No. 700 Naval Air Squadron

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No. 700 Naval Air Squadron of The British Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm. 700 Originally formed in Jan 1940 at RNAS Hatston (HMS Sparrowhawk) in Orkney in a plan to centralise the operations of the 700 series Catapult flights attached to catapult units and to act a pool and HQ for all catapult aircraft embarked on battleships and cruisers.

[edit] The History

On 21 June 1940, a Walrus (P5666) of 700 squadron on HMS Manchester found the German battlecruiser Scharnhorst, but HMS Manchester did not engage. During conflict with German capital ships on 23 May 1941, Walrus L2184 of 700 squadron from HMS Norfolk was damaged by shellfire from Prinz Eugen in the Denmark Strait whilst on its catapult.

The final successful attack on an enemy submarine by a Walrus was on 11 July 1942, when Walrus W2709 of 700 (Levant) squadron sank the Italian submarine Ondina, along with surface vessels South African Protea and trawler Southern Maid, east of Cyprus.

There were at least 5 confirmed enemy submarines sunk or damaged by Walruses during the Second World War, including the Vichy French submarine Poncelet which was bombed by Walrus L2268 of 700 squadron (HMS Devonshire) and attacked by HMS Milford on 7 November 1940 off the Cameroons. The submarine was damaged and forced to surrender, and later scuttled off the Gulf of Guinea. The crew of PO PH Parsons, Sub Lt AD Corkhill and NA Evans were all awarded gallantry medals.

Disbanded Mar 1944, into No. 771 NAS, but reformed as a Test Pilot School in Oct 1944.

Re-emerged in Aug 1955 as a Trials unit and from 1957 based from RNAS Lee-on-Solent to introduce the Whirlwind HAS.7 The Squadron carried on trials of Sea Vixens on HMS Victorious and HMS Centaur during 1958 and from October 1959 formed at Yeovilton with the Saunders Roe P.531 to investigate what would be needed to introduce a whole new form of helicopter operation to the Fleet – which lead to the Westland Wasp.

In October 1960 flight tests of landing and take-offs from HMS Vengeance with 27 launchings of the turboprop Fairey Gannet and 34 with the Seahawk.

Disbanded again at RNAS Yeovilton in July 1961.Re-commissioned at RNAS Culdrose in December 1998 to form the Intensive Flying Trials Unit.