix of barracks and domestic facilities.

Provided accommodation for senior non-commissioned officers. Built post-war on site of World War 2 accommodation site to provide improved living quarters.
The concrete structure has a compressed asbestos cement sheeting roof and retains its original windows and brick chimneys.

Little remains of the hangar site, only concrete access track and hardstanding remains and they are heavily overgrown.

Structure was erected to provide a school for education the children of troops stationed at the camp. It was divided in two sections, on for boys, the other for girls.

Camp constructed to accommodate military personnel during WW2. Consisted of over 30 closely-packed huts. Removed post-war.

Larne Coastal Battery
The site housed a Mk. VII 6 inch breech-loading gun on steel hold-fast. The gun could fire a 100-pound armour-piercing shells 12, 600 yards. The position was sheltered by a reinforced concrete gun house, which provided protection from aerial attack.
The gun house was demolished at the end of WW2, leaving only the front edge of the concrete platform/

Military structure built to facilitate ATS barracks, exact function unclear
ONly small section of brick wall remains upright.

Mess hall providing dining facilities for troops and civilian employees of the Lockheed Overseas Corporation.
The site is in good condition and is used as HQ offices for an animal feed company. Windows and roof is modern and body of the building has been split into 2 sections.

Structure housed generators which provided power to the facility or equipment within it.
Site remains intact, has been repurposed as a mechanics shop.

Sited in front of the watch office, the signal square facilitated air traffic control signals warning pilots of the prevailing condition and precautions to be taken during landing and take-off. Though signals could be sent using radio transmissions, pyrotechnics, lamps and flags, the majority of signals were displayed on this 40-foot square black concrete square edged in a one-foot white border.
The signal square is overgrown and the kerb removed, however the large identifying letters ‘BC’ for Bishops Court remain, though obscured by grass.

Described in DHP report as a brick domestic shelter with concrete slab roof. Covered over as landscaped mound.
No access but owner reported the site was destroyed.

The compass rose was painted on a circular concrete pad and was aligned to magnetic north. It was used by aircraft to calibrate their magnetic compass.
Largely obscured by a later track, only a crescent of the compass rose pad remains and it is mostly covered by overgrowth of grass and moss.

Site appears in good condition, dump of spoil on eastern side.

The curved reinforced concrete building retains its original northern wall, which is made of brick. An original roof ventilator cover can be seen on the south end of the building. The south face of the structure has been removed allowing the farmer to farm machinery.

Access could not be gained to the site as construction of a solar farm has sealed off the area behind security fencing, but analysis of aerial photographs shows 729 m of the perimeter track remains, though approximately half of this has had solar electric panels erected on it.

Aghacully Gibraltarian camp
Families were housed in Nissen huts. Larger huts and buildings provided a dining hall, community centre and a school. No upstanding remains.
The site was removed post war, only the water tower now remains.

A camp was constructed here during WW2. The US Field Force Replacement Depot 6 was stationed here from Nov 1943-March 1944, as was the 307th Quartermaster Sterilisation battalion.
Traces of hut bases reported remaining in the undergrowth.

Beech Hill House
The house and grounds at Beech Hill were commandeered by the War Office at the start of WW2 to house troops. A camp was constructed and became part of the US Base 1 Europe at Derry. There were two main camps, Beech Hill A and BA security detachment of US marines were based here.
The main house remains in good condition, and two Quonset hits remain intact. Though most of the camp was removed post-war, many concrete hut bases remain in the surrounding woods.

Concrete and brick surface shelter. The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack. Described as small private air raid shelter constructed on brick with concrete slab roof in rear garden of domestic dwelling (52 Martinez Ave), semi-sunk with porch.

Starfish decoy sites were used from 1941 as a means to divert bombing raids from their intended targets. The Starfish sites replicated the effects of successful bombing raids by replicating the effects of fires from targets that had been set alight by preceding bomber waves. The starfish site was composed of a series of fire types, from simple basket fires (wooden crates filled with scrap wood soaked in turpentine) to more sophisticated crib fires, boiling oil fires and grid fires which controlled the rate of ignition and could simulate explosions by introducing water to burning oil. These were arranged in groups and often surrounded by circular or linear trenches to prevent the whole decoy igniting at once. Each group was controlled from a shelter which had a telephone to receive orders and electrical switchgear to control igniters. Throughout a raid the decoy groups were lit sequentially to simulate spreading fires. One night of controlled burning could consume up to 50 tons of fuel.
Site consisted of a number of fire groups, normally composed of a number of types of fire decoys such as basket fires, boiler fires and grid fires surrounded by firebreaks. These were controlled from two control shelters.
The two control shelters remain relatively intact.

Uncertain function, may be related to mess hall adjacent.
IN relatively good condition, retains original window frames.

This 115 m of perimeter track appears in relatively good condition,

This was site of the US Army General Depot G-10-10. It was sited lose to the railway to aid transport of materials. The depot was composed of 14 large storage sheds and other additional huts and was connected to the railway via a small siding.
Traces of storage shed bases can still be seen on modern aerial photos.

Site appears intact though obscured by dumped soil.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersal were normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
Though entirely grassed over this site appears to be intact.

A Quonset hut, likely used as officers quarters.
The structure is intact and in good condition.

Main store and office for RAF Equipments branch responsible for maintaining, storing and distributing equipment. The section was responsible for all the equipment work of the squadron, demanding and receiving all items required both for maintenance and for flight stocks within ‘Lock-Ups’ as they were known; the latter was a sub-store of ready-use items such as wheels and tyres, sparking plugs and aircraft general spares which experience had shown had to be kept on-hand for quick replacement in aircraft. An Equipment service officer was placed with each squadron to supervise the equipment administration within that squadron.
ONe wing of three now remains. It has been converted to use as modern offices.
Trevor Stone, Royal Air Force Logistics During the Second World War: Transformation, Sustainment and Flexibility, unpublished PhD Thesis, University of Exeter (2016)

The defence sites at St Angelo appear to be more dispersed across the landscape due to the hilly topography breaking lines of sight, necessitating more defensive clusters than is normally seen at WW2 airfields.
Site is large buried, likely similar to other small square pillboxes previously found at airfield. Structure differs in that it has an upstanding concrete plinth, the purpose of which remains unclear. Pillboxes with associated light anti aircraft mountings have been known (DHR 37:007)
Site appears intact though buried with only top surface of roof showing.

The 38 metre diameter dispersal is in good condition if a bit overgrown

The site is a group of 4 finger park dispersals, however only 1 was visible on the day if the survey visit. Discussion with the landowner suggest the dispersals were covered with soil post war, leaving the concrete intact under the grass.

The 45m diameter concrete hard-standing has been truncated by the construction of the race course, approx. 40% remains in good condition, grass growing from expansion joints.

Structure built to facilitate operations at the site
Only traces of concrete under the grass sod.

The tarmac access track is visible but the rest of the dispersal is entirely overgrown and appears removed but some probing with a ranging rod has determined that the dispersal remains, likely in good condition, beneath the surface.

Site is heavily overgrown and access was limited due to a security fence but site appears to retain concrete hard-standing

The watch office (known as the watch office on RAF airfields, but control towers on sites operated by the USAAF) provided air traffic control for aircraft taking off and landing at the airfield. Built to designs of the Air Ministry's Directorate of Works and Buildings, as Office for All Commands design, to Drawing No. 12779/41. Rendered brick with asphalt roof. The ground floor had the watch office to front with duty pilot's rest room, meteorological office, switch room and lavatories to rear. The first floor had control room to front, with controller's rest room and signals office to rear, opening onto passage with access to stairs. The design allowed large windows overlooking the airfield, however in a deviation from the original plan, this structure has had one of the watch office windows narrowed.
The site was secured by a chain-link fence, therefore examination of the interior was not possible. However, the brickwork and render remain in relatively good condition, though there is some exterior spalling of render. All the window frames have been removed but the overall appearance of the structure is sound

Coast searchlights were employed with the battery to search and illuminate areas of the lough during nighttime. They would also have been used to illuminate hostile targets in ,ow light or total darkness. The equipment was housed in a brick and concrete shelter, provided with large windows enabling 180 degree search arc. Cabling providing power entered via ducting in the floor.
The brick and concrete shelter remains in relatively good condition, though the glass panes have long since been removed.

The site was constructed during WW1 to accommodate the training needs of troops stationed in Ireland prior to being sent overseas. The site remained in use during WW2, and continues to be used by the British Army. It was originally a 600 yard range but is now is a 200 yard range with firing points in 100 yard intervals.

Site is intact though there is some cracking in the eastern end wall and a large section of the western brick end wall has been removed, exposing the the reinforced concrete core.

Camp constructed to house troops during WW2. May have been used for emergency housing post war.
PRONI file FIN/19/24/41

Only a narrow track of runway remains, extending 40 metres along the field boundary. A further 115 metres of broken rubble of track extends to the eastern field boundary.

Housed three fire tenders for fire fighting on the base
The structure is in good condition with a modern roof, windows and roller shutters on the 3 bays. It has been repurposed for industrial use by the owners.

Open hardstanding used to store incendiary bombs. Surrounded by earthwork traverse.
Though overgrown, a c-shaped earthwork traverse remains. The traverse on the opposite side of the track has been removed.

The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building for all types of accommodation. The 16 foot span hut was semi-circular in section and could be built to any length in multiples of 6 foot bays, normally 6. The frame of steel ribs was covered with corrugated steel sheets held in place by the ribs and straining wires. The end walls could be timber or brick, containing 2 windows and a door. A 24 and 30 foot span design were constructed in the same way but had dormer windows and door cheeks fitted along the sides
This is a 24 foot span nissen hut. Its function within the communal site is unknown.
The structure is in relatively good condition. A modern access has been opened in the southern end to allow access for agricultural machinery.

Site provided accomodation for 14 enlisted troops.
Site remains in good condition, it has been reused as a print workshop

A series of practice trenches identified on lidar survey. Uncertain date either WW1 or WW2

Site is largely overgrown with grass cover but the concrete border remains visible.

Provided dining and kitchen facilities for base personnel.
The site remains in good condition. It retains some sections of the original asbestos roof, though some section have been replaced with modern sheeting. Structure secured with modern steel security doors.

Only concrete base and loading ramp remain, modern chicken shed constructed on the site.

