An “eyesore” RAF camp at the entrance to a Buchan Coast village is being transformed into a modern apartment complex.
The new Buchan Braes flats in Boddam have been built in the former officer’s mess of RAF Buchan’s domestic base.
The accommodation and mess areas of the former base – which was vital for coordinating the UK’s air defence strategy before it became and unmanned radar station in 2005 – are now making way for a new neighbourhood.
And developers hope the site near the A90 Peterhead to Aberdeen route will prove popular with commuters and those looking to enjoy the beautiful coastline.
Site owner Pamela Buchan said: “We demolished the huts and the sergeant’s mess is all that’s left. There are 11 flats being created in the mess.
“The huts were an eyesore and they’ve been completely demolished.”
And architect Richard Slater, from Michael Gilmour Associates, said: “We’re trying to regenerate the whole Buchan Braes site so getting people on the site is vital.
“There’s already a hotel, dentist and a business centre. This is about a sense of community – it’s critical to get people there to complete it.”
Planning permission for 20 residential properties on the site was granted by Aberdeenshire Council in July, and this initial build of 11 flats represented the first phase of the scheme.
One flat is already complete and work will take place to landscape the area where the RAF accommodation huts once stood.
Royal Air Force station Buchan was opened in 1952 as one of the UK’s two air defence control and reporting centres.
The domestic accommodation was built in Boddam to house the personal of the base which played a key role in intercepting Russian planes en route to Cuba.
Permanently manned operations ended in 2005 and the Buchan family converted part of the accommodation into the Buchan Braes hotel.
