Leckwith Decoy Site, Cwrt-yr-ala, was established during the Second World War to trick German bombers to drop their loads over the valley known as 'The Lawns' instead of over greater Cardiff (which, at the time, had extensive munitions and steel manufacture). Electric lights and hydrocarbon fires were activated when the bombers were in the area which encouraged them to drop their bombs onto an area which appeared to have already been bombed. The site consisted of a Control Centre bunker and two separate decoy sites in neighbouring fields. The decoy site probably became operational in autumn 1940 and suffered extensive bomb cratering during its use. Remnants of the Control Centre are extant.

References: Notes by Christopher Gridley, former chairman of the Cwrt-yr-ala Estates Company and resident at Cwrt-yr-ala between 1944 and 1972, based on research by Ivor Jones, author of "Airfields and Landing Grounds of Wales".

RCAHMW, 18 May 2011.