Cecil Plains Airfield

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Cecil Plains airfield was built in early 1942 for use by US heavy bombers, in case the Japanese invaded southeast Queensland. It was maintained by the RAAF but was not used until late 1944, by RAAF squadrons flying B-24 Liberator bombers. The airfield is located about 7km north of the town of Cecil Plains, to the west of the Dalby-Cecil Plains Road. Cook Road and Miss Jurgs Road skirt the airfield to its northeast and northwest sides.

The two intersecting sealed runways (45 degree and 135 degree) are still obvious from the air, as are the sealed taxiway that connected the south ends of the two runways, and the two sealed taxiways that curved from the ends of the 45 degree runway northwards to the NW end of the 135 degree runway.

Place information

Location

Cook Road

Cecil Plains, QLD 4407

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Place type

Airfield

History

The arrival of US forces in Queensland from late December 1941 led to an increased demand for airfields to accommodate US aircraft. Existing RAAF airfields were used, and new fields were also constructed. Cecil Plains was one of four airfields built for US heavy bombers (Cecil Plains, Leyburn, Jondaryan and Condamine). These inland airfields could be used to launch bombing missions if the Japanese ever landed near Brisbane.

In late March 1942 the RAAF requested that the Department of the Interior construct an airfield at Cecil Plains, just west of the Condamine River. However, the Queensland Main Roads Commission (MRC) was...

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