I went to see the hangers today, I was quite shocked to see them like the picture above, I don't see the point in keeping the two most northern hangers - they don't look salvageable, the other four look in fair condition though.
"Later I was given a room in the Old Priory out-buildings along with the Tailor, the Cobbler, and the Laundry shop/counter etc. and what an opportunist group we were. The main Priory house was used as the W.A.A.F. billets, the entrance to which was directly opposite to mine and the tailor's door. How could we lose?!!"
Was there a priory at Hooton?
We don't do charity in Germany, we pay taxes. Charity is a failure of governments' responsibilities - Henning Wehn
If i remember Hooton means Priory or something like that. Bob who would give the tours on open days i can remember him saying how it got its name and a old stream or priory in days of old.
Those hangars are probably of a type of construction called the Belfast Truss, a lightweight wooden form of roof construction which dates back to the First World War.
I would have thought they were worth listing, being a part of our air heritage but I suppose they have now deteriorated too far to save. The most famous ones are at the Imperal War Museum at Duxford. The brick walls, butresses and door support pillars are identical as it was a standard design over a number of sites, e.g. RAF Duxford and Kirtley.
Last edited by bri445; 14th Nov 20096:41pm. Reason: link error
The Belfast type hangers and associated buildings, which together form the most comprehensive group of world war one airfield buildings remaining anywhere. English Heritage has listed the hangars and some of the associated buildings,are about to upgrade their listing status.( taken from History of RAF Hooton Park) What a sad state they are in, I was told a few years ago they were full of asbestos and being left to rot. They are/were the biggest wooden span of their type in Europe.
Most of the management team resigned about three years ago because of unrest amongst the volunteer groups. The site has lost some very talented people and now seems to be drifting toward demolition and right under the noses of those who supposedly "care" about it's heritage.
Hooton Park has become a playground for those who tinker with old lorries, for those who surround themselves with aviation junk and for those who care more about political mischief-making than they do about generating any real contribution toward securing a viable future for the buildings.
As a testament to failure, Hooton Park survives (just about) but it wont survive for long and it wont survive without dispatching the "hobbyists" and replacing them with genuinely capable individuals who have a credible vision and a workable delivery plan for the site's future.
I was at the hangars today picking up their tractor, and got chatting to one of the guys there. The hangars are listed because of the 'belfast truss' roofing. Apparently the trust "bought" the site for £1 from Vauxhall motors and part of the agreement is that as long as the hangars are standing, the site remains in the hands of the trust.
The second hangar as you enter the site has just has £220k spent on the roof and they are waiting for a further £220k from vauxhall motors as they said they will match any money spent pound for pound.
Anyway I had a real good nosey about and will have to go back to drop their mower off soon, so I'll take some snaps. This place really is a gem.
