Hangar at Hooton Park Aerodrome, Bebington, Merseyside
Hooton Park Aerodrome was built in 1917 for the Royal Flying Corps. It developed as a Training Depot Station to train Canadian and American pilots for the Western Front. After closure in 1919 its training functions were moved to RAF Shotwick (Sealand), across the Dee in Clywd. In 1927 it became one of a small number of Air Ministry subsidised flying clubs.The Comper Aircraft Company was formed on the site in 1930. It served as Liverpool's municipal airport from 1930 until its replacement by Speke in 1933. 610 'County of Chester' Squadron had been formed at Hooton in February 1936. It played a key role in the Battle of France and the Battle of Britain. From early 1940 No 7 Aircraft Assembly Unit assembled 9000 aircraft, brought into Merseyside's ports from North America. The 'Civilian Repair Organisation' carried out the inspection and overhaul of aircraft, especially the Mosquito. Hooton played a vital support role in the Battle of the Atlantic by keeping the shipping lanes into Liverpool open. No 11 Radio School occupied the hangars from 1942-44. It was the only school to train Coastal Command's airborne radar operators for submarine detection. The repair hangar was demolished in 1920 but Hooton kept its original 3 paired hangars.
