Regional Government Headquarters

Hack Green, SECRET nuclear bunker:

In 1941 Hack Green, a site previously used as a bombing decoy site for the main railway centre at Crewe was chosen to become RAF Hack Green, to protect the land between Birmingham and Liverpool from hostile attack. Thus began the service of Hack Green and the airmen and women of Cheshire in the defence of the nation.

Hack Green was one of 21 fixed radar stations in the country and one of only 12 fully equipped with searchlights and fighter aircraft control. In one of the cabinets in the museum you can see some of the original communications equipment used by Searchlight Command.

Following World War II, a major examination of radar capability showed that our existing radar defence would be unable to cope with the threat posed by fast jet aircraft, let alone nuclear missiles. Any operational station needed to be protected against the new threat posed by nuclear weapons. ‘Rotor’ was the code name given to the Top Secret plan to replace the Chain Home and Ground Controlled Intercept radar network. The plan involved placing 1620 radar screens into massively constructed bunkers covering the UK. Hack Green was a semi-sunk bunker known as a type R6.

RAF Hack Green joined 12 Group protecting Britain against the perceived Soviet threat of both conventional and nuclear war. With new long range radar, Hack Green could give vital warning of the approach of hostile Russian bombers and enable the RAF to intercept with fighter aircraft or Bloodhound ground to air missiles. In accordance with the then held tripwire theory, that a number of nuclear bombers would always get through to some targets, early warning of impending attack enabled our Victor ‘V-Force’ nuclear bombers to become airborne and launch a retaliatory attack.

4 Comments CherryPie on Mar 4th 2013

4 Responses to “Regional Government Headquarters”

  1. Astrid says:

    http://www.hackgreen.co.uk/index.htm
    I still remember that one day I had to go with my mom to the grocery shop, she bought a whole pile of canned food and we walked back home, both with a big load on the bike. I was about 8 or 9 (50 years ago)
    There was always that fear of another war. I think at one point the world could be destroyed 5 times with the amount of nuclear weapons available.
    That must have been an interesting place, I assume you went in too.

  2. jamsodonnell says:

    We have one as a tourist site a few miles away at kelvedon Hatch

    http://thepoormouth.blogspot.co.uk/2008/04/ww-inside-bunker.html