Fleet Air Arm

The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is the branch of the British Royal Navy responsible for the operation of naval aircraft. The Fleet Air Arm currently operates the AgustaWestland Merlin, Westland Sea King and Westland Lynx helicopters. Helicopters such as the Lynx and Westland Wasp have been deployed on smaller vessels since 1964, taking over the roles once performed by biplanes such as the Fairey Swordfish.

The Fleet Air Arm was formed in 1924 as organisational unit of the Royal Air Force which was then operating the aircraft embarked on RN ships – the Royal Naval Air Service having been merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps in 1918 – and did not come under the direct control of the Admiralty until mid-1939. During the Second World War, the Fleet Air Arm operated both aircraft on ships and land-based aircraft that defended the Royal Navy's shore establishments and facilities.

Beginnings
British naval flying started in 1909, with the construction of an airship for naval duties. In 1911 the Royal Navy graduated its first aeroplane pilots at the Royal Aero Club flying ground at Eastchurch, Isle of Sheppey under the tutelage of pioneer aviator George Bertram Cockburn, but in May 1912 naval and army aviation were combined to become the Royal Flying Corps (RFC). The Naval Wing of the RFC lasted until July 1914 when the Royal Navy reformed its air branch, under the Air Department of the Admiralty, naming it the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS).

By the outbreak of the First World War, in August 1914, the RNAS had more aircraft under its control than the remaining RFC. The main roles of the RNAS were fleet reconnaissance, patrolling coasts for enemy ships and submarines, attacking enemy coastal territory and defending Britain from enemy air-raids, along with deployment along the Western Front. In April 1918 the RNAS, which at this time had 67,000 officers and men, 2,949 aircraft, 103 airships and 126 coastal stations, merged with the RFC to form the Royal Air Force.

Fleet Air Arm
On 1 April 1924, the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Air Force was formed, encompassing those RAF units that normally embarked on aircraft carriers and fighting ships. 1924 was a significant year for British naval aviation as only weeks before the founding of the Fleet Air Arm, the Royal Navy had commissioned HMS Hermes, the world's first ship to be designed and built as an aircraft carrier. Over the following months RAF Fleet Air Arm Fairey IIID reconnaissance biplanes operated off Hermes, conducting flying trials.

On 24 May 1939 the Fleet Air Arm was returned to Admiralty control under the "Inskip Award" (named after the Minister for Co-ordination of Defence who was overseeing Britain's re-armament programme) and renamed the Air Branch of the Royal Navy.

At the onset of the Second World War, the Fleet Air Arm consisted of 20 squadrons with only 232 aircraft. By the end of the war the worldwide strength of the Fleet Air Arm was 59 aircraft carriers, 3,700 aircraft, 72,000 officers and men, and 56 Naval air stations.

During the war, the FAA operated fighters, torpedo bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. Following the Dunkirk evacuation and the commencement of the Battle of Britain, the Royal Air Force soon found itself critically short of fighter pilots. In the summer of 1940, the RAF had little more than 800 fighter pilots and as the Battle progressed the RAF shortage worsened. There were simply not enough pilots, not enough ground crew, never enough sleep and too many enemy aircraft. With this desperate situation the RAF was forced to call upon the Admiralty for Fleet Air Arm assistance. As the Battle progressed, many of the unsung heroes of RAF Fighter Command were the Fleet Air Arm crews who served under Fighter Command, either loaned directly to RAF fighter squadrons or as with 804 and 808 naval units, entire squadrons were loaned to RAF Fighter Command, such as No 804 Squadron, which provided dockyard defence during the Battle of Britain with Sea Gladiators.

In the waters around the British Isles and out into the Atlantic Ocean, operations against enemy shipping and submarines in support of the RN were mounted by RAF Coastal Command with large patrol bombers and flying boats and land-based fighter-bombers.

The aircraft carrier had replaced the battleship as the Fleet's capital ship and its aircraft were now strike weapons in their own right. The top scoring fighter ace with 17 victories was Commander Stanley Orr, the Royal Marine ace was Ronald Cuthbert Hay with 13 victories.

