ⓘWhat do the D1–D5 confidence tiers mean?›
- D1A single attributed public source (museum, council, Historic England, CWGC, mapping data).
- D2Two or more independent public sources corroborate the same facts.
- D3A named coordinator or local reviewer has confirmed the public-source account.
- D4A named observer has personally visited and documented the site — photographs, inscriptions, condition.
- D5An archive or institution has provided written documentation supporting the entry.
A higher tier means more corroborating evidence, not automatic historical certainty. The Discovery layer does not replace archival verification.
On the shore of Lower Lough Erne in County Fermanagh, RAF Castle Archdale was a major flying-boat base in the Battle of the Atlantic. Catalinas and Sunderlands flew long anti-submarine and convoy-escort patrols far out over the Atlantic — reaching it via the secret "Donegal Corridor" over neutral Ireland — and it was a Catalina from here that re-found the battleship Bismarck in May 1941. The site is now Castle Archdale Country Park, with a Second World War exhibition.
This page is maintained within the coordinator network. Confirming and upholding the accuracy of its content is the coordinator’s responsibility.
What this page does not claim
- This is a former RAF Coastal Command flying-boat base (now a country park), commemorating the Battle of the Atlantic air war, not specifically Soviet forces or the Arctic convoys.
- It is a wartime site and heritage exhibition rather than a single dedicated monument.
- Endorsement by any named institution; the source is cited for documentary research only.
Sources
- BAirfields of Britain Conservation Trust — Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust record of RAF Castle Archdale / Lough Erne flying-boat base (Battle of the Atlantic; Bismarck-finding Catalina).archived ↗
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