Navy News - Aircraft of the Royal Navy

14 May 2008

Aircraft of the Royal Navy

- From the Award winning paper

Fleet Air Arm

819 NAS

819 Naval Air Squadron formed at Ford in January 1940 with 12 Fairey Swordfish Mk I aircraft and crews drawn from HM ships Ark Royal and Glorious.

After a brief spell hunting U-boats off the Belgian coast in the spring, the squadron joined HMS Illustrious, first in the Atlantic and then in the Mediterranean. more->

Aircraft

de Havilland Sea Venom

The Sea Venom was a two-seater jet all-weather fighter and strike-fighter which served with the Navy from the early 1950s up to retirement in 1960 when the Sea Vixen took over the role.

The Naval carrier-borne version evolved from the Venom NF2 nightfighter aircraft used by the RAF, which in turn developed from the earlier Vampire. more->

Fairey Firefly

Fairey Firefly aircraft have a long history and numerous versions of the aeroplane appeared. The Firefly used by the Fleet Air Arm during the latter part of World War II was the second generation of an earlier biplane aircraft with the same name developed in the 1920s.

The precursor to the Firefly was the Fairey Fulmar, but the Firefly outpaced her predecessor in speed, aerodynamics and firepower. more->

Westland Whirlwind

The three-man Westland Whirlwind helicopter was a British-built version of the US Sikorsky S-55.

In its early incarnations (HAR1, 3 and 5) the aircraft served in non-combat roles, including search and rescue and communications functions. more->

Sea Scout Zero airship

The Sea Scout Zero (SSZ) non-rigid airship was generally known as the 'Zero'. Airship searched the seas during World War I for mines and submarines, and acted as scouts for the ships of the surface fleets.

The Zero aircraft was carefully designed to incorporate improvements on its immediate predecessor, the Sea Scout Pusher (SSP). more->

de Havilland Sea Mosquito TR33

In total 50 of the Sea Mosquito TR33s served in the Royal Navy for just under a year from August 1946 to July 1947.

The two-seat long-range strike aircraft, with all wooden construction, was developed from the earlier Mosquito VI, offering a twin-engined aircraft capable of carrier operations. more->

Ships of the Royal Navy

A series of fact cards featuring some of the best known ships of the fleet. more->

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