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CT - you may have stumbled upon it's more recent usage!

Margie - I'm no authority on them, but find them quite interesting, along with air raid shelters etc. I think the concrete ones look a bit more substantial! Perhaps they were making use of local materials because this one is very much in local brickyard country at Mapperley Plains.

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I think this link should show you the one in the field next to the junction of Nottingham Road/Bank Hill and Mapperley Plains. It's at the very top on the left as you emerge onto Mapperley Plains. h

Hi, carrying on the theme of desperate innovations in the defence of our island’s security and when you may have thought that nothing could be less inviting than resisting the enemy whilst being encas

Hi Jane. If you're around Cambs are you aware of the reinforced main street through Cambridge. After Dunkirk we were reduced to more or less one small tank division positioned south of London. It was

There's a pillbox on Hucknall airfield, close to Blenheim Lane. Think it is still there, but might not be for much longer now that the airfield is being prepared for having houses built on it.

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Hi Rog, interesting about Thorpe Camp. I've been there and seen the Pickett Hamilton Fort, there is also an Allan Williams Turret close to the hut in the corner, apparently it came from Elstree airfield ( the AWT not the hut) in the 1990s. I was told that it had been restored to its original spec. It is the only one that I have ever come across with a hinged coffin lid.

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Yes, Hucknall airfield is in Westville, Hucknall. Access to the pillbox is from the Bulwell end - go up Blenheim Lane. There is a gated entrance that used to be used by the Merlin Flying Club. The pillbox is inside on the right.

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Hi Mick2me,
Yes its still there if you mean the one at the Cliff End Battery. I was there a couple of years back, it is a type DFW3/22 variant in that it is a 3 storey structure. The fighting compartment is in the middle and has loopholes in all six sides, there is a large hole in the floor leading down to the lower chamber which I can only assume was to house the garrison and to give the pillbox extra height, and there is a hole in the roof leading up to a walled 'terrace' which could have been as a lookout position or anti-aircraft. Sadly had the missus in tow and she wouldn't let me climb and explore the interior so it will necessitate a second 'holiday' :biggrin:
Just a couple of pics below

IOW%2013a_zpsfj4fvkww.jpg

Exterior view showing one of the loopholes mid way up the structure

IOW%2013b_zpssyxtganz.jpg

Interior view from one of the loopholes showing the trapdoor in the floor and the hole in the roof to the 'terrace'

Hopefully I have got the sizing right this time. Enjoy

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Below is a better image of the pillbox at Woodborough/Mapperley Plains. The link underneath gives information and images of the nearby underground bunker, gun emplacement and prisoner of war camp (now Podders scrapyard).

wpa95ffa41_06.png

This is the same build as the one I mentioned in Papplewick, brick built with a concrete slab for a roof.

There are dozens of them knocking about, I've seen them driving up the A1.

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There is a brick structure just inside the trees next to Stoke Bardolph locks. One of it's previous lock-keepers recently told me it was built during the last war. It may be a pillbox but I'm not sure.

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Kapitan Jan,thought you might like to see these pics (or anyone for that matter) it's the picket Hamilton fort being excavated from our old site at RAF Woodhall Lincolnshire final home of the Dambusters

picket%20hamilton%20fort%208_zpsdyquexv7

as you can see the area around the fort has been exposed and the lid lifted off

picket%20hamilton%20fort%201_zpsxpq6e51d

this one shows the garage jack that was used to raise and lower the top

picket%20hamilton%20fort%2010_zpsih3ytwh

top section removed showing the access hatch

picket%20hamilton%20fort%2013_zpsavr66ur

view from inside

Rog

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The fort held two men and ammo,if the airfield was overrun by the enemy the top section was lowered with the two men inside,no way of re supply of ammo,no way of getting the men out,all set below ground level and as you can see from the pictures it filled up with water,very uncomfortable for the poor sods inside

Rog

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Hi Rog,

Great pictures - it looks like one of the earlier ones as I can't see a compressed air cylinder which was fitted later to aid raising the inner core. Incidentally, they were designed to sit on runways and allow aircraft to taxi or run over them, only being raised to defend the airfield from imminent ground attack.

Do you have an accurate grid reference of whence it came from?

When I visited it at Thorpe Camp it was as you observed above - flooded. A common fault for which a bilge pump was provided and mounted on the inside wall of the inner core.

Jan

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I will try to find out exact position of the fort,this one was alonside the runway though to the left of the east west runway on the north side if that makes sense,it was not raised using compressed air but a garage jack system as can be seen in pic 1&2,I think I have a picture of a diagram somewhere and will post if I find it,

Rog

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Couple more for you Kapitan Jan,airfield arrestor gear at the side of the RAF Woodhall runways,similar to the gear used on board aircraft carriers to catch aircraft,these were used to catch aircraft before they overshot the runway,there are three complete sets left on site,one was removed and donated to Thorpe camp which you probably saw on your visit and I think one was donated to East Kirkby museum but not 100% sure on that one

Arrestor%20gear%20Woodhall_zps0b7mml3k.j

Arrestor%20gear%20Woodhall%201_zpsoi5yxs

the gear is all complete with accumilator bottles and cables,I have another pic somewhere with a picture of a quadrant on it with all the different types of aircraft marked on,I think I might have posted that picture on here before though but will have a look

Rog

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Rog, Happy Xmas to you, long time since we met up.

