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RAF Ferry Command
RAF Ferry Command was the secretive Royal Air Force command formed on 20 July 1941 to ferry urgently needed aircraft from their place of manufacture in the United States and Canada, to the front line operational units in Britain, Europe, North Africa and the Middle East during the Second World War. It was later subsumed into the new Transport Command on 25 March 1943 by being reduced to Group status. History The practice of ferrying aircraft from US manufacturers to the UK was begun by the Ministry of Aircraft Production. Its minister, Lord Beaverbrook, a Canadian by origin, reached an agreement with Sir Edward Beatty, a friend and chairman of the Canadian Pacific Railway Company, to provide ground facilities and support. MAP would discreetly provide civilian crews and management. Previously, aircraft had been assembled, dismantled and then transported by ship across the Atlantic, and were subject to long delays and frequent attacks by German U-Boats. Former RAF officer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The UK includes the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland, and most of List of islands of the United Kingdom, the smaller islands within the British Isles, covering . Northern Ireland shares Republic of Ireland–United Kingdom border, a land border with the Republic of Ireland; otherwise, the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel, the Celtic Sea and the Irish Sea. It maintains sovereignty over the British Overseas Territories, which are located across various oceans and seas globally. The UK had an estimated population of over 68.2 million people in 2023. The capital and largest city of both England and the UK is London. The cities o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Montreal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cities by population, ninth-largest in North America. It was founded in 1642 as ''Fort Ville-Marie, Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", and is now named after Mount Royal, the triple-peaked mountain around which the early settlement was built. The city is centred on the Island of Montreal and a few, much smaller, peripheral islands, the largest of which is Île Bizard. The city is east of the national capital, Ottawa, and southwest of the provincial capital, Quebec City. the city had a population of 1,762,949, and a Census geographic units of Canada#Census metropolitan areas, metropolitan population of 4,291,732, making it the List of census metropolitan areas and agglomerations in Canada, second-largest metropolitan area in Canada. French l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an archipelago consisting of List of islands of Bermuda, 181 islands, although the most significant islands are connected by bridges and appear to form one landmass. It has a land area of . Bermuda has a tropical climate, with warm winters and hot summers. Its climate also exhibits Oceanic climate, oceanic features similar to other coastal areas in the Northern Hemisphere with warm, moist air from the ocean ensuring relatively high humidity and stabilising temperatures. Bermuda is prone to severe weather from Westerlies#Interaction with tropical cyclones, recurving tropical cyclones; however, it receives some protection from a coral reef and its position north of the Main Development Region, which limits the direction and severity of approach ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Firth Of Clyde
The Firth of Clyde, is the estuary of the River Clyde, on the west coast of Scotland. The Firth has some of the deepest coastal waters of the British Isles. The Firth is sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean by the Kintyre, Kintyre Peninsula. The Firth lies between West Dunbartonshire in the north, Argyll and Bute in the west and Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire in the east. The Kilbrannan Sound is a large arm of the Firth, separating the Kintyre Peninsula from the Isle of Arran. The Kyles of Bute separates the Isle of Bute from the Cowal, Cowal Peninsula. The Sound of Bute separates the islands of Bute and Arran. The Highland Boundary Fault crosses the Firth. The Firth also played a vital military role during World War II. The Firth is sometimes called the Clyde Waters or Clyde Sea, and is customarily considered to be part of the Irish Sea. Geography At the north of the Firth, Loch Long and the Gare Loch join the Firth; these lochs are separated by the Rosneat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Largs
Largs () is a town on the Firth of Clyde in North Ayrshire, Scotland, about from Glasgow. The original name means "the slopes" (''An Leargaidh'') in Scottish Gaelic. A popular seaside resort with a pier, the town markets itself on its historic links with the Vikings and an annual festival is held each year in early September. In 1263 it was the site of the Battle of Largs between the Norwegian and the Scottish armies. The Royal National Mòd, National Mòd has also been held here in the past. History There is evidence of human activity in the vicinity of Largs which can be dated to the Neolithic era. The Stones of Scotland, Haylie Chambered Tomb in Douglas Park dates from c. 3000 BC. Largs evolved from the estates of North Cunninghame over which the Montgomeries of Skelmorlie became Lords Temporal, temporal lords in the seventeenth century. Sir Robert Montgomerie built Skelmorlie Aisle in the ancient kirk of Largs in 1636 as a family mausoleum. Today the monument is all that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
PB2Y Coronado
The PB2Y Coronado is a large flying boat patrol bomber designed by Consolidated Aircraft, and used by the US Navy during World War II in bombing, antisubmarine, medical/hospital plane, and transport roles. Obsolete by the end of the war, Coronados were quickly taken out of service. Only one known example remains, at the National Naval Aviation Museum at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. Before WW2 large flying boats were important for long distance international routes, as the ability to land on water without a land-based airstrip was useful. It proved to be good supporting aircraft in the Pacific War, which often required transport across long distance of oceans in harm's way, to places with no prepared airstrips. There were two main configurations, one with several turrets including a prominent ball turret in the nose with two 50-cal machine guns, and one unarmed, with a clean nose. The aircraft had a unique place in history, bringing Admiral Nimitz to Tokyo Bay for th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dorval
