Fleet Air Arm
The Fleet Air Arm is the Royal Navy’s air arm: born as the Royal Naval Air Service in 1914, absorbed into the RAF in 1918, rebuilt as the Fleet Air Arm of the RAF in 1924 and back under the Admiralty since 24 May 1939, it sank the Italian fleet at Taranto, crippled the Bismarck, fought the Falklands air war with Sea Harriers and in 2026 flies F-35Bs from two 65,000-tonne carriers alongside Merlin and Wildcat helicopters and a growing fleet of drones.
The Fleet Air Arm story: Taranto, the Falklands and eight years without carrier jets
1914–1939: the navy loses its air arm and wins it back
British naval flying began with an airship in 1909 and its first aeroplane pilots trained at Eastchurch in 1911. The Royal Naval Air Service was formed on 1 July 1914 and fought an inventive war: the Cuxhaven raid of 25 December 1914 was the first attack by British ship-borne aircraft, a Short seaplane flown by C. H. K. Edmonds made the first successful aerial torpedo attack on a ship in 1915, and in 1917 Edwin Dunning landed a Sopwith Pup on the moving deck of HMS Furious. By 1 April 1918, when it was merged with the Royal Flying Corps into the RAF, the RNAS had 55,066 officers and men, 2,949 aircraft and 103 airships. The navy then spent two decades without control of its own aircraft. The Fleet Air Arm of the RAF was formed on 1 April 1924; only under the Inskip Award of 1937 was it handed back, on 24 May 1939, with 20 squadrons and 232 first-line aircraft.
1939–1945: Swordfish, Taranto and the carrier war
That small, obsolete force did remarkable things. On the night of 11–12 November 1940, 21 Swordfish biplanes from HMS Illustrious attacked the Italian fleet in Taranto harbour, disabled three battleships and lost two aircraft; Admiral Cunningham called the Fleet Air Arm the navy’s “most devastating weapon”. At Matapan in March 1941 Albacores slowed the Vittorio Veneto and stopped the cruiser Pola. On 26 May 1941 a Swordfish torpedo from Ark Royal jammed the Bismarck’s rudder and doomed her. The cost was heavy too: all six Swordfish of 825 Squadron were shot down attacking the German battlecruisers in the Channel on 12 February 1942. By 1945 the Fleet Air Arm had about 59 carriers, 3,700 aircraft and 72,000 men, much of it built on American Martlets, Corsairs, Hellcats and Avengers, and its armoured carriers fought the kamikazes with the British Pacific Fleet.
1945–1978: jets, helicopters and the end of the big carriers
The navy led the jet age at sea. Eric Brown made the world’s first jet deck landing, in a Vampire on HMS Ocean, on 3 December 1945, and British officers invented the angled deck, the steam catapult and the mirror landing aid in 1951–1952 — ideas every big-deck navy adopted. Light carriers flew Sea Furies and Fireflies over Korea; in 1956 Eagle, Albion and Bulwark flew about 1,600 sorties against Egypt, and helicopters from Ocean and Theseus flew commandos ashore at Port Said, the first British helicopter assault. The 1960s fleet — Scimitar, Sea Vixen, Gannet, Buccaneer, then the Spey Phantom — was formidable but expensive, and the Sea Vixen alone lost 55 of about 145 aircraft in accidents. Defence cuts cancelled the CVA-01 carrier in 1966, and on 27 November 1978 a Phantom of 892 Squadron made the last catapult launch from HMS Ark Royal. The big-carrier navy was over.
1979–2010: Sea Harrier, the Falklands and Joint Force Harrier
What saved fixed-wing flying was the jump jet. The Sea Harrier entered service with 800 Squadron in March 1980 and flew from the small Invincible-class carriers and Hermes. In 1982 it was the task force’s only fighter: Sea Harriers are credited with 20 Argentine aircraft (21 in some tallies) for no loss in air combat, while six were lost to ground fire and accidents. Helicopters mattered as much: more than 150 flew in the campaign, and the Wessex, Wasp, Lynx and Sea King did everything from sinking the submarine Santa Fe to landing the troops. Sea Harriers then flew over Bosnia, where one was shot down near Goražde on 16 April 1994, and over Kosovo and Sierra Leone. In April 2000 the Navy’s Sea Harriers and the RAF’s Harrier GR7s were merged into Joint Force Harrier; the Sea Harrier was retired in March 2006 and 800 Squadron flew RAF Harriers, including over Afghanistan, until the 2010 defence review ended the Harrier altogether.
