RAF Croft

Post-World War II military drawdown. The airfield was a temporary wartime base constructed for the war effort. With the end of hostilities, it was deemed surplus to the peacetime requirements of the Royal Air Force and was closed.

The site has been extensively redeveloped and is now primarily known as the Croft Circuit, a major British motor racing venue that hosts rounds of the British Touring Car Championship and other series. The circuit's layout incorporates sections of the original runways and perimeter tracks. Other parts of the former airfield are used for an industrial estate (Croft Industrial Estate) and agriculture. While the basic airfield layout is still visible from the air, most of the original wartime buildings have been demolished.

RAF Croft was a significant World War II bomber airfield, opened in October 1941. It was built as a 'Class A' airfield with three concrete runways. Initially home to RAF squadrons, it became a key base for No. 6 Group of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) within RAF Bomber Command. Several Canadian squadrons, including Nos. 419, 427, 431, and 434, operated from Croft. They flew heavy bombers, primarily the Handley Page Halifax and later the Avro Lancaster, on strategic night bombing missions over occupied Europe and Germany. The airfield played a crucial role in the Allied bombing campaign and represents a major part of Canada's wartime aviation heritage in the UK.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening RAF Croft as an airport. The site's successful and long-term redevelopment into a permanent motorsport circuit and industrial estate makes its conversion back to aviation use economically unfeasible and highly improbable. The region's aviation needs are served by the nearby Teesside International Airport (formerly RAF Middleton St George, which was a satellite station to RAF Croft).