RAF Eastbourne (formerly ''Royal Naval Air Station Eastbourne'') was a

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

airfield near

Eastbourne Eastbourne () is a town and seaside resort in East Sussex, on the south coast of England, east of Brighton and south of London. Eastbourne is immediately east of Beachy Head, the highest chalk sea cliff in Great Britain and part of the la ...

Fowler Flying School

The Fowler Flying School (also later known as the Eastbourne Flying School) was established by Major Bernard Fowler in 1909 at

Beaulieu, Hampshire Beaulieu ( ) is a small village located on the southeastern edge of the New Forest national park in Hampshire, England, and home to both Palace House and the British National Motor Museum. History The name Beaulieu comes etymologically ...

but moved to the 50-acre site between

and

Pevensey Bay Pevensey ( ) is a village and civil parish in the Wealden district of East Sussex, England. The main village is located north-east of Eastbourne, one mile (1.6 km) inland from Pevensey Bay. The settlement of Pevensey Bay forms part of ...

. His original airfield lies under the present day industrial estate below St Anthony's Mount. In nearby Leeds Avenue an original

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) guardhouse is the sole surviving building from this enterprise and is now converted to a bungalow.

Eastbourne Aviation Company

The Eastbourne Aviation Company was an aircraft factory that was constructed in early 1913 on the Crumbles shingle beach where the Sovereign Centre swimming pool now stands. Despite its proximity to the Royal Naval Flying School which was adjacent to the factory, it did not produce seaplanes, instead producing the Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.2c and

Avro 504 The Avro 504 was a First World War biplane aircraft made by the Avro aircraft company and under licence by others. Production during the war totalled 8,970 and continued for almost 20 years, making it the most-produced aircraft of any kind tha ...

. The factory performed some repair work for the Royal Naval Air Service. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the factory prospered off wartime orders, declining after the war. This led to the eventual closure of the factory and Aviation Company in 1924. In 1917, the factory fielded a ladies' football team from the seaplane sheds, players including Hilda Goudhurst, Mabal icGoudhurst, Mabal icMarchant, Rose Holobone, Marjorie Putland, Lilian Lee, Bessy Brown.

Royal Naval Air Service

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 an interest in 1913 having leased part of the airfield and helped fund development of various facilities. With the outbreak of war, the site was taken over by the

and subsequently expanded by acquiring neighbouring land. The site served as the Naval Flying School between August 1914 and November 1916, and later between May 1917 and April 1918 to undertake initial flying training. Aircraft based at the school were initially of a variety of types, however, this was not seen as the ideal training environment and eventually, aircraft was rationalised where the airframes by

Maurice Farman Maurice Alain Farman (21 March 1877 – 25 February 1964) was a British-French Grand Prix motor racing champion, an aviator, and an aircraft manufacturer and designer. Biography Born in Paris to English parents, he and his brothers Richard and ...

and the

Curtiss Jenny The Curtiss JN "Jenny" was a series of biplanes built by the Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. Although the Curtiss JN series was originally produced as a training aircraft for ...

could be found at the school. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

aspiring pilots from all over the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

came to train here. A young trainee Dan Minchin learned to fly a Bristol Boxkite at this aerodrome and in 1927 attempted to cross the Atlantic in a Fokker V11A monoplane named ''St Raphael''. Lieut Colonel Minchin and two colleagues were lost when the aircraft failed to reach Ottawa, Canada. A plaque on the wall below the 'RAF' window of

Eastbourne College Eastbourne College is a co-educational independent school in the British public school tradition, for day and boarding pupils aged 13–18, in the town of Eastbourne on the south coast of England. The College's headmaster is Tom Lawson. Over ...

in Blackwater Road commemorates the loss of this 'Old Eastbournian'.

Royal Air Force

Following the amalgamation of the RNAS and Royal Flying Corps in 1918 to form the Royal Air Force, the Naval Flying School initially became No. 206 Training Depot Station. No. 54 Training Squadron was transferred to the site from

Castle Bromwich Castle Bromwich () is a large suburban village situated within the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in the English county of the West Midlands. It is bordered by the rest of the borough to the south east; also Sutton Coldfield to the east and ...

and the two units combined to form No. 50 Training Depot Station. The combined units were refocused into training day bomber pilots in a fleet that included the

Bristol F.2B The Bristol F.2 Fighter is a British First World War two-seat biplane Fighter aircraft, fighter and reconnaissance aircraft developed by Frank Barnwell at the Bristol Aeroplane Company. It is often simply called the Bristol Fighter, ''"Brisfit ...

Airco DH.6 The Airco DH.6 was a British military Trainer (aircraft), trainer biplane used by the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. Known by various nicknames, including the "Clutching hand" and "Skyhook", many survived to be used as a civil ligh ...

, Airco DH.9 and

Sopwith Camel The Sopwith Camel is a British First World War single-seat biplane fighter aircraft that was introduced on the Western Front in 1917. It was developed by the Sopwith Aviation Company as a successor to the Sopwith Pup and became one of the b ...

. Trainee numbers at the site decreased in the latter months of the war, and 50 TDS was moved to

RAF Manston Royal Air Force Manston or more simply RAF Manston is a former Royal Air Force station located in the north-east of Kent, at on the Isle of Thanet from 1916 until 1996. The site was split between a commercial airport Kent International Airpor ...

by autumn 1919. The airfield reverted to its previous owners, however, lack of business ultimately led to its closure in 1920 reverting to agriculture.

Fowler Flying School

Eastbourne Aviation Company

Royal Naval Air Service

Royal Air Force

References

Further reading