826 Naval Air Squadron

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826 Naval Air Squadron
826 Squadron Westland Sea King HAS.1 based on HMS Eagle in 1970.
ActiveMarch 1940 – August 1943
December 1943 – October 1944
August 1945 – February 1946
? – November 1955
March 1966 – March 1970
June 1970 – July 1993
Country United Kingdom
Branch Royal Navy
TypeCarrier based squadron
RoleTorpedo Spotter Reconnaissance (TSR)
Part ofFleet Air Arm
Battle honoursDunkirk 1940, English Channel 1940–44, Atlantic 1940, Matapan 1941, Crete 1941, Mediterranean 1941–43, Libya 1941–2, Falklands 1982, Kuwait 1991

826 Naval Air Squadron was a Fleet Air Arm aircraft squadron formed during World War II which has been reformed several times since then until last disbanded in 1993.

History

Second World War

No. 826 Squadron was formed at

Operation Sealion. On 7 October the squadron left Coastal Command control to undertake more training in preparation for carrier-based operations.[2] From May to October, the Squadron dropped 55.5 tons of bombs and seven tons of mines, escorted over 100 convoys. It claimed two Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighters shot down for the loss of five Albacores.[3]

In November 1940, the squadron embarked on the newly commissioned aircraft carrier HMS Formidable, which sailed for the Mediterranean via South Africa and the Red Sea, the squadron flying attacks against Massawa in Italian-ruled Eritrea on the way.[4] The squadron's strength was supplemented by two Swordfishes in March 1941 to replace losses. 826 Squadron took part in the Battle of Cape Matapan on 28 March 1941, damaging the Italian battleship Vittorio Veneto.[4][5] On 26 May 1941, following an attack on an airfield on Karpathos, Formidable was badly damaged by German bombers, and was withdrawn from operations for repair, with 826 Squadron being detached for land-based operations.[4]

The Squadron was then deployed on night bombing raids over the

Syria–Lebanon Campaign on 28 June 1941. The squadron returned to North Africa on 15 July, and continued to carry night bombing attacks until early 1942, when it returned to the torpedo bomber role, operating from Berka in Libya to attack Italian convoys.[6] The Squadron continued to carry out both anti-shipping and bombing missions in support of the army for much of the rest of 1942, adding the role of dropping flares to illuminate targets for Vickers Wellington bombers, participating in both the first and second Battles of El Alamein. Following the British victory at El Alamein, the squadron continued to fly anti-shipping and convoy escort missions until disbanded on 25 August 1943.[7]

826 Naval Air Squadron reformed on 1 December 1943 at

RNAS Lee-on-Solent equipped with the Fairey Barracuda torpedo bomber as part of No 9 Torpedo-Bomber-Reconnaissance (TBR) Wing.[8] The Squadron deployed aboard the carrier HMS Indefatigable on 10 June, taking part in an unsuccessful raid against the German battleship Tirpitz (Operation Mascot) at Kaa Fjord in Northern Norway in July 1944, and deploying aboard HMS Formidable for another series of attacks on Tirpitz, Operation Goodwood, attacking on 24 and 29 August 1944. The Squadron was again disbanded on 13 October 1944.[9]

Peter Butterworth, famous as an actor in the British Carry On film series, was flying for the squadron when he was shot down in 1940.

Post War

Canada

The squadron reformed on 15 August 1945, again equipped with Barracudas, with the intention of forming part of the air wing of

Grumman TBM Avenger anti-submarine aircraft in June 1950. On 1 May 1951, the squadron was renamed 881 Naval Air Squadron,[10]
later VS 881.