2010–2026: the gap, the new carriers and the F-35B
On 24 November 2010 four Harrier GR9s left HMS Ark Royal for the last time, and Britain had no carrier jets for eight years. The gap ended with two carriers far larger than anything the navy had had before: HMS Queen Elizabeth, commissioned on 7 December 2017, and HMS Prince of Wales, on 10 December 2019. The first F-35B launched from Queen Elizabeth’s ski-jump on 25 September 2018. The aircraft are a joint fleet: the Lightning Force at RAF Marham is RAF-owned and mixed-manned, 617 Squadron has flown from the carriers since 2018 and 809 Naval Air Squadron, the Phoenix squadron of Suez and the Falklands, recommissioned as the second front-line squadron in December 2023. The 2021 carrier strike group flew the first combat missions from a British carrier since 2010 against Islamic State; in 2025 Operation Highmast took 24 F-35Bs of both squadrons to the Indo-Pacific. The National Audit Office nonetheless judged the programme a “disappointing return so far” in July 2025.
Helicopters, drones and the hybrid air wing: what the Fleet Air Arm is today
The Fleet Air Arm today is mostly helicopters. The Ministry of Defence counts 15 squadrons and four headquarters. At Culdrose, the Merlin HM2 of 814, 820 and 824 Squadrons hunts submarines and, with Crowsnest radar, gives the carrier its airborne early warning; at Yeovilton, the Wildcat HMA2 of 815 and 825 Squadrons arms destroyers and frigates with Martlet and Sea Venom missiles, and the Commando Helicopter Force (845, 846 and 847 Squadrons, under the tri-service Joint Helicopter Command) carries the Royal Marines in Merlin HC4s and Army-owned Wildcat AH1s. The Defence Investment Plan of 30 June 2026 decided that the Wildcat AH1 will go from 2027 and that the maritime Wildcat will eventually be replaced by an autonomous aircraft. The Navy calls this a hybrid air wing: 700X Squadron flies Peregrine, Puma and Malloy T-150 drones, and the Proteus demonstrator first flew in January 2026. Whether drones can do what a Wildcat does from a small, pitching deck is the open question.
The Fleet Air Arm in numbers
Service
- Official name
- Fleet Air ArmThe Royal Navy’s own name for its air arm; no Welsh or Gaelic form is published by the Royal Navy. Its predecessor from 1914 to 1918 was the Royal Naval Air Service
- Founded
- 1 April 1924As the Fleet Air Arm of the RAF. Naval flying dates from 1909, the RNAS from 1 July 1914; administrative control returned to the Admiralty on 24 May 1939 under the Inskip Award of 1937
- Part of
- Royal NavyThe aviation branch of the Royal Navy (Naval Service). The Commando Helicopter Force works under the tri-service Joint Helicopter Command; the F-35B Lightning Force at RAF Marham is shared with the RAF
- Main air stations
- RNAS Yeovilton (HMS Heron) and RNAS Culdrose (HMS Seahawk)Plus RAF Marham for 809 NAS’s F-35Bs and the Predannack satellite airfield for drones
- Commodore Fleet Air Arm
- Cdre Stuart FinnPer Wikipedia; not confirmed on a Royal Navy page
- Commodore-in-Chief
- Catherine, Princess of WalesHonorary
Strength
- Personnel
- About 5,000Wikipedia’s figure; the Royal Navy does not publish a separate Fleet Air Arm headcount. The RNAS had 55,066 officers and men in 1918 and the wartime FAA about 72,000 in 1945
- Squadrons
- 15 squadrons and 4 headquartersMOD Equipment and Formations statistics at 1 April 2025 and 1 April 2026
- Combat aircraft
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- Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning — 47 in the joint RAF/RN fleet (48 delivered, one lost in 2021)
Owned by the RAF-led Lightning Force; 809 NAS is the Navy’s squadron. 42 were at RAF Marham in June 2026
- Helicopters
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- Merlin HM2 — 30 (23 in service in 2025)
- Merlin HC4/HC4A — 25 (21 in service in 2025)
- Wildcat HMA2 — 28 (22 in service in 2025)
- Wildcat AH1 — Army-owned, crewed by 847 NAS
Fleet totals from Wikipedia’s type articles; in-service figures from the MOD 2025 tables as reported by Wikipedia
- Uncrewed aircraft
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- Peregrine (Schiebel S-100) — 2
- Malloy T-150 — in service since September 2025
- Puma — small surveillance drone
Flown by 700X NAS; Proteus is a demonstrator, not in service
- Trainers
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- Grob Tutor T1 — 5 (727 NAS)
Grading of new pilots at Yeovilton; fast-jet and helicopter training is otherwise done in the joint UK Military Flying Training System
Infrastructure
- Air stations
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- Yeovilton — Wildcat Force, Commando Helicopter Force, 727 NAS
- Culdrose — Merlin HM2, 750, 700X and 1700 NAS
- RAF Marham — 809 NAS (F-35B)
Predannack, Culdrose’s satellite, is used for drone trials
- Aircraft carriers
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- HMS Queen Elizabeth — commissioned 7 December 2017
- HMS Prince of Wales — commissioned 10 December 2019
Each is designed for up to 36 F-35Bs; 24 were embarked in 2025
- Historic air stations
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- Lossiemouth (HMS Fulmar) — Buccaneer and Gannet base in the 1960s and 1970s
- Brawdy — home of the first Sea Hawk squadron in 1953
- St Merryn — where 809 NAS formed in 1941
Further former naval air stations (among them Prestwick, Lee-on-Solent, Ford, Portland and Arbroath) are covered with dates on the stations page
- Search and rescue
- Ended 2016771 NAS at Culdrose stood down on 1 January 2016 when civil contractors took over UK search and rescue
- Museum
- Fleet Air Arm Museum, YeoviltonMore than 90 aircraft and 30,000 artefacts, including Concorde 002
How the Fleet Air Arm is organised
The Commodore Fleet Air Arm over squadrons at two principal air stations and one on an RAF base. The Merlins fly from Culdrose, the Wildcats and the Commando Helicopter Force from Yeovilton, and 809 Naval Air Squadron’s F-35Bs from RAF Marham as half of a Lightning Force the RAF leads. The Commando Helicopter Force answers to the tri-service Joint Helicopter Command; the Royal Air Force and the Army Air Corps are separate services and are not counted here.
