| A Navy helicopter squadron celebrated
a double 30th birthday just before it left for exercises in
the Mediterranean.
820 Naval Air Squadron, based at RN air station Culdrose
in Cornwall, held a special celebration to commemorate the
arrival, 30 years ago, of the squadron’s first Sea King
helicopters, the HAS1 version.
The oldest Sea King still serving with the squadron is No
XV674, known to its friends as Dolphin 15, which was built
in 1969 and has flown more than 11,000 hours.
The airframe has been in service all over the world in a
number of the Navy’s front-line squadrons.
But the old workhorse was not the only focus of attention,
as one of the squadron’s pilots – Lt Gavin Johnston
– also celebrated his birthday on the same day.
820 Squadron was first formed in 1933 in Gosport as a Fleet
reconnaissance and spotter squadron, equipped with Fairey
IIIFs.
Since then it has flown many aircraft types, including Blackburn
Sharks, Fairey Swordfish, Fairey Albacores, Grumman Avengers,
Fairey Barracudas, Fairey Fireflies, Fairey Gannets, and with
Westland Whirlwind, Westland Wessex and Westland Sea King
helicopters, the squadron going rotary-wing in 1958.
The squadron has also seen a fair number of bases and deployed
with several famous ships – bases include Manston, Gibraltar,
Hal Far, Aboukir and Sembawang, and ships include HM ships
Courageous, Albion, Ark Royal, Victorious, Formidable, Indefatigable,
Bulwark and Centaur.
It has disbanded a number of times – from 1943-44,
1946-51, in 1956, 1959 and 1960-64.
820 is now the last anti-submarine warfare squadron in the
Royal Navy equipped with Sea King helicopters, which is now,
in its various versions, the longest-serving front-line aircraft
in the Service.
Last year the Squadron was jointly awarded the Wilkinson
Sword of Peace for its humanitarian aid operations during
the Mozambique floods.
Aircraft from the squadron are currently embarked with aviation
support ship RFA Argus in the Mediterranean, where they form
part of the augmented Naval Task Group 2003. |
