CALSHOT
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EGWO:Lat/Long50 49 05N/01 18 53W . 0 feet ASL.Airfield Ident "CZ"

WATER AERODROME

Calshot Map
Calshot Spit.The hangars and slipway at the eastern extremity were joined to the camp on the mainland by narrow gauge railway.

Opened by the Royal Flying Corps as Calshot Naval Air Station on 29th March 1913 under the command of Lieut. S. D. A. Grey,the original purpose of Calshot was the testing of seaplanes for the RFC Naval wing.One of the first aircaft to be based there was the Borel Hydro-Mono No.83 pictured below in mid 1913.

With the advent of the Great War(WW1)the station undertook aircrew training duties as well anti-submarine and convoy protection patrols.With the renaming of the RFC ,the station eventually became RAF Calshot on 5th February 1922.

Between the wars the station continued with training,testing etc.Extra excitement came in the form of the RAF High Speed Flight which visited in 1927, 1929 and 1931 in order to train for the Schneider Trophy Races.

A postcard showing "Our Prince at Calshot".This is the then Prince of Wales - later King Edward VIII.The aircraft behind is ,I am fairly sure, one of the Italian Schneider Trophy Team's aircraft - probably the Macchi M52 ,or an M67 .I think the date must be around September 1929

During WW2 the station was mainly concerned withe the repair,maintenance and modification of RAF flying boats.In addition the station was responsible for marine craft maintenance as well as training boat crews.With the end of the war Calshot continued to be mainly concerned with repairs an maintenance until it was closed on 1st April 1961.Since that date there have been rare visits by even rarer flying boats,but as the surviving aircraft number less with each passing year,such visits become less likely.

Singapore
Singapore II Flying Boat
Swordfish
An undated photo taken at Calshot of a Fairey Swordfish on floats.The track in the foreground is from the 24" gauge Calshot to Eaglehurst Railway.Photo was by H.W."Mike" Smith.(via Mike Burnett)
1951 postcard ..RAF Sunderland and two ASR launches at Calshot.
RAF UNITS
48 Sq ,Cloud,arr 6/36,dep ?
201 Sq,Southamptom/London,arr 1/1/29,dep 29/9/38
201 Sq London,arr 7/10/38,dep 9/8/39
201 Sq,Seaford I,arr 1/4/46,dep 18/1/49
228 Sq,Sunderland I,arr 9/41
230 Sq,Sunderland V,arr 16/9/46,dep 25/2/49
240 Sq Curtiss H12/Short 184 and 320/Campania/Felixstowe F2A,Formed 20/8/18 from 345/410/346/411 Flights.Disbanded 15/5/19
240 Sq,Scapa/Singapore III/Lerwick I/London II,formed from "C" Flt STS 30/3/37,dep 12/8/39
765 Sq(RN Seaplane School),Walrus/Seafox/Kingfisher dep to RNAS Sandbanks 6/40
4(Coastal)OTU Sunderland GR5,arr 47 renamed 235 OCU
238 MU formed 17/10/53.
RAF High Speed Flight,various aircraft,short stays in 27,29,31.
480 (Coastal Reconnaisance Flight)Formed 1922,became 201 Sq 1/1/29
The crash of Sunderland VB885
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