763 Naval Air Squadron (763 NAS) was a
Naval Air Squadron A naval air squadron (NAS) is the title of naval aviation squadrons in some countries.
Poland
The Polish ''Morski Dywizjon Lotniczy'' #Naval Air Squadron# was formed in 1920 with two ''Escadrille''s#
United Kingdom
The squadrons of the Fleet Ai ...
of the Royal Navy's
Fleet Air Arm
The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy and is responsible for the delivery of naval air power both from land and at sea. The Fleet Air Arm operates the F-35 Lightning II for maritime strike, the AW159 Wil ...
. It formed in 1939 as the Torpedo Spotter Reconnaissance Pool No. 1, at RNAS Worthy Down. Three months later, it moved to the short-lived RNAS Jersey, before moving back to Worthy Down via RNAS Lee-on Solent and disbanding 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 RNAS Inskip, as an Anti-submarine Operational Training Squadron and remained in this role for just over one year, disbanding in July 1945 at Inskip.
History of 763 NAS
Torpedo Spotter Reconnaissance Pool No. 1 (1939 - 1940)
763 Naval Air Squadron formed, on the 15 December 1939, at
RNAS Worthy Down (HMS Kestrel), north of
Winchester, Hampshire, England, as the Torpedo Spotter Reconnaissance Pool No. 1. It was initially equipped with six
Swordfish I, a
biplane torpedo bomber
A torpedo bomber is a military aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with aerial torpedoes. Torpedo bombers came into existence just before the First World War almost as soon as aircraft were built that were capable of carrying the weight ...
aircraft.
The squadron moved to
RNAS Jersey on the 11 March 1940 taking its six Swordfish along with six
Albacore
The albacore (''Thunnus alalunga''), known also as the longfin tuna, is a species of tuna of the order Perciformes. It is found in temperate and tropical waters across the globe in the epipelagic and mesopelagic zones. There are six distinct s ...
aircraft. In early March the
Admiralty
Admiralty most often refers to:
*Admiralty, Hong Kong
*Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964
*The rank of admiral
*Admiralty law
Admiralty can also refer to:
Buildings
* Admiralty, Traf ...
had taken over Jersey airport, located at
St Peter, Jersey
St Peter (; Jèrriais: ) is one of the twelve parishes of Jersey in the Channel Islands. It is around north-west of St Helier. The parish has a population of 5,003. It has a surface area of .
It is the only parish with two separate coastlines, st ...
,
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
, to use as a
Naval air station. However, due to the German occupation of France and the proximity to the Channel Islands, the
Government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...
concluded the Islands weren't defendable and 763 NAS relocated to
RNAS Lee-on-Solent (HMS Daedalus)
Royal Naval Air Station Lee-on-Solent (HMS ''Daedalus'') was one of the primary shore airfields of the Fleet Air Arm. First established as a seaplane base in 1917 during the First World War, it later became the main training establishment and ad ...
, situated near
Lee-on-the-Solent in
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...
, on the 31 May 1940.
The squadron remained at Lee-on-Solent for around one month before moving back to Worthy Down on the 4 July 1940. Four days later, on the 8 July 1940, 763 NAS disbanded at Worthy Down,
with
767 Naval Air Squadron incorporating the aircraft
In October 1940, a proposition to reform as a Torpedo Spotter Reconnaissance Pool, at RNAS Arbroath, was postponed and eventually abandoned, in February 1941.
Seaplane Training Squadron (1942 - 1944)
763 Naval Air Squadron reformed on the 20 April 1942,
as a Seaplane Training Squadron, aboard
HMS ''Pegasus'', which was designed and built as a
seaplane carrier
A seaplane tender is a boat or ship that supports the operation of seaplanes. Some of these vessels, known as seaplane carriers, could not only carry seaplanes but also provided all the facilities needed for their operation; these ships are rega ...
. It was equipped with
Walrus
The walrus (''Odobenus rosmarus'') is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous distribution about the North Pole in the Arctic Ocean and subarctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in the fami ...
aircraft and the squadron provided catapult and recovery training. It remained in the role and on the carrier for nearly two years. The squadron disbanded on HMS Pegasus on the 13 February 1944.
