One of the friendliest airfields in the UK, Goodwood hosted a LAA fly-in. So successful was the event that a LAA weekend is being held for members in late May 2014. Any aircraft that visits which the aerodrome and is a Pre 1966 aircraft gets a free landing on any day. PPR first please. Radio is 122.450 AVGAS and JET A1 available as well as a nice aero club, food and local sites, such as Tangmere Air Museum, Goodwood horse racing track and the well known Festival of Speed and Goodwood Revival race car meeting.
The airfield was built during the Second World War by the Royal Air Force as a relief landing ground for nearby RAF Tangmere. The site was the former Westhampnett Farm and part of the Goodwood Estate. It was known as RAF Westhampnett. During the Battle of Britain two fighter squadrons (145 Sqn and 602 Sqn) were based at Westhampnett.
Westhampnett was also used by the United States Army Air Forces Eighth Air Force as a fighter airfield for the 308th and 309th Fighter Squadrons of the 31st Fighter Group from RAF Atcham and RAF High Ercall with Supermarine Spitfire Vs beginning on 27 July 1942.
The 31st FG flew its first sorties with RAF, (total of 1,286 losing 5 aircraft) on 10 September 1942, and flew last mission from Great Britain in late October 1942. The group then moved to Gibraltar and fought with the Twelfth Air Force in North Africa and Italy.
After the war the airfield was returned to the Goodwood Estate and the perimeter track of the airfield has been used since the late 1940s for motor racing and called the Goodwood Circuit. The airfield currently has a large flying school and many historic aircraft.
