710 Naval Air Squadron (710 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 ...

. 710 NAS was a seaplane squadron that was stood up at RNAS Lee on Solent on 23 August 1939. They were equipped with the Supermarine Walrus flying boat and did multiple deployments onboard HMAS Albatross (1928), a seaplane tender. They performed convoy escort, anti submarine patrols, and air sea rescue services in the Atlantic off the west coast of Africa and in the Indian Ocean, in addition to support roles like pulling target drogues for gunnery practice and aerial photography. The squadron supported Allied landings during

Battle of Madagascar The Battle of Madagascar (5 May – 6 November 1942) was a British campaign to capture the Vichy French-controlled island Madagascar during World War II. The seizure of the island by the British was to deny Madagascar's ports to the Imperial ...

in April and remained in the area through November. The squadron did some further work in the Indian Ocean but was eventually sent back to England where it was disbanded on 14 October 1943. The squadron was reformed on 7 October 1944 on the Isle of Man as a torpedo training squadron equipped with

Fairey Barracuda The Fairey Barracuda was a British carrier-borne torpedo and dive bomber designed by Fairey Aviation. It was the first aircraft of this type operated by the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm (FAA) to be fabricated entirely from metal. The Barracuda ...

and

Fairey Swordfish The Fairey Swordfish is a biplane torpedo bomber, designed by the Fairey Aviation Company. Originating in the early 1930s, the Swordfish, nicknamed "Stringbag", was principally operated by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy. It was also us ...

torpedo bombers. The squadron was finally disbanded at HMS ''Urley'' '' NAS Ronaldsway' on 20 December 1945.

Notes

References

* *http://www.wings-aviation.ch/32-FAA/4-Sqn/710-NAS.htm 700 series Fleet Air Arm squadrons Military units and formations established in 1939 Air squadrons of the Royal Navy in World War II {{UK-navy-stub