Site has been truncated by later development, approximately 40 % remains in relatively good condition

Some of concrete track remained within the area redeveloped as an army base (Moscow Camp), during the Troubles. This has now been removed leaving only hut bases and the remains of the WW2 hardstanding. Destroyed by April 2020.

Military structure relating to the operation of the Light anti-aircraft gun. Likely nissen hut.

Larkfield house was requisitioned by the War Office to house troops during WW2. A camp was constructed in the grounds. The site was used by a US army finance unit and US military police.

Concrete trackway servicing dispersed living site 4.
121 metres of trackway remain in good condition.

Rear wall is braced with wooden contemporary beams.
Site remains largely intact if somewhat overgrown. One of the door is off its hinges. Structure has been converted to an animal pen post-war but is no longer in use.

This is a 342m section of runway constructed of poured concrete with expansion joints. It is crossed by racetrack on northern end. Grass grows through the expansion joints but it the surface is in good condition.

Site was in good condition in original DHP report but quarrying has completely removed all traces. Last visit in 2005 showed demolition rubble.

Flight crews coming from their respective Fight Training Schools were qualified to fly and operate aircraft, they were no ready for operational units until they became familiar with the types of aircraft with which their operational squadron was equipped. Operational Training Units (Combat Crew Replacement Centres for the USAAF) were designed to train crews on the aircraft they would fly on operations. An instructional site housed a suite of synthetic trainer which could simulate flight operations on the ground in safety and under the supervision of instructors. The Air Ministry Laboratory (AML) bombing teacher projected a moving map on which the bombardier used a mock bomb sight to hit a target and passed instructions to the pilot, who could alter the course of the ‘flight’ over the map according to instructions from the bombardier, who calculated wind and speed as on a real mission. Timing after bomb release was assessed by instructors to determine the accuracy of the simulated bomb run.
This was converted into a dwelling by the current owner who described how he had to remove the original map table to create a level surface for the ground floor. The dwelling was subsequently extended on its northern and eastern gables. The pitch of the roof was altered to meet building regulations and the chimney lowered.

This strongpoint has 4 machine gun firing ports fitting with steel Turnbull mount frames. These held a steel cradle for mounting Vickers or Bren machine guns. The main armament is supported with rifle loops and observation slits. The embrasures are staircased to prevent ricochets entering the position. A central corridor was roofed with galvanised steel covered with earth but corrosion has led to collapse in parts. The fighting areas have concrete roofs.
The site survives in good condition.Thee is some vegetation growing on the roof of the structure and corrosion of the galvanised roof sections had led to some collapse. The structure retains some steel fittings for ammunition shelves at firing ports.
Pillbox study group website at

Site was a pre-prepared chamber, either cut into masonry or a steel box/s mounted on the bridge piers. In the event of invasion explosives would have been placed in the chamber and detonated to demolish the bridge to slow any enemy advance.

Site was estant in 2017, appears to have been removed by agricultural field clearance.

This is a single park formerly part of a 9 park dispersal.It has recently been tarmaced over but owner noted the concrete remains underneath.

Castlewellan
Site of camp used to accommodate troops, composed of 20+ nissen huts with larger storage sheds and hardstanding.
No visible remains but site overgrown so may be sub-surface remains
PRONI RAF images in AM/1/5/69/F21/1-50

Reported as a Type 26 pillbox
Reported non-extant in original DHP report

Structure related to operations at the firing range.

Mourne park
Constructed to facilitate operations at the army camp, likely a nissen hut, function unclear.

Edenderry House
Edenderry House and its grounds were requisitioned by the War Office to house troops. It was used to house initially British troops, but later American and Belgian troops were stationed there.
Removed post war, not the site of Edenderry Primary School and Banbridge Academy.

Ballykelly
The operations block was the central control for all flight operations from the airfield. Orders were received via a telex room and flight plans, targets plotted on target maps, crew listings and final planning for flight operations took place here. Finalised plans, distress procedures and operational radio frequencies were passed on to the crews in the crew briefing room. Rooms included offices for the commanding officer, the signals officer, the operations room, traffic office, wireless/telegraph room, teleprinter room and emergency battery room. This example appears complete but many years of post-war reuse has led to significant modifications and additions to the structure, with modern pitched roofs and white UPVC windows.
Since 2017 the structure has been demolished.Only concrete base remains.

For pumping water to the airfield and dispersed sites, drawing water from the River Bann. Brick tower beside pumphouse of uncertain purpose.
Remains in relatively good condition though all plant has been removed. Significant cracking along south wall and supporting beams of the roof in that section suggest a collapse on that end likely at some point in the future.

Coastwatcher were responsible for maintaining observation of coastal waters, monitoring shipping and curtailing coastal smuggling. This post was constructed during WW2 to provide a protected observation post for coastwatchers/coastguard. A coastguard station sits adjacent to the post.
This post retains graffiti carved in the bricks during WW2.

Barrack built to accommodate troops (164 enlisted men and NCOs). It has eight barrack rooms and the lower levels house stores and workshops.

Pillboxes were located at choke points and crossings, using the river as an obstacle. This pillbox would have held a section with a light machine gun, wither a Vickers gun on a tripod or a Bren Gun. However it would not have stood alone and would have been supported by infantry field positions, slit trenches and barbed-wire entanglements.
The small square pillbox has four embrasures, one in each face, with staircasing to prevent ricochets entering the position. The walls are approximately 35 cm thick, indicating the pillbox was designed to be bullet proof but not shell proof. The northwest and southeast faces have been reinforced with concrete buttressing to add protection to the most vulnerable areas. An outer wall protects the entrance to the pillbox which is in the southwest face of the position. The entrance is secured by a locked steel door. Internally there are steel guide rails remain on all the embrasures but the steel shutters survive on only the southwest and northeast faces of the pillbox. The steel shutters were designed to protect the occupants from blast and attack from flamethrowers. There are the remains of wooden shelving and an ammunition recess can be seen in the northwest wall.
William Foot, Beaches, fields, streets and hills: the anti-invasion landscapes of England, 1940 (York, 2006) Mike Osborne, Pillboxes of Britain and Ireland (Stroud, 2008)

This red brick structure was constructed to provide accommodation for Warrant Offices in one half. The other half was used to house the schoolmaster for the nearby children's school.

Decoy sites were employed to draw off bombers from their intended targets by using systems of light (QL decoys) to simulate airfields, town or docks. Networks of flame sites (QF decoys) could also be used to simulate targets that had been hit by previous waves of attacking bombers. The lighting system was controlled and powered from generators housed in a protected bunker.
The site remains consist of the decoy shelter and three nearby structures/hut bases.

Site of two steel tanks holding petrol. The tanks would have been have had a pump on site to supply mobile bowsers.

Unidentified airfield building, small size suggests it may have been latrines.

Site for developing and processing gun camera film. Gun cameras were fitted to aircraft to analyse tactical effectiveness after a mission. This site also had facilities for repairing cameras and loading and unloading film. Post war it was reused as a scrap store.
Only trace of foundations remain littered with demolition rubble.

Large area of concrete possibly used for parking vehicles or storage.
Concrete remains relatively intact. Used to store farm vehicles

This single finger park appears intact if a bit overgrown

This is a concrete walled ammunition./explosives store reinforced with earthwork revetment. It is 302 sq. metres in area. The store was designed to direct an explosive blast upwards in the event of an accident. Owner noted that the site formerly has four nissen huts constructed in its interior to house the munitions.
The site is overgrown but in good condition though any internal structures have been cleared away post-war.

Hanger constructed likely after the end of WW2. Identified from contemporary photographs. Appears to be smaller hangar type, possibly Super Robins or T2 Marine Craft hangar.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is visible on contemporary aerial photographs
The site is now overgrown and there are no visible remains, however the site has never been redeveloped and subsurface remains are likely.

Dungiven ROC post
Site appears intact. Access hatch has been sealed with concrete as has the ventilation shaft. BPI shaft has been cut to ground level.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/dungiven-roc-post/

Reported structure used as camp laundry
Heavily modified post-war with modern building blocks, the structure is now used as a mechanics store.

This concrete water tower was used to store and provide water to the camp.
The base of the water tower is intact. However, the structure appears to have been altered post-war.

Though constructed in 1941, this site followed an early design as there are no shelters for the crews at the position.
The site is in good condition, though collapse has reduced the height of retaining walls, with much covered grass.

Used to transform voltage levels to those required by the station.

This shelter provided accommodation for gun crews while on duty, it is secured with a steel door and all the windows are protected by steel shutters.
Site is in good condition, it is use as a storeroom.

Marked on contemporary map as "RAF wireless hut". May be related to directing aircraft on aerial bombing ranges on Lough Foyle
Was extant until 2018 but has been demolished, likely only concrete base remains.

During the interwar period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short track-ways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. Dispersal were normally 125-150 feet wide (though often smaller on fighter airfields), but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.

Brick and concrete structure remains in good condition.

Nissen hut housing dining facilities for female personnel.
Site appears to be intact. has been repurposed as a domestic store.

Built over with agricultural shed, small section of conrete base remains.

A short 50m section of track-way remains, with an even narrower strip 120m into the field. A 20m section of track remains on the opposite side of the road.

The modern road has been built on top of the perimeter track, its line is defined by the modern road, how much of the original fabric remains underneath is unclear. Approx 660m in length.

This concrete dispersal is 18 metres wide and has grass growing through the expansion joints, but is in good condition.

This trench was used by markers to raise and lower target frames and to mark on the targets hit by trainees. The targets were raised on a system of pulleys then lowered into the gallery for marking. They were then raised again to allow instructors to asses the quality of the trainees marksmanship.
The gallery appears relatively intact though the manltet has slumped into the gallery. Remains of the steel apparatus for raising the target frames is still in situ.

General purpose hut, half normal length.

The radar platform was constructed in 1953 to mount an Anti-aircraft radar No 3, mark II, which was installed in 1954 but removed in 1956 when the fort closed.
The ramp remains in good condition. It is used as a viewing platform with clear lines of sight across the battery.

Provided cooking and dining facilities for airmen. Also referred to as a Dining Hall.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Roof and windows have modern replacements. Still in use by MoD.

