Combined Officers Mess And Offices, Yatesbury Airfield

SU07SE COMPTON BASSETT JUGGLERS LANE Yatesbury

1385/10/10010 Combined Officers' mess and offices, Yatesbury Airfield

GV II

Combined Officers' Mess and Offices. 1936. Architect Cecil Jones. Rendered brick with steel-framed windows and flat roofs. Square plan, with offices for the chief flying instructor, time-keeper, and pilots' changing-rooms all located on the south-east aerodrome elevation, with a billiards room and a mess/ante-room for use of the instructors and officer pupils face a garden front on the southwest side. The garden front is marked by a taller projecting block to centre, with small-paned windows set in four recessed semi-circular arches with fanlights and linking impost courses. Plat band is linked to flanking ranges with projecting end blocks, with flat arches over similar windows and plain rendered surround to right-hand doorway. Airfield elevation (to south east) has plat band linking four projecting canted bay windows, arranged in pairs and flanking centres window. Flat arches over windows to north- east and north-west elevations, the latter with rendered surround to two door openings. Interior has lost much original detail, but has retained half-glazed doors set in moulded wood architraves in hallway (opening out to garden front). HISTORY: This was the architectural highlight of the civilian flying training school opened1936 and operated by the Bristol Aeroplane Company, under contract to the Air Ministry. During the 1930s expansion of the RAF, preliminary training was contracted out to private firms. The complex was praised by Flight magazine (in 1936) as 'a model school whose pattern few will equal an none better', and its crisp modern style makes it the most distinguished example associated with a purpose-built Elementary and Reserve Flight Training Station.

Listing NGR: SU0513871180