Monument record 0950901000 - Strike Command

The Operations Block was underground and covered with earth. It was replaced by a new bunker which was opened in 1989 (B1, 4: see CAS 9509:01:001). The Operations Room, known as 'The Hole', had been purpose built for Bomber Command just before the war (B2). The Operations Block was a large concrete box 50 feet below ground level and reinforced against aerial attack (B4). The floor and roof clabs were each 5'6" in depth. Over the roof slab was a layer of ballast, then a 2' layer of concrete covered with a 4' cushion of earth and another 5' layer of reinforced concrete extending well beyond the walls of the building. This "burster" slab was designed to detonate a bomb in the event of a direct hit. Last of all came a considerable depth of earth mounding, on top of which were laid grass turfs (B1).