Post-war history
After the war the FAA needed to fly jet aircraft from their carriers. The jet aircraft of the era were considerably less effective at low speeds than propeller aircraft, but propeller aircraft could not effectively fight jets at the high speeds flown by jet aircraft. The FAA took on its first jet, the Sea Vampire, in the late 1940s. The Sea Vampire was the first jet credited with taking off and landing on a carrier. The Air Arm continued with high-powered prop aircraft alongside the new jets resulting in the FAA being woefully outpowered during the Korean War. Nevertheless, jets were not yet wholly superior to propeller aircraft and a flight of ground-attack Hawker Sea Furies downed a MiG-15 and damaged others in an engagement.

As jets became larger, more powerful and faster they required more space to take off and land. The US Navy simply built much larger carriers. The Royal Navy had a few large carriers built and completed after the end of the war but another solution was sought. This was partly overcome by the introduction of a Royal Navy idea to angle the flight deck away from the centre line so that the aircraft landing had a clear run away from the usual forward deck park. An associated British invention, intended to provide more precise optical guidance to aircraft on final approaching the deck, was the Fresnel lens optical landing aid. Another Royal Navy invention was the use of a steam powered catapult to cater for the larger and heavier aircraft (both systems were adopted by the US Navy). Defence cuts across the British armed forces during the 1960s and 1970s led to the withdrawal of existing Royal Navy aircraft carriers, transfer of Fleet Air Arm fixed-wing jet strike aircraft such as the F-4K (FG.1) Phantom II and Buccaneer S.2 to the Royal Air Force, and cancellation of large replacement aircraft carriers, including the CVA-01 design. A new series of small carriers, the Invincible class anti-submarine warfare ships (known as "through deck cruisers") were built and equipped with the Sea Harrier a derivative of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier VTOL aircraft. These carriers incorporated an upswept forward section of the flight deck that deflected the aircraft upward on launch and permitted heavier loads to be carried by the Harrier, for example in weaponry, and the system was used extensively in the Falklands war. The Harrier went on to form the basis of the Royal Navy's fixed-wing strike forces. Two new Queen Elizabeth class carriers able to operate the F-35B short take-off and landing variant of the US Lockheed Martin Lightning II aircraft are under construction. However, with 21st century defence cuts continuing to impact the Ministry of Defence in general, and the Admiralty in particular, it is not certain if both carriers will enter service or what the final number of F-35 aircraft purchased will be.

Helicopters also became important combat vehicles starting in the 1960s. At first they were employed on the carriers alongside the fixed-wing aircraft, but later they were also deployed on most smaller ships. Today at least one helicopter is found on all ships of frigate size or larger. Wasps and Sea Harriers played an active part in the 1982 Falkland Islands conflict, while Lynx helicopters played an attack role against Iraqi patrol boats in the 1991 Gulf War and Commando Sea King HC4s as well as the Lynx HMA Mk 8 from HMS Argyll, assisted in suppressing rebel forces in Sierra Leone.

In 2000 the Sea Harrier force was merged with the RAF's Harrier GR7 fleet to form Joint Force Harrier. The Fleet Air Arm began withdrawing the Sea Harrier from service in 2004 with the disbandment of 800 NAS. 801 NAS disbanded on 28 March 2006 at RNAS Yeovilton (HMS Heron). 800 and 801 NAS were then combined to form the Naval Strike Wing, flying ex-RAF Harrier GR7 and GR9s. On 1 April 2010, NSW reverted to the identity of 800 Naval Air Squadron. The Harrier GR7 and GR9 retired from service in December 2010 following the 2010 SDSR. With the introduction of the F-35, the Fleet Air Arm will eventually return to the operation of fixed-wing strike aircraft at sea. As of 2013, an initial cadre of Royal Air Force and Royal Navy pilots and aircraft maintenance personnel were assigned to the U.S. Marine Corps' Marine Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501 (VMFAT-501), part of the U.S. Air Force's 33rd Fighter Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, for training on the F-35B.

The Fleet Air Arm has a museum near RNAS Yeovilton (HMS Heron) in Somerset, England at which many of the great historical aircraft flown by the Service are on display, along with aircraft from other sources. There is also a Fleet Air Arm museum inside the Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT) in Auckland, New Zealand. On display there is a full-size replica Fairey Swordfish, along with historic items and memorabilia.

