Monument record BAW 052 - Diver Battery G13 and RAF Bawdsey Bloodhound Missile Site.

World War I(?) balloon station, occupying whole field. Various (later?) buildings & road running round (S1).
The site mistakenly identified above as a World War I balloon station is in fact a Cold War missile site constructed at RAF Bawdsey post-1965. However, the site was utilised in World War II for the construction of a Heavy Anti-aircraft Artillery 'Diver' Battery. The battery was constructed at some point between July 1944 and October 1945 and consisted of four gun emplacments with numerous associated nissen huts. The building directly behind the emplacements probably housed the command post. (S2) Some remains of the battery can still be seen in photographs from 1948 (S3) but by March 1952 the site is being redeveloped.
Site of Second World War heavy anti aircraft Diver battery in the Diver Strip at Bawdsey Cliff. It was armed with four 3.7-inch Mark IIc guns equipped with Predictor BTL, and Radar AA No.3 Mark V when it was deployed here on 24th November 1944, and was manned by 418 Battery of 140 Anti Aircraft Artillery Regiment. It formed part of 102 Heavy Anti Aircraft Brigade deployment (S6).
Site of national importance
the Cold War Bloodhound Mark II Missile Site survives intact apart from the removal of the missiles and their associated mobile equipment.(S4)
In 1950 Bawdsey was selected to become part of the ROTOR program, a program to update Britains radar cover after WW2. It consisted of many sites with huge underground bunkers to withstand conventional bombing. In 1958 an AMES Type 80 Mk3 was installed with 2 AN/FPS-6 US made radars. Bawdsey was manned by 144 Signals Unit from 11 group and together with 6 other stations in the Eastern Sector it offered cover from 30 minutes before dawn to 30 minutes after sunset as there was no night cover(S5).