Fleet Air Arm, Navy Command
The Royal Navy’s air arm, led by the Commodore Fleet Air Arm; Wikipedia names Commodore Stuart Finn, whose appointment date was not confirmed on a Royal Navy page. The senior post was held by a rear-admiral until 2022. The Ministry of Defence counts 15 squadrons and four headquarters.
809 Naval Air Squadron
The Navy’s F-35B squadron, recommissioned in December 2023 and flying its first operational sortie in July 2024. The jets belong to the RAF-led Lightning Force, which it shares with 617 Squadron; 47 remain in the joint UK fleet after one was lost in 2021. They go to sea in HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales.
814, 820 and 824 Naval Air Squadrons
Every Royal Navy Merlin HM2, 30 of them upgraded from the HM1. 814 and 820 hunt submarines, 820 supports the carrier strike group with the Crowsnest airborne early warning radar, and 824 is the conversion unit.
815 and 825 Naval Air Squadrons
The Wildcat HMA2, 28 ordered for the Royal Navy: 815 provides the flights embarked in destroyers and frigates and 825 trains the crews. Armed with Martlet and, since 2 October 2025, the Sea Venom anti-ship missile; the Defence Investment Plan of June 2026 commits to an autonomous successor.
Commando Helicopter Force
845 and 846 Squadrons with Merlin HC4s taken over from the RAF in 2014, and 847 with Army-owned Wildcat AH1s, carry the Royal Marines. The force works under the tri-service Joint Helicopter Command; the Wildcat AH1 is to be withdrawn from 2027.
700X Naval Air Squadron
The Navy’s uncrewed aircraft squadron, flying Puma and Malloy T-150 drones with the National Drone Hub at Predannack; the T-150 was cleared for front-line use on 17 September 2025, and the Peregrine uncrewed helicopter served in HMS Lancaster in 2025.
727 and 750 Naval Air Squadrons
727 grades prospective naval pilots on the Grob Tutor before they join the joint UK Military Flying Training System; 750 trains the Navy’s observers on the Avenger T1.
1700 Naval Air Squadron
Deployable engineering and logistics support, with no aircraft of its own.
What the Fleet Air Arm flies today
Every type on charge, linked to its Book of Beasts page where one exists. Counts are aircraft on the books, not aircraft available on a given day.
| Type | Role | In service | Since | Units | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning IIIn service | Stealth multirole fighter, short take-off and vertical landing | 47 | 2018 | 47 in the joint UK fleet: 48 delivered (the 48th by June 2026), one lost in the Mediterranean in November 2021. 42 were based at RAF Marham in June 2026.
MoreThese are not Fleet Air Arm aircraft alone. |
||
| Leonardo (AgustaWestland) Merlin HM2In service | Anti-submarine warfare and airborne early warning (Crowsnest) | 30 | 2014 | 30 upgraded from the HM1; 23 in service in the MOD 2025 tables as reported by Wikipedia. | ||
| Leonardo (AgustaWestland) Merlin HC4/HC4AIn service | Commando assault and transport helicopter | 25 | 2014 | 25 converted from the RAF’s Merlin HC3/HC3A; 21 in service in the MOD 2025 tables as reported by Wikipedia. | ||
| Leonardo (AgustaWestland) AW159 Wildcat HMA2In service | Maritime attack and reconnaissance helicopter | 28 | 2015 | 28 ordered for the Royal Navy; 22 in service in the MOD 2025 tables as reported by Wikipedia. | ||
| Leonardo (AgustaWestland) AW159 Wildcat AH1In service | Battlefield reconnaissance and light utility helicopter | 2014 | 34 bought for the Army Air Corps (25 in service in 2025); owned by the Army. Up to eight are tasked to 847 NAS, according to Wikipedia. | |||
| Grob G 115E Tutor T1In service | Elementary flying and grading | 5 | Five, per Wikipedia’s summary of the MOD 2025 tables. | |||
| Schiebel Camcopter S-100 PeregrineIn service | Uncrewed reconnaissance helicopter | 2 | 2025 | Two airframes bought. | ||
| Malloy T-150 (BAE Systems)In service | Uncrewed heavy-lift logistics drone | 2025 | Numbers not officially published. | |||
| AeroVironment PumaIn service | Small uncrewed surveillance aircraft |
On order
| Type | Ordered | First delivery | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning IIOn order | 15 | Fifteen more F-35Bs (with 12 F-35As for the RAF) make up the 27-aircraft follow-on order announced in June 2025.
