Roosevelt Field

ACQUISITION Facilities for an RN Air Despatch Depot at a USN Air Facility. OPENED November 1942 CLOSED Not known. FUNCTION/FACILITY Despatch depot for American type aircraft for use by Royal Navy. ADDRESS Naval Air Facility Roosevelt Field, Mineola, Long Island, New York City, USA LOCALITY The airfield lies at the centre of the .western end of Long Island 17 miles E. of the centre of Manhattan Island, New York. LANDMARKS ROAD AND RAIL ACCESS Normal road and rail communication with New York HOMING - VISUAL By day By night 24" rotating beacon alternatively showing Clear and Green flashes. HOMING--RADIO D/F Not known. Beacons Not known. APPROACH - VISUAL By day Not known. By night Beacon, boundary, approach and obstruction lights landing area flood lights. APPROACH - RADIO COMMUNICATION EQUIPMENT M/F & H/F Not known. VH/F Not known. Information taken from C.B. 4368B (Text) (8/45) Handbook of Royal Naval Air Stations (Abroad) In November 1942, the Navy Bureau of Aeronautics established a modification centre at Roosevelt Field to install British equipment into U.S. aircraft for supply to the British Royal Navy under the Lend-Lease agreement passed by Congress. Initially the US Navy leased five of the 6 steel/concrete hangars along Old Country Road; built a barracks, mess hall, and sick bay; and the site commissioned as the U.S. Naval Air Facility (NAF) Roosevelt Field by February 1943. An RN Air Despatch Depot was established at NAF Roosevelt Field which was responsible for aircraft repair and maintenance, equipment installation, the preparation and flight delivery of Lend-Lease aircraft. They also undertook any metal work required for the installation of British modifications. The facility also performed salvage work of crashed Royal Navy planes. By September 1943, additional wooden buildings had built between four of the hangars, and in October 1943 six additional hangars were leased. Many of the Grumman Avengers, Vought Corsairs and Grumman Wildcats were issued directly to squadrons forming and working-up in the US at Brunswick, Lewiston, Quonset Point and Squantum. Many others, including Grumman Hellcats, Beech Expeditor, North American Harvards and Curtiss Seamews were shipped to the UK. Shortly after the war ended in August 1945 the Lend-Lease agreement ended and the US Navy greatly reduced the size of its facility at Roosevelt Field in preparation for closure. They had vacated all but six hangars, and removed their temporary buildings by the time their lease expired on June 30th, 1946. The withdrawal was completed by August 1946, when Roosevelt Field operated as a commercial airport until it closed in May 1951. This policy contains information about your privacy. By posting, you are declaring that you understand this policy: This policy is subject to change at any time and without notice. Although the administrator will attempt to moderate comments, it is impossible for every comment to have been moderated at any given time. You acknowledge that all comments express the views and opinions of the original author and not those of the administrator. You agree not to post any material which is knowingly false, obscene, hateful, threatening, harassing or invasive of a person's privacy. The administrator has the right to edit, move or remove any comment for any reason and without notice. Failure to comply with these rules may result in being banned from further commenting. I appreciate your hard work. Thank you for sharing. I will also share some useful information.