Personnel
In 1938, Admiralty Fleet Orders 2885 announced the formation of an Air Branch of the Royal Naval Reserve. Thirty three unmarried men signed up for 18 months full-time flying training; however, before these first volunteers were able to gain their wings Britain was at war. At the end of hostilities in 1945 the RNVR(A) was 46,000 strong, with over 8000 aircrew. Post war the RNVR(A) comprised 12 dedicated reserve squadrons, grouped regionally into Air Divisions. However, defence cuts in 1957 disbanded the five Air Divisions, and the following year the RNVR was merged with the RNR. The RNR Air Branch was commissioned at RNAS Yeovilton on 16 July 1980, and shortly afterwards 38 ex-regular aircrew began refresher training. Today the Air Branch comprises approx 250 ex-regular service Officers and Ratings, covering all aviation trades, tasked to support the Fleet Air Arm.

Today, the regular Fleet Air Arm has approximately 5,200 personnel, which represents over 15% of the Royal Navy's total strength. The Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Aviation & Carriers) is Rear Admiral R G Harding OBE.

Aircraft


The FAA operates fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft. The FAA uses the same designation system for aircraft as the RAF.

Three types of fixed-wing aircraft are operated by the FAA for training purposes: pilot training is carried out using the Grob Tutor while, from March 2011, observer training is done using four Beechcraft King Air 350s. The third type is the Hawk T1, which is used to simulate enemy aircraft for training purposes including AEW Fighter Control, air-to-air combat and ship attack.

Today the larger section of the FAA is the rotary-wing part. Its aviators fly four types of helicopter, and within each type there are usually several marks/versions which carry out different roles.

Pilots designated for rotary wing service train at the Defence Helicopter Flying School, RAF Shawbury. The School is a tri-Service organisation consisting of civilian and military instructors (including Naval instructors and a Naval Squadron) that take the student from basic flying through to more advanced flying such as instrument flying, navigation, formation and captaincy.

The oldest aircraft in the fleet is the Westland Sea King, which performs missions in several versions. The Sea King HC4 serves as a medium-lifter and troop-transporter in support of the Royal Marines. The HAS5U model operates in the search and rescue and utility roles, while the Sea King HU5 is designed for search and rescue work (although the HAS5Us are often called HU5s as well). The HAS6C is used for assault transport training; and the ASaC7 operates in the AEW role.

Intermediate in age is the Westland Lynx. The Lynx AH7s serve the FAA in the observation and anti-armour helicopter roles, but are mainly a light-lift helicopter. Along with the Sea King HC4s, they are part of the Commando Helicopter Force, which provides support to 3 Commando Brigade of the Royal Marines.

The surface combatants of the Royal Navy have their helicopters provided for the most part by the Lynx HMA8 aircraft. The Lynx have primarily an anti-submarine warfare role and anti-surface vessel role. They are able to fire the Sea Skua anti-surface missile, which was used to combat the Iraqi navy in the 1991 Gulf War. It can be armed with Stingray air-launched torpedoes and depth charges for anti-submarine warfare, as well as a machine gun. The Lynx was originally envisaged for surface combatants that were too small for the Sea King, but now equips most surface ships of the Royal Navy.

The newest helicopter in the FAA is the AgustaWestland Merlin HM1. This has now replaced the Sea King HAS6 in the Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) role, and is deployed on the various ships of the Royal Navy.

Future aircraft
In the Persian Gulf, the RN sustains a number of commitments in support of both national and coalition efforts to stabilise the region. The Armilla Patrol, which started in 1980, is the navy's primary commitment the Gulf region. The Royal Navy also contributes heavily to the combined maritime forces in the Gulf in support of coalition operations. The UK Maritime Component Commander (UKMCC), overseer of all UK warships in the Persian Gulf and surrounding waters, is also deputy commander of the Combined Maritime Forces. Although currently the Fleet Air Arm is an all rotary wing force in terms of its front-line operations, the introduction of the F-35B Lightning II will see a restoration of fixed wing operations. An initial order of 48 airframes was made in 2012 to equip the air wings of the planned two Queen Elizabeth class carriers, with the operation split between the FAA and the Royal Air Force, as was the case with Joint Force Harrier.

