Site Records

SiteName: 'RAF Aird Uig' ('WIU') CEW R10 ROTOR Radar Station

Aird Uig
Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides
OS Grid Ref: NB047390

Sub Brit site visit 30th July 2003

The 12 acre domestic camp was sited immediately to the north of Aird Uig village to the south of Gallan Head. There was a guardroom on the village side and the first building was the Station Headquarters. Other buildings included a medical block (Aird Uig did not have an MO, medical affairs were attended to by an orderly. Anything he could not attend to had to be sent by RAF ambulance to Stornoway hospital), stores and the NAFFI shop.

The four houses standing to the left of the road running between the camp and the operations site were married quarters for AMWD (Air Minstry works dept), the civil staff that maintain fabric of site.

The only married quarters was a bungalow for the commanding officer on the east side of the domestic camp just above the cliff; this has now been demolished. The domestic camp was sold to a private individual in March 1973 and since then has changed hands several times. Some of the accommodation blocks have been converted into housing and incorporated into the village, other blocks remain empty and disused.

The old fire station - now converted into a house

One of the blocks has been converted into a restaurant and hotel and the fire station has been converted into a house.

The former rotor station is within a secure compound formed by fencing right across Gallan Head. The R10 operations block has been retained athough in recent years it has been reroofed and now bears little resemblance to the original structure. This was done some time after 1988. To the east of the operations block the stand-by set house remains largely unaltered and behind it the High Voltage Switch House also remains.

The Type 80 modulator building cannot be seen from outside the camp although a building of the correct size is shown at the rear of the site on the current 1:25,000 OS map.

For further pictures about this site click here
For memoirs of a national serviceman at RAF Aird Uig click here

Sources:
West Highland Free Press
RAF News
Bob Jenner
David Lister
Jeff Chambers
Sam Webb

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