Victoria Barracks
This general site was formally an artillery barracks, built in 1797 as a replacement for a pre 1757 barracks. In 1883 two new large accommodation blocks were built, as well as this particular building- a gymnasium. In 1909 the complex (‘Victoria Barracks’) accommodated 10 officers and 182 soldiers, with quarters for 32 married soldiers and their families. 1,000 men could be garrisoned in all, and when required a further 3,000 could be housed under canvas he barracks was largely destroyed during the Blitz of 1941, . The site remained in a ruinous state until the 1950s when it was cleared and subsequently filled with new housing and several tower blocks built over a ten year period from the mid 1950s to the mid 1960s.
After the bombing in 1941 the site was rebuilt using temporary huts.
HED Historic Buildings entry for HB26/49/008

Site provided accommodation for sergeants.

Site provided washing and showering facilities.
Structure remains in relatively good condition, although the distinctive hot water tower is overgrown.

Approximately 890 m of perimeter track remain, though it is narrowed in sections by vegetation overgrowth

The Norden bombsight was one of the most secret instruments brought to Ireland during the war and was surrounded by exceptional levels of security. It could measure the bombers ground speed and used an analogue computer to calculate a bombs impact point based on prevailing fight conditions. Furthermore, the sight was connected to an autopilot which could make in-flight corrections during the bomb run. This promised unprecedented levels of bombing accuracy. Consequently, the sight was considered of vital wartime importance. When not in use the bombsights were immediately returned to the store. Any maintenance needed was carried out inside the store, and when this was completed the sights were placed inside a vault secured by a steel door. The store was climate controlled to protect the delicate mechanism. As the Norden bombsight was not used by the RAF the stores are particular to USAAF controlled airfields.
The structure is in relatively good condition. Its main structural walls and concrete slab roof are intact and it retains some sections of its ventilation system for maintained a controlled climate within the building. The security bars are intact (if occasionally bent) on two of the three windows. The concrete workbenches have been removed with only some parts of the brick supports remaining. No doors remain and some of the air vents have been removed. There is a date 1943 marked in the ground level ventilation on the western face of the structure. Though no animals were present the building has been used as a byre at some point.

This 44 m diameter dispersal appears to be in good condition though heavily overgrown with moss and grass

Providing washing facilities for troops.

This was used to power the switchback railway propelling the target.
Original DHR file SM 7 Dow 44:64Philip Orr, Ballykinler camp: The first seven decades, 1900-1969 ((2012),H Montgomery and P Logue, Excavations at Ballykinler training estate, for Centre for Archaeological Fieldwork (QUB) 2016

Large concrete shelter constructed as part of US Navy Base 1 Europe. It was demolished in the 1990s as part of renovation works at Magee College

Reported by owner as being used as a workshop.

Strabane ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ
The structure appears largely in situ however it has been significantly damaged with the ventilation shaft demolished and a hole broken through part of the main hatch shaft.. The steel pipe for the BPI remains but the baffle plate has been removed. The access shat has been sealed with concrete. Some earth has been removed from around the post and the concrete apron from around the access hatch has been removed/fallen away.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/strabane-roc-post/

This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters. This was the 300 yard firing point from the original early 20th century range.
Defined by area of compacted earth, possibly covered with layer of grave, however heavily overgrown.

Aldergrove originally had four runways but this layout was altered when the site was rebuilt between 1941 and 1943. This was one of two runways that replaced the previous four. This runway was 1,800 metre long when finished. Post-war it was extended to its current length of 2,900 metres.
Intact and resurfaced. Used as main runway for Belfast International Airport.

Single ablutions block remaining
Only ablution block and picket hut remain.

In 1940 the UK government decided to evacuate non-essential civilians from Gibraltar, with approximately 6,000 making their way to N. Ireland to be housed in 16 temporary camps during 1944.
The site consisted of rows of Nissen huts, with each hut divided in two, each side housing a family. There was a canteen, laundry, bathhouse and toilet facilities with water supplies from an adjacent water tower.
The site retains three structures, one of which is a water tower.

Mill building was commandeered to house troops during WW2, returned to civilian use post-war.

This 857 metres of perimeter track remains intact and in good condition, resurfaced post war.

Every station was provided with medical facilities with wards to accommodate all ranks. The sick quarters would have held a ward, an operating theatre and a dispensary, with facilities and offices for the station medical officer and dental officer. Typically there would have been 22 beds and quarters for sergeants and orderlies
The site has been reused as a cattle shes and an agricultural store but remains in relatively good condition. The brick structures retain their original asbestos roofs, metal window frames .The entrances have been secured with modern steel sheeting and most windows sealed with concrete blocks. The eastern sidewall of the central block has been removed to allow cattle access to the structure.

Shane's Castle Park
The estate was requisitioned during WW2 and an ammunition/ordnance depot establishes to store explosives and ammunition. With the entry of the US into the war in 1941 American ordnance units were also based here.
Traces of a camp appear on a post-war aerial photo.
Hut bases may remain under the grass sod.

Small arms range built during WW2. Consisted of two targets and three firing points at 100, 150 and 200 yards.
Irish army archives map IE/MA/MPD/ad134149-009 viewed at https://www.militaryarchives.ie/

Site has been resurfaced with modern tarma but likely remains intact underneath.

Seco prefabricated structure containing engineering unit

The brick shelter is in good condition and is sealed with corrugated iron.

Operated by the NAAFI (Navy Army and Air Force Institute), the shop stocked local foodstuffs and goods which could be purchased by base personnel.
Site remains in good condition, it has been repurposed as a domestic dwelling.

Traces of concrete base may remain, depression where base was cut into surface remains.

Military structure, reported by local informant who noted the site was part of the Q decoy. Internal fittings suggest it may have been a pimp house but its precise function remains unclear. Construction materials and internal paint scheme suggest this was a military structure.
Site is largely intact with internal plant, while heavily corroded, remains in situ.

The ammunition magazine held the majority of the ammunition stores of 3.7 inch shells to supply the HAA guns. These were held in wooden racks. Normally consisted of a curved reinforced concrete roof with brick endwalls.
Only concrete base remains and this is heavily overgrown.

The structure was originally constructed to provide medical facilities to the garrison, it also housed stores and the stations mortuary. However by 2007 when the barracks closed, it had been repurposed as the battalion HQ and offices.

Constructed c. 1900 the clock tower was designed by Vincent Craig (brother of James Craig) in the Arts and Craft style. It houses water tanks used to supply the barracks.

This brick faced reinforced concrete pillbox has seven embrasures with staircasing to prevent ricochets entering the position. Its walls are 48 cm thick making the pillbox bullet proof but not proof against heavy weapons. It retains the remains of steel rails on the inside of the embrasures. These would have mounted steel shutters which could be closed to prevent incoming bullets, grenades and flamethrowers from entering the position. The badly corroded remains of the shutters remains on the floor of the pillbox.
The main axis of fire is to the west, though a direct line of sight is obscured by rising ground.
Pillbox part of supporting defences in area
The site has lost its original steel door but remains in good condition.

This 25 yard range was used to test fire machine guns and used as a small -arms range. There would have been a large brick structure supported by six brick buttresses acts as a retaining wall for the sloping earth/sand backstop, but this has been removed. The brick firing shelter remains. It has two firing points and an office on each end of the structure. The vent on east wall are to prevent gun smoke from gathering inside the building.
The firing shelter remains in good condition, retains its original asbestos roof and green paint scheme. The butts, into which the guns fired are no longer extant.

This dispersal is 18 metres wide forms part of the trackways and access paths around the race circuit. Its northern section is obscured by overgrowth of moss, but the site is in good condition.

The Link trainer (named after its inventor Edwin Link) provided a cheaper and safer alternative to training pilots in instrument flying than flying than flying an actual aircraft. The trainer consider of a circular wooden cubicle, painted with a landscape as would be seen from 2000 feet. At the centre was a mock-up fuselage with a cockpit equipped with basic instruments and flight controls. Movements of the plane were simulated by powerful bellows under the 'aircraft'. Night flying could be simulated by putting a blacked-out hood over the cockpit. Connections led from the trainer to an instructors desk where a trolley called a 'tracking crab' recorded the time and rate of movement of the fuselage. The instructors desk had duplicate flying controls which enabled them to assess the trainees pilots flying ability. Blocks could accommodate a number of students at the same time. At Maghaberry the Link trainer had 2 cubicles.

The site does not appear on the original plans of the fort but is clearly related tot he operation of the site. It may have been added when the gun houses were constructed and relates to these. However, at this time it function remains unclear.
Site remains intact and in relatively good condition.

This is a small 20 metre section of track

Building is described as ‘hospital’ on the 1854 Ordnance Survey Map. Another building to the rear at the centre of the bastion and now gone is labelled ‘magazine’. As photographed in the late 19th century a downpipe flanked the central group of 3 windows. The ground floor windows below the two blank windows was also blank and has now been opened up. The windows to the east were symmetrical with those on the west before the showers were inserted. There were a further two chimneys on the ridge flanking the central staircase. Inside the masonry structural walls mean that the original plan has largely survived apart from alterations for toilets. Temporary hospital was built in WWII to the north of Browning Drive outside the current barracks complex. It is likely that the hospital function cased earlier in the century and it became extra barrack accommodation.
HB file for HB01/09/002 S

Barrage balloon were used as a for of air defence. They were large balloons filled with hydrogen under which were hung steel cables into which low-flying aircraft could collide. When raised they forced enemy aircraft to fly at higher altitudes, making them more vulnerable to attack by friendly fighters and anti-aircraft guns. Equipment normally consisted of lorries and concrete tethering blocks to secure the balloon.
These three concrete blocks with steel mountings were used to tether the gas-filled balloons.
The three concrete blocks with steel fittings appear in good condition.

Approximately 690 metres of the runway remain in good condition, but it is truncated at its northern end by an industrial development.

Series of connected trackways providing pedestrian access across the site.

This was the WAAF (Women's Auxiliary Air Force) guard room. Its primary role was largely administrative, logging airwomen on and off the base. Airwomen were obliged to sign in and out whenever they left or entered the base.
Built in a more robust expansion period style, the structure remains in good conditon and is still in use by the MoD.

Blister hangars were small arched dispersal shed, made of wood or welded steel, and were used for the maintenance and storage of aircraft with small wingspans. They were clad in steel sheeting and had quick-release canvas curtains on either end.
The blister hanger is 54m long and is in good condition, though replacement steel sheeting has been added to the facing doors and sections of the roof, 38m of the roof is original steel sheeting.

