Thorney Island (West Sussex)
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Thorney Island is an island (effectively a peninsula) that juts into Chichester Harbour in West Sussex. It is separated from the mainland by a narrow channel called the Great Deep. The village of West Thorney lies on the east coast of the island and has been incorporated into the military base.
In 1938 the RAF airfield on Thorney Island was built[1], the runways being metalled in 1942.
Among the aircraft based at the station during the war years were Avro Ansons and Consolidated Liberators of RAF Coastal Command. Post war the airfield was utilised for training navigators, until the 1960s when 242 OCU of Transport Command took over, flying the C130 Hercules as well as 46 Squadron with Hawker Siddeley Andover C.1 transports. These remained at the base until the RAF left in the late 1970s.
Subsequently the Royal Navy expressed an interest in utilising the base, but accommodation and logistics eventually saw control handed to the Royal Artillery towards the end of the decade, who remain in control of the base to date.
In 1985, a series of experiments to investigate atmospheric dispersion of gases was carried out on the island.
The 2001 census showed the island to have a resident population of 1,079.
