The Fairey Battle is a British single-engine light bomber that was designed and manufactured by the Fairey Aviation Company. It was developed during the mid-1930s for the Royal Air Force (RAF) as a monoplane successor to the Hawker Hart and Hind biplanes. The Battle was powered by the same high-performance Rolls-Royce Merlin piston engine that powered various contemporary British fighters such as the Hawker Hurricane and Supermarine Spitfire. As the Battle, with its three-man crew and bomb load, was much heavier than the fighters, it was therefore much slower. Though a great improvement over the aircraft that preceded it, its relatively slow speed, limited range and inadequate defensive armament of only two .303 (7.7 mm) machine guns left it highly vulnerable to enemy fighters and anti-aircraft fire.
Royal Naval Air Station Lee-on-Solent,, is a former Royal Naval Air Station located near Lee-on-the-Solent in Hampshire, approximately 4 miles (6.44 km) west of Portsmouth, on the coast of the Solent.
The Fairey Aviation Company Fairey III was a family of British reconnaissance biplanes that enjoyed a very long production and service history in both landplane and seaplane variants. First flying on 14 September 1917, examples were still in use during the Second World War.
714 Naval Air Squadron was a Fleet Air Arm (FAA) naval air squadron of the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy (RN). The unit was initially established as 714 (Catapult) Flight in July 1936. By 1939, it had evolved from a flight into a squadron and was actively operating from the cruisers HMS Gloucester, HMS Liverpool, and HMS Manchester at the onset of the Second World War, utilising Supermarine Walrus aircraft, with RAF Seletar and RAF China Bay serving as its shore bases. In 1940, it was incorporated into 700 Naval Air Squadron. Subsequently, in August 1944, it was reestablished at HMS Owl, RNAS Fearn, as a Torpedo Bomber Reconnaissance Training Squadron, equipped with Fairey Barracuda aircraft. The squadron relocated to HMS Merganser, RNAS Rattray, in October and was disbanded nearly one year later, almost to the exact day.
The Fairey Flycatcher was a British single-seat biplane carrier-borne fighter aircraft made by Fairey Aviation Company which served from 1923 to 1934. It was produced with a conventional undercarriage for carrier use, although this could be exchanged for floats for catapult use aboard capital ships.
The Gloster Grebe was developed by the Gloster Aircraft Company from the Gloster Grouse, and was the Royal Air Force's first post-First World War fighter aircraft, entering service in 1923.
The Handley Page Heyford was a twin-engine biplane bomber designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Handley Page. It holds the distinction of being the last biplane heavy bomber to be operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF).
Newark Air Museum is an air museum located on a former Royal Air Force station at Winthorpe, near Newark-on-Trent in Nottinghamshire, England. The museum contains a variety of aircraft.
The Fairey Seal was a British carrier-borne spotter-reconnaissance aircraft, operated in the 1930s. The Seal was derived – like the Gordon – from the IIIF. To enable the Fairey Seal to be launched by catapult from warships, it could be fitted with floats.
Number 72 (Fighter) Squadron of the Royal Air Force is a training squadron that is currently based at RAF Valley using the Beechcraft Texan T.1 to deliver Basic Fast Jet Training (BFJT).
No. 616 Squadron is an active Reserve unit of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF) assigned to the RAF ISTAR Force at RAF Waddington. It was originally formed as a unit of the British Auxiliary Air Force in 1938, active throughout World War 2 as a fighter unit, becoming the 1st operational RAF unit to fly jets and disbanded in 1957. The unit reformed in its current guise in April 2019 as 616 Squadron Royal Auxiliary Air Force.
No. 204 Squadron was a Royal Air Force unit first formed in March 1915 as No.4 Squadron Royal Naval Air Service.
703 Naval Air Squadron is a Fleet Air Arm (FAA) naval air squadron of the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy (RN). Since 2003, the squadron has formed the Royal Naval wing of the Defence Elementary Flying Training School / No. 3 Flying Training School, at RAF Barkston Heath.
713 Naval Air Squadron was a Fleet Air Arm (FAA) naval air squadron of the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy (RN) which was disbanded in late 1945. It was first formed from 445 Flight in 1936 and operated with Fairey Seafox floatplanes from RAF Kalafrana at the onset of the Second World War and subsequently integrated into 700 Naval Air Squadron in January 1940. The squadron was re-established at HMS Urley, RNAS Ronaldsway, Isle of Man, in December 1944, functioning as a Torpedo Bomber Reconnaissance Training Squadron, where it operated with Fairey Barracuda aircraft.
716 Naval Air Squadron was a Fleet Air Arm (FAA) naval air squadron of the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy (RN) which last disbanded in September 1945. 716 (Catapult) Flight was established in July 1936, originating from a segment of 443 (Catapult) Flight, designated for the vessels of the 6th Cruiser Squadron within the South Africa Station. Initially equipped with Hawker Osprey aircraft, the unit transitioned to operating Fairey Seafox aircraft, utilising Simonstown, South Africa, as its shore base at the onset of the Second World War. However, in 1940, it was amalgamated into 700 Naval Air Squadron. The squadron was reconstituted in June 1944 at HMS Raven, RNAS Eastleigh, located near Southampton, and was designated as the School of Safety Equipment. It operated Supermarine Sea Otter aircraft and a Vickers Wellington to facilitate training in search and rescue operations. A detachment was briefly deployed aboard the escort carrier HMS Ruler in January 1945.
730 Naval Air Squadron was a Fleet Air Arm (FAA) naval air squadron of the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy (RN). It was active between 1944 and 1945 as a Communications Squadron. The squadron was formed and operated out of RNAS Abbotsinch from April to November 1944, by that point in time it operated four types of aircraft. It moved to RNAS Ayr and while there gained two more aircraft types. For the first three months of 1945 a detachment operated out of RNAS Machrihanish, however, the squadron remained at RNAS Ayr until disbanding in August 1945.
733 Naval Air Squadron was a Fleet Air Arm (FAA) naval air squadron of the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy (RN). It was active between January 1944 and December 1947, entirely in Ceylon, as a Fleet Requirements Unit, based mainly at R.N. Air Section China Bay, which became HMS Bambara, RNAS Trincomalee, China Bay, Ceylon. The squadron initially formed at R.N. Air Section Minneriya, at RAF Minnerya, Ceylon, two weeks after an advance party arrived there, remaining for three months after formation before relocating.
740 Naval Air Squadron was a Fleet Air Arm (FAA) naval air squadron of the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy (RN). It was initially active between May and August in 1943, formed as an Observer Training Squadron at HMS Condor, RNAS Arbroath, Angus, Scotland. From December 1943 to September 1945 it was a Communications Squadron formed at and operated from HMS Landrail, at RNAS Machrihanish, Argyll and Bute, Scotland.
745 Naval Air Squadron was a Fleet Air Arm (FAA) naval air squadron of the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy (RN). It was initially active from 1943 to 1945 as a Telegraphist Air Gunner Training squadron, part of No.2 Telegraphist Air Gunner School based at RN Air Section Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada. It reformed in April 1956 at HMS Gannet, RNAS Eglinton, Northern Ireland, as a Radar Jamming Trials Unit. It operated with four modified Grumman Avenger aircraft, undertaking a trials evaluation of the 'Orange Harvest' radar warning receiver equipment, disbanding in November 1957.
