RAF Hednesford Walk
RAF Hednesford Trail follows level, well-surfaced paths for most of the route and is easy access. The trail is a circular walk around a former RAF Second World War training camp.
RAF Hednesford was neither an operational nor a flying station during the Second World War. It was a training centre, responsible for training flight mechanics, flight riggers and fitters. These key technical support staff were essential to the war effort, enabling the RAF to successfully defend the skies over Britain.
Thousands of RAF men passed through the training centre, as well as many Royal Navy personnel of the Fleet Air Arm and women in the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF). There were also a large number of Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes (NAAFI) running the social recreational facilities.
After the war, National Service was introduced in 1947 for young men between the ages of 18 and 30. About 81,500 men received their basic 6-week training at RAF Hednesford until it closed in 1956. Shortly afterwards, the camp was home to 1200 Hungarian refugees seeking asylum following the resistance to the Soviet invasion of Hungary.
RAF Hednesford is one of a number of important military heritage sites at Cannock Chase
