The Royal Air Force operated a station from Mallusk, Newtownabbey, Co. Antrim during the Second World War. The Hyde Park Orange Hall was one of the buildings requisitioned by the Air Ministry.
R.A.F. No. 226 Maintenance Unit formed on 1st July 1941 from No. 11 Repair and Salvage Centre at Mallusk, Newtownabbey, Co. Antrim. This unit was responsible for visiting the sites of crashed military aircraft in Northern Ireland. There, they would make safe the area before recovering any reusable materials or scrap metal that could still be used for the war effort.
On 5th October 1943, the unit dispatched a salvage team to Slieve Commedagh in the Mourne Mountains to assess and recover Vickers Wellington X9820. They brought engines, propellers, wings, and part of the plane’s undercarriage down a cliff and over a distance of 5 miles. The unit made use of a tracked Jeep that belonged to the United States Army Air Force based at Langford Lodge, Co. Antrim, as well as a ‘Queen Mary’ trailer, and a tractor.
The unit’s operations record book records the following in February 1945 relating to the crash-landing of an American bomber in Éire. Martin B-26 Marauder 44-68079 crash-landed near Gorey, Co. Wexford on 15th February 1945.
In addition, two special parties salvaged Marauder (American) 468079, collected propeller, guns and instruments from Liberator KK295, under the direction of F/Lt H S Moore HQ RAFNI.
Recovery operations were not always so thorough. In October 1945, a party from No. 226 Maintenance Unit returned again to Slieve Commedagh. On this occasion, the salvage mission was to recover a De Havilland Mosquito that crashed on 13th January 1945. On assessing the wreckage and the remoteness of the site, they took the decision to simply push the remains of the aircraft into a nearby ravine.
Life after the War
The Royal Air Force maintained a presence at Mallusk after the end of the Second World War. On 6th January 1946, members of the R.A.F. paraded to the local Hydepark Presbyterian Church. There, they heard a sermon from Wing Commander C.W. Mann M.A. C.F., the Senior Chaplain to the R.A.F. in Ulster. Along with Squadron Leader Davis, he thanked the Reverend A. Mulholland B.A. and members of the congregation for the hospitality shown locally to members of the Air Force.
On 10th April 1946, a “Farewell Dance” took place at the Station. Members of the Royal Air Force including Squadron Leader Davis and officers from Group Headquarters celebrated alongside many visitors. A band known as Mrs. Moore and Her Boys provided the music for the evening.
The Royal Air Force disbanded No. 226 Maintenance Unit on 20th April 1946. By 1947, the R.A.F. Station at Mallusk had ceased operation. Among items placed for sale and inviting tenders in the Belfast News Letter on 8th January 1947 was an A.C. Generating Sets (68.8 K.V.A. driven by a Crossley Diesel Engine) complete with control panel and an automatic voltage regulator. A similar item was available to purchase from another site at Kirkcubbin, Co. Down. Some items remained at the site as late as January 1949 when Peter O’Hare of Cambridge Street, Belfast, and John Whittle of Francis Street, Belfast stood accused of the theft of scrap copper, the property of the Ministry of Supply, and valued at £3.