MoreThe minister said on 9 July 2026 that the UK hopes to take the next batch from the early 2030s. The 138-aircraft headmark has no approved timeline. The aircraft will join the joint RAF/RN Lightning Force; a third squadron is planned for 2033. |
Every type the Fleet Air Arm has retired
30 types, from the Fairey Swordfish to the BAE Systems Hawk T1. Peak figures are airframes taken on charge over the whole service life, not fleet strength on any one date.
| Type | Role | Peak | Served | Replaced by | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BAE Systems Hawk T1 | Maritime aggressor and fleet training | 14 | 2013–2022 | 14 with 736 NAS by 2016. | ||
| Westland Sea King | Anti-submarine, commando, airborne early warning and rescue helicopter | 1969–2018 | Merlin | Variants HAS1 (56), HAS2 (21), HAS5 (30 new), HAS6 (5 new), HC4 (42), AEW2/ASaC7 (13 in the final fleet) per Wikipedia; many were conversions, so no single total is given. | ||
| Westland Lynx HAS2/HAS3/HMA8 | Small-ship helicopter | Wildcat HMA2 | 60 HAS2 built for the RN, most later converted; the RN total was not confirmed. | |||
| Leonardo (AgustaWestland) Merlin HM1 | Anti-submarine helicopter | 44 | 2000–2014 | Merlin HM2 | 44 delivered. | |
| British Aerospace Harrier GR7/GR9 (Joint Force Harrier) | Attack aircraft | 2006–2010 | F-35B | RAF-owned aircraft; the Navy share was not published. | ||
| British Aerospace Sea Harrier FRS1/FA2 | Carrier fighter and strike aircraft | 1980–2006 | Harrier GR7/GR9 (Joint Force Harrier), then F-35B | 98 built in all variants, including India’s; the Royal Navy total was not confirmed. | ||
| Westland Wessex HAS1/HAS3/HU5 | Anti-submarine and commando helicopter | 241 | 1961–1988 | Sea King | 140 HAS1 and 101 HU5 built (43 HAS1 converted to HAS3). | |
| Westland Wasp HAS1 | Small-ship helicopter | 98 | 1964–1988 | Lynx | 98 procured for the Royal Navy. | |
| Fairey Gannet | Anti-submarine and airborne early warning | 347 | 1955–1978 | Wessex (anti-submarine), Sea King AEW (after 1982) | 303 anti-submarine and 44 AEW3 built. | |
| Blackburn Buccaneer S1/S2 | Carrier low-level strike aircraft | 124 | 1962–1978 | Sea Harrier | 40 S1 and 84 S2 built for the Navy. | |
| McDonnell Douglas Phantom FG1 (F-4K) | Carrier air defence fighter | 1969–1978 | Sea Harrier | The naval order fell from 140 to 48 and then 28; 20 aircraft meant for the Navy went to the RAF. | ||
| de Havilland Sea Vixen | All-weather carrier fighter | 1959–1972 | Phantom FG1 | 145–151 built including prototypes; 55 lost in accidents. | ||
| Hawker Sea Hawk | Carrier jet fighter-bomber | 405 | 1953–1960 | Scimitar, Sea Vixen | About 405 of the 542 built went to the Royal Navy. | |
| Douglas Skyraider AEW1 | Carrier airborne early warning | 1952–1960 | Gannet AEW3 | Not verified. | ||
| Fairey Firefly | Two-seat fighter and anti-submarine aircraft | 1943–1956 | Gannet | 1,702 built in all, not all for the FAA. | ||
| Hawker Sea Fury | Carrier fighter-bomber | 615 | 1947–1955 | Sea Hawk | About 615 built for the FAA, plus 61 T.20 trainers. | |
| Supermarine Seafire | Carrier fighter | 1942–1951 | Sea Fury | 2,646 built in all marks. | ||
| Vought Corsair | Carrier fighter-bomber | 2,012 | 1943–1946 | 2,012 delivered to Britain in four marks. | ||
| Fairey Swordfish | Torpedo bomber and reconnaissance | 1936–1945 | Barracuda, Avenger | About 2,391 built: 692 by Fairey and 1,699 by Blackburn; not all for front-line FAA use. | ||
