778 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm. During the Second World War the squadron was a Service Trials Unit (STU) initially based at HMS Daedalus, RNAS Lee-on-Solent, Hampshire, England before moving to HMS Condor, RNAS Arbroath, Angus, Scotland on 6 July 1940. The squadron tested all types of aircraft that could be used by the Royal Navy. Key to this was testing new types for deck landing on aircraft carriers. Such aircraft included various types of Supermarine Seafires, Grumman Hellcats, Grumman Martlets, Grumman Avengers, and Vought Corsairs. The squadron was reformed on 5 November 1951 with Douglas Skyraider AEW.1 but was disbanded on 7 July 1952 to form the basis of 849 Naval Air Squadron.
707 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which disbanded during February 1995. It was active during the Second World War forming during February 1945 as a Radar Trials Unit, disbanding in October of the same year. It reformed December 1964, as an Advanced and Operational Flying Training Commando helicopter squadron.
711 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which disbanded in December 1945. It was first formed from 447 (Catapult) Flight in 1936 and operated out of the Island of Malta, providing flights for the Royal Navy’s 1st Cruiser Squadron. By the beginning of World War II it had become a Squadron and was based in Egypt, but disbanded in 1940 when the Fleet Air Arm centralised the operations of the 700 series "Catapult" flights attached to catapult units. It reformed in September 1944 to provide torpedo bomber reconnaissance (TBR) training. Based at HMS Jackdaw in Fife, Scotland, it was operational for just over one year before it was absorbed by 785 Naval Air Squadron.
754 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm. It was active as an Observer Training Squadron from 1939 to 1944 as part of No. 2 Observer School, forming out of the School of Naval Co-operation RAF, in May 1939. It initially operated out of HMS Daedalus, RNAS Lee-on-Solent, Hampshire, however, after the Naval Air Station was attacked and bombed, it then moved to north to HMS Condor, RNAS Arbroath, Angus, Scotland, in September 1940. Here, it provided training for Observers and also Air Gunners and where four years later, in March 1944, it disbanded. The squadron then briefly reformed as a Air Gunner Training Squadron, as part of No. 1 Naval Air Gunners School, when 744 Naval Air Squadron was re-designated 754 Naval Air Squadron, in June 1944, at RN Air Section Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada, until disbanding again, in March 1945.
756 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm. It was initially formed as a Telegraphist Air Gunner Training Squadron, operating from March 1941, out of RNAS Worthy Down, in Hampshire, England. TAG training was provided until the No. 2 School was ready in Canada, opening on the 1 January 1943, and 756 NAS disbanded in December 1942. The squadron reformed at RNAS Katukurunda, in Sri Lanka, in October 1943, as a Torpedo, Bomber, Reconnaissance pool. During 1944 and 1945, the squadron undertook a number of detachmemts on different types of Royal Navy aircraft carriers, with it disbanding in December 1945.
763 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm. It formed in 1939 as the Torpedo Spotter Reconnaissance Pool No. 1, at HMS Kestrel, RNAS Worthy Down. Three months later, it moved to the short-lived RNAS Jersey, in the Channel Islands, before moving back to Worthy Down via HMS Daedalus, RNAS Lee-on Solent and disbanded in 1940. The squadron reformed, on the seaplane carrier HMS Pegasus, as a Seaplane Training Squadron, in 1942. This role lasted around two years and the squadron continually operated and provided training from HMS Pegasus, until disbanding in 1944. Roughly two months later, the squadron reformed again, this time at HMS Nightjar, RNAS Inskip, as an Anti-submarine Operational Training Squadron and remained in this role for just over one year, disbanding in July 1945.