Site was heavily overgrown and obscured during field visit in 2008. Demolished due to redevelopment c. 2017.

A 10 metre section of the dispersals approach track remain and is mostly obscured by grass. There is no trace of the hardstanding.

Large 440 square metre magazine with concrete walls and earthwork traverse protection. The brick store was used to store ammunition and/or explosives.
Site is intact and in good condition. In recent years the southern earthwork traverse has been removed to increase the area available within the magazine.

Though truncated by the development of the prison, approximately approximately 270 m of track remain though most has been resurfaced with tarmac.

Most of the structure has been reduced to its concrete platforms, however a single structure, possible formerly a kitchen or store, remains intact and in good condition.

Structure built to facilitate operations at the range. Aerial photos show this was a galvanised steel shed, likely use to house range equipment, or act as a shelter for range instructors.

After the destruction caused to aircraft assembly lines in Belfast during the air raids raids of 1941, final assembly of aircraft was dispersed to sites outside Belfast, one of these assembly sites was at Maghaberry where two T2 hangers were erected for this purpose. After the war the site was used to scrap redundant aircraft
This site is in excellent condition. It retains its original cladding and door rails. The main doors still open and close to some degree. The brick annexes are unoccupied but in parts retain some of the original electrical switch-gear. A rarer find still was the survival of the original gantry crane supplied by Stothert & Pitt Ltd (Bath England) in 1941.The site is used for light manufacturing by a joinery company.

Rathfriland ROC post
Only the main hatch remains but the ventilation louvres have been removed. The original counter-weight hatch cover remains in situ but the bunker if almost completely flooded. The ventilation shaft and shaft for the Bomb Power Indicator have been removed.
Website www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/rathfriland-roc-post/

Huts constructed to facilitate operation=s at the site. Group of at least 16 huts.

455 metres of track, surfaced in concrete and tarmac survives in good condtion

Living site for personnel. Had approx. 54 structures, mostly barracks with ablutions, latrines and seven air raid shelters
Some track and concrete foundations remain, nothing upstanding remains.

Bentra Airship Station
An airship station and landing ground was established at Bentra in 1915 as a substation to RNAS Luce Bay. Following the use of unrestricted submarine warfare, the facilities were enhanced with the construction of a portable airship shed with accommodation huts for aircrew, operating non-rigid airships. The airships were used to escort the ferry Princess Maud and escort coastal shipping. Flying ceased in 1919 and the site was closed in 1920.
Report at https://issuu.com/meabc/docs/carrick_bentra_airship
Martyn Chorlton, Action Stations revisited (vol. 7): Scotland and Northern Ireland, (2012)

Series of 11 storage tanks for petrol.

Tyrone and Fermanagh Hospital
The Tyrone and Fermanagh hospital was utilised as a military hospital by the erecting of long Nissen Hut wings.
The wartime additions have been removed and the site continues in use as a psychiatric hospital.

The Bailey bridge was designed by Donal Bailey i 1940-41. It was a pre-fabricated steel truss bridge and was used extensively by the British and US military. The steel elements were small enough to be carried in a truck and could be constructed by hand with simple tools and without need of heavy equipment. It was strong enough to carry contemporary tanks and could be narrow pedestrian or wider vehicular brides of almost any desired length.
This is a small pedestrian Bailey bridge spanning the Altalacky River, approx. 9 metres long.
This was either constructed as training during WW2 or repurposed as part of a post-war community project post war. Its narrow gauge suggest post-war disposal of surplus equipment to provide a footbridge.
The structures is corroded but in relatively good condition.

The site appears to be relatively complete but has a domestic dwelling and agricultural buildings utilising the dispersal as foundations.

Site was constructed to provide steam heating to buildings on the Local District Heating scheme. Pipes connected the station to underground ducts providing heating to all buildings connected to the scheme. It consisted of a boiled house, pump rom and an attached fuel compound which held coke/coal bunkers. These may have been replaced lated with oil tanks.

Provided dining facilities for sergeants.
Section remaining, reused as cattle byres.

RAf Aldergrove
The main workshop building was an attempt to centralise workshop requirements in a single structure. Two main workshops are connected by two annexes. The workshops were intended to provide maintenance services for three squadrons. One wind contained an airframe repair shop and the other contained an engine repair shop and small engine store. The separating annexes contained smaller workshops for acetylene welder, blacksmiths, a machine shop, fabric workers shop, stores and an office.
The structure was built to a much more robust expansion period design (drawing no. 2048/34)
Site is intact and in good condition, still in use by MoD.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012) T. G. Doherty, Ours to hold: RAF Aldergrove at war 1939-1945 (2008) Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/ WW2NI website at www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

An antenna used to transmit the radio beacon.
The steel antenna has been removed leaving only the concrete plinth and traces of steel supports.
Joe O'Loughlin, Catalinas and Sunderlands on Lough Erne, Ireland in World War 2 (2013) Breege McCusker, Castle Archdale and Fermanagh in World War II (1993)

The Nissen hut was invented in 1915 by Canadian Col. P. N. Nissen. Prefabricated and designed to be erected quickly, in WW2 the Nissen hut became one of the standard forms of temporary building
Nissen type structure relating to the operation of the nearby searchlight position
Site appears in relatively good condition. It has been repurposed as a store for golf course maintenance.

Used to store tools used at sewage treatment site.
The structure retains the original window frames and compressed asbestos cement (AC) roof.

A four bay structure of unknown function, built post war and now demolished,

These shallow tanks would have contained filters beds of sand and gravel which would have drained water away from solid sewage sludge. Once suitable de-watered the waste would destroyed on site
The site of the 4 brick tanks is heavily overgrown as the site is no longer used but it remains in relatively good condition.

The estate at Tynan was requisitioned during WW2 and was used to station US and Belgian troops. The 3rd Batt., 133rd Inf Regt (34th US Inf Division) were stationed there in 1942. The division left to take part in the invasion of North Africa during operation Torch in November 1942.
The 2nd Batt, 23rd Inf Regt (2nd US Inf Division) was stationed here from October 1942-April 1944.
There are a few upstanding structures such as Nissen and Quonset huts, two water tanks and some brick structures at Chapel Hill, but most of the remains are concrete hut bases and trackways.

The battle headquarters (BHQ) was, to all intents and purposes, an underground office used by the control and direct the airfield defences. Most were of a standard design with an above-ground concrete observation post with a narrow ground-level vision slit. Below ground, it contained an office, telephone room (known as a Private Branch Exchange or PBX), and a room for messengers and runners. This BHQ, while recorded as such, bears no similarity to others of the type. The structure is armed machineguns, which in itself is aberrant as BHQ’s tended not to be armed as outgoing fire would attract unwanted attention and return fire from an enemy force on the stations command element, not something the defending commanders would have wanted. Furthermore, there appears to be a raised cupola in the centre of the position; not something that would be expected at a BHQ.
The structure (or series of structures) is overgrown and mostly covered in soil. The concrete communication trenches are filled in with earth and concrete rubble making discerning the overall outline and morphology of the structure difficult.

The shelter was used to house operators of the electrical lighting system and flarepath. On entering the room to the right housed the generators used to power the lighting, the room to the left, which had an emergency escape hatch in the roof, housed the control room.
The brick and concrete shelter had earth mounded over it but this has largely slumped away.
A significant proportion of the shelter remains though it has been amended post war with part of the control room wall removed and extended to be reused as a domestic store.

Built to the west of the Shorts-Harland aircraft assembly sheds, the purpose of this structure is not clear.
The small brick compound appears relatively intact.

Site of RAF & WRAF recreation/dining rooms and WRAF barracks.

The runway layout is the traditional three runways set at angles to each other. The main runway was in line with the prevailing wind while the other two were set at sixty degrees where the topography permitted.
This 100 m section of runway also has a broad turning circle.It is overgrown with moss but in good condition where it survives but is bisected by the Long Rig Road.

Only the brick legs and concrete floor remain. This has been converted into a hut/shed by enclosing the area under the platform with breeze blocks and a small window added.
Subterranea Britannica report at www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/banbridge-roc-post/
www.roc-heritage.co.uk/orlit-posts.html

Barrage balloon were used as a for of air defence. They were large balloons filled with hydrogen under which were hung steel cables into which low-flying aircraft could collide. When raised they forced enemy aircraft to fly at higher altitudes, making them more vulnerable to attack by friendly fighters and anti-aircraft guns. Equipment normally consisted of lorries and concrete tethering blocks to secure the balloon.
Local informant

In a change from the design of east coast CH sites, west coast sites separated the substations from the transmitter blocs. They were constructed of reinforced concrete with earthwork revetments. The substation allowed power to be switched from the mains to that generated from the standby set house. The substation has three entrances providing access to two transformer rooms and a room housing switchgear.
During a visit in 2017, it was discovered that the earthworks had been removed from the site and that a planning application had been submitted for construction of a dwelling on the site. The site was secured and it was not possible to get direct access, but it was clear that the substation is being used to store building materials for the construction of a nearby house. Work has continued and there has been some damage to brickwork at the southern entrance.

Aberdelghy House
An army camp was constructed here during WW2 to house troops or provide storage. The 66th Anti-tank Regt, Royal Artillery, was based here for six months.
An air raid shelter is the only upstanding remains.

Building first indicated on the 1904 Ordnance Survey and forms part of the expansion of the base eastwards following the purchase of land in this area in 1891. Building partly built on the former north east bastion of the original star fort boundary. It is of a standard barrack type repeated elsewhere on the site (buildings 80/81 (HB01/09/002M) & and 104). It remains in use for its original function. Its original plan of a central circulation space flanked by two dormitories has been adapted with the insertion of individual bedrooms in the dormitory spaces.
HB file for HB01/09/002 O

Donard Park army camp
Donard Park was used to house elements of the 5th (U.S.) Infantry Division, 11th infantry regiment from October 1943-July 1944. Approx. 1,110 troops were stationed at the site which included the 11th Regiment's 1st battalion, a service company, a medical unit and a cannon (artillery) company.
The site was composed of largely temporary Nissen huts, only a small number of hut bases remain.
Only five hut bases could be located extant during survey.

Brick structure remains largely intact with some fittings remaining in situ. Some panels of asbestos sheeting missing from the roof.

