753 Naval Air Squadron (753 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 Air ...

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 was active as an Observer Training Squadron from 1939 to 1946 as part of No.2 Observer School, forming out of the School of Naval Co-operation, in May 1939. Initially at RNAS Lee-on-Solent (HMS Daedalus), the squadron moved to RNAS Arbroath (HMS Condor) just over one year later, in August 1940, following a German bombing attack on the air station. It spent four years operating out of Arbroath, before relocating again, this time to RNAS Rattray (HMS Merganser), where the squadron disbanded in August 1946.

History of 753 NAS

Observer Training Squadron (1939 - 1946)

753 Naval Air Squadron formed at

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 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 ...

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

, approximately four miles west of

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

, on 24 May 1939 as an Observer Training Squadron and being part of No.2 Observer School. It was initially equipped with Blackburn Shark Mk II and

Fairey Seal 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 fitt ...

aircraft. In the following December the squadron then acquired Fairey Swordfish I. 753 NAS moved to RNAS Arbroath (HMS Condor), located near

Arbroath Arbroath () or Aberbrothock ( gd, Obar Bhrothaig ) is a former royal burgh and the largest town in the council area of Angus, Scotland, with a population of 23,902. It lies on the North Sea coast some ENE of Dundee and SSW of Aberdeen. The ...

in East

Angus, Scotland Angus ( sco, Angus; gd, Aonghas) is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Dundee City and Perth and Kinross. Main industries include agr ...

, on the 19 August 1940. Discarding the Seal, but keeping the Shark Mk II and Swordfish I during the move, the squadron then also operated Fairey Albacore Mk I from August 1941, which was soon followed by

de Havilland Tiger Moth The de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth is a 1930s British biplane designed by Geoffrey de Havilland and built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and other operators as a primary trainer aircraft. ...

in the December. In November 1943 Stinson Reliant I was received and was used by the squadron for almost one year, up until September 1944. Lastly, from December 1944, the squadron operated Fairey Barracuda Mk II up until disbandment. On the 1 November 1945, 753 NAS left Arbroath and moved to RNAS Rattray (HMS Merganser), near

Crimond Crimond is a village in Aberdeenshire, in the northeast of Scotland, located northwest of the port of Peterhead and just over from the coast. Geography The main A90 road runs through Crimond and is lined by Crimond Church with a villag ...

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...

. The squadron remained at the base, operating Fairey Barracuda, until disbanding on the 9 August 1946.

Aircraft flown

753 Naval Air Squadron has flown a number of different aircraft types, including: * Blackburn Shark Mk II (May 1939 - Jan 1942) *

(1939) * Fairey Swordfish I (Dec 1939 - Jun 1945) * Fairey Albacore Mk I (Aug 1941 - Dec 1944) *

(Dec 1941) * Stinson Reliant I (Nov 1943 - Sep 1944) * Fairey Barracuda Mk II (Dec 1944 - Aug 1946)

Naval Air Stations

753 Naval Air Squadron operated from a number of naval air stations of the Royal Navy, in Scotland and England: * Royal Naval Air Station LEE-ON-SOLENT (24 May 1939 - 19 August 1940) * Royal Naval Air Station ARBROATH (19 August 1940 - 1 November 1945) * Royal Naval Air Station RATTRAY (1 November 1945 - 9 August 1946)

Commanding Officers

List of

commanding officers The commanding officer (CO) or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitud ...

of 753 Naval Air Squadron with month and year of appointment and end: * Lt-Cdr G. N. P. Stringer, DFC, RN (May 1939-Oct 1940) *

Capt Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

A. C. Newson, RM (Oct 1940-May 1941) *Lt-Cdr L.A. Cubitt, RN (May 1941-Sep 1941) *Lt-Cdr A. C. Mills,

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 ...

(Sep 1941-Jul 1942) *Lt-Cdr F. R. Steggall, RNVR (Jul 1942-Mar 1944) *Lt-Cdr R. E. Stewart, RNVR (Mar 1944-Aug 1945) *Lt-Cdr A. J. Phillips, RN (Aug 1945-Aug 1946)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * 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 {{UK-navy-stub