From 1943 onwards, the character and landscape at Watchtree changed forever as an airfield and with it aircraft became the sites occupants.From 1943 onwards, the character and landscape at Watchtree changed forever as an airfield and with it aircraft became the sites occupants.
Although only a satellite aerodrome to the larger Silloth Airfield, some large and impressive aircraft were to use Watchtree in the fight to win the Second World War. Lancaster Bombers were probably the most famous to use Watchtree although Hurricanes, Wellingtons, Warwicks and Typhoons also used the airfield at some point.
After the war the airfield was put on Care and maintenance and used as a bomb storage site until 1952 when it ceased to be used by the military.
Visitors to Watchtree can actually see parts of the airfields completion dates inscribed into the concrete with the best examples on the concrete runway near to Pow Wood.
As part of the ecological restoration of Watchtree parts of the runway have been 'peckered', covered with topsoil and either reseeded or planted with scrub species to increase the area of grassland and scrub habitats.