772 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which last disbanded during September 1995. 772 Naval Air Squadron formed as a Fleet Requirements Unit out of ‘Y’ Flight from 771 Naval Air Squadron at RNAS Lee-on-Solent in September 1939. While the headquarters remained there, floatplanes were operated out of RNAS Portland, however, mid 1940 saw the whole squadron move north to RNAS Campbeltown and roughly twelve months afterwards the short distance to RNAS Machrihanish. The unit moved to RNAS Ayr in July 1944 and became the Fleet Requirements Unit School. In January 1946 the squadron moved to RNAS Burscough in Lancashire, before moving to RNAS Anthorn in Cumberland, in May. It became the Northern Fleet Requirements Unit upon moving to RNAS Arbroath, in June 1947, but disbanded into 771 Naval Air Squadron in October. 772 Naval Air Squadron reformed as a Helicopter Support Squadron at RNAS Portland in September 1974. In September 1977 the squadron took over responsibility for a number of Ships' Flights of Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships. The squadron was used to reform 848 Naval Air Squadron for the Falklands Task Force in 1982, with the Ships' Flights absorbed into 847 Naval Air Squadron. In August 1982 it took on the Anti-Submarine Warfare Flight from 737 Naval Air Squadron and between 1983 - 1985 a Search and Rescue Flight operated out of RNAS Lee-on-Solent.
774 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which last disbanded in August 1945. 774 Naval Air Squadron formed at HMS Kestrel, RNAS Worthy Down, in November 1939 as an Armament Training Squadron for Observers and TAGs. Aircraft were assigned from storage and a couple of other naval air squadrons. It moved a week later to RAF Aldergrove, and was attached to No.3 Bombing and Gunnery School. In July 1940 it moved to HMS Fieldfare, RNAS Evanton, and then in September to HMS Vulture, RNAS St Merryn, Throughout the next few years, the older aircraft were withdrawn and replaced with newer types and variants. 774 NAS moved to HMS Merganser, RNAS Rattray in October 1944, where it became a target-towing unit.
775 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which last disbanded in March 1946. 775 Naval Air Squadron formed at HMS Grebe, RNAS Dekheila, during November 1940, as a Fleet Requirements Unit in support of the Mediterranean Fleet, based at Alexandria, Egypt. Between October 1941 and March 1942 the squadron also included the RN Fighter Flight. It absorbed 728 Naval Air Squadron in July 1943 and moved to R.N.Air Section Gibraltar at the start of February 1944. The squadron returned to HMS Grebe, RNAS Dekheila during August 1945.
777 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm, which formed as a Fleet Requirements Unit in West Africa during the Second World War. Throughout most of 1943, the squadron was responsible for the air defence of Sierra Leone. It disbanded at HMS Spurwing, RNAS Hastings, Sierra Leone, during December 1944. The squadron reformed in May 1945, from 'B' Flight of 778 Naval Air Squadron, as a Carrier Trials Unit operating aboard HMS Pretoria Castle, and using shore bases at HMS Siskin, RNAS Gosport, and HMS Peregrine, RNAS Ford in England, and HMS Wagtail, RNAS Ayr, in Scotland. 777 Naval Air Squadron number was assigned to the aircraft collection at the Fleet Air Arm Museum in April 2006.
780 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which last disbanded at HMS Seahawk, RNAS Culdrose in November 1949. 780 Naval Air Squadron formed at HMS Raven, RNAS Eastleigh as a Conversion Course Unit, in October 1939, to train experienced civilian pilots in naval flying. It moved to HMS Daedalus, RNAS Lee-on-Solent, in October 1940, and later, its role had changed to converting pilots to Fairey Barracuda aircraft. It spent a year at RNAS Charlton Horethorne, before returning to HMS Daedalus and disbanded, early 1945. In March 1946, the squadron reformed at HMS Godwit, RNAS Hinstock, as the Naval Advanced Flying School, to give flying instructors' courses, and later provided Instrument Flying Training. In December, the squadron moved to HMS Jackdaw, RNAS Crail, then in March 1947 moved to HMS Merlin, RNAS Donibristle, and in May to HMS Seahawk as the first resident unit.
783 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which last disbanded in November 1949. 783 Naval Air Squadron was formed as an ASV Training Squadron at HMS Condor, RNAS Arbroath, Scotland, in January 1941. It operated a number of ‘flying classroom’ aircraft alongside other types. It operated in conjunction with the Naval Air Signals School (NASS) from March 1943. The squadron moved to HMS Daedalus, RNAS Lee-on-Solent, England, when the NASS moved south, also supporting the Flag Officer, Air, Home Communications Officer and from July 1948,it was part of the 51st Miscellaneous Air Group.
785 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which disbanded in early 1946. 785 NAS formed as a Torpedo Bomber Reconnaissance Training Squadron, at HMS Jackdaw, RNAS Crail, in November 1940. Throughout its existence it operated a number of various types of torpedo bomber aircraft. The squadron became part of No. 1 Naval Operational Training Unit in late 1944.
