February 2021

11 Buckden Roundabout February 2021 Splashers and Bunchers Richard Storey, Secretary to the Buckden Local History Society If you travel through Brampton towards Huntingdon, just right on the Huntingdon Road after the roundabout next to Water- meadows are 2 incongruous - looking huts. These are what re- main of a very important navigation aid from World War 2, known as a Splasher beacon. The Splasher, along with the more numerous Buncher, were essential radio beacons oper- ating in the medium frequency band, and used by the US 8 th Air Force (AF) to assist the formation of bomber aircraft over East- ern England during World War 2. The coordination each morning of 1200 heavy bombers from the US 8th Air Force for raids on occupied Europe required good airmanship skills on the part of the crews. Everyone knew, from a survey done in 1943, that heavy bombers were more vulnerable to anti - aircraft and fighter defences if they were not flying in formation. However, getting into formation took up a lot of time, a lot of valuable fuel and increased the possibility of pilot fatigue. To make matters more difficult, the whole mission had to be conducted in radio silence to ensure operational security. To aid the efficient formation of aircraft especially in poor weather conditions, aircraft used a number of British - made ground - based omnidirectional radio beacons known as Splashers and Bunchers. Bunchers, located on flying stations and operating at relatively low power could be received out to a distance of 25 miles. De- signed specifically for the USAAF for use in bad weather, the Buncher became an essential aid regardless of weather condi- tions. Each Buncher would transmit a unique morse call - sign once a minute, which was changed daily. It was essential the crew got this right as it was easy to mis - read one of the characters and head off towards the wrong Buncher. Splashers operated at a higher power than Bunchers and were located in posi- tions to act as rendezvous points for large formations prior to their heading out on the mission. Designed originally for the RAF, the 8th AF started making use of them in May 1943. Each Splasher had 4 transmitters operating simultaneously at different frequencies but all pulsing the same call - sign. Furthermore, the frequen- cies were interchanged between Splasher sites on a daily basis with the aim to con- fuse the enemy and minimise the risk of jamming and spoofing, all of which were common practices. The radio operator on each aircraft was issued with a schedule of times and frequencies. Prior to take off, the radio operator would tune his as a present a visual display for the pilot and the navigator. As the signal went off for the first aircraft to take off, the rest would follow at 30 second intervals. Heavily laden with fuel and bombs, the sluggish aircraft invariably entered cloud which would immedi- ately cut their visibility. This was an anxious time for the crew, as they jostled for position against strong cross winds there was the ever present risk of a mid air collision. Near misses were common and were only obvious to the crew when the aircraft shook violently as it flew through the propeller wash from another aircraft. As if that wasn ’ t enough there was the early morning congestion of returning RAF bombers from their night raids to consider! After what could be several thousand feet of cloud they would break through into clear sky and a shower of flares. The aircraft flew a route relative to their Buncher and followed a pre - set pattern of approximately 3 miles, known as an orbit lasting 6 to 10 minutes. As aircraft did their orbit they gradual- ly climbed to set altitudes to allow more aircraft to join. Each squadron leader would fire a different coloured flare every 30 seconds so they could be located and allow a quicker for- mation. As the squadrons orbited around their Buncher they formed a Group and, on the right signal, the Group would head towards the Splasher, aiming to fly over it at a precise time and altitude. As Groups formed they made a Combat Wing and then Combat Wings would then “ coast out ” over a large town on the coast to form Divisions. Finally a Division would head off towards the target. The diagram below shows the locations of the US 8th Air Force Buncher beacons with their associated orbits and the Splasher Beacons in East Anglia. The beacons would also have been used by returning aircraft when recovering to their bases. The RAF, flying at night, used different tactics but shared some equip- ment and had their own set of Splasher beacons. Returning RAF and USAAF aircraft would have used any beacon they could identify to get them back safely. (Continued on page 12) Splashers and Bunchers