RAF Mullaghmore

The closure was a direct result of the end of World War II. RAF Mullaghmore was a temporary wartime airfield built specifically to support RAF Coastal Command operations and training. With the cessation of hostilities, the vast network of military airfields in the UK, including Mullaghmore, became surplus to requirements. The site was decommissioned as part of the massive post-war military downsizing.

The site has largely reverted to agricultural land. However, the classic triangular layout of the three runways and the perimeter track is still remarkably well-preserved and clearly visible from satellite imagery. The concrete surfaces are broken and partially grassed over, with the tracks now serving as access roads for local farms. Some of the original wartime buildings, including Nissen huts and technical site structures, remain in various states of decay or have been repurposed for agricultural use, such as storage sheds and parts of a poultry farm.

Also known as RAF Macosquin, the airfield opened in April 1943 as a satellite station for the nearby RAF Limavady. It played a crucial, though brief, role in the Battle of the Atlantic. Its primary function was as a training base for RAF Coastal Command, specializing in anti-submarine warfare (ASW) techniques. It was a key site for training aircrews in the use of the Leigh Light, a powerful airborne carbon arc searchlight used to illuminate surfaced German U-boats at night, enabling successful attacks. The airfield primarily hosted Vickers Wellington bombers modified for maritime patrol and training. Units known to have operated from the site include elements of No. 1 (Coastal) Operational Training Unit and No. 17 Group Communication Flight.

There are no known or credible plans or prospects for reopening RAF Mullaghmore as an operational airport. The site is in private ownership, and its aviation infrastructure is severely degraded beyond practical repair. Furthermore, there is no strategic or commercial need for another airport in the region, which is already served by the City of Derry Airport (RAF Eglinton). The site's future is firmly rooted in agriculture and as a historical landmark of Northern Ireland's role in World War II.