1847 Naval Air Squadron (1847 NAS) was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm. It formed, at the start of February 1944, at (HMS Gannet), RNAS Eglinton, Derry, Northern Ireland, as a fighter squadron with eight of its twelve pilots from the Royal Netherlands Navy, and was equipped with Grumman Hellcat fighter aircraft. After three months existence the squadron was absorbed into 1840 Naval Air Squadron, at HMS Gannet, during May 1944.
| 1847 Naval Air Squadron | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1 February - 20 May 1944[1] |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  Royal Navy |
| Type | Single-seat fighter squadron |
| Role | Fighter squadron |
| Size | Ten aircraft |
| Part of | Fleet Air Arm |
| Home station | RNAS Eglinton |
| Insignia | |
| Identification Markings | Single letters |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Fighter | Grumman Hellcat |
History
editSingle-seat fighter squadron (1944)
edit1847 Naval Air Squadron formed on 1 February 1944 in Northern Ireland at Royal Naval Air Station Eglinton (HMS Gannet), which was located next to the city of Derry, as a Single Seat Fighter Squadron, under the command of Lieutenant Commander(A) H. Colville-Stewart, RNVR.[2]
It consisted twelve pilots in total, four from Britain and augmented with eight pilots from the Royal Netherlands Navy. The squadron was intended for service in an escort carrier and was issued with ten Grumman Hellcat, an American carrier-based fighter aircraft.[3] These were the F6F-3 variant, designated Hellcat F. Mk. I by the Fleet Air Arm.[4]
While training and working up the squadron suffered a series of fatal accidents. On 27 March two Dutch pilots were killed in a mid-air collision. Another Dutch pilot died the following day and then on 22 April a British pilot died when he crashed into a hill top.[5]
With the loss of one quarter of the aircrew and forty percent of its aircraft, a decision was made to disband the squadron and it was absorbed by 1840 Naval Air Squadron, at RNAS Eglinton (HMS Gannet), on 20 May.[3]
Aircraft flown
edit1847 Naval Air Squadron flew only one aircraft type:[3]
- Grumman Hellcat F. Mk. I fighter aircraft (February - May 1944)
Naval air stations
edit1847 Naval Air Squadron operated from a single naval air station of the Royal Navy in Northern Ireland:[3]
- Royal Naval Air Station Eglinton (HMS Gannet) (1 February - 20 May 1944)
- disbanded - (20 May 1944)
Commanding officers
editList of commanding officers of 1847 Naval Air Squadron with date of appointment:[2]
- Lieutenant Commander(A) H. Colville-Stewart, RNVR, from 1 February 1944
- disbanded - 20 May 1944
References
editCitations
edit- ^ Sturtivant & Ballance 1994, p. 358.
- ^ a b Wragg 2019, p. 198.
- ^ a b c d Ballance, Howard & Sturtivant 2016, p. 297.
- ^ Thetford 1991, pp. 224–226.
- ^ "A history of 1847 Naval Air Squadron". Royal Navy Research Archive - Royal Naval Air Squadrons 1938 - present day. Retrieved 19 September 2024.
Bibliography
edit- Ballance, Theo; Howard, Lee; Sturtivant, Ray (2016). The Squadrons and Units of the Fleet Air Arm. Air Britain Historians Limited. ISBN 978-0-85130-489-2.
- Sturtivant, R; Ballance, T (1994). The Squadrons of The Fleet Air Arm. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. ISBN 0-85130-223-8.
- Thetford, Owen (1991). British Naval Aircraft since 1912. London, UK: Putnam Aeronautical Books, an imprint of Conway Maritime Press Ltd. ISBN 0-85177-849-6.
- Wragg, David (2019). The Fleet Air Arm Handbook 1939-1945. Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, UK: The History Press. ISBN 978-0-7509-9303-6.
External links
edit- "A History of 1847 Naval Air Squadron". The Royal Navy Research Archive. 26 September 2021.