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Leeds East Airport, formerly RAF Church Fenton, is a privately owned aerodrome near the village of Church Fenton in North Yorkshire, now operated by Makins Enterprises as a base for business aviation, a flying club, film production and aircraft storage. Its four hard runways, inherited from decades of RAF fast-jet training, offer generous length for a private field, making it an interesting and historic destination for visiting pilots. Prior permission is required before any visit.
Leeds East Airport, sited at the former RAF Church Fenton near the village of the same name in North Yorkshire, is a privately owned aerodrome operated by Makins Enterprises. Having once been a front-line RAF fighter and training station, it now serves as a hub for private and business aviation, a flying club, aircraft storage and film production, giving it a distinctive character that blends military heritage with modern commercial use. For the visiting simulator pilot it offers an unusually long set of hard runways for a private airfield, a legacy of its RAF past.
The airfield lies in North Yorkshire, roughly 4.3 miles south-east of Tadcaster and 6.3 miles north-west of Selby, close to the village of Church Fenton, and is positioned to serve both Leeds and York. Its air traffic zone, which existed while the site was an active RAF station, was suspended by NOTAM at the end of 2013 following closure, and the airfield now operates as a private aerodrome under its own arrangements. Pilots planning a visit should note that prior permission is required.
Leeds East Airport has two physical hard runways, both lit. Runway 06/24 is the longer, with runway 24 measuring 5,969 ft and runway 06 measuring 5,609 ft. Runway 16/34 comprises runway 16 at 5,466 ft and runway 34 at 4,811 ft. There is no ILS approach available at the field.
The airfield began life as RAF Church Fenton, declared open on 1 April 1937, with Wing Commander W.E. Swann assuming command as the first station commander on 19 April. Within two months No. 71 Squadron RAF had arrived flying the Gloster Gladiator, and the station went on to see its busiest period during the Second World War as part of the fighter defence network protecting the industrial regions of Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield and the Humber estuary. After the war it continued as a fighter base, among the first to re-equip with jet aircraft such as the Gloster Meteor and later the Hawker Hunter, before its role shifted mainly to flying training. No. 7 Flying Training School operated from the airfield between 1962 and 1966 and again from 1979 to 1992, flying Jet Provost T3 trainers, and the station also hosted the Royal Navy Elementary Flying Training School with the Scottish Aviation Bulldog. From 1979 to 1992 it became the first station to receive the Short Tucano T1 turboprop trainer, and from 1998 to 2003 it served as the RAF's main Elementary Flying Training airfield. The last independent Station Commander, Squadron Leader David Morris, oversaw the station's transfer into the control of RAF Linton-on-Ouse as a satellite airfield in 1992, with the gates of the fully independent station closing at midday on 31 December 1992. The runways and flying infrastructure, separated administratively from the rest of the site, remained operational until closure was announced on 25 March 2013, with units relocating to RAF Linton-on-Ouse by the end of that year and the airfield finally closing on 19 December 2013. The site was sold on 23 December 2014 to Makins Yorkshire Strawberries, which retained the airfield for continued operation, and in February 2015 the new owners, Makins Enterprises, rebranded it as Leeds East Airport under the slogan "Yorkshire's newest aviation destination." The second series of the ITV drama Victoria was filmed in a hangar on site in 2017, and in June 2023 planning permission was granted to develop part of the site into sound stages and office space for the creative and media industries.
Leeds East Airport is now run by Makins Enterprises as a base for private and business aviation alongside commercial storage, event hosting and film production. The operator provides pilot-facing services including a PPR form and an RNP form for visiting aircraft, along with an aero club membership scheme, indicating an active general aviation and flying club presence at the field. Prior permission is required before any flight to the airfield. Hangar and aviation space is available to rent, reflecting its continued role as a working general aviation aerodrome alongside its other commercial uses.