| Grumman Martlet (F4F Wildcat) | Carrier fighter | 1940–1945 | About 220 or more, per Wikipedia. | |||
| Sopwith Pup | Fighter and carrier trials aircraft | RNAS numbers not verified. | ||||
| Blackburn Skua | Dive bomber and fighter | Not verified. | ||||
| Fairey Albacore | Torpedo bomber | Barracuda | Not verified. | |||
| Fairey Fulmar | Two-seat fleet fighter | 1941– | Not verified. | |||
| Grumman Hellcat | Carrier fighter | Not verified. | ||||
| Grumman Avenger | Torpedo bomber | 1943– | Not verified. | |||
| Fairey Barracuda | Torpedo and dive bomber | Not verified. | ||||
| de Havilland Sea Venom | All-weather carrier fighter | 1956– | Sea Vixen | Not verified. | ||
| Westland Wyvern | Turboprop strike aircraft | Not verified. | ||||
| Supermarine Scimitar | Carrier strike fighter | Buccaneer | Not verified. |
Where the Fleet Air Arm flies from
Black pins are active bases, hollow pins the airfields that have closed. Yeovilton and Culdrose are the Navy’s two principal air stations, each with a satellite airfield, Merryfield and Predannack; RAF Marham, where 809 Naval Air Squadron’s F-35Bs are based, is an RAF station and is not listed here. Lee-on-Solent, Ford, Portland, Brawdy, Prestwick, Arbroath, St Merryn and Eastchurch have all closed as naval air stations. Entries with no published aerodrome data carry no pin.
The United Kingdom
5 of the 11 bases above sit outside the United Kingdom, so the world map has to pull back until the home airfields cannot be told apart. The same pins again, without the overseas bases.
| Base | ICAO | Status | Runway | Units and aircraft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PredannackCornwall, England | EGDO | Active | 05/231,820 mblacktop09/271,308 mnot stated13/31883 mnot stated18/361,404 mnot stated |
|
| Royal Naval Air Station CuldroseCornwall, England | EGDR | Active | 11/291,830 m06/241,045 m18/361,056 m |
|
| Royal Naval Air Station MerryfieldSomerset, England | EGDI | Active | 08/261,771 m02/201,238 m16/341,161 m |
|
| Royal Naval Air Station YeoviltonSomerset, England | EGDY | Active | 08/262,293 mconcrete04/221,464 mconcrete |
|
| HMS Gannet, PrestwickSouth Ayrshire, Scotland | EGPK | Closed 2016 |
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| Royal Naval Air Station PortlandDorset, England | Closed 1999 |
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| Royal Naval Air Station Lee-on-SolentHampshire, England | Closed 1996 |
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| Royal Naval Air Station BrawdyPembrokeshire, Wales | Closed 1971 |
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| Royal Naval Air Station FordWest Sussex, England | Closed 1958 |
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| Royal Naval Air Station St MerrynCornwall, England | Closed 1956 |
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| Royal Naval Air Station ArbroathAngus, Scotland | Closed 1954 |
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| Naval Flying School EastchurchIsle of Sheppey, Kent, England | Closed 1946 |
|
No air base matches that search.
Who is stationed where in the Fleet Air Arm
Flying units by base, current units first. 809 Naval Air Squadron, formed at St Merryn with Fulmars in January 1941, now flies the F-35B, and the number 825, carried by the squadron that lost all six Swordfish in the Channel Dash of 1942, now belongs to the Wildcat training squadron. Army Air Corps units at Yeovilton are marked as not Fleet Air Arm. Where a date rests on Wikipedia alone, the entry says so.