The Fleet Air Arm will obtain a total of 28 AW159 Wildcat helicopters to replace the current Lynx in use on the Ship's Flights of the Royal Navy's escorts - this will perform a range of roles including anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare and airborne surveillance.

To replace the Sea King in the Commando role, the Fleet Air Arm will receive the Merlin HC.3 fleet currently operated by the RAF - some of these aircraft will remain as HC.3 standard, while the rest will be fully navalised and classed as HC.4.

In addition to replacing the Commando Helicopter Force Sea Kings, there is also a project to replace the Sea King in the Airborne Surveillance and Control mission, which has seen a number of proposals put forward, based on the type of aircraft carrier the platform would be expected to operate from. One idea has been to fit the existing Searchwater radar to the Merlin helicopter, while other options have included the E-2 Hawkeye and an ASaC version of the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft. The "Crowsnet" helicopter based radar system project has been delayed until at least 2020. The Main Gate for the project is at 2017.

The Royal Navy signed a £30 million contract for the Boeing Insitu ScanEagle on the 20 June 2013 giving the Navy their first UAV when delivered.

Squadrons
Fleet Air Arm flying squadrons are formally named Naval Air Squadron (NASs), a title used as a suffix to the squadron number. The FAA assigns numbers in the 700–799 range to training and operational conversion squadrons and numbers in the 800–899 range to operational squadrons. During WWII the 1700 and 1800 ranges were also used for operational squadrons.

Squadrons active in the FAA are:

815 Naval Air Squadron is due to begin transitioning from the Lynx to the new Wildcat HMA.2 in 2015, while 824 Naval Air Squadron has begun the process of conversion to the HM.2 version of the Merlin. The three Sea King squadrons of the Commando Helicopter Force are in the process of transitioning to the battlefield variants of the Merlin that are being transferred from the RAF. 809 Naval Air Squadron will be the first operational FAA unit to be equipped with the F-35B Lightning.

Culdrose (HMS Seahawk) is near Helston in Cornwall and Yeovilton (HMS Heron) is near Ilchester in Somerset. Their satellite, or relief, airfields are at Predannack and Merryfield respectively. Squadrons that were active at some point can be found in the List of Fleet Air Arm aircraft squadrons.