The target railway was used to guide target panels on wheeled dollies to simulate a moving tank-sized target for gunners practicing on the range. It was approximately 270 metres long and powered using cables powered by and engine in the winch room (DHR 0238:005)
The rails are no longer extant but the cutting dug to accommodate the track is clearly visible along its length.

Structure Provided accommodation and washing/showering facilities for women of the WAAF (Women's Auxiliary Air Force) posted to the Greystone radar station. It was later used post-war to rehouse civilians displaced from Belfast.
The structure is in relatively good condition though it is now 3 separate structures. It retains the original asbestos roof though the windows have been sealed or replaced with modern UPVC windows.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)

Known as the admiralty wharf, it was built for the Royal Navy in 1941. Almost 770 metres long, it was connected to the shore by two piers and had a narrow gauge railway running along its length. It was used to load and unload escort vessels in the Battle of the Atlantic.
It is most famous for being the site where dozens of German U-boats were berthed after surrendering in 1945.
The wharf has decayed over the years and now largely consistents of uprights projecting out of the water, many other piles remain entirely submerged.

Earthwork butt cut into the hillside to act as bullet catch for the small arms range, It has recently been upgraded into a modern facility for the local target shooting club.
Only trace of regrading cut into hillside as the new butt has largely re-landscaped the site.

This concrete dispersal survives in good condition. A cattle shed has been constructed on the access track.

The site was equipped to carry out repairs on a wide range of station equipment.
The structure remains in good condition. It retains the original roof though the windows have been replaced with modern UPVC.It has been repurposed as a commercial showroom.

The use of gas was outlawed by the Geneva Gas Protocol of 1925, but not its production or development. As agreements could be cast aside in the event of hostilities, measures were taken to protect against the use of gas. Specialised structures were built to provide first aid and decontamination facilities for gas casualties. Though gas masks can protect from some gas agents, others such as mustard gas are blistering and can be absorbed through the skin, requiring the removal of contaminated clothing and thorough washing/bleaching of casualties.The building would have been divided into areas for undressing and removal of contaminated clothing, cleaning and bleaching areas for decontaminating affected personnel, and a dressing area where fresh clothing would be issued. This site was for the use of male personnel.
Brick structure of an interwar design, the site is in good condition. Structure still in use by MoD (though not for its original purpose).

Portaferry ROC post

At the start of WW2, the Royal Navy (RN) was denied use of its former anchorage at Lough Swilly. The RN decided to use Derry and the River Foyle to base a flotilla of escort craft and establish repair and refuelling facilities. As more ships were stationed at Derry expanded facilities were required. Therefore, construction of new facilities was started at Lisahally, the most noticeable of which was the 770-metre Admiralty wharf. Workshops, canteens and a submarine base were also established at Lisahally.The most significant expansion of the site came when the US Navy decided to establish a naval operating base around Derry (Base 1 Europe), with port facilities just downriver. Work was started by US technicians in the summer of 1941. The majority of construction was completed by August 1942. Base 1 Europe was commissioned on 5 February 1942. The key features of the base were the storage area consisting of steel storage sheds and utility buildings, the deep-water wharf, a large hutted camp with dozens of Quonset huts, and a fuel storage tank ‘farm’, capable of holding almost 300,000 barrels of diesel, petrol and ship’s fuel oil. The USN operating base remained the most extensive USN base in the European theatre until it was run down in the later part of 1944.The RN remained at Lisahally into the post-war years under the name HMS Ferret, then HMS Sea Eagle. The RN closed the site in 1970.
The site had dozens of steel storage huts, workshops, two large wharves, a large military camp of dozens of Quonset huts, magazines and support facilities. Much of this has been removed post-war as the Port of DFerry has expanded, and industrial redevelopment has cleared away many of the WW2 era structures. Many features from the original DHP are now unlocated, and many features have been cleared.
Storge hut bases remain in the overgrown scrubland, which may obscure many remaining features. However, at the time of the survey, the land was secured by fencing, and the land was heavily overgrown. The most notable features are the two wharves and the large post-war fuel storage tank.

St. Angelo was opened in April 1941 as 18 Satellite Landing Ground, though had tarmac runways due to poor drainage in the area. It became a fighter station in August of that year but was also used as a station HQ for nearby 131 Operational Training Unit at Killadeas. The site was used for glider exercises in 1942. Responsibility of the site was transferred from RAFNI to Coastal Command 17 Group in August 1943. The airfield became home to a flying instructors school in May 1944, training ex-operational pilots how to be instructors at operational training units. The airfield was transferred to Maintenance Command in August 1945 which was closed in 1947.
The airfield was reopened by Fermanagh District Council in the mid-1960s, using the main north-south runway. A British Army helicopter base was established on the easter side of the airfield from 1976-96. This has been removed and replaced with a lumber yard.
The airfield runway and perimeter tracks remain largely intact on the western side of the Killadeas Road. The site continues as a small regional airport with a new terminal building and control tower. The original control tower was demolished in 2002 and many of the defences were slighted by the landowner in 2004, though subsurface remains may survive.

Sometimes referred to as a gun pit, the position was armed with a 3.7 inch heavy anti-aircraft gun. It was mounted on a central steel holdfast sunk into the concrete floor. The surrounding walls incorporated 4 ammunition recesses. Inside, ready-use ammunition was stored on wooden racks. The walls were reinforced with sloping earthwork revetments.
The walls have collapsed and are now covered with grass, the steel gun holdfast remains at the centre of the position.

Constructed as a latrine it was used as a store instead.
Site remains in relatively intact condition, with original roof and window frames. Used as an animal shelter

Sire entirely obscured by spoil but nothing suggests it has been removed, likely remains in relatively good condition.

This site was used to house troops during WW". The 148 Independent Brigade Group of the Royal Regiment of Wales were based at Loughanmore Camp, Dunadry from in 1941. The 43rd Light Infantry based here in 1943.
The only visible remains was this brick structure repurposed as a barn. Its function was not known.
Site was upstanding until it was demolished in 2019.

Structure was constructed as a store for camp quartermaster's store holding equipment and goods needed for the maintenance and supply of the units stationed at the camp. The eastern end housed the pioneers store holding tools and stores required by army pioneers/engineers.
Site remains intact and in good condition. Roof and windows hare modern replacements but structure repurposed and still in use by MoD.

The runway is 1,200 metres long. It has been overgrown in sections on the northern and southern end, and sections removed from the edges and restored to pasture. The length north of the intersection at the centre of the airfield is largely intact though obscured with overgrowth of grass and moss.

Much of the original ‘snowflake’ pattern of this has been removed and only two of the original nine finger parks remain.

St Luke's Hospital
Armagh hospital was extended during WW2. It was designated as a casualty receiving station as part of an emergency hospital scheme in 1939. Five large nissen hut wards are visible on post-war images. They remained in situ until c. 2001, but were removed by 2010.

The concrete perimeter track is surfaced in bitumen. IApprox 430 metres remains in relatively good condition.

The concrete hard-standing is in good condition, though it is obscured as it was incorporated into a larger aircraft parking apron (DHR 32:228) post war.

Constructed of brick, this is an Orlit A with remains of 2 distinct rooms, the smaller was a shelter/store and the larger was open topped and held the raised aircraft plotting table.
The site is relatively intact, though part of the southern wall has collapsed and the roof of the shelter/store is missing.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/pomeroy-roc-post/

Providing dining facilities for army defence troops stationed at radar station. Also houseed the NAAFI.

The camp contained the wards, associated air raid shelters, hospital facilities, laboratories, stores and some officers' quarters.
The huts have been removed, but most, if not all, concrete bases remain in situ. Some sub-surface air raid shelters may also remain.
ohn Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000)

Camp constructed during WW2 to house military personnel. Demolished post -war.

Typically used by the Royal Navy air station, typically used as an electrical repair shop equipped with specialist rigs and tools. Uncertain if added during WW2 or after.
Appear in good condition. Site sealed by fencing.
Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Earl Hilton, 1995)

Site for loading air freight out of the base. Was site of a Robbins Hangar.

Magilligan camp
Site housed camp guard detail which controlled access on and off the camp. It also had a detention room where prisoners could be held for short periods. It also had a small armoury which held small arms and small arms ammunition.
Site remains intact and in good condition, it has a replacement roof and modern windows. It has been repurposed and remains in use by MoD.

Structure relating to operation of firing range. likely a nissen hut.

This concrete store was used to store bomb fuses, detonators, fuse pistols and exploders. Normally divided into 2 compartments with smaller storing detonators, with fuses, fuse pistols and exploders stored in the other, usually L-shaped room. Normally protected by earthwork berm and blast wall.
The structure remain intact though heavily overgrown. The earthwork traverses have been removed but the brick revetments are still in-situ.

Structure built to facilitate operation at the site.
Uncertain if upstanding feature or surface hardstanding. Concrete located using probing of sod layer.

This site operated as a photographic laboratory. It had rooms for washing, drying, printing, developing, chemical mixing, a darkroom, paper and film store and a workshop. The building also accommodated an open plan projection and lecture hall.
Site was extant during original DHP, demolished circa 2005-7

Range butt which acted as backstop/bullet catch on rounds fired downrange.
Slight rise visible, ground likely contaminated with spent rounds

The Link trainer (named after its inventor Edwin Link) provided a cheaper and safer alternative to training pilots in instrument flying than flying than flying an actual aircraft. The trainer consider of a circular wooden cubicle, painted with a landscape as would be seen from 2000 feet. At the centre was a mock-up fuselage with a cockpit equipped with basic instruments and flight controls. Movements of the plane were simulated by powerful bellows under the 'aircraft'. Night flying could be simulated by putting a blacked-out hood over the cockpit. Connections led from the trainer to an instructors desk where a trolley called a 'tracking crab' recorded the time and rate of movement of the fuselage. The instructors desk had duplicate flying controls which enabled them to assess the trainees pilots flying ability. Blocks could accommodate a number of students at the same time. At Mullaghmore the Link trainer had 2 cubicles
The full plan of the structure remain but the roos missing along with the upper levels of brickwork and eastern wall.