- 815 Naval Air SquadronMaritime attack helicopter squadron (ship flights) · active
- AW159 Wildcat HMA2
- 825 Naval Air SquadronWildcat training and trials squadron · active
- AW159 Wildcat HMA2
- 845 Naval Air SquadronJunglies · Commando helicopter squadron · active
- Merlin HC4/HC4A
- 846 Naval Air SquadronJunglies · Commando helicopter squadron (training and maritime counter-terrorism) · active
- Merlin HC4/HC4A
- 847 Naval Air SquadronCommando light helicopter squadron · active
- AW159 Wildcat AH1
- 727 Naval Air SquadronFlying grading squadron · active
- Grob Tutor T1
- 1 Regiment Army Air Corps (652, 659 and 661 Squadrons)Army reconnaissance helicopter regiment · army
- AW159 Wildcat AH1
- 892 Naval Air Squadron1969–
- Phantom FG1 (F-4K)
- 700A, 899, 800 and 801 Naval Air Squadrons1979–2006
- Sea Harrier FRS1/FA2, Sea Harrier T8
- 848 Naval Air Squadron2015–2016
- Sea King HC4
- 814 Naval Air SquadronAnti-submarine helicopter squadron · active
- Merlin HM2
- 820 Naval Air SquadronAnti-submarine and carrier strike group helicopter squadron · active
- Merlin HM2
- 824 Naval Air SquadronMerlin operational conversion unit · active
- Merlin HM2
- 750 Naval Air SquadronObserver training squadron · active
- Beechcraft Avenger T1 (King Air 350ER)
- 700X Naval Air SquadronUncrewed aircraft squadron · active
- ScanEagle RM1 (former), AeroVironment Puma, Malloy T-150
- 1700 Naval Air SquadronEngineering and logistics support squadron · active
- 771 Naval Air Squadron1974–2016
- Westland Wessex HAS1/HU5, Westland Sea King HAR5
- 849 Naval Air Squadron1952–2020
- Douglas Skyraider AEW1, Sea King AEW2/ASaC7
- 736 Naval Air Squadron2013–2022
- BAE Hawk T1
- 700X Naval Air Squadron (drone trials)Uncrewed aircraft squadron · active
- AeroVironment Puma, Malloy T-150
- Yeovilton-based helicopter squadrons (training detachments)Helicopter training · active
- Merlin HC4, Wildcat
No unit matches that search.
Fleet Air Arm milestones, 1914 to today
1 July: the Royal Naval Air Service is formed. 25 December: the Cuxhaven raid, the first attack by British ship-borne aircraft.
1 April: the RNAS, with 55,066 officers and men and 2,949 aircraft, is merged with the Royal Flying Corps into the RAF.
1 April: the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Air Force is formed for the navy’s carrier-borne units.
24 May: under the Inskip Award of 1937, the Fleet Air Arm returns to Admiralty control with 20 squadrons and 232 first-line aircraft.
11–12 November: 21 Swordfish from HMS Illustrious attack the Italian fleet at Taranto.
26 May: a Swordfish torpedo from Ark Royal jams the Bismarck’s rudder; she is sunk the next morning.
By the end of the war: about 59 carriers, 3,700 aircraft and 72,000 men. 3 December: Eric Brown makes the first jet deck landing, on HMS Ocean.
9 August (8 August in some accounts): a Sea Fury of 802 NAS is credited with a MiG-15 over Korea. Angled-deck trials in HMS Triumph.
November: Eagle, Albion and Bulwark fly about 1,600 sorties at Suez; on 6 November helicopters land commandos at Port Said.
27 November: a Phantom of 892 NAS makes the last catapult launch from HMS Ark Royal; the big-carrier era ends in December.
April–June: the Falklands War. Sea Harriers from Hermes and Invincible are credited with 20 Argentine aircraft; more than 150 helicopters take part.
1 April: Joint Force Harrier merges Navy Sea Harrier and RAF Harrier squadrons.
24 November: the last Harrier launch from HMS Ark Royal; the 2010 defence review ends carrier jet flying for eight years.
30 June: Merlin HM2 initial operating capability. 30 September: the RAF’s Merlin HC3 fleet passes to the Commando Helicopter Force.
25 September: the first F-35B launches from HMS Queen Elizabeth. The last Sea Kings retire in September.
December: 809 NAS recommissions at RAF Marham as the Navy’s F-35B squadron.
April–November: Operation Highmast takes 24 F-35Bs of 617 Squadron and 809 NAS to the Indo-Pacific in HMS Prince of Wales.
30 June: the Defence Investment Plan sets the Wildcat AH1’s withdrawal from 2027 and an autonomous successor for the maritime Wildcat.
Every war the Fleet Air Arm has fought
Sorties and losses where the record gives them, and an honest blank where it does not.
- The First World War 1914–1918 Flew seaplane and ship-borne raids, maritime patrol, anti-Zeppelin defence and bombing, and pioneered the aircraft carrier
- The Norwegian campaign 1940 Dive-bombed German warships at Bergen and supported the Allied campaign in Norway
- Taranto and Matapan 1940–1941 Attacked the Italian battle fleet in harbour at night and slowed it at sea for the battleships
- Bismarck, the Channel Dash and the Tirpitz 1941–1944 Torpedo and dive-bombing attacks on Germany’s battleships and battlecruisers
- The British Pacific Fleet 1945 Struck oil refineries at Palembang, suppressed kamikaze airfields during the Okinawa campaign and attacked Japan
The Fleet Air Arm display teams
Each team has its own page: history, aircraft, the display, the accidents and the sources.
Fleet Air Arm news from Afterburner
Everything MiGFlug’s magazine has published on the Fleet Air Arm and the aircraft it flies. This list refreshes itself — new Afterburner stories appear here automatically.
