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Aviation History
1942
1942 - 2305.PDF
How Carriers Helped the Navy in Its Three Major Duties : Great Work Skuas and Hurricanes craft operating from the Ark Royal and Hermes in the South Atlantic, the Glorious and Eagle in the Indian Ocean, and the Albatross off West Africa. At this time the backbone of the maintenance crews was still R.A.F. men, and their woik was so good that cases of engine failure were very rare, so rare, in fact, said the lecturer, that "if anyone were to comment on the hazards of con tinuous flying over the sea in single-engined aircraft he would have been regarded as peculiar and, to put it bluntly, windy." When the convoy system got fully going, the more im portant convoys, such as those with troop transport, had carriers as part of their escort. These had to provide fighter patrols when the convoy was within range of shore- based aircraft and also to search for surface raiders and submarines. When the convoys were within range of shore-based air craft. Coastal Command carried out these duties, and carriers had to undertake it when outside that range. When France fell and the Germans had had time to organise the airfields in that country, the long-range Focke-Wulf aircraft added to the ever-present submarine menace. Introducing C.A.M. Ships To counter this, and pending the production, of small carriers, fighter catapult ships manned by naval personnel and flying the White Ensign were introduced. These were so successful that similar R.A.F. Squadrons were formed to man C.A.M. ships, which were merchant ships carry ing a catapult as well as cargo. The aircraft used by the fighter catapult and C.A.M. ships were Fulmars and Hurri canes. He described the methods employed. The lecturer then turned to convoys to Russia and through the Mediterranean. When Italy declared war the Mediterranean Fleet was but half as strong in ships as the by Swordfish, Fulmars, LIEUTENANT G. R. M. GOING, R.N., a pilot who took part in the Taranto attack and afterwards lost a ' leg, delivered a lecture under the above title on October 28th before the Royal United Services Institution. Rear Admiral C. S. Holland, a former Captain of the Ark Royal, was in the chair. The lecturer said that if we wished to study the work of the Fleet Air Arm we must consider the naval war and see how that arm has assisted in its conduct. He said that he would deal with the three major functions of the Navy, namely, (1) the maintenance of our sea-borne trade and communications; (2) the disruption and distribution of the enemy's maritime trade and enforcement of the blockade; and (3) co-operation with the sister Services. In the first few weeks of the war the available carriers *fcp«te used in company with other warships on hunting sub marines in areas where they were known to be operating. Their only protection overhead was Skuas and Gladiators, and they had also inadequate protection against sub marines, which resulted in the loss of the Courageous by submarine attack. It was soon realised that this use of carriers in the narrow seas was unsound. From October, 1939, to January, 1940, five carriers, the Ark Royal, Glorious, Eagle, Hermes and Albatross were employed on trade protection. At the outbreak of war there were over 2,000 British and Imperial merchantmen scattered over the seas. It was the Admiralty's policy to route these ships independently to the convoy assembly ports. There was a scarcity of warships with which to cover these merchant ships, and carriers were used to give * air protection as the ships made for these ports. Groups consisting of a carrier and a small covering force were operating in the South Atlantic, Indian Ocean, North Atlantic and elsewhere.. Searches for enemy raiders and ocean-going submarines were also covered by naval air- D
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