Rougham Control Tower Aviation Museum
Volunteer-run museum in the restored wartime control tower of RAF Bury St Edmunds, telling the story of the American 94th Bomb Group; free entry.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
Rougham Control Tower stands on the former RAF Bury St Edmunds airfield, built in 1941 and 1942 and opened in September 1942 for the United States Army Air Forces. Several American groups used the airfield, and from June 1943 it was the home of the 94th Bombardment Group, which flew Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers in the Eighth Air Force campaign over occupied Europe. The airfield returned to the Royal Air Force in December 1945 and closed in 1948; most of it went back to farmland and the former technical site became an industrial estate.
After the war a family lived in the control tower as a private home, until it was abandoned in 1988. In 1992 a group of local enthusiasts formed the Rougham Tower Association and, with the landowner’s permission, restored the tower as close to its original state as they could, repairing the concrete roof and the outer walls and later adding a new visual control room on the roof.
Today the rooms of the tower hold displays about the airmen who served at Rougham, and Nissen huts alongside show further exhibits, including aircraft parts recovered from crash sites in Suffolk and Norfolk. A tea room and meeting room occupies the old radar building, and a memorial was built around an engine from an aircraft based at Rougham.
Highlights
- Restored 1940s airfield control tower with a visual control room
- Displays on the American 94th Bomb Group and its B-17 bombers
- Nissen huts with aircraft parts recovered from crash sites in Suffolk and Norfolk
- Memorial built around an aircraft engine
- Free entry, run entirely by volunteers
Permanent exhibition
- Control tower and Nissen huts – Rooms in the restored tower tell the story of the airmen of the 94th Bomb Group; Nissen huts show further displays including recovered aircraft parts.
- Founded
- 1992
- Operated by
- Rougham Tower Association
Admission & discounts
Admission is free.
| Adults | free |
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Entry is free; donations are welcome, including online via PayPal.
Accessibility
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Kids & families
Great for kids & families
The museum describes itself as child and dog friendly; children and dogs must be kept under control.
Getting there & parking
By car
Parking available
There is a museum car park beside the entrance.
By car, leave the A14 at junction 44 (Moreton Hall interchange) or junction 45, then follow Bedingfield Way and Skyliner Way to Rougham Tower Avenue and turn into the museum car park. what3words: ///hotspots.sung.subplot.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
The tea room in the former radar building is mainly offered for hire for events; the website does not say it is open to visitors as a café.
Events & venue rental
- Spaces for rent
- Private parties
- Weddings / ceremonies
The Tower Tea Room can be hired for wedding receptions, parties, birthdays and talks. Prices are available by phone, and profits go to the museum.
Plan your visit
| Good to know | Self-guided visit around the tower and the Nissen huts. Dogs are welcome if kept under control. |
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