Dozens of portacabins set to house 2,000 asylum seekers line runway at former RAF base
- 4 months ago
Dozens of portacabins set to house up to 2,000 asylum seekers have been erected at an ex-RAF base which was once home to the famous Dambusters squadron.
The white, portable buildings have this week been moved onto a former runway at RAF Scampton, Lincs.
Photos taken today (February 1) show a large number of white cabins on the main runway while a smaller number sit further away.
A yellow construction digger is parked close to the biggest cluster of the portable buildings alongside skips and piles of building material.
RAF Scampton, former home of the WWII Dambusters and more recently the Red Arrows, was built in 1916 and closed on March 31 last year.
The portacabins due to house the male asylum seekers now sit on the runway despite a fierce local protest campaign.
West Lindsey District Council is appealing to the High Court over the ruling that up to 2,000 asylum seekers can be housed on site.
Council leader Trevor Young previously said: "Our position has always been clear that this site is not suitable."
The mess hall building at the former RAF Scampton was designated Grade II listed following an application by the council in March 2023.
The Home Office has said "heritage assets" at the site would be safeguarded.
Last year plans to relocate the grave of a dog which was a mascot to the Dambusters have been refused by councillors.
The 617 Squadron's mascot, a black Labrador, belonged to commanding officer Guy Gibson and died on the day of the raid on German dams in 1943.
The RAF applied for planning permission to move the grave.
But councillors rejected the proposal.
The white, portable buildings have this week been moved onto a former runway at RAF Scampton, Lincs.
Photos taken today (February 1) show a large number of white cabins on the main runway while a smaller number sit further away.
A yellow construction digger is parked close to the biggest cluster of the portable buildings alongside skips and piles of building material.
RAF Scampton, former home of the WWII Dambusters and more recently the Red Arrows, was built in 1916 and closed on March 31 last year.
The portacabins due to house the male asylum seekers now sit on the runway despite a fierce local protest campaign.
West Lindsey District Council is appealing to the High Court over the ruling that up to 2,000 asylum seekers can be housed on site.
Council leader Trevor Young previously said: "Our position has always been clear that this site is not suitable."
The mess hall building at the former RAF Scampton was designated Grade II listed following an application by the council in March 2023.
The Home Office has said "heritage assets" at the site would be safeguarded.
Last year plans to relocate the grave of a dog which was a mascot to the Dambusters have been refused by councillors.
The 617 Squadron's mascot, a black Labrador, belonged to commanding officer Guy Gibson and died on the day of the raid on German dams in 1943.
The RAF applied for planning permission to move the grave.
But councillors rejected the proposal.