Britain's first nuclear missiles were based in East Yorkshire

RAF Catfoss is long forgotten. Today, the runway is home to an industrial estate.

But half a century ago, this peaceful corner of Holderness was on the frontline of the Cold War. In the late 1950s, Catfoss was one of five bases in East Yorkshire chosen as launch sites for Britain’s first nuclear missiles.

The "Thor" missiles, supplied by the United States, could carry warheads big enough to destroy an entire city. They were installed at several sites in the county in 1958.

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Catfoss, near Brandesburton, received the missiles, along with RAF bases in Driffield, Carnaby, Full Sutton and Breighton, near Howden. Four years later, the world teetered on the brink of nuclear war and the Thor missiles were placed on full standby.

They could have been launched within 15 minutes, aimed at targets in Russia (then the communist Soviet Union). Had they been fired in anger, it is likely that cities such as Hull would have been destroyed already – or would have faced imminent attack.

On another occasion, an accident while fuelling a missile threatened to cause a nuclear explosion that could have devastated the entire Humber region. Details only emerged decades later.

The few short years when Thor missiles were based in Britain was an extraordinary period in the history of the West and NATO. It was a time when the US, Britain and their allies were pitched against Soviet Russia.

In October 1957, Russia launched the first satellite, Sputnik, into space. It was an incredible achievement and left the US and Britain fearing that their rivals may also be taking the lead in nuclear missile technology – leaving them at risk of being devastated in a nuclear "first strike".

At the time, Britain had nuclear weapons, but they could only be delivered by bomber planes. In the event of war, its "V force" of jets – including the famous Vulcan – would have to fly into Russian territory to drop the bombs on to their targets. Such a strategy was fraught with risk – not least in that the bombers could be shot down.

To strengthen the deterrent, the US agreed to station Thors in the UK. The "intermediate-range" missiles could reach Moscow and were operated jointly by the RAF and the US Air Force.

In September 1958, installation began at 20 launch sites in eastern England. In East Yorkshire, a command and control hub was set up at RAF Driffield, which became home to No. 98 Squadron RAF, with three Thor missiles.

Members of the squadron, which was given the designation SM – strategic missile – had been the first British airmen to fire a Thor, when given training in California. Four other bases were upgraded to act as satellites, each with three missiles, at Breighton, Full Sutton, Carnaby and Catfoss.

Holme-on-Spalding Moor, Pocklington, Leconfield and Elvington had also been considered. Chillingly, it was ensured that the bases were well spread to avoid a single nuclear strike by Russia taking out too many of them.

Construction of the bases entailed building new concrete launch pads, missile hangers, fuel tanks, security fences and quarters for the crew. Triangulation stations (trig points) were installed at high points such as Goole water tower, to ensure accurate surveying for the bases. Local roads were also surveyed to ensure they were suitable for transporting the missiles.

It would not have taken long for villagers to realise that they were now on the front line of the Cold War and likely to be the first to be struck in a nuclear war. According to information from the Air Ministry, published in 1960, the Driffield group would have had about 1,000 personnel, commanded by a group captain.

Despite the secretive work, life on the bases could be rather humdrum. At Catfoss, the squadron kept its own pigs, geese and chickens in the old control tower, while Full Sutton had a flock of geese.

When installed upright on their launch pads (usually they were kept in hangars under high security) the missiles looked like miniature moon rockets. When fired, they would climb at supersonic speed to an altitude of 280 miles, on the way to hitting a target up to 1,500 miles away.

The warhead was powerful enough to devastate a city the size of Hull, killing everyone and causing widespread destruction with a five-mile radius of the city centre and smashing windows 13 miles away.

A close-run thing

In 1962, Russia sent its own missiles to Cuba, a move that sparked a terrifying nuclear stand-off known as the Cuban Missile Crisis. NATO forces were placed at "Defcon 2", just one notch below a full-blown war.

In East Yorkshire, the Thors were brought to “T-15 readiness” (15 minutes to launch), while south of the river in Lincolnshire, Vulcan bombers were readied for takeoff and pilots were fully kitted out in their flying gear.

Not everybody believed the end was nigh. According to author John Boyes, an open day at Full Sutton for 100 guests went ahead as planned, but a dummy countdown to the launch of a missile was, quite sensibly, cancelled.

In the end, both sides climbed down and Armageddon was postponed. The following year, the Thors were withdrawn amid opposition to the cost of maintaining them and their status as a “first strike” weapon.

Thirty years later, evidence emerged of a near-catastrophic accident involving a Thor missile that could have devastated the Humber region. It happened when a missile was been refuelled at RAF Ludford Magna, a Thor base in the Lincolnshire Wolds, about 20 miles south of the Humber Estuary.

During the fuelling process, a mistake meant about 7,000 gallons of liquid oxygen spilled on to the missile's launch pad. Firefighters described how the area was enveloped in a cloud of evaporating fuel, which could have caused an explosion.

According to the former base commander, who revealed details of the accident to the BBC in 1999, it could have led to a “terrible disaster”. Fortunately, at the time, the missile was without its nuclear warhead, but the two other Thors on site had warheads fitted, according to John Boyes, the author of Project Emily: Thor IRBM and the RAF.

American air force personnel were said to be “aghast” at the accident. If the worst had happened, it could have contaminated between 100 and 300 square miles of countryside with radiation.

Even without the dangers of a Cold War, it seems these missiles were too hot to handle. But even many decades on our region still plays a role in NATO's nuclear deterrent. Read about the top secret base and its role spotting Putin's missiles.