1792 Naval Air Squadron of the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy was formed on 15 May 1945 at Lee-on-Solent as a night fighter squadron. It was equipped with the Fairey Firefly NF.Mk I, which was fitted with radar in a centre-line container. The squadron joined HMS Ocean in December for service in the Mediterranean. On return to the UK the squadron was disbanded on 17 April 1946.[2]
| 1792 Naval Air Squadron | |
|---|---|
 1792 NAS badge | |
| Active | 15 May 1945 – 17 April 1946 |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  Royal Navy |
| Type | Two-seat fighter squadron |
| Role | Night fighter |
| Size | Squadron |
| Part of | Fleet Air Arm |
| Motto(s) | Nocte vincimus (Latin for 'We conquer by night')[1] |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Lt Cdr(A) S Dixon-Child RNVR |
History edit
Night Fighter Squadron (1945 - 1946) edit
1792 Naval Air Squadron formed at RNAS Lee-on-Solent (HMS Daedalus), on 15 May 1945, as a night fighter squadron. It was equipped with Fairey Firefly NF.Mk I, a night fighter variant of the carrier-borne fighter, anti-submarine and reconnaissance aircraft.[3] Around one month later the squadron moved north to Lancashire, relocating to RNAS Inskip (HMS Nightjar) on 15 June.[1]
During August it moved to RNAS Drem (HMS Nighthawk), East Lothian, Scotland, where the Naval Night Fighter School and Night Fighter Direction Centre were based. The squadron spent almost three months at RNAS Drem working up before moving to RNAS Machrihanish ( HMS Landrail), Argyll, Scotland, on 27 November[4] and two weeks later embarked in the Colossus-class aircraft carrier HMS Ocean for the Mediterranean.[3]
References edit
Citations edit
- ^ a b Ballance, Howard & Sturtivant 2016, p. 280.
- ^ Sturtivant, Ray (1994). The Squadrons of the Fleet Air Arm. Air-Britain. p. 341. ISBN 0-85130-223-8.
- ^ a b Wragg 2019, p. 190.
- ^ "Drem". Royal Navy Research Archive - Fleet Air Arm Bases 1939 - present day. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
Bibliography edit
- Ballance, Theo; Howard, Lee; Sturtivant, Ray (2016). The Squadrons and Units of the Fleet Air Arm. Air Britain Historians Limited. ISBN 978-0-85130-489-2.
- Wragg, David (2019). The Fleet Air Arm Handbook 1939-1945. Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, UK: The History Press. ISBN 978-0-7509-9303-6.
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