787 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which disbanded in January 1956. It formed in March 1941, at HMS Heron, RNAS Yeovilton, out of 804 Naval Air Squadron as a Fleet Fighter Development Unit. Almost every type of fighter was received by the squadron for testing and evaluation for naval use. A move to RAF Duxford in June 1941 saw it become the Naval Air Fighting Development Unit, attached to the Royal Air Force's Air Fighting Development Unit. The squadron undertook rocket projectile test, continuous development of fighter tactics and even helping Torpedo Bomber Reconnaissance squadrons in evading fighter attack. Post Second World War it continued its trials task and also undertook Rebecca radar trials and ASH, US-built air-to-surface vessel radar trials.
788 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which last disbanded during June 1945. The squadron formed at RN Air Section China Bay in Ceylon, in January 1942, as the British Eastern Fleet's Torpedo Bomber Reconnaissance Pool, however it lost half its strength during the heavy raids by Japanese carrier-borne aircraft in the April. The squadron regrouped at RNAS Tanga in Tanganyika, East Africa to become a Fleet Requirements Unit and relocating almost immediately to RN Air Section Port Reitz, in Mombasa, where it remained operational for the next three years.
789 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which disbanded in November 1945. 789 Naval Air Squadron formed as a Fleet Requirements Unit at RNARY Wingfield in South Africa, at the beginning of July 1942. It initially only had a single Supermarine Walrus, needing to borrow other aircraft types. 1943 saw the squadron sharing and holding aircraft for other Fleet Air Arm units and it wasn’t until 1944 it started to receive a notable number of its own aircraft.
791 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which last disbanded at Sembawang in June 1947. It formed as an Air Target Towing Unit, at HMS Condor, RNAS Arbroath, in Scotland, in October 1940. It operated various types of aircraft for target towing duties, used to support air gunnery training and practice. The squadron disbanded in December 1944, at Arbroath. It reformed at RNAS Trincomalee, in British Ceylon,, in November 1945, as a Fleet Requirements Unit. The squadron moved to RNAS Sembawang, in Singapore, in December 1945, ferried via the escort carrier, HMS Smiter. It also operated a Communications Flight and an Air-Sea Rescue Flight, as well as undertaking anti Mosquito spraying duties.
796 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which last disbanded at RNAS Culdrose in October 1958. 796 Naval Air Squadron formed as the Eastern Fleet Torpedo Bomber Reconnaissance Pool, at RN Air Section Port Reitz, in Mombasa, in July 1942, it provided a detachment embarked in HMS Illustrious in August to support the invasion of Madagascar. This Flight also disembarked to Majunga in September to join 207 Group of the Royal Air Force and later rejoined the squadron at RNAS Tanga, in November and added operational training unit to its roles until disbanding in April 1944. It reformed in November 1947 at HMS Vulture, RNAS St Merryn, as the Aircrewman Training School, for conversion of T.A.G.'s to aircrewman standard. Its task changed to Observer School Part II in January 1950. The squadron moved to HMS Seahawk, RNAS Culdrose, in November 1953 and in 1957 took on the task of the disbanded 765 Naval Air Squadron.
797 Naval Air Squadron was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm which last disbanded in October 1945 in Ceylon. Its role was a Fleet Requirements Unit which formed at HMS Ukussa, Royal Naval Air Station Katukurunda, in Ceylon, in July 1942. The squadron moved to RNAS Colombo Racecourse in October 1943. It had a Communications Flight which became 742 Naval Air Squadron in December 1943 and the following summer it had an ‘X’ Flight deployed for target towing for a couple of gunnery schools in Bombay, India and which eventually moved to 722 Naval Air Squadron.
Royal Naval Air Station Twatt, is a former Royal Navy Air Station located near Twatt, Orkney, Scotland. It was built by the Admiralty and was commissioned on 1 April 1941. On 1 January 1942 it became an independent command as HMS Tern. The airbase was designed to provide accommodation for disembarked Front-Line squadrons and accommodation for disembarked Ship's Flight Aircraft and was home to the Home Fleet Fleet Requirements Unit, 771 Naval Air Squadron.
United Kingdom 
Royal Navy 
