List of Beam approach beacon system units


This is a List of Beam Approach beacon system Units of the Royal Air Force.
The first system to guide RAF aircraft safely down onto a runway was called the Standard Blind Approach system and was trialled in the late 1930s. It was also being used by a few civil airports. By late 1941 the word 'Blind' was changed to 'Beam' as it was felt that blind did not give a reassuring feel to a system used when visibility was very low. The word Standard came from Standard Radio, the name of the company that made the equipment under license from the German company that designed it. However the equipment was also 'standard' fit on RAF aircraft. The change from Blind to Beam is evidenced in the two sets of Unit names in the tables below.
There were no physical beams in the system at all, rather it relied on a heavily distorted dipole radiation pattern using a single transmitter. Instead of 'beams' it used a single heavily distorted toroid that was flipped left and right with a periodicity that simulated a morse code letter, the plane of equal field strength in this arrangement being mathematically equal to a line of zero width - a perfect 'beam' from an imperfect, cheaper, and simple radio transmitter. SBA was not automatic, the pilot flew the aircraft at all times.
The Beam Approach Beacon System is an automatic radar landing system developed in the early 1940s but not used until much later when it replaced the SBA system.

Blind Approach Training flights

NameFormedLocationAircraftDisbanded atDisbandedUnit became
1 Blind Approach Training Flight12 January 1941AbingdonArmstrong Whitworth WhitleyAbingdon8 November 19411501 Flight
2 Blind Approach Training FlightFebruary 1941Linton-on-OuseArmstrong Whitworth WhitleyDriffield8 November 19411502 Flight
3 Blind Approach Training Flight27 January 1941MildenhallVickers WellingtonMildenhall8 November 19411503 Flight
4 Blind Approach Training Flight17 December 1940WytonVickers WellingtonWyton8 November 19411504 Flight
5 Blind Approach Training Flight1 January 1941HoningtonVickers Wellington
Airspeed Oxford		Honington8 November 19411505 Flight
6 Blind Approach Training Flight6 January 1941WaddingtonBristol Blenheim
Handley Page Hampden
Airspeed Oxford
Douglas Boston		Waddington8 November 19411506 Flight
7 Blind Approach Training Flight18 January 1941FinningleyBristol Blenheim
Handley Page Hampden
Airspeed Oxford		Finningley8 November 19411507 Flight
8 Blind Approach Training FlightJanuary 1941WattishamBristol BlenheimHorsham St Faith8 November 19411508 Flight
9 Blind Approach Training FlightJanuary 1941ThornabyVickers Wellington
Airspeed Oxford		Dyce8 November 19411509 Flight
10 Blind Approach Training FlightJanuary 1941LeucharsVickers Wellington
Airspeed Oxford		Leuchars8 November 19411510 Flight
11 Blind Approach Training Flight22 September 1941UpwoodAirspeed OxfordUpwoodOctober 19411511 Flight
12 Blind Approach Training Flight22 September 1941DishforthAirspeed OxfordDishforthOctober 19411512 Flight
13 Blind Approach Training Flight22 September 1941HoningtonHoningtonOctober 19411513 Flight
14 Blind Approach Training Flight22 September 1941ConingsbyConingsbyOctober 19411514 Flight
15 Blind Approach Training Flight22 September 1941Swanton MorleyAirspeed OxfordSwanton MorleyOctober 19411515 Flight
16 Blind Approach Training Flight22 September 1941TopcliffeLlanbedrOctober 19411516 Flight
17 Blind Approach Training FlightOctober 1941WattishamAirspeed Oxford
de Havilland Tiger Moth		IpswichOctober 19411517 Flight
20 Blind Approach Training Flight10 October 1941BreightonAirspeed Oxford
de Havilland Tiger Moth		RAF HolmeOctober 19411520 Flight
21 Blind Approach Training FlightOctober 1941StradishallAirspeed OxfordStradishallOctober 19411521 Flight
22 Blind Approach Training FlightOctober 1941DockingAirspeed OxfordDockingOctober 19411522 Flight
23 Blind Approach Training FlightOctober 1941Little RissingtonLittle RissingtonOctober 19411523 Flight
24 Blind Approach Training FlightOctober 1941BottesfordAirspeed OxfordBottesfordOctober 19411524 Flight
25 Blind Approach Training FlightOctober 1941Brize NortonBrize NortonOctober 19411525 Flight
26 Blind Approach Training Flight3 October 1941AndoverAirspeed OxfordThruxtonOctober 19411526 Flight

Beam Approach Training flights

Radio Aids Training flights

NameFormedLocationAircraftDisbanded atDisbandedUnit became
1508 Flight20 September 1945UnkUnk20 November 19451508 Flight
1510 Flight9 August 1947UnkBircham Newton15 September 1948Absorbed
1511 Flight15 September 1945UnkWheaton Aston1 August 1946Disbanded
1513 Flight15 September 1945UnkBramcote1 December 1946Disbanded
1516 Flight15 September 1945UnkSnaith11 April 1946Disbanded
1521 Flight15 September 1945UnkLongtown1 April 1946Disbanded
1527 Flight15 September 1945UnkPrestwick28 February 1946Disbanded
1528 Flight15 September 1945UnkFairford4 March 19461555 Flight
1552 Flight15 September 1945MelbourneFull Sutton26 October 1946Disbanded
1553 Flight15 September 1945MelbourneMelbourne1 October 1945Disbanded
1554 Flight15 September 1945MelbourneMelbourne1 October 1945Disbanded
1555 Flight15 September 1945FairfordBircham Newton31 August 1947Disbanded
1556 Flight15 September 1945StradishallFairford1 April 1946Disbanded
1559 Flight1 October 1946OakingtonBircham Newton9 August 1947Disbanded

Other units

NameFormedLocationAircraftDisbanded atDisbandedUnit became
No. 1508 Flight RAF1 March 1944UnkUnkOuston8 August 1944'C' Flight of No. 62 OTU
No. 1510 Flight RAFMarch 1943Anson9 August 19471510 Flight
Blind Approach Training and Development Unit RAF22 September 1939Boscombe DownAnson, WhitleyBoscombe Down14 October 1940Wireless Intelligence Development Unit
Beam Approach Calibration Flight RAFOctober 1941Oxford, AnsonBicester20 November 19421551 Flight
Beam Approach Training Flight, Church Lawford RAFMarch 1942Church LawfordChurch Lawford27 October 19421533 Flight
Beam Approach Training Flight, Nanyuki RAFNanyukiNanyuki26 June 1942Absorbed by No. 70 OTU
Blind Approach Calibration Flight RAF12 July 1941WatchfieldOxford, AnsonOctober 1941Beam Approach Calibration Flight
Beam Approach Development Unit RAF4 October 1942WatchfieldAnson, Oxford, MasterHinton-in-the-Hedges15 April 1943'A' Flight, Signals Development Unit RAF
Blind Landing Experimental Unit1 October 1945WoodbridgeAnsonMartlesham Heath1 November 1949