Anti-submarine Operational Training Squadron (1944 - 1945)
763 Naval Air Squadron reformed on the 14 April 1944, at
RNAS Inskip (HMS Nightjar),
located near the village of
Inskip, Lancashire
Inskip is a small village in the Fylde area of Lancashire, England. It is part of the civil parish of Inskip-with-Sowerby. The village is close to the former RNAS Inskip airfield, which still serves the armed forces as a tri-service communicatio ...
, England, as an Anti-submarine Operational Training Squadron, out of
766 Naval Air Squadron. It was equipped with
Avenger
Avenger, Avengers, The Avenger, or The Avengers may refer to:
Arts and entertainment In the Marvel Comics universe
* Avengers (comics), a team of superheroes
** Avengers (Marvel Cinematic Universe), a central team of protagonist superheroes o ...
, an American torpedo bomber aircraft.
In March 1945 the squadron also received Swordfish aircraft
and a small Photographic Flight was set up. However, on the 31 July 1945, 763 NAS disbanded
and was absorbed by
785 Naval Air Squadron at
RNAS Crail (HMS Jackdaw).
Aircraft flown
The squadron has flown a number of different aircraft types, including:
*
Fairey Swordfish I (Dec 1939 - Jul 1940)
*
Fairey Albacore I (Mar 1940 - Jul 1940)
*
Supermarine Walrus I (Apr 1942 - Feb 1944)
*
Vought Kingfisher I (Jul 1943 - Sep 1943)
*
Grumman Tarpon GR.I (Apr 1944 - Jul 1945)
*
Grumman Avenger Mk.II (Apr 1944 - Jul 1945)
*
Avro Anson Mk I (May 1944 - Aug 1945)
*
Fairey Swordfish II (Mar 1945 - Jul 1945)
Naval Air Stations / Seaplane Carrier
![HMS Pegasus FL3090](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/eb/HMS_Pegasus_FL3090.jpg)
763 Naval Air Squadron operated from a number of
naval air stations of the Royal Navy in England and one in the Channel Islands, and a
seaplane carrier
A seaplane tender is a boat or ship that supports the operation of seaplanes. Some of these vessels, known as seaplane carriers, could not only carry seaplanes but also provided all the facilities needed for their operation; these ships are rega ...
:
*
Royal Naval Air Station WORTHY DOWN (15 December 1939 - 11 March 1940)
*
Royal Naval Air Station JERSEY (11 March 1940 - 31 May 1940)
*
Royal Naval Air Station LEE-ON-SOLENT (31 May 1940 - 4 July 1940)
*Royal Naval Air Station WORTHY DOWN (4 July 1940 - 8 July 1940)
*
HMS ''Pegasus'' (20 April 1942 - 13 February 1944)
*
Royal Naval Air Station INSKIP (Apr 1944 - Jul 1945)
Commanding Officers
List of
commanding officers of 763 Naval Air Squadron with month and year of appointment and end:
1939 - 1940
*
Lt-Cdr P. L. Mortimer,
RN (Dec 1939-Jul 1940)
1942 - 1944
*
Lt J. R. W. Groves, RN (Apr 1942-May 1943)
*Lt S. M. Howard, RN (May 1943-Feb 1944)
1944 - 1945
*Lt-Cdr C. R. Mallett,
RNVR
The Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) is one of the two volunteer reserve forces of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Together with the Royal Marines Reserve, they form the Maritime Reserve. The present RNR was formed by merging the original Ro ...
(Apr 1944-Jul 1944)
*Lt-Cdr R. J. G. Brown, RNVR (Jul 1944-Dec 1944)
*Lt-Cdr N. G. Haigh, RNVR (Dec 1944-Jul 1945)
References
Citations
Bibliography
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{{Royal Naval Air Squadrons
700 series Fleet Air Arm squadrons
Military units and formations established in 1939
Military units and formations of the Royal Navy in World War II