Reformation

Commander Jeffrey Powell, Commanding Officer of 826 Naval Air Squadron 1954, aboard HMS Glory
Commander Jeffrey Powell, Commanding Officer of 826 Naval Air Squadron 1954, aboard HMS Glory

826 Squadron reformed as part of the Fleet Air Arm in May 1951, equipped with Firefly Mk 5 (soon replaced by Firefly AS. Mk.6) in the anti-submarine role. The Squadron flew its Fireflys off the carriers HMS Indomitable, Theseus and Glory, before re-equipping with the new Fairey Gannet anti-submarine aircraft in January 1955, becoming the first squadron to operate the Gannet. It embarked aboard HMS Eagle but disbanded in November 1955.[10]

Helicopters

The 826 designation was then reactivated in 1966 at

RFA Olmeda and RFA Olna before deploying aboard HMS Eagle in 1969. The squadron disbanded at RNAS Culdrose on 25 March 1970.[11]

It was reformed a sixth time on 2 June 1970 with Westland Sea Kings,[12] serving on HMS Eagle until the carrier decommissioned in January 1972. The squadron then operated from the helicopter training ship RFA Engadine and from December 1972, from the cruiser HMS Tiger. It continued to operate its Sea Kings from Tiger until 1978, when it transferred to the carrier Bulwark, receiving Sea King HAS.5s in March 1981, and embarking on Hermes in September that year.[13] (Bulwark having been paid off in March 1981.[14])

Following the

RFA Fort Austin to free up space aboard Hermes on 17 May. The Squadron lost two helicopters during the Falklands War, but on both occasions the crews escaped unharmed.[15]

After the end of the war, the Squadron was split into a number of independent flights operating from Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships, and deployed in turn to the South Atlantic, these operations continuing until 1986. After that period, the Squadron was split into 4 flights of two Sea Kings each, operating from Type 22 frigates, RFAs and aircraft carriers as required.[16]

In December 1990, just prior to the start of the First

RFA Fort Grange; the crew and passengers survived.[17]

After the squadron's aircraft had been reallocated to 810 Naval Air Squadron and 819 Naval Air Squadron the squadron was again disbanded in July 1993.[18]

Aircraft operated

Fairey Albacore, circa 1940.
Westland Sea King HAS.1 helicopter
Aircraft operated by 826 Naval Air Squadron:[18]
From To Aircraft Version Notes
March 1940 August 1943 Fairey Albacore I
July 1940
March 1941
August 1940
September 1941
Fairey Swordfish I
December 1943 October 1944 Fairey Barracuda II
August 1945 January 1946 Fairey Barracuda II(ASH) Fitted with Air-to-Surface H radar
January 1946
May 1947
February 1946
October 1950
Fairey Firefly FR.1
December 1948 January 1949 Fairey Firefly T.1
October 1950 May 1951
Grumman Avenger
TBM-3E
May 1951 January 1955 Fairey Firefly AS.6
January 1955 November 1955 Fairey Gannet AS.1
March 1966 October 1968 Westland Wessex HAS.1
October 1968 March 1970 Westland Wessex HAS.3
June 1970 December 1976 Westland Sea King HAS.1
December 1976 March 1981 Westland Sea King HAS.2/2a
March 1981 May 1993 Westland Sea King HAS.5
April 1988 July 1993 Westland Sea King HAS.6

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b Brown 1972, p. 48.
  2. ^ Brown 1972, pp. 49–50.
  3. ^ Brown 1972, pp. 48–50.
  4. ^ a b c Brown 1972, p. 50.
  5. ^ "Fleet Air Arm 826 squadron profile". fleetairarmarchive.net. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. ^ Brown 1972, pp. 50–51.
  7. ^ Brown 1972, pp. 51–53.
  8. ^ Brown 1972, pp. 53–54.
  9. ^ Brown 1972, pp. 53–58.
  10. ^ a b c Brown 1972, p. 58.
  11. ^ Brown 1972, pp. 58, 61.
  12. ^ Brown 1972, p. 61.
  13. ^ Sturtivant and Ballance 1994, pp. 222–224.
  14. ^ Chesneau 1998, p. 146.
  15. ^ Burden et al 1986, pp. 247–250.
  16. ^ Sturtivant and Ballance 1994, pp. 223, 225–227.
  17. ^ Howard et al 2011, p. 255.
  18. ^ a b Sturtivant and Ballance 1994, p.223.

Bibliography


External links