Everything people ask about the Fleet Air Arm
What is the Royal Navy’s air arm called?
Which fighter jets does the Fleet Air Arm fly?
Does the F-35B belong to the Royal Navy or the RAF?
Why did Britain have no carrier jets from 2010 to 2018?
What did the Fleet Air Arm do at Taranto?
How many aircraft did the Sea Harrier shoot down in the Falklands?
Did a Sea Fury really shoot down a MiG-15?
What helicopters does the Fleet Air Arm fly?
Where is the Fleet Air Arm based?
Does the Fleet Air Arm fly drones?
Read the aircraft the Fleet Air Arm flew
Every type with a page in the Book of Beasts, in service first, then by the year it left the fleet.
Every fact, checked
- Royal Navy: Fleet Air ArmThe official name and branch page; 809 Naval Air Squadron described as the first Royal Navy formation to fly the F-35.
- Royal Navy careers: Fleet Air ArmCurrent types named by the Royal Navy: F-35B, Merlin Mk2, Wildcat; carriers HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales.
- Royal Navy: AircraftThe three crewed types the Royal Navy lists: F-35 Lightning, Merlin (Mk2 and Mk4) and Wildcat.
- Royal Navy: F-35 LightningSTOVL F-35B for the Queen Elizabeth-class carriers; performance figures.
- Royal Navy: Merlin helicopterMerlin Mk2 in service since 2014; Mk4 for the Royal Marines; crew roles.
- Ministry of Defence: UK armed forces equipment and formations 2026Official statistics at 1 April 2026: the Fleet Air Arm consists of 15 squadrons and 4 headquarters; type-by-type tables are in the spreadsheet only.
- Ministry of Defence: UK armed forces equipment and formations 2025Same 15 squadrons and 4 headquarters at 1 April 2025.
- Royal Navy Museums: Flying into fire – Eugene Esmonde and the attack on BismarckEsmonde’s medals on display at the Fleet Air Arm Museum, Yeovilton.
- Royal Navy Museums: Fleet Air Arm Museum, YeoviltonMore than 90 aircraft and 30,000 artefacts; Concorde 002.
- Royal Air Force: Lightning F-35B617 Squadron reformed in 2018 with RN and RAF personnel; land IOC December 2018, maritime IOC December 2020; first UK aircraft delivered 19 July 2012.
- National Audit Office: The UK’s F-35 capability (11 July 2025)37 in service at the time of the report, 48 on contract, 138 committed; about 11 billion pounds spent; personnel gaps to 2028; up to 24 aircraft for CSG25.
- UK Parliament written answer 8248 (17 June 2026): F-35 aircraftAfter delivery of the 48th UK F-35B, 42 are based at RAF Marham with 617 Squadron, 809 NAS and 207 Squadron.
- UK Parliament written answer 24602 (8 September 2026): Wildcat helicoptersPlanned withdrawal of the Wildcat AH1 fleet from 2027, following the Defence Investment Plan of 30 June 2026.
- UK Parliament written answer 24603 (8 September 2026): Wildcat helicoptersOptions for AH1 airframes after withdrawal from 2027 still being examined.
- UK Parliament written answer 21441 (8 September 2026): Uncrewed systems – helicoptersProteus uncrewed air system technology demonstrator is part of the Hybrid Air Wing endorsed in the Defence Investment Plan.
- House of Commons Library: Defence Investment Plan – key decisions (CBP-10935)Wildcat battlefield helicopter to be withdrawn early from 2027; Project Vanquish jet drone for land bases or carriers.
- Navy Lookout: Maritime aviation transformation – the Royal Navy’s plan for a hybrid air wing (29 May 2026)Peregrine (two airframes, deployed February–December 2025 in HMS Lancaster); Proteus first flights January 2026; Crowsnest replacement by December 2029; 700X NAS at Culdrose and Predannack.
- UK Defence Journal: 809 Naval Air Squadron reborn for F-35 Lightning (11 December 2023)Recommissioning ceremony at RAF Marham on 5 December 2023; Commander Nick Smith; mixed RN and RAF manning.
- UK Defence Journal: British carrier shortly to begin Operation Highmast (27 March 2025)24 F-35Bs of 617 Squadron and 809 NAS; 36 of 48 F-35Bs delivered at the time.
- UK Defence Journal: F-35 spares shortfall exposed as carrier surged to 24 jets (14 May 2026)From the MOD Permanent Secretary’s letter of 30 April 2026 to the Public Accounts Committee: 24 aircraft embarked, afloat spares for 12; 168 engineering posts, 42 per cent RN; third squadron planned for 2033.
- UK Defence Journal: Aircraft carrier arrives in Scotland to load ammunition (30 April 2026)Operation Firecrest announced February 2026; over 1,000 F-35 sorties in Highmast.