The Ministry of Aircraft Production funded the design and construction of a series of prefabricated hangars for maintenance of aircraft to supplement existing hangars. The Type B1 hangar was an aircraft repair hangar normally found on operational bomber bases. They were designed to allow bombers to be repaired on site rather than transported by road to repair centres. Designed by T. Bedford Consulting Engineers, they were constructed from stanchions spaced at 15 foot 2 inch centres supporting roof trusses. Normally clad in black corrugated iron. The B1 had a span of 120 feet, length 227 feet and a clear door height of 27 feet. This example has brick annexes running along both sidewalls.
The hangar is in good condition, though has been re-clad with modern sheeting. This may have been as a result of a fire at the site during the 1980s, however the frame, annexes and doors appear to be the original wartime structure. The hangar has been repurposed to industrial use by owners.

This structure does not appear on the 1943 plan of the airfield. However, its associate with the E & M plinth suggests it may have housed a transformer or electrical switching equipment.
The structure is in relatively good condition

This is a 260 metre section of runway. It has a few small dumps of soil but is largely clear with the concrete surface in good condition.

Concrete trackway providing access to hut on dispersed site.
64 m of concrete trackway running along the end of the field. Obscured by overgrowth of grass.

Carryduff HAA battery
This battery was different in that it had six gun emplacements rather than the usual four
DHP reportImage clipped from Carryduff Historical Society Facebook Page (21/05/2021) also https://www.ww2ni.com/countydownpart5.htm,John Blake, Northern Ireland in the Second World War (2nd ed., Belfast, 2000) Colin Dobinson, AA Command: Britain’s Anti-aircraft defences of the Second World War (London, 2001) N. I. Redfern, Twentieth century fortifications in the United Kingdom, volume III: Site gazeteers: Northern Ireland (Council for British Archaeology, York, 1998)

The shed remains in good condition and trains its original roof. It is now used as a cattle shelter.

Gilnahirk radio intercept station
Though Gilnahirk was used to intercept transmissions it was also required to locate the direction of those transmissions. To achieve this the station was equipped with a Marconi Adcock Direction Finding (D/F) installation. The direction was used in concert with other D/F stations to triangulate the location of enemy transmissions.
The site consisted of four 10 metre tall antennae connected to an underground cabin containing the direction finding equipment. The cabin was installed in an underground steel tank to shield it from the interference of other radio signals. The tank was buried in the ground then covered over with earth. Access was gained via a steel hatch in the roof and metal steps. The room itself was ten foot tall and 12 foot across.
No visible remains but George Busby was informed by the landowner that site had not been excavated, just covered over. Exact location was noted by Busby on p. 23 of his book on the station.
George Busby, The spies at Gilnahirk (Donaghadee, 2017), p. 90

The main house at Castlewellan was used to accommodate officers during WW2. It was returned to civilian use post0war. Some signage remains inside.

The Argory
The Argory was requisitioned to accommodate troops by the War Office during WW2. US troops were stationed her, initially soldiers of the 10th Inf. Regt, 5th Inf. Division, after departing to take part in Operation Torch in North Africa the billets were occupied by elements of the 654th Tank Destroyer Batt. in October 1943.
The store was formerly the coach house before being repurposed during its wartime occupation. Contemporary graffiti and signage remain including the unit's emblem, a panther eating a tank. It is now disused though had been a gift shop.
Site is intact, repurposed as a gift shop though contemporary graffiti and signage remains on the walls.

This 93 m of track is in good condition, though grass growing from expansion joints.

Eight structures erected to facilitate operations at the camp.

These eight shallow tanks would have contained filters beds of sand and gravel which would have drained water away from solid sewage sludge. Once suitable de-watered the waste would destroyed on site.
The concrete tanks are overgrown but intact.

This 520 metre section of perimeter track has been resurface and is now part of the access road into the DuPont plant. It appears modern surface has been laid directly onto the concrete track.

The site was used to illuminate and mark nearby practice bombing ranges on Lough Neagh. The structure housed a generator which powered an 18-inch Halls Light mounted on a tripod on the roof, and possibly other lights to either side of the building. They could also be used to illuminate towed targets for night firing and coastal craft.
The structure remains in relatively good condtion with its original window frames and apetures on the roof for mounting the searchlight tripod.
Information found at
The Second World War in Northern Ireland at www.ww2ni.com/langford-lodge-a-a-f-597

Acton House
Main houses requisitioned during WW2 to accommodate officers.
House returned to civilian use post war.

Hillsborough ROC post
This is a master post denoted by the metal dome on the ventilation shaft.
Site is in good condition, the hatch is sealed.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/hillsborough-roc-post/

Site is intact but area between the two parks has been infilled with concrete post war.

Maydown airfield
Site provided for domestic, entertainment and recreational needs of the personnel stationed at the airfield, with gymnasium, NAAFI, mess halls, grocery and barbers, formerly 24 structures on site.
Standby set house

Concrete steps and trackway provided pedestrian access around site.
Some remains of track but obscured by leaf litter.

Narrow trackway likely to provide vehicular access, constructed post-war
Extant in 2017, 250 metres of trackway has been removed for land reclamation

The mess was completed in 1899, the officers mess provided dining, recreation and accommodation facilities for commissioned officers.

Aircraft were refuelled using mobile tankers, which were refilled from the bulk storage sites. An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. Therefore, Bishops Court had a single 72,000 gallon bulk storage installation for aviation fuel. It contained six steel tanks, 30 feet by 9 feet buried in a concrete cavity. Pumps would have serviced the fuel tankers which parked on the circular hardstanding.
No trace of the tanks or pump house survive, only the circular hardstanding remains.

This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters. This was the XXX yard firing point, for target practice with short range weapons like pistols.

Structure relation to the operating of the firing range.

Structure errected to facilitate operations on site, likely a nissen hut.

Concrete and brick surface shelter The shelter was designed to protect from shell splinters and near-misses during an air attack with entrances protected b y integral blast walls.
Site appears intact. Full examination not possible as owner refused permission to access or photograph site.

Camp constructed during WW2. Its precise function remains unclear but was likely used to billet troops or store materials. Composed of approx. 25 nissen type huts.

Site was a store for training equipment
Structure is intact, it is used for prison storage.

RAF Long Kesh
Approx. 360 metres of runway cam be discerned on aerial photographs of the site.

The officers mess provided dining facilities for officers. Drawing no 642/32, built to a much higher quality of design than wartime buildings, the structure also accommodated the entertainment and relaxation needs of the officers. The wings to either side of the main hall provided quarters for 24 officers.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is visible on contemporary aerial photographs and appears as a series of defence positions, possibly 3 or 4.
No surface remains visible but archaeological traces likely remain.

This building provided bathing and showering facilities.
Only concrete base remains and that is overgrown.

Tanks used to settle residual solids in effluent. Final effluent may then be polished through sand filters prior to discharge.
Heavily overgrown, traces of concrete and brick structure evident.

This site housed electrical switch-gear and transformers to regulate electrical supply.
The switch gear is long gone, but the structure remains in good condition, including its blast wall and traces of transformer plinths.

ROC 31 Group HQ
The structure was originally built as the Lisburn Anti-Aircraft Operations Room as part of the Belfast Gun Defended Area. However, with the advent of the jet-age, AA gun defence was rendered obsolete.. The site was mothballed until 1963 when it became the 31 9Belfast) Group Royal Observer Corps Control.
The group HQ would have received reports from the ROC monitoring posts across N. Ireland in the event of a nuclear strike.
The ROC HQ was closed in 1992.
The structure is a two-storey construction of thick reinforced concrete walls. There is a central well with a central plotting room surrounded by offices.
It is now used as a store.
The structure, while internally modified, is largely intact.

Known as a technical latrine, it was used by ground crew who were working in the store, workshops or on aircraft. Often divided into sections of officers and other ranks.
Constructed of brick rendered in cement. It has a compressed asbestos cement sheeting room with a suspended ceiling. Some internal divisions and window frames remain and the floor is strewn with rubble.

This 44m diameter dispersal remains in good condition.

Small nissen type structure secured with two steel doors. Likely a pyrotechnics or small arms ammunition store.

Brick structure built to facilitate operations at the station.

Heavily overgrown, only the concrete base remains

Powerhouses were called on to provide power for longer periods of operations and able to cope with essential and non-essential power loads. This called for a greater number of generators and generating capacity, and the corresponding increased fuel storage.
This site is relatively intact and is used to store agricultural machinery.

Likely continuation of huts sites. continuation of cut into slope of hiss suggesting hut construction continued along the hedge line.

Structure provided showering and bathing facilities to personnel.
Structure is overgrown but largely intact. Large section of asbestos roof has fallen away.

Site used to house bathing facilities for WRNS
Structure remains in relatively good condition with original windows and roof.

Provided cooking and dining facilities for airmen. Sections on southern part of halls were accommodation blocks post war.
Three wings in good condition but dilapidated. Windows on wall facing road sealed with modern concrete blocks. Modern steel doors on northern ends of structure.

High level steel water tower holding possibly 80,000 gallons. Filled by a nearby pump house, it provided water by gravity feed to the camp.

Duncreggan Camp
A camp was constructed here during WW2 to house troops. It had at least 20 nissen huts. The site remains in use as a Territorial Army centre throughout the Cold War and into the Troubles.

This station was constructed to transmit medium wave radio broadcasts as an aid to aircraft navigation. The radio acted as a beacon allowing aircraft to locate their home stations.
The operations block remains mostly intact (though with some collapse) and an air raid shelter remains just to the south of this.

These are 2 fingerpark, formerly part of a 9 park dispersal. Recently one of the parks was tarmaced but the owner noted the concrete remains intact beneath.

The house, outbuildings and grounds of Mount Stewart wee used as a military convalescence hospital and army camp during WW1 and WW2. Few traces remain saving some concrete bases, likely of nissen huts, a brick ended Quonset hut and a shelter trench.

A small brick structure, original built as a latrine, while site was operational it was repurposed as a store.

This concrete tank is filled with water providing an emergency supply for firefighting.
The site remains intact and in good condition.

The main house was requisitioned and used as a barracks during WW2.
The site is in good condition and run by the National Trust.

A 16 foot span Nissen hut, 36 feet long providing officer's accommodation
Only concrete base remains, incorporated into floor of agricultural shed

Only concrete hard-standing remains, modern workshop/storage shed built on site.

Provided washing, showering and toilet facilities for sergeants and airmen.
In relatively good condition, repurposed as a cattle byre. Owner refused permission to access and take photographic record.

