A 1940s Timewarp, Site 4, Bungay Airfield, Flixton, Suffolk - 9th June 2022

Site 4 at Flixton, Bungay Airfield, is perhaps the most complete and original USAAF Eight Airforce base, certainly anywhere in East Anglia and quite possibly in the world. It has miraculously survived for 80 years without commercial development or simply being demolished because of a "sentimental attachment" between the owner of the house and her USAAF boyfriend - after he returned to the States, she kept the airbase and the house virtually unchanged as a sort-of memorial. One of her last instructions to her family was a hope to see the site preserved, and so after Clive and his group had got wind of it, they entered into nearly two years of negotiations in order to secure a lease on the base and buildings, which finally happened at the very beginning of 2024. Nosher had visited back in June 2022 with Clive, Suzanne and the gang to photograph it, but as there was a certain amount of secrecy about the bid, these photos were embargoed until January 2024. It's quite a large set, but the location and situation is utterly unique, so it's worth the more-thorough documentation.

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The time-warp house in Flixton

The time-warp house in Flixton

A large free-standing butler sink

There's an ancient 1960s can of luncheon meat

The kitchen - untouched for decades

We move into the informal dining room

Clive finds an interesting USAAF artefact

Clive finds some more crests and badges

An original US Army Medical Department box

We find a very old Diss Express

More personal possessions

We're in another reception room

Down in the cellar

A collection of randomness on a table

A study in light and shade

Suzanne reads a diary

A painting of the owner of the house

Clive reads the diary by the light of a window

A somewhat-prosaic entry for VE Day

The owner's bedroom

One of the upstairs attic rooms

Ceiling decay around an original light fitting

Another bedroom, filled with 1940s furniture

A disturbingly-long toilet

A guest bedroom with more 30s and 40s furniture

A cobweb-covered water pump

Electrically-operated service indicators

We're back in the kitchen

Yet another drawing room

A nice little collection of things

One of several sets of horse brasses

We start exploring the first of the site buildings

Piles of chairs

Suzanne talks about something

A tub simply says 'girls'

Oi! All gear is to be returned the same day

Some of the buildings are returning to nature

Ivy grows all over the inside walls

Some of the buildings are very derelict

More ivy, and some major cracks

Roaming around outside

Trees are gowing inside this hut

Clive grins as we enter another building

A broken light switch

A 70s cistern on an original toilet

An HMSO sign from 1971

Detritus in the corner of a building

Coat hooks on a wall

Another corner in another hut

Possibly one of the mess/recreation huts

Bottles lined up on a shelf

The remains of a map of the USA

A shower and toilet

This hut's in fairly good condition

Artwork of the 704th Bomb Squadron - The Vultures

A winged unicorn - emblem of the 705th Bomb Squadron

More unique wall art

A mural of wine bottles and a fruit bowl

The 446th Bomb Group's 'Aero Club' room

A commemorative plaque from Ross Poulty/Buxted

Another view of the Aero Club

More wall art, obscured by some electrical gear

A row of original wall urinals

An original toilet cistern

Looking down a dried-out toilet bowl

Another relatively intact hut

One of the maintenance sheds

A view of the outside

Ivy covers a tower

There are three or four complete sets of buildings

We roam around another mess/canteen hut

The remains of another toilet block

Another derelict room

Flaking blue paint on a wall

Green algae on a pool of water

An original Nissen hut

We stride off to another building

Part of a large shower block

Another building with an ivy-covered tower

A roofless hut

One of the better-preserved huts

Curious rust stains on a wall

Part of a workshop or maintenance shed

Some original 1940s wiring

What looks like a former garage

Another well-preserved hut

Exploring over, we head back to the house

The last remaining building on the old airfield

A memorial for Station 125 and the 446th Bomb Group