Fleet Air Arm (Aswick)
| Fleet Air Arm | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1914 (As the Royal Naval Air Service)
1924 (as the Naval branch of the Royal Air Force) |
| Country |  Aswick |
| Allegiance | HM King William |
| Branch | Royal Aswickan Navy |
| Size | 5,000 personnel Appox. 174 aircraft |
| Part of | Naval Service |
| Commanders | |
| Rear Admiral, Fleet Air Arm | Rear Admiral Sir Steven Blunt, RN |
| Insignia | |
| Roundels |   |
| White Ensign |  |
| Badge | |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Fighter | F-35A Lightning II |
| Attack helicopter | Merlin, Wildcat |
| Trainer helicopter | King Air, Tutor, Hawk |
The Fleet Air Arm (FAA) is the arm of the Aswickan Royal Navy responsible for the operation of aircraft from Navy installations or vessels. The Fleet Air Arm currently operates the AW101 Merlin and AW159 Wildcat helicopters, the BAE Hawk, Tutor, and the Lockheed-Martin F-35B. The Fleet Air Arm began using helicopters such as the Lynx and Westland Wasp on smaller vessels in 1964, taking over the roles once performed by biplanes such as the Fairey Swordfish.
The Fleet Air Arm began as a part of the Army's Royal Flying Corps in 1915. In 1918, however, the Royal Air Force was created and was given control over all matters aviation. Finally in 1937, the Fleet Air Arm was branched off from the Royal Air Force and came under direct control of the Admiralty. During the Second World War, the Fleet Air Arm operated aircraft on ships as well as land-based aircraft that defended the Royal Navy's shore establishments and facilities.
History
Foundation
Fleet Air Arm
Cold War era
Recent history
The FAA today
Personnel
As of 1 December 2013, the Regular Fleet Air Arm has a reported strength of 5,000 personnel, which represents approximately 20% of the Royal Navy's total strength (excluding Royal Marines). The Assistant Chief of Naval Staff (Aviation & Carriers), the professional head, who is also Rear Admiral Fleet Air Arm, is Rear Admiral Sir Steven Blunt.
Aircraft
The FAA operates fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft. It uses the same designation system for aircraft as the RAF. Four types of fixed wing aircraft are operated by the FAA for training purposes: pilot training is carried out using the Grob Tutor while, from March 2011, observer training is done using four Avenger T.1 Beechcraft King Air 350ER. The third type is the Hawk T1/1A, which is used to simulate enemy aircraft for training purposes including AEW Fighter Control, air to air combat and ship attack. Lastly, there is the F-35, though it is slated to be replaced by the F-35 at the start of Fiscal Year 2018.
The aviators in the rotary section fly two types of helicopters, and within each type there are usually several marks/variants which carry out different roles. Pilots designated for rotary wing service train at the Defence Helicopter Flying School, RAF Valley. The School is a tri-Service organisation consisting of civilian and military instructors (including Naval instructors and a Naval Air Squadron) that take the student from basic flying through to more advanced flying such as instrument flying, navigation, formation and captaincy.
The surface combatants of the Royal Navy have their helicopters provided for the most part by the AW159 Wildcat. The Skimmers primarily have anti-submarine warfare and anti-surface vessel roles. They are able to fire the Sea Skua anti-surface missile. It can be armed with Stingray air launched torpedoes and depth charges for anti-submarine warfare, as well as heavy calibre machine guns. The Wildcat was originally envisaged for surface combatants that were too small for the Sea King, but now equips most frigates and destroyers of the Royal Navy.
The Merlin is the FAA's primary Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) and transport helicopter, having replaced the Sea King HAS.6 in the role. It is presently being upgraded from HM.1 to HM.2 standard and is deployed with various ships of the Royal Navy.
Squadrons and Flights
A Fleet Air Arm flying squadron is formally titled Naval Air Squadron (NAS), a title used as a suffix to the squadron number. In the past, the FAA assigned numbers in the 700–799 range to training and operational conversion squadrons and numbers in the 800–899 range to operational squadrons. In more recent times, however, the Air Force has taken over sole responsibility for the training squadrons.
Squadrons active in the FAA are:
Flying Squadrons
| Squadron name | Type | Airframe | Squadron code | Based at | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 811 Naval Air Squadron | Fixed-wing | F-35B | ZA | ||
| 812 Naval Air Squadron | Fixed-wing | F-35B | ZB | ||
| 813 Naval Air Squadron | Fixed-wing | F-35B | ZC | ||
| 815 Naval Air Squadron | Fixed-wing | F-35B | ZE | Operational Conversion Unit | |
| 840 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Merlin | YA | ||
| 841 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Merlin | YB | ||
| 842 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Merlin | YC | ||
| 843 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Wildcat | YD | Scattered around the fleet | |
| 844 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Wildcat | YE | Scattered around the fleet | |
| 845 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Wildcat | YF | Scattered around the fleet | |
| 846 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Wildcat | YG | ||
| 847 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Wildcat | YH | ||
| 848 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Various | YI | Operational Conversion Unit | |
| 851 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Merlin | YL | Part of Commando Helicopter Force | |
| 852 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Wildcat | YM | Part of Commando Helicopter Force | |
| 853 Naval Air Squadron | Rotary | Sea King ASaC.7 | YN | Part of Commando Helicopter Force |
Flights and non-flying units
| Squadron name | Type | Airframe | Squadron code | Based at | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Navy Historical Flight | Fixed-wing | Number of historic aircraft | RNAS Hickam | ||
| Maritime Aviation Support Force |
Notable members
- King William of Aswick - Served in the Fleet Air Arm from 2006 to 2010, seeing action in the Aswickan Civil War.