| 797 Naval Air Squadron | |
|---|---|
 Fairey Swordfish, an example of the type used by 797 NAS | |
| Active | 1942–1945 |
| Disbanded | 24 October 1945[1] |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  Royal Navy |
| Type | Fleet Air Arm Second Line Squadron |
| Role | Fleet Requirements Unit |
| Size | Squadron |
| Part of | Fleet Air Arm |
| Home station | |
| Aircraft | SeeAircraft flown section for full list. |
| Insignia | |
| Identification Markings |
|
797 Naval Air Squadron (797 NAS) was aFleet Air Arm (FAA)naval air squadron of the United Kingdom’sRoyal Navy (RN) which last disbanded in October 1945 in Ceylon. Its role was aFleet Requirements Unit which formed at HMSUkussa, Royal Naval Air Station Katukurunda, in Ceylon, in July 1942. The squadron moved to RNAS Colombo Racecourse (HMSBherunda) in October 1943. It had a Communications Flight which became 742 Naval Air Squadron in December 1943 and the following summer it had an ‘X’ Flight deployed for target towing for a couple of gunnery schools in Bombay, India and which eventually moved to 722 Naval Air Squadron.
797 Naval Air Squadron formed atRNAS Katukurunda (HMSUkussa),British Ceylon (Sri Lanka), in July 1942, it was initially equipped with twoBlackburn Skua, a Britishcarrier-baseddive bomber/fighter aircraft.[4] It was tasked as a Fleet Requirements Unit.[5] Unit personnel included new arrivals, along with ground crew from the recently sunkaircraft carrierHMS Hermes.[3] A small number ofGloster Sea Gladiator, a Britishbiplane fighter aircraft andFairey Swordfish, a biplanetorpedo bomber, were also acquired in 1943, andFairey Albacore biplane torpedo bomber aircraft were added later.[4] The squadron relocated toRNAS Colombo Racecourse (HMSBherunda), located within Colombo Racecourse, in theCinnamon Gardens,Colombo, Ceylon,[6] on 1 October 1943 and shortly afterwards the Blackburn Skua were withdrawn and replaced withBoulton Paul Defiant, a Britishinterceptor aircraft.[2]
In August 1943, threeBeech AT-7 Navigator, a twin-enginedtrainer,transport andutility aircraft were received by the communications flight, which became742 Naval Air Squadron during December 1943.[3] On 1 July 1944, 'X' Flight was detached toJuhu.[7] It was equipped with Fairey Swordfish which were used to tow targets and it operated in support of aDefensively Equipped Merchant Ship (DEMS)gunnery school atColaba along with an Indian Navy gunnery school, at Malabar Point, inBombay. In September this flight was absorbed by722 Naval Air Squadron.[3] In 1944 a considerable number of new aircraft were received, withNorth American Harvard, an American advanced trainer aircraft,Grumman Avenger, an American torpedo bomber aircraft,Fairey Barracuda, a British carrier-borne torpedo and dive bomber andBristol Beaufighter, a twin-engine multirole combat aircraft, added to the squadron. In July 1945 the squadron briefly operated sixde Havilland Mosquito, also a twin-engine multirole combat aircraft. 797 Naval Air Squadron disbanded on 24 October 1945.[7]
The squadron has flown a number of different aircraft types, including:[8][3]
797 Naval Air Squadron operated from a number ofnaval air stations of the Royal Navy, overseas:[3]
List ofcommanding officers of 797 Naval Air Squadron with date of appointment:[8]
Note: Abbreviation (A) signifies Air Branch of the RN or RNVR.[9]