Dorval (; ) is an Greater Montreal, on-island suburban City (Quebec), city on the island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec, Canada. In 2016, the Canadian Census indicated that the population increased by 4.2% to 18,980. Although the city has the largest surface area in Montréal’s west side, it is among the least densely populated. Montréal–Trudeau International Airport, Montréal–Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport constitutes about 60% of the city's land; consequently, all of Dorval's population is concentrated in the southern part of the city. Dorval is the oldest city in the west side of Montréal, having been founded in 1667, and one of the oldest in Canada and North America. History The history of Dorval dates back more than 350 years to 1665 when Society of Saint-Sulpice, Sulpician priests established a mission on the outskirts of Fort Ville-Marie, Ville-Marie, a French settlement which later became known as Montreal. Dorval was originally named Gentill ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Celestial Navigation
Celestial navigation, also known as astronavigation, is the practice of position fixing using stars and other celestial bodies that enables a navigator to accurately determine their actual current physical position in space or on the surface of the Earth without relying solely on estimated positional calculations, commonly known as dead reckoning. Celestial navigation is performed without using satellite navigation or other similar modern electronic or digital positioning means. Celestial navigation uses "sights," or timed angular measurements, taken typically between a celestial body (e.g., the Sun, the Moon, a planet, or a star) and the visible horizon. Celestial navigation can also take advantage of measurements between celestial bodies without reference to the Earth's horizon, such as when the Moon and other selected bodies are used in the practice called "lunars" or the Lunar distance (navigation), lunar distance method, used for determining precise time when time is u ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frederick Bowhill
Air chief marshal Sir Frederick William Bowhill (1 September 1880 – 12 March 1960) was a senior commander in the Royal Air Force before and during World War II. RAF career Bowhill started his career as a midshipman in the merchant navy in 1896. In 1912 he attended the Central Flying School and in 1914 he was given command of the seaplane carrier HMS ''Empress''. He became Officer Commanding No. 8 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service in 1915 and Station Commander at RNAS Felixstowe in 1918. Later that year he commanded RNAS Killingholme. After the war Bowhill was not to rest for long from operational service. In 1920 he was the Chief of Staff to Group Captain Robert Gordon for the highly successful Somaliland campaign. He went on to be Officer Commanding the RAF Depot in Egypt in 1925, Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters RAF Iraq Command in 1928 and Director of Organisation and Staff Duties at the Air Ministry in 1929. In 1931 he was appointed Air Officer Comma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Air Chief Marshal
Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many Commonwealth of Nations, countries that have historical British influence. This rank is also equivalent to an Admiral in a List of navies, navy or a full general in an List of armies by country, army or other nations' air forces. The rank of air chief marshal is immediately senior to the rank of air marshal but subordinate to marshal of the air force. Air chief marshals are sometimes generically considered to be air marshals. Australia In the Royal Australian Air Force, this rank is only used when the Chief of the Defence Force (Australia), Chief of the Defence Force is an Air Force officer. When this is not the case, the senior ranking Air Force officer is the Chief of Air Force (Australia), Chief of Air Force, holding the rank of air marshal (Australia), air marshal. With the establishment of t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dominion Of Newfoundland
Newfoundland was a British dominion in eastern North America, today the modern Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It included the island of Newfoundland, and Labrador on the continental mainland. Newfoundland was one of the original dominions under the Balfour Declaration of 1926, and accordingly enjoyed a constitutional status equivalent to the other dominions of the time. Its dominion status was confirmed by the Statute of Westminster, 1931, although the statute was not otherwise applicable to Newfoundland. In 1934, Newfoundland became the only dominion to give up its self-governing status, which ended 79 years of self-government. The abolition of self-government came about because of a crisis in Newfoundland's public finances in 1932. Newfoundland had accumulated a significant amount of debt by building a railway across the island, which was completed in the 1890s, and by raising its own regiment during the First World War. In November 1932, the governmen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
CFB Gander
Canadian Forces Base Gander (also CFB Gander, ), is a Canadian Forces base located in Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador. It is operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force and is home to search and rescue operations that cover a vast swath of the western North Atlantic and southern Arctic and a Canadian Coastal Radar station amongst other things. It is home to 9 Wing Gander. CFB Gander is co-located at Gander International Airport. RCAF Station Gander The Newfoundland Airport was established by the Dominion of Newfoundland in 1936 and it became a strategically important airfield for piston-engined aircraft in the late 1930s. Shortly after World War II was declared, the Government of Newfoundland turned the operation of the airfield over to the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) in 1940, which had been tasked by the United Kingdom the responsibility to provide aerial defense for the dominion. The No. 10 Bomber and Reconnaissance (BR) Squadron began operating from t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
