oxford history

Oxford Airport History

The site was first used as an aerodrome in the late 1930’s. From the mid-sixties, the airfield was best known as the home of CSE Aviation and the Oxford Air Training School (now Oxford Aviation Training), one of the world’s most successful professional pilot training establishments having trained well over 14,000 airline pilots for more than 80 airlines over the last 40 years.

Although originally conceived as Oxford’s "Municipal Airport", with the onset of the war the airport turned to training RAF pilots. In the mid-forties there were a greater number of hangars and buildings than can be seen today with 15 acres of the original land having been sold off in the 1990s allowing the establishment of the Spires Business Park off Langford Lane. Today the airport owns some 375 acres freehold with over 335,000ft of buildings.

Oxford Airport has been owned and operated by BBA Group plc through its subsidiary Oxford Aviation Services Limited since February 2000. BBA Group is one of the world's largest providers of support services to both regional and business aviation owning brands such as ASIG, Signature Flight Support, Dallas Airmotive and H+S Aviation amongst many others.

Key Milestones:
1932 – Editorial in the Oxford Times:Urged Council "to establish aerodrome to serve city."– "Civil aviation was developing with internal mail and air services."– "Those cities having an airport would reap direct benefits".
1933 – Council approved establishment of "Municipal Aerodrome"
1935 – Land bought from Blenheim estate and two local farmers for £19,671
1937 – Air Ministry granted 12 year lease to establish RAF Volunteer Reserve flight training school
1938 – First Miles Magisters, Hawker Hinds and Hawker Audaxes established
1939 – First Licensed for public use as Oxford (Campsfield) Civil Aerodrome though first listed as Thrupp airfield.
1939 – No.2 Group Training Pool (later No. 13 Operational Training Unit) first established by the Air Ministry at Oxford
1939 – Oxford Flying Club first established
1940 – First four bombs dropped from 50ft by Junkers Ju 88 on the airfield
1941 – A further (and final) 20 high explosive bombs were dropped on the airfield
1941 – Famous aviator Amy Johnson (who flew solo in the Gypsy Moth from Croydon to Australia), disappeared on a flight from Blackpool destined for Kidlington on January 5th, ferrying an Airspeed Oxford. Believed to have crashed in the Thames estuary, neither the aircraft or Amy were ever found
1946 – Airtraining (Oxford) Ltd, subsidiary of General Aircraft Ltd re-established after the war and merge as Universal Flying Services Limited
1947 – Oxford University Air Squadron moved from Abingdon to Oxford (Kidlington)
1947 – Oxford Flying Club resurrected as Oxford Aeroplane Club 1949 – Scheduled services established between Oxford and Jersey for £8 return
1951 – The final RAF unit at Kidlington, No.96 Maintenance Unit was disbanded
1958 – Oxford Aeroplane Club re-established as prime operator by Goodhew Aviation
1958 – Licensed hours extension granted for night operations
1959 – Flights to Jersey resumed with Dakotas at £11 return fare
1959 – Oxford Aviation Co. Ltd established with Rex Smith as CFI
1959 – Irish Air Charter (Lord Kildare) moved from Dublin and established as Vigors Aviation Ltd. as the UK Piper distributor going on to sell 1,500 of the make in the UK
1959 – The Air Ministry ceased to operate at Oxford returning airfield to full civil use
1960 – Oxford Aeroplane Club concluded transition from private to professional pilot training
1961 – Pressed Steel and Oxford Aviation Co. merge operations and established British Executive Air Services Limited (BEAS) selling Brantley helicopters and Beagle aircraft.
1962 – First fully integrated commercial pilot’s licences and instrument rating courses began. Danny Kay, the entertainer, was one of the first students to train for the CPL
1962 – CSE Aviation founded (CSE) from former Vigors Aviation operations with Lord Kildare, Dick Hunt and Lord Waterpark as directors and owned by members of the Guinness family (Messrs Channon & Svejdar) and an American millionaire (Mr Erlanger) from who’s surnames the initials CSE was derived.
1963 – Oxford Air Training School founded (OAT) derived from the BEAS Flying Training Division with Rex Smith as its principal.
1965 – OAT becomes the first school in the UK to be granted approval to conduct ab initio courses leading to the Commercial Pilot’s Licence and Instrument Rating
1966 – Halls of residence for 140 students built at entrance to airport
1967 – CSE signs 21 year lease of airport from the City Council at £7,000 pa.
1967 – Oxford has the only privately operated 4-engine jet simulator in the UK
1968 – Oxford was second busiest airfield in the UK with 223,270 movements after Heathrow with 247,417 movements
1969 – OAT becomes fist UK school to be granted approval for helicopter CPL ab initio training
1971 – OAT flys over 60,000 hours training flights in one year (was up to 150,000 hours in the late 1990’s) 1972 – OAT had won training contracts for 46 major airlines and government bodies representing sixty-two countries.
1972 – OAT was the UK’s first educational establishment to obtain a Queens Award to Industry 1975 – Asphalt runway laid over original 1097m (3,600ft) grass strip
1976 – Engineering training school established
1981 – The airport freehold with 577 acres was sold by the council for £1.4m to CSE Aviation Ltd. 1986 – CSE Aviation Ltd was sold by the original founders to Oxford Aviation Holdings Ltd who’s principle shareholder was Murray McLean, head of Robert Moss Ltd.
1987 – HRH the Duchess of York became the first lady in the Royal Family to receive her PPL from Oxford 1988 – Main runway lengthened to 1552m (5092ft / 0.96 miles)
1989 – New operations, training and control tower building erected
1990 – Airport acquired by AB Nyge Aero for under £20m
1990 – Shorts 330 scheduled service established to Jersey
1992 – McAlpine Helicopters are established at airport
1994 – OAT pioneers the use of computer based training culminating in the award of the prestigious Flight International Aerospace Industry Award in 2002
1996 – CSE Aviation becomes the first general aviation company in the UK to gain ISO 9001 quality accreditation
1997 – The airfield, CSE and OAT as Oxford Aviation Services acquired by Close Brothers Group PLC for £21m
2000 – Current parent – BBA Group acquired airfield, CSE and OAT as Oxford Aviation Services for £55.4m 2001 – OAT established as Europe’s largest training school with over 70 aircraft and 90 instructors with over 500,000 flight hours of combined teaching experience flying over 150,000 hours a year
2003 – OAT opens state-of-the-art instrument flight training centre
2003 – Licensed runway length increased 10% to 1319m (4327ft) 2004 – New GA terminal building to be established

Links

History of British Airfields (by county) during WWII: http://www.countrysidebooks.co.uk

RAF official history: http://www.raf.mod.uk/history

Other Delta Aviation Airfields