There's one of those arrestor devices at North Weald airfield which I believe is still in working order. About 20 years ago my son and I were fortunate enough to be invited to the practice day there prior to the Fighter Meet airshow. It was great, we had the VIP grandstand all to ourselves and of course as it was a non public event the aircraft were over the top of us. Two Dutch F16's arrived and after a scorching low level pass, one landed while the other circled. The next minute there was much activity around the arrestor gear which was hastily deployed. A chap wandered over from the tower and told me to get my camcorder ready as the F16 was registering a brake problem. The a/c landed as far down the runway as possible and used aerodynamic braking ie a wheelie right down the runway. Eventually his nose came down and he rolled to a gentle stop just short of the net, brilliant handling by the pilot!!

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Hi all, many thanks for your responses to my debut on this forum - didn't expect to get a response so quick or by so many. The original question was to Firbeck as it was he who posted the info on the Allan Williams Turret in Finchingfield but am willing to talk with anyone who has any info on this one or any other. I must confess that I have only visited a slack handful of pillboxes in the Notts area as most of my 'hunting' grounds have been predominantly Cambs, Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex, though I have strayed further afield.

Cheers

Jan

Hi Jane. If you're around Cambs are you aware of the reinforced main street through Cambridge. After Dunkirk we were reduced to more or less one small tank division positioned south of London. It was thought the invasion could take place on the north Norfolk coast and the plan was to move north up the A10 through Cambridge. To protect the historic buildings, a reinforced concrete raft was laid on the A10 right through Cambridge to absorb vibration from the tanks. A few years ago they were due to attempt to dig up the road outside Christ's College to put in a new sewer. I was called over to the college by the Chancellor and did a full survey of the front of the ancient building and recorded every existing crack in case the work made things worse. I drew up the whole front, printed it on linen and colour washed it, marking on all the structural faults. The building remained untouched, and as far as I know my drawing hangs in the chancellors study as a reminder.
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Happy Christmas to you as well Pete,we must have another meetup and aviation day. here's a couple more pictures of a restored Arrestor gear at Thorpe camp,it was dug up from our quarry site at RAF Woodhall and donated to the camp

Thorpe%20camp%20Tattershal_zpsm6uuekvl.j

Thorpe%20camp%20Tattershal%201_zpsunkqr4

As you can see they've made a cracking job of the restoration and Thorpe camp is well worth a visit

Apologies to Kapitan Jan for hijacking this very interesting topic

Rog

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Hi Rog, great pics.

As for hijacking - no problem I won't make you walk the plank! I am most happy that my initial post to 'Firbeck' (incidentally great to hear that you are still around - perhaps we can talk re the Allan Williams Turret at Finchingfield in due course) has created such a response. I confess to not knowing anything about Notts apart from Robin Hood and Ikea and only joined the forum because of Firbeck's post on the AWT in 2009 but am picking up lots of info on other pillboxes and defence structures from all you Nottstalgians which I hope to follow up starting tomorrow - thank you and keep posting.

Hope you all had a great Christmas.

Cheers Jan

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So where do you live Jan, how did you get involved on this Nottingham site if you have no connections with the city.
As for the Alan Williams turret in Finchingfield it remains rotting away and unloved on the 'rescuers' business estate in the village. Quite frankly the parish council should have never allowed him to remove it despite his 'promises' of restoration, although used as a dumping place for the locals garden waste, it was intact and in it's original position, I even got the lift up seats to work. Now the base is rotting away in the corner of a field and the top is placed as some sort of symbolic gesture on the site. Via the aviation museum at Sywell I tried to get him to donate it for restoration to them but he didn't want to know, wierd, eccentric man, what a pointless exercise on his behalf, what has he gained from it, nothing!! apart from a spot for his notoriously savage dog to p@ss up.

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WoodhallSpa4_zps56d55b84.jpg

WoodhallSpa3_zpsa633fb63.jpg

If you look closely at the quadrant you can make out the names of the aircraft and the operators could set the system to the correct weight by putting the pointer to the relevant aircraft Lancaster,Stirling,Halifax etc,

the other picture is of one of the other gears still on site but not under water,must have been slightly higher ground

Rog

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Bomb.jpg

This is the remains of a 500Kg German bomb that was dropped on RAF Woodhall I think 1943/44 7 were dropped on that particular night but none went off, this one was dug up during sand and gravel excavation in 2005 the bomb squad came to site and evacuated the place including some houses at Woodhall Spa because of the potential blast,I have a copy of the original paperwork from the squad detailing what type of fuse was fitted,where the bomb was made/assembled,as you can see there has been about 3 feet cut of the length to access the explosives and a small circle on the left is where the fuse was fitted,the explosives and the fuse/detonator were blown about midnight and the shockwave going up was seen by a member of the army near Grantham some 25 plus miles from Woodhall,if anyone is interested I will look for the paperwork and try to copy it and post or could send it through the post if you pm me an address

Rog

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