Royal Air Force Prestwick otherwise known as RAF Prestwick, was a RAF unit based at the NATS air traffic control centre, adjacent to Glasgow Prestwick Airport, South Ayrshire, in south west Scotland. The unit was home to the Scottish Air Traffic Control Centre (Military) which provided an air traffic control service to military aircraft operating within its area of responsibility. Prestwick was also home to a Distress and Diversion (D&D) Cell which provided assistance to both military and civil aircraft in an emergency.
The unit closed in December 2013 with operations transferring to the RAF unit at London Area Control Centre in Swanwick, Hampshire.
History
Prestwick Airport was established on 17 February 1936 as a base for Scottish Aviation Limited.
Second World War
During the Second World War, Prestwick was used an eastern terminus for the North Atlantic air ferry route, one of a series of routes over which military aircraft were ferried from the United States and Canada to Great Britain, to support the war in Europe. A large number of heavy bombers, fighter aircraft and aircraft carrying diplomatic and VIP passengers transited through the airfield.
RAF Ferry Command was formed on 20 July 1941 to take control of North Atlantic ferry flights but became part RAF Transport Command on 25 March 1943, with the role becoming the responsibility of No. 45 (Atlantic Ferry) Group. Ferry flights were initially controlled by the Overseas Movement Control Centre, operating from a location in Gloucestershire. As the number of flights increased, Trans-Atlantic Air Control (TAC) was relocated in November 1941 to Redbrae House, a mock Tudor home located near Prestwick Airport. A large United States military presence was established at Prestwick to support the ferry flights from North America.
In late 1944, a Flying Control Centre was established in Redbrae House, providing an area control service for the region. The centre was operated by a combination of British, Canadian and American military personnel until the end of the Second World War in 1945.
After the war, responsibility for TAC came under the control of RAF Transport Command after the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) presence dramatically reduced. The centre at Redbrae House, previously operated by an international alliance of military personnel, was transferred to the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Oceanic Area Control Centre was created.
Post war
In November 1947, the RAF regional control centre was re-designated Scottish Traffic Control Centre (Military) (ScATCC(Mil)) to control military aircraft flying within the airspace above Scotland. Around the same time, a civilian air traffic control service began to meet the demand from the expanding civil aviation market. The unit was staffed by RAF Air Traffic Control Officers and Air Traffic Control Assistants. Both military and civilian aircraft were controlled by RAF controllers who provided a variety of air traffic services predominantly outside controlled airspace or within airspace designated as Military Training Areas. A Distress and Diversion (D&D) cell was co-located with ScATCC (Mil), tasked with assisting aircraft in distress and/or encountering emergency situations.
In April 1977, the D&D cell and the Air Defence Notification Centre (North) (ADNC) moved into new premises at Atlantic House, followed by ScATCC (Mil) on 2 November 1978. ADNC (North) closed on 31 March 1997, with approximately 65 RAF staff remaining at Prestwick.
The Freedom of the South Ayrshire was awarded to RAF Prestwick on 17 July 2009. In November of that year, the unit moved to the new NATS Prestwick Centre, built adjacent to Atlantic House, which accommodates the NATS civilian controllers providing oceanic and Scottish area control services.
The Prestwick Distress & Diversion Cell closed in December 2012 when D&D operations moved to RAF (Unit) Swanwick in Hampshire.