Alconbury Weald Joins the First Cold War National Heritage Week

Alconbury Weald will be taking part in the inaugural Cold War National Heritage Week from 16–23 May 2025. This national initiative brings together historic locations across the UK to highlight Britain’s Cold War past through education, collaboration and public engagement. The event offers visitors a unique opportunity to explore the impact of the Cold War on Britain and the hidden histories behind key defence sites.

Cold War National Heritage Week aims to bring history to life through expert-led tours, special exhibitions and interactive experiences. By opening up historically significant Cold War-era sites, the event promotes a deeper understanding of the period, encouraging reflection on its lasting influence and the importance of preserving this history for future generations.

Alconbury Weald is home to a number of listed buildings, which reflect the important Cold War role of the former RAF and USAF airbase. These reflect the important reconnaissance work carried out by the base, which was the only permanent UK base for the TR1 reconnaissance aircraft. The listed buildings – which include four TR1 hangars and the Avionics Building will form part of a future Heritage Park area, preserving the settings of the buildings and bringing them to life for people wanting to find out more about their historic role. The Heritage Park will be a unique aspect of the Alconbury Weald community, connecting to the future central hub of shops and services, and linking to Runway Park – whose landscape designs are currently in planning. 

To mark National Cold War Heritage Week, tours will be available of the Avionics Building on Friday 23 May.  This unique Grade II-listed bunker, which was designed to withstand chemical and biological attacks, was one of the largest and most sophisticated intelligence processing facilities in the UK, originally built to analyse the data collected by the TR1  aircraft.