During the inter-war period, there was no provision or need for aircraft dispersal at UK airfield. However, in February 1939 orders were issued for the dispersal of aircraft within the perimeter. Initially, short trackways were used but they were upgraded with ‘Frying Pan’ dispersals sited along the perimeter track. The dispersal was normally 125-150 feet wide, but drawbacks were soon revealed. One aircraft leaving its dispersal would clog up the access track, causing congestion as aircraft numbers increased during the war. Furthermore, as aircraft taxied off the pan they needed to perform a tight 180 degrees turn for which aircraft undercarriages and tyres were not designed.
The 45m diameter concrete hard standing is in good condition. It is overgrown with sumps of spoil on site.

Structure erected to accommodate crew of HAA battery.

A small square brick compound used house transformers to step down medium to low voltage currant, often from 3.3 kV to 400 V.
Only concrete base remains, heavily overgrown

On day of fieldwork site was obscured by slurry and soil, but later aerial photos suggest the four-park dispersal is intact. Is part of a larger 'snowflake' with 25 dispersals.

Concrete trackway providing access around site.
Approx. 550 metres of trackway remains intact

The structure was used to store ammunition and/or explosive munitions for used primarily by the Royal Navy. The structure is set into a cut in the hillside and protected by heavy concrete traverses at the entrance of the cut..
Demolished c. 2009-10 for land reclamation. Returned to agricultural use.

Rest hut and lounge for female personnel staffed by YWCA. This was formerly a Laing hut. Originally designed in 1940, the hut consisted of standard prefabricated lightweight timber wall sections bolted together. Externally the wooden frame and plasterboard was covered in felt sheeting to make the structure weatherproof. Inside, the walls were lined with plasterboard. The roof was made of corrugated asbestos sheeting supported by wooden trusses.

Store used to secure foodstuffs.

This 135 m of track appears in good condition. It provides access to a complex of poultry houses and has severs agricultural gates constructed on it.

Concrete structure erected to facilitate operations at the site
Overgrown on day of survey and cattle preventedf closer examination, structure may remain in situ.

Site of officers quarters and mess facilities.
No visible traces, however, there is potential for subsurface features/remains.

This structure was used to store glim lamps (portable electric runway lights), gooseneck flares and illuminated landing tees. Originally the building had three bays, each to accommodate an illuminated landing tee, then the glim lamp trolley then the flare trolley, but these have been sealed and rendered post-war. A small annex has been added to the eastern sidewall.
Site appears intact on 2020 aerial photos.

Provided access to dispersed living site 5.
Approximately 139 metres of the trackway remains in good condition.

The radar station set house was constructed to ensure the station could continue to operate if the mains power supply failed. The centre of the structure was a large generating hall housing a single diesel generator. It was fuelled by an elevated day tank which was refilled from a large diesel storage tank from an adjoining room. The entire structure would have been protected with an earth revetment this has been removed
The structure remains largely intact though sections of the concrete walls have been removed to allow access for agricultural machinery . The protective earth embankments have been removed as has the concrete revetment from the pedestrian access.

Many of the surviving pillboxes in N. Ireland were built to protect airfields. In the early stages of the war and especially after the blitzkrieg advance of the Germans, where airfields were specifically targeted, base commanders were instructed to prepare their airfield for defence. These were primarily perimeter fortifications, made up of slit trenches, fieldworks and concrete pillboxes around the airfield boundary defended by surplus personnel. However, the capture of British aerodromes on Crete by troops landing directly onto the airfield prompted a re-think. Consequently, perimeter defences were replaced by a network of defended localities (DL). These were clusters of concrete bunkers and firing positions manned by troops specifically trained for ground combat. Rather than just looking outwards, the new policy for airfield defence required the DLs to have a 360 degrees arc of fire. This site is visible on contemporary aerial photographs and appears as a series of four defence positions.
No visible remains but likely to leave archaeological remains.

In good condition with original windows.

A complex of dog kennels used to house dog security element for radar station.
The concrete retaining walls and bases remain of the kennels but associated offices and cages have been removed/demolished.

Military structure built to facilitate billeting of Belgian soldiers. Possibly chimney, heavily overgrown. The structure is at the northern end of a cut, approximately 5 metres long.
Lover level of brick structure remain as does earthwork cut.

Only the concrete floor of the emplacement remains. largely obscured by grass

Structure relating to the accommodation of anti-aircraft battery's crew

The Structure is a shallow inclined which allowed the radar equipment to be rolled up onto the square platform. This would have been surrounded by the GL mat (now removed).
Site remains in relatively good condition. Part of the ramp has collapsed, This section is overgrown, Discussions with the owner suggest that steel pickets used to secure the GL mat were recovered during ploughing, and these have been stored inside the ramp.

The 25 yard range was used to test fire machine guns and used as a small -arms range. Used for ground defence training using the service No 4 .303 Rifle, Bren Gun LMG, Sten gun and pistols.
The site appears in relatively good condition with the brick firing butts and possibly the firing stands. However access could not be secured on day of visit.

Ulster University, Coleraine
Site was designated the wartime alternate HQ for the Department for Education. It was planned to man the unit with 30 senior and mid-ranking officers of the department and (unusually) accommodation was to be provided for their families. The plan called for the section of the administration building to be shared with the Department of Finance and Personnel.
DENI staff would be responsible for emergency feeding (in conjunction with Dept. Agriculture staff) and preservation of knowledge to facilitate the revival of a post-attack education system.
Site never needed, buildings demolished c. July 2017

Belmont House
A camp was established in the grounds f Belmont house to house US military personnel. The site was redeveloped post war.
Website https://www.ww2ni.com/countylondonderrypt4.htmPRONI file AM/1/5/48PRONI file AM/1/5/37B/0081-0120

A small structure constructed at the 300-yard firing point to facilitate operations at the site, its function remains unclear.
Only the concrete base remains; it was demolished circa 2019.

BT Exchange
The site was designated as the Wartime alternative HQ for the British Telecom (in NI) in event of a nuclear exchange.

The brick shelter is in good condition though the blast wall has been removed. It is used for domestic storage.

This track was built as part of the original layout but extended eastwards to incorporate the new spectacle dispersals in 1941-3
620 metres of track remain intact though resurfaced with modern tarmac.

Metalled road running through the centre of the site providing access to the magazines.
Track runs for approximately 1,700 metres through the site providing access to magazines. In places it is in relatively good condition whereas deeping nto the glen it is entirely obscured by heavy overgrowth of vegetation.

Provided washing and bathing facilities for airmen
Only the concrete hard-standing and the brick water tower remain.

Normally no visible remains but appears as a grass mark after long periods of dry weather

Only concrete base remains with large pile of demolition rubble.

Only concrete base and loading ramp remain, chicken shed built on base.

Provided toilet facilities for personnel.
Only sections of wall remain incorporated into domestic garage/ storage unit.

RAF Maghaberry was built as a satellite station to RAF Long Kesh and became operational in 1941. T2 hangars on the northern end of the airfield were dedicated to assembling Short Stirling bombers after air raids on Belfast forced final assembly of bombers to be dispersed across a number of sites around Belfast. 231 Squadron moved to the airfield in January 1942, flying Lysanders, it was an army co-operation squadron, taking part in joint exercises. It left in November that year to be replaced by 5 Operational Training Unit (OUT) and 306 Ferry Training Unit (FTU) moved to the base in June, but only stayed 2 months. 104 OUT flew Wellingtons from Sept-Oct 1943. From October 1943 preparations were made for handing the airfield over to the US Army Air Force, officially becoming Station 239 in November 1943. It became a base for ferrying aircraft to Britain and casualty evacuation flights. The site base training squadrons for fighter aircraft such as Mustangs and Thunderbolts, but also heavy bombers and transports. Ground crew, such as mechanics were also trained on site. The site was handed back by USAAF in June 1944 and the site was placed in care and maintenance. At the start of 1945 the airfield became an Aircraft Storage Unit, with hundreds of Stirlings and Hellcats and Corsairs, stored there and eventually scrapped on site. The prison, HMP Maghaberry was built on the site in 1986. This led to the demolition of much of the technical area. More recently much pf the technical area has been covered by a solar farm.
The airfield was of the typical 3-runway layout. Each runway was 50 yards/50 m wide and 1,005, 978, and 1,371 metres yards long with a series of 17 Frying Pan and 14 spectacle dispersals around its perimeter. The technical area was on the south-est side of the airfield with 13 dispersed sites scattered around Maghaberry village. It had 2 T2 hangars for flight operations and 2 T2 on the north end of the field dedicated to final assembly of Short Stirling bombers.
Though much of the airfield has been redeveloped with the construction of the prison, significant sections of runway and perimeter track remain, though obscured by the panels of the solar farm. The majority of the technical site was demolished for security reasons but 2 structures remain, though these are now surrounded by the solar farm. One of the T2 hangers on the north end of the field retains its original steel sheeting and remarkably its gantry crane which is marked 1941.
Most of site is secured by prison security fencing and solar farm fencing.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996)Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983)Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards,

Seskinore House
The grounds of Seskinore were requisitioned by the War Office during WW2 to station a military facility during WW2. The site was used by the US army as Quartermaster Depot Q-111 from November 1943-August 1944, and by the 552nd Railhead Company.
Large concrete hardstanding area likely site of a series of Iris storage huts.

Shallow trench, approximately 20 metres long

This was a raised area of compacted earth, often with a layer of gravel on which lanes/bays were pegged out for shooters. This was the XXX yard firing point

Approximately 250 metres of concrete perimeter track remains in good condition, though obscured in parts with dumps of soil.

The gallery is a trench protected by an earthwork mantlet . A system of raiseable target frames sat behind the gallery . Frames raised target sheets into line of fire, then lowered where marker then noted hits on target to show accuracy of firing.

No visible remains, may be subsurface archaeological feature.

Structure built as part of the dispersed living site 5, function is uncertain. may have been mess hall.
Appears intact from aerial photographs. The structure has been incorporated into the larger factory facility. Could not access site on day of fieldwork.

Nissen hut constructed to facilitate operations at the armament depot.
Demolished c. 2017 for housing development.

