Wethersfield Airfield Museum given eviction notice

Curators at Wethersfield Airfield Museum say the Ministry of Defence has told them to pack their bags by June 30 and leave the former RAF airbase.

The museum celebrates the history of the airfield which was home to the United States Air Force during World War Two and the airfield is now a headquarters for the Ministry of Defence Police (MDP), although the MDP will be relocating in the next few years.

A spokesman for the museum said: “Back in 2016 the then chief constable of the MDP, Alf Hitchcock allocated Building 301 for use as an Airfield Museum.

“Mr Hitchcock was concerned at the number of former US service personnel constantly arriving at the main gate of the base asking to visit, only to be turned away.”

Since opening, the museum saw a climb in visitors, reaching around 600 a year in 2019.

Following Covid, the museum has held three “well attended” events but a fourth was called off due to a power issue.

The spokesman said: “It was made clear that, with the base closing, MDP would not spend public money rectifying the problem.

“We asked if the possibility of storage for museum artefacts could be considered.

“On April 22, MDP notified us that no other buildings were available, and we have now been asked to vacate the base by June 30.

“Representations made to the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO), the land agent, has met with a negative response.

“We have made an appeal via social media for off-site storage.

“Our desire is to have a facility locally where we can display hundreds of historical artefacts, but a solution has yet to be found.

A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: “We take the health and safety of all that use and visit MDP Wethersfield seriously and the building occupied by the museum is no longer fit for occupation.

“The entire Wethersfield site is in the process of a long-announced closure.

“There has been open dialogue with the museum for several months but unfortunately no alternative building can be provided.”