RNAS Calshot was a First World War Royal Navy air station for seaplanes and

flying boat A flying boat is a type of fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in that a flying boat's fuselage is purpose-designed for floatation and contains a hull, while floatplanes rely on fusela ...

s, mainly operating as an experimental and training station, but also providing anti-submarine and convoy protection patrols. It was located at the end of

Calshot Spit Calshot Spit is a one-mile long sand and slate, shingle bank, near the village of Calshot, located on the southern bank of the open end of Southampton Water, on the south coast of England.OS Explorer Map, New Forest, Scale: 1:25 000.Publisher: Or ...

in Southampton Water, at , with the landing area sheltered by the mainland, to the west, north and east, and the Isle of Wight a few miles away to the south on the other side of the Solent.

History

Royal Flying Corps

The station was originally established on 29 March 1913 by the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

(RFC), as Calshot Naval Air Station, for the purpose of testing seaplanes for the RFC Naval wing. The first aircraft to arrive was a Sopwith Bat Boat, and one of the first buildings constructed – the Sopwith Hangar – is still in use today.

Royal Naval Air Service

In July 1914 the Royal Navy re-formed its air branch, naming it the

Royal Naval Air Service The Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty's Air Department, and existed formally from 1 July 1914 to 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps t ...

(RNAS), and took over the Calshot base and its development and training functions. After the start of World War I, the station's role expanded to take on the protection of shipping in the English Channel, and a variety of flying-boats and seaplanes were introduced, including the

Wight Seaplane The Wight Seaplane was a British twin-float seaplane produced by J Samuel White & Company Limited (Wight Aircraft). It was also known as the Admiralty Type 840. Design and development Designed by Howard T Wright and built by the aircraft depar ...

and the Short 184. Calshot was also used for training on observer kite balloons and airships. In 1917, seaplane training was extended to the new Naval Seaplane Training School at nearby

Lee-on-the-Solent Lee-on-the-Solent, often referred to as Lee-on-Solent, is a seaside district of the Borough of Gosport in Hampshire, England, about five miles (8 km) west of Portsmouth. The area is located on the coast of the Solent. It is primarily a resi ...

. A major rebuild at Calshot then took place when new buildings, offices and workshops were constructed by the Henry Boot Limited. The largest hangar – Sunderland Hangar – is now home to the Calshot Activities Centre. By 1918 there were two flights of Felixstowe flying boats and a flight of seaplanes, and together they managed to exceed 9,000 hours of patrol flights in a three-month period. Out of 42 U-boats reported, 3 were sunk.

Royal Air Force

On 1 April 1918 the RFC and the RNAS combined to form the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the station became home to the headquarters of No. 10 Group RAF. The three flights that were based at Calshot became No. 240 Squadron RAF. After the war, the station became home to the RAF School of Naval Co-operation and Aerial Navigation, and on 5 February 1922 was renamed RAF Calshot.

References

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History

Royal Flying Corps

Royal Naval Air Service

Royal Air Force

See also

References