Notable members

 * Vice-Admiral Richard Bell Davies (1886–1966) – the first naval aviator to receive the VC and the first naval aviator of the Fleet Air Arm to reach flag rank
 * Vice-Admiral Sir Lumley Lyster (1888–1957) – drew up attack plan in 1935 that was used for the Battle of Taranto five years later
 * Admiral Sir Reginald Portal (1894–1983) – naval aviator who was the younger brother of Marshal of the Royal Air Force Lord Portal (1893–1971)
 * Henry Allingham (1896–2009) – last survivor of Battle of Jutland (Royal Naval Air Service then Royal Air Force, never a member of the Fleet Air Arm).
 * Captain Henry Fancourt (1900–2004) – a pioneering aviator, he had a distinguished career in naval aviation until 1949.  Worked for Short Bros and Hartland.
 * Ralph Richardson (1902–1983) – English stage and screen actor, volunteered as a navy pilot during Second World War and rose to the rank of Lieutenant-Commander in the Air Branch.
 * Admiral of the Fleet Sir Caspar John (1903–1984) – First Sea Lord 1960–63 and the first British naval aviator to reach the highest rank within the RN.
 * Admiral Sir Walter Couchman (1905–1981) – naval observer who earned his pilot's wings too, he led the fly-past for the Coronation Fleet Review in June 1953.
 * Laurence Olivier (1907–1989) – English stage and screen actor and director, volunteered as a navy pilot during the Second World War and rose to the rank of Lieutenant in the Air Branch.
 * Lieutenant Commander (A) Eugene Esmonde (1909–1942) – posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for leading 825 Naval Air Squadron Swordfish torpedo bombers in an attack on German capital ships during the "Channel Dash".
 * Michael Hordern (1911–1995) – actor, served as fighter controller during World War II.
 * Jeffrey Quill (1913–1996) - RAF officer and Spitfire test pilot (Vickers-Armstrongs) who served five months with Fleet Air Arm as T/Lt.Cdr RNVR in 1944–5, helping to develop better carrier deck-landings with the Supermarine Seafire, the naval version of the Spitfire.
 * Kenneth More (1914–1982) – actor, including films such as Reach for the Sky and Sink the Bismarck.
 * Commander Charles Lamb (1914–1981) – author of the Second World War Fleet Air Arm autobiography War in a Stringbag.
 * Vice-Admiral Sir Peter Compston (1915–2000) – served briefly in the British Army, then in the RAF for two years, before transferring as a pilot to the Royal Navy in 1938.
 * Admiral Sir (Leslie) Derek Empson (1918–1997) – naval pilot who joined the Royal Navy as a naval rating. In his flying career, executed 782 aircraft carrier landings without a mishap.
 * Rear-Admiral Cedric Kenelm Roberts (1918–2011) – (always known as 'Chico') a distinguished naval pilot who joined the Royal Navy as a naval rating in 1940. He was personal pilot to Vice-Admiral Lumley Lyster in 1943, commanded three Naval Air Squadrons and was shot down during the Korean War.  Later, he commanded three Naval Air Stations and ended his naval flying career as Flag Officer Naval Flying Training 1968–71.
 * Lieutenant-Commander Charles Wines ("Charlie Wines") (1917–1991) – joined the Royal Navy as a Supply Assistant, flew Swordfish torpedo bomber as a rating pilot in the Second World War. Commissioned as a pilot in 1944 he later spent more than twenty years, in the same job as a serving and retired officer, as the FAA Drafting Officer and as such the career manager for thousands of FAA ratings.
 * Rear-Admiral Dennis Cambell (1907–2000) – inventor of the angled flight deck for aircraft carriers in 1951.
 * Rear-Admiral Nick Goodhart (1919–2011) – inventor of the mirror-sight deck landing system for aircraft carriers in 1951.
 * Captain Eric "Winkle" Brown (1919–) – holds the world record for the most types of aircraft flown by an individual (487 types). As a test pilot he made the first ever a jet landing on an aircraft carrier in December 1945.
 * Lieutenant Commander John Moffat (1919–) – crippled the GERMAN BATTLESHIP Bismarck on 26 May 1941.
 * Admiral Sir John Treacher (1924–) – naval pilot who was promoted Rear-Admiral at the age of 45 and held four important flag appointments before leaving the Royal Navy in 1977, despite many expecting him to become First Sea Lord, for a career in business. Was at the helm of Westland during the political drama of the 1980s.
 * Admiral Sir Ray Lygo (1924–) – naval pilot who joined the Royal Navy as a naval rating in 1942 and who reached First Sea Lord in 1978. led a successful career in industry and was Chief Executive and Deputy Chairman of British Aerospace in the 1980s.
 * Sir George Martin (1926–) – record producer for The Beatles.
 * Admiral of the Fleet Sir Ben Bathurst (1936–) – First Sea Lord 1993–95 and the last Royal Navy officer to be promoted to five-star rank.
 * Rear-Admiral Sir Robert Woodard KCVO (c.1939–) – naval aviator commanded two Naval Air Squadrons, two warships, a Naval Air Station, the Clyde submarine base and ended his career as the Flag Officer Royal Yachts 1990–95, the only aviator to command the Royal Yacht HMY Britannia.
 * Rear-Admiral Iain Henderson (c.1948–) – the first officer, and first naval officer, to hold the modern appointment of Air Officer Commanding 3 Group 2000–01.
 * Vice-Admiral His Excellency Sir Adrian Johns (c.1952–) is the first naval aviator to hold the post of Governor of Gibraltar.
 * Commander Prince Andrew, Duke of York (1960–) – served during the Falklands War 1982 and for some years afterwards.

Some 64 naval pilots and 9 observers have reached flag rank in the Royal Navy and 4 Royal Marines pilots general rank in the Royal Marines. Four of these admirals with pilot's 'wings' were air engineering officers (test pilots) and two were supply officers; two of the non-executive officers reached four-star rank: a supply officer, Admiral Sir Brian Brown (1934–), and a Royal Marine, General Sir Peter Whiteley (1920–).
 * At least 21 naval air engineering officers have reached flag rank (including the four test pilots (see above)).