Operator Royal Air Force Year built 1939 | In use 1939-1945 (1945) Owner Air Ministry | |
 | ||
Type Royal Air Force station Battles/wars Battle of Britain
No.13 Group Fighter Command, Europe December 1939 - May 1945 | ||
RAF Blakelaw (sometimes known as RAF Newcastle) was a Royal Air Force station which acted as headquarters for No.13 Group during the Second World War and which was located in Blakelaw, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England.
Function
The station was established in Spring 1940 to act as headquarters for No.13 Group whose area encompassed North of the Humber and all of Scotland. No.13 Group merged with No. 14 Group in July 1943.
Operations room (55.001°N 1.663°W / 55.001; -1.663 (Operations room))
The operations room, responsible for directing RAF aircraft in the No. 13 Group area, was located in a bunker at Kenton Bar. It was fully operational by December 1939. When No.13 Group merged with No. 14 Group in July 1943 the operations room was converted for use as a sector operations room and continued in that use until Summer 1945. The operations room was used as a regional war room from the early 1950s until the early 1960s.
Filter room (54.996°N 1.668°W / 54.996; -1.668 (Filter room))
The Filter room, responsible for filtering large quantities of intelligence on enemy activity before it was passed to the operations room, was located in a bunker at Blakelaw Quarry. It was fully operational by late 1940. When No.13 Group merged with No. 14 Group in July 1943 the filter room was taken out of use. The filter room was acquired by Newcastle City Council and was used as a civil defence centre from 1952 until 1968.