- UK Defence Journal: Carrier jets guarded Arctic skies against Russian aircraft (24 July 2026)HMS Prince of Wales home on 24 July 2026 after three months on NATO’s northern flank with 809 NAS; 750 deck landings in Neptune Strike.
- UK Defence Journal: Russian Bear buzzes British aircraft carrier in Arctic (6 July 2026)Two 809 NAS F-35Bs escorted a Tu-142 on 2 July 2026; MOD statement calling the Russian activity unsafe and unprofessional.
- UK Defence Journal: UK F-35 deliveries to pause until the early 2030s (10 July 2026)48 F-35Bs delivered, 47 in the fleet; 15 more F-35B and 12 F-35A ordered; next batch from the early 2030s (Luke Pollard, written answer).
- UK Defence Journal: British aircraft carrier returns home (9 December 2021)CSG21: seven months, 3,700 personnel, nine ships, a submarine, five air squadrons; one F-35B lost, pilot safe.
- UK Defence Journal: First combat missions flown from HMS Queen Elizabeth (22 June 2021)617 Squadron and US Marine Corps F-35Bs (18 in all) strike Islamic State under Operation Shader.
- UK Defence Journal: Engineers begin repairs on stranded F-35B in India (7 July 2025)British High Commission statement on the F-35B grounded at Thiruvananthapuram.
- UK Defence Journal: Royal Navy clears Malloy T-150 drone for front-line use (17 September 2025)Release to service after two years of trials with Royal Marines and 700X NAS; 68 kg payload.
- UK Defence Journal: Royal Navy declares Sea Venom missile ready for use (2 October 2025)Initial operating capability with 815 NAS Wildcats during Operation Highmast.
- UK Defence Journal: Royal Navy Wildcat helicopters to be replaced by drones (30 June 2026)Defence Investment Plan commits to an autonomous replacement for the Wildcat HMA2; no retirement date.
- UK Defence Journal: Crowsnest early warning helicopter enters service (24 March 2021)First Crowsnest Merlin in service with 820 NAS; full operating capability planned for May 2023; Captain Stuart Finn then commanding RNAS Culdrose.
- UK Defence Journal: Phoenix rises – 809 Naval Air Squadron in first F-35 flight (16 July 2024)809 NAS completed its first operational sortie with the F-35B (from the site’s search listing).
- UK Defence Journal: Britain is about to have two aircraft carriers at sea (24 April 2026)Two carriers at sea for the first time in over a year after HMS Queen Elizabeth’s maintenance (from the site’s search listing).
- UK Military AIP, AD 2 EGDY Yeovilton, aerodrome textual data (AIRAC 09/25, 4 September 2025)No. 1 AIDU. Reference point N51 00 29.77 W002 38 43.78, elevation 75 ft, runways 08/26 2,293 m and 04/22 1,464 m (concrete), operating authority Royal Navy, civil aircraft 24 hours PPR.
- UK Military AIP, AD 2 EGDR Culdrose, aerodrome textual data (AIRAC 12/25, 27 November 2025)Reference point 50 05 07.43N 005 15 14.66W, elevation 268 ft, runways 11/29 1,830 m, 06/24 1,045 m, 18/36 1,056 m (asphalt); operating authority Royal Navy.
- UK Military AIP, AD 2 EGDO Predannack, aerodrome textual data (AIRAC 10/25, 2 October 2025)Reference point N50 00 07.32 W005 13 54.37, elevation 299 ft, four runways (05/23 1,820 m blacktop; 09/27 1,308 m; 13/31 883 m; 18/36 1,404 m); operated by RNAS Culdrose; weekend military gliding; RPAS operations when the airfield is closed; runways not maintained to pavement standards.
- UK Military AIP, AD 2 EGDI Merryfield, aerodrome textual data (AIRAC 04/26, 16 April 2026)Reference point N50 57 45.00 W002 56 08.40 (mid-point of runway 08/26), elevation 144 ft, runways 08/26 1,771 m, 02/20 1,238 m, 16/34 1,161 m (asphalt); “intense helicopter activity”.
- Royal Navy: RNAS Yeovilton (station page, archived c. 2013–2015)Official but dated (it still lists the Lynx and Commodore Jock Alexander, in command 2012–2015): about 1,400 acres, about 4,300 people, more than 100 aircraft, “one of the busiest military airfields in the UK”; Merryfield satellite at Ilton.
- Royal Navy: RNAS Culdrose (station page, archived c. 2014)Official but dated (it announces Air Day on 31 July 2014): about 75 aircraft, about 3,000 people, £100m a year into the local economy, “the largest helicopter base in Europe”, biggest single-site employer in Cornwall.
Figures verified 2026-09-30. Order of Battle pages are regenerated from a single dataset; if a number here disagrees with a Book of Beasts page, this page is the more recent of the two.
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