The Upottery Airfield Nissen Hut Heritage Centre sits on working farmland a few miles northeast of Honiton, in the rolling Blackdown Hills countryside of east Devon. It occupies an original Nissen hut, the curved corrugated-iron structures thrown up in their thousands during the Second World War, and it tells the story of RAF Upottery, a airfield that briefly became one of the most significant departure points for Allied paratroopers ahead of D-Day. If you know the HBO series Band of Brothers, this is the actual ground where Easy Company trained and waited before boarding their aircraft for Normandy.

It's a small, volunteer-run museum rather than a polished visitor attraction, and that's part of its appeal. You're walking into a genuine wartime building on a working farm, not a reconstruction built for tourists.

Why the Upottery Airfield Heritage Centre matters

RAF Upottery was built in 1943 and 1944 as one of the many temporary airfields scattered across the West Country to support the coming invasion of occupied Europe. For a short but intense stretch in the spring of 1944, it became home to elements of the United States 101st Airborne Division, including the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment's Easy Company, the unit later made famous by Stephen Ambrose's book and the subsequent television adaptation. The men trained in the fields and lanes around Smeatharpe, slept in Nissen huts like the one this museum now occupies, and on the night of 5 June 1944 climbed aboard C-47 transport aircraft from this airfield to jump into Normandy ahead of the D-Day beach landings.

That connection is the single most compelling reason to make the detour down narrow Devon lanes to find this place. Few sites in England let you stand in the actual building where paratroopers who featured in one of the most watched war dramas of the last twenty-five years spent their final nights on English soil before a combat jump.

Quick facts

• Location: Cherry Hayes Farm, Smeatharpe, Slough Lane, near Honiton, Devon
• Housed in: an original wartime Nissen hut on the former RAF Upottery airfield site
• Historical unit: 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, including Easy Company
• Key date: paratroopers departed from Upottery on the night of 5 to 6 June 1944 for the Normandy drop
• Run by: local volunteers, on privately owned farmland
• Entry: typically donation-based, with limited and seasonal opening times

Getting there

The centre lies roughly 15 to 20 minutes by car from Honiton town centre, reached via a network of single-track Devon lanes that wind through Smeatharpe. There's no public transport route that gets you close, so a car is effectively essential. Satnavs can struggle with the exact farm entrance, so it's worth looking for signage for Cherry Hayes Farm once you're in the Smeatharpe area rather than trusting postcode navigation alone. The approach itself, past hedgerows and sheep fields, gives you a sense of just how rural and unlikely a place this was to host thousands of American paratroopers eight decades ago.

Because this is a working farm, parking is informal. Go slowly on the final approach and be mindful of farm vehicles and livestock.

The layout and experience

The museum itself is modest in scale, a single original Nissen hut fitted out with display cases, photographs, uniforms, and memorabilia connected to the airfield's wartime use. Don't expect the scale or production values of a national war museum. What you get instead is intimacy: low curved ceilings, corrugated walls, and the particular quiet of a building that has stood largely unchanged since the 1940s.

Displays typically cover the construction of the airfield, daily life for the airborne troops stationed there, and the departure for Normandy. Local volunteers who run the site often have a depth of knowledge about the airfield's history that goes well beyond what's written on the information boards, so it's worth asking questions if someone is on hand.

Main highlights

• The Nissen hut structure itself, an original surviving example of the temporary wartime architecture that once covered this airfield
• Photographs and artefacts relating to the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment's time at Upottery
• Material connected to Easy Company specifically, for visitors who know the unit through Band of Brothers
• Information on the airfield's broader RAF and USAAF operational history before and after the D-Day departures
• The wider farm landscape, which still carries traces of the airfield's runways and perimeter track if you know where to look

History and background

RAF Upottery, sometimes referenced by its American designation as Station 462, was one of a cluster of airfields built across Devon and the wider Southwest in the run-up to the Normandy invasion. Construction crews worked fast, laying runways across requisitioned farmland to create a temporary but functional base for transport aircraft.

In the weeks before D-Day, American paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division arrived to train and prepare. Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, was among the units billeted here, living in Nissen huts scattered around the airfield perimeter while rehearsing jumps and tactics for the invasion ahead. On the night of 5 June 1944, C-47 Skytrain aircraft lifted off from Upottery's runways carrying these men toward the Cotentin Peninsula, where they jumped into the dark hours before the Normandy beach landings began. It was a pivotal, nerve-wracking departure, and for some of the men who boarded those planes at Upottery, it was the last English soil they ever stood on.

After the war, the airfield gradually returned to agricultural use, as so many of Britain's temporary wartime airfields did. Much of the infrastructure was removed or left to decay, but this particular Nissen hut survived, eventually becoming the heritage centre's home thanks to the efforts of local volunteers determined that the story shouldn't simply disappear back into the farmland.

Tickets and entry

Entry is generally informal and donation-based rather than ticketed in any structured sense. Because the centre is run by volunteers on a working farm, opening days and hours tend to be limited, often concentrated around weekends or specific seasons, and can vary year to year. It's worth checking current opening information before setting out, since there's no guarantee of staff being on site outside advertised hours, and a wasted trip down these lanes is an annoyance given how rural the location is.

Best time to visit

Spring through early autumn tends to be the most reliable window, both for the centre's own limited opening schedule and for the experience of visiting. The surrounding farmland and lanes are at their most pleasant in good weather, and daylight hours make the drive down narrow Devon roads considerably easier. Visiting around early June, close to the anniversary of the D-Day departures, adds a certain resonance, though you should check that the centre is actually open on your chosen date rather than assuming an anniversary opening.

Combining with nearby attractions

Honiton itself, a pleasant Devon market town known for its lace-making history and antiques shops, makes a sensible base or stopping point before or after your visit. The Blackdown Hills, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, surround Upottery and offer good walking country if you want to extend the day. History-focused travelers sometimes pair this visit with other wartime sites across the Southwest, given how many temporary airfields were scattered through Devon and Somerset during the war, though few have a connection as directly tied to a well-known story as Upottery's link to Easy Company.

Practical tips

• Confirm opening days in advance, since the centre operates on a limited, volunteer-dependent schedule
• Bring cash for a donation, as card payment options may be unreliable or unavailable
• Wear sturdy shoes, the farm surroundings can be muddy outside summer months
• Allow extra time for the drive, the final approach lanes are narrow and satnav directions can be imprecise
• If you're a Band of Brothers fan, read up on the Upottery departure beforehand, it adds considerable depth to what you're seeing on site

FAQ

Is the Upottery Airfield Heritage Centre connected to Band of Brothers?

Yes. RAF Upottery was the airfield from which Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, departed on the night of 5 June 1944 to jump into Normandy ahead of the D-Day landings. The events are depicted in the HBO series Band of Brothers, and the heritage centre occupies an original Nissen hut from the airfield where these soldiers were based.

How do I get to the Upottery Airfield Heritage Centre?

The centre is located at Cherry Hayes Farm near Smeatharpe, roughly 15 to 20 minutes by car from Honiton, reached via narrow country lanes. A car is essentially necessary, as there's no practical public transport option.

Is the heritage centre open every day?

No. It's run by volunteers on a working farm and typically has limited, seasonal opening hours, often weekends only. It's best to check ahead rather than arrive unannounced.

How long should I plan for a visit?

Given its small scale, most visitors spend between 30 minutes and an hour at the centre itself, though you may want to allow extra time to explore the surrounding farmland and lanes where the original airfield once stood.

Is there an admission fee?

Entry is generally donation-based rather than fixed-price ticketing, in keeping with the centre's volunteer-run, community nature.