The use of gas was outlawed by the Geneva Gas Protocol of 1925, but not its production or development. As agreements could be cast aside in the event of hostilities, measures were taken to protect against the use of gas. Specialised structured were built to provide first aid and decontamination facilities for gas casualties. Though gas masks can protect from some gas agents, others such as mustard gas are blistering and can be absorbed through the skin, requiring the removal of contaminated clothing and thorough washing/bleaching of casualties. The building was divided into undressing areas, bleaching/decontamination area and dressing area to the rear.
This site is in exceptional condition with its original door and sections of its original ventilation system. Air was drawn into the structure through a tall ‘chimney’ at the western end of the building. This was so tall to ensure that air drawn in was from above any potential poison gas cloud. The plinths for the air condition plant are still in situ, as is part of the filter unit. Two steel pressure stabilisation vents can be seen to the left of the entrance.

Only concrete base remains beneath grass

Structure built post-war to facilitate operation at depot, function remains unclear.
Wayne D. Cocroft,
Dangerous Energy: the archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture (English Heritage, 2000)

In relatively good condition, the site retained its original retaining walls, though some have been reduced in height and sections mounded with soil.

Narrow vehicle trackway providing access to range.
Approx 500 metres of concrete trackway remain though it is entirely obscured by vegetation in parts.

Only concrete base remains overgrown with vegetation.

Site of military camp, possibly associated with RAF unit at Maintenance unit. Consisted of approx. 21 structures, likely nissen huts providing accommodation for military personnel.

The site housed an electrical transformer used to regulate transmission of AC electricity.
In good condition, the structure still houses a modern electrical transformer

Sit remains largely intact though heavily overgrown. A section of the rear endwall has been removed post-war. ONe of the steel doors has fallen off its hinges.

ONly the rear steel endwall and concrete base remain.

Provided washing and showering facilities for airmen and non-commissioned officers.
This ablution block retrains the boiler chimney and water tanks, but has had large access ways cut into the exterior and internal walls to provide access for farm machinery. Some original pipework in place and original roof.

Five nissen huts were constructed in this area to house base personnel. This area is heavily overgrown but it appears many if not most of the dozens of huts constructed in this area may remains as overgrown concrete hut bases.
Site is heavily overgrown but strong potential for survival of hut bases in the undergrowth.

This is a 1,000m section of runway constructed of poured concrete with expansion joints. Most of the runway has been resurfaced with tarmac for the race course and provides the surface on which the Bog Road was constructed but the fabric of the runway survives under the later additions.

Aircraft were refuelled using mobile tankers, which were refilled from the bulk storage sites. An operational airfield was required to maintain six weeks of fuel. This site had six above-ground steel fuel tanks (12,000 gallons capacity) holding 72,000 gallons of aviation fuel. around which ran an elliptical roadway and one or two fuel pump houses. Pumps would have serviced the fuel tankers which parked on the circular hard-standing.

An infantry position cut to protect troops from incoming direct and indirect fire. Chevron shaped trench sited to the rear of the main trench lower lower on slope. Likely a machinegun position.
Ephemeral traces of trench still visible, approx. 16 metres long.

Group of 4 finger parks, not visible but landowner noted they were covered by soil post war, leaving the concrete dispersals intact beneath the grass.

Pump house fitted with pumps and filters to supply fresh water to airfield
The pump house is relatively intact with original window frames and concrete lints for equipment. A section of the asbestos cement roof has collapsed allowing growth of vegitation.

A workshop for general maintenance of equipment with storage areas and workbenches
Approximately half the structure was demolished, a new roof added and rendered to convert it into a domestic garage/store.

Downpatrick Royal Observer Corps Monitoring Post
The site remains in relatively good condition with the main access hatch and the bomb power indicator baffle plate visible. The hatch has been fitted with a unique steel cover to give additional security to the steel access hatch as there was problems securing the site during its operational period. The hatch has been welded closed. After the site was closed the interior may have been gutted by fire. The concrete ventilation shaft has been demolished/removed.
Info on Portadown ROC post at www.nibunker.co.uk

The main store was a facility for the storage of non-technical items such as clothing and technical equipment such as aircraft components. All incoming material was unloaded into a receiving bay where it was logged and stored away to be issued when needed.
Site remains in good condition. It retain the original roof though modifications have been made to facilitate light industry, with venting added and extension/amendments made to parts of the roof. Modern steel security doors are fitted and windows sealed with steel sheeting.

The butt is an earthwork and sand traverse/bank used as a bullet catch to stop rounds fired downrange after hitting (or missing) their targets.
Map evidence suggest there are some upstanding remains.

No access so assessment from recent aerial photos. Site appears to retain central traverse and some part of the rear bank. Repurposed as wood storage yard.

This building, normally a three bay-garage design, held equipment used to aid night-flying operations such as gooseneck flares, beacons and floodlights. Gooseneck flares were used to mark out flare paths during night landings.

Only concrete base remains under the grass.

Unable to get clarification on precise function but the name suggests this may have been used to instruct aircrew on the use and airborne radar sets.

The 125 foot/28m concrete dispersal remains in good condition, though approx 70% of surfaced grassed over, small track cleared to permit access to adjoining fields.

Flight crews coming from their respective Fight Training Schools were qualified to fly and operate aircraft, they were no ready for operational units until they became familiar with the types of aircraft with which their operational squadron was equipped. Operational Training Units (Combat Crew Replacement Centres for the USAAF) were designed to train crews on the aircraft they would fly on operations. An instructional site housed a suite of synthetic trainer which could simulate flight operations on the ground in safety and under the supervision of instructors. The AML bombing teacher projected a moving map on which the bombardier used a mock bomb-sight to hit a target and passed instructions to the pilot, who could alter the course of the ‘flight’ over the map according to instructions from the bombardier, who calculated wind and speed as on a real mission. Timing after bomb release was assessed by instructors to determine the accuracy of the simulated bomb run. This example is a much rarer double bombing teacher which a two training suites.
This site is in remarkable condition. The site was lock on day of fieldwork but the interior is intact with original signage in situ.

Crown Buildings
The site was designated a wartime alternative HQ for the Department for Health and Social Security in the event of a nuclear exchange.

Brownlow House
The house was used to station HQ elements for the 16th Batt. Royal Irish Regiment and 10th Batt. Royal Irish Fusiliers.
The influx of US troops into N. Ireland during WW2 saw the house used as the HQ for the 15th US army Corps during December 1942. Officer were quartered in the house while enlisted troops were billeted in nissen huts in the surrounding grounds and park.
The building was gutted by fire in 1996 but has been restored and includes a WW2 museum in the basement. Graffiti from troops stationed at the site can be found on the walls of the basement.

This contained a battery charging room, oil paint store, office and towed target/general engineering. The targets would be towed by other aircraft on a long line for gunners during live firing practice.
Structure remains in good condition. It retains the original roof and windows.

Air Raid Precautions (ARP) was established at the end of the 1930s as the vulnerability of civilian s to air attack became apparent. The ARP was a civilian organisation tasked with mitigating the effects of air attack on the civilian population. They were responsible for distribution of gas masks, enforcing blackouts, reporting damage and rescuing people from wrecked buildings.
The site was used as a report office by the ARP and was used to coordinate information on bombing raids and the deployment of teams for emergency rescue work.
The site is intact and in good condition, it has ben repurposed as a clubhouse for a cycling club.
Peter Doyle, ARP and Civil Defence in the Second World War (Oxford, 2011).
https://wartimeni.com/location/co-down/bangor/ward-park/

The house and grounds of Redburn Park were requisitioned by the War Office during WW2 and used to accommodate units of the Women's Royal Air Force. The site became derelict post-war and the main house was demolished. This site may have been part of that or a separate camp in the grounds of Ardtullagh House. The area is now a country park.

Red brick structure erected to accommodate medical officers. Original wing on eastern end later extended.

Castledawson ROC post
The monitoring posts were 5.8 by 2.6 by 2.3 meters, of reinforced concrete buried under approximately a metres of earth with access via 4.5 m deep shaft that was secured by a steel hatch. It led to the reporting room/living quarters which were serviced by a rudimentary chemical toilet. A concrete drainage sump sat at the bottom of the shaft to collect any water which entered the post. This could be emptied using a hand operated pump. Fresh air was provided by a ventilation shaft. The post had a crew of three who operated the instruments. Two from inside the bunker. A fixed survey meter which monitored outside radiation levels. There was the bomb power indicator which measures the pressures produced in the blast wave of a nearby explosion. There was also the ground zero indicator. This was a type of pinhole cameras with photographic paper inside. A nearby flash of the nuclear explosion would be burned onto a spot on the paper giving height and bearing of the detonation. This had to be mounted on the outside of the post. It was the task of the no.3 observer to recover the paper for analysis. Attack warning were received via a carrier receiver unit. Landline communications linked posts in clusters, with a designated master post equipped with a VHF set to maintain communications with the Group HQ. The dome on the side of the ventilation shaft shows this was a master post. The steel mount for the antenna is also still in situ.
The site is in relatively good condition, site retains all surface features including small concrete holdfasts for securing the VHF antenna.
https://www.subbrit.org.uk/sites/castledawson-roc-post/

Described in report as a Type 26 pillbox
Reported as non-extant in original DHP report

Officers mess and ward room providing dining, kitchen and recreation facilities for officers.
In relatively good condition though some sections of the walls have been opened to allow access for agricultural machinery.

Sections of concrete hard-standing visible through animal wear on grass.
Bob Clarke, The archaeology of airfields (Stroud, 2008) Paul Francis, British military airfield architecture: from airships to the jet age (Sparkford, 1996) Graham Buchan Innes, British airfield buildings of the Second World War (Leicester, 1995) David J Smith, Action Stations 7: Military airfields of Scotland, the North-East and Northern Ireland (Cambridge, 1983) Guy Warner and Ernie Cromie, Military aviation in Northern Ireland (Newtownards, 2012) Airfield Research Group website www.airfieldresearchgroup.org.uk/ WW2NI website at https://www.ww2ni.com/countyantrimairfields.htm

Site appears intact with original roof. Owner prevented access and photographic recording of site.

This small dispersal (approximately 18 metres/60 foot) in diameter) appears to be intact though obscured by overgrowth of grass.

The site was established by the US Army Air Force during WW2. It transmitted a radio beacon for allied aircraft flying over the Atlantic and was operated as part of the Army Airway Communication System. The low frequency radio beacon guided aircraft to the bases at Lough Erne and allowed safe navigation through the Donegal Corridor-an lane of airspace over neutral Ireland allowing allied aircraft quicker and safer access to the Atlantic.
The transmitter was surrounded by an antennae field but these were removed post-war
The transmitter block remains relatively intact, as well as the access trackway .