Benone Strand/Londerry Airfield

The airfield, known as RAF Benone, was a military installation built for World War II. It was closed following the end of the war as part of the widespread demobilization and reduction of military infrastructure. Its specific purpose as a training and gunnery range was no longer required on the same scale.

The site has been completely redeveloped for civilian use and has returned to nature. It is now part of the Benone Strand, a popular Blue Flag beach and tourist destination. The area includes the Benone Tourist Complex, which features a caravan park, golf course, and other recreational facilities. While the formal airfield infrastructure is gone, remnants of its military past, such as concrete pillboxes and foundations for target structures, can still be found in the sand dunes, serving as a historical landmark.

The site was a Royal Air Force station known as RAF Benone, operational from 1941 to 1945. It served as a crucial satellite airfield and an Armament Practice Camp for nearby major airbases like RAF Limavady (now City of Derry Airport) and RAF Ballykelly. Its primary function was to provide a safe area for air-to-ground and air-to-air gunnery practice. Fighter aircraft, including Spitfires and Hurricanes, used the range, firing at targets placed on the beach and drogues towed by other aircraft. The airfield played a significant role in training pilots and air gunners for combat operations during the Battle of the Atlantic and other WWII campaigns. The hard-packed sand of Benone Strand was used as a runway surface.

There are no plans or prospects for reopening the site as an airfield. Its current status as a major tourist destination, a protected natural environment (part of the Magilligan Area of Special Scientific Interest), and its proximity to the operational City of Derry Airport (EGQE) make any such proposal unfeasible.