History of Westcott Venture Park
Westcott Venture Park is a former WWII airfield used to train the crews that went on to fly the legendary Lancaster bomber.
RAF Westcott opened in September 1942 as 11 OTU (Operational Training Unit) with crews using Wellington bombers for training.
Many of these crews went on to see active service in Lancaster bombers in the fierce aerial campaign waged by Bomber Command over occupied Europe.
The RAF moved out at the end of August 1945 shortly after welcoming nearly 53,000 liberated POW's who were flown into Westcott and Oakley in Operation Exodus.
In April 1946 the base reopened as the Guided Projectile Establishment, involved in the research and development of rocket propulsion. This high-tech research and development business continues at Westcott to this day in the fields of satellite and future propulsion systems.
