Naval Air Division (Royal Navy) Explained

Type:Division
Agency Name:Naval Air Division
Preceding1:Air Department
Jurisdiction:Government of the United Kingdom
Headquarters:Admiralty Building
Whitehall
London
Formed:1924
Dissolved:1964
Superseding:Directorate of Naval Air Warfare
Parent Department:Admiralty Naval Staff
Navy Department (Ministry of Defence)

The Air Division [1] originally known as the Air Section and later known as the Naval Air Division[2] was first established in 1924 and it was a Directorate of the Admiralty Naval Staff, that was initially responsible for operational control of aircraft supplied to the Royal Navy by the Air Ministry. In 1939 it was gained full control for the all matters relating to administration, control, policy and organisation of the Fleet Air Arm,[3] it underwent various name changes until it was absorbed as part of the merger of the Admiralty into the new Ministry of Defence in April 1964 as part of the Navy Department where it continued until May 1966 when its remit was changed and when became the Directorate of Naval Warfare.[4]

History

In June 1920 the Air Department was abolished and a new Air Section was established in July 1920,[5] mainly in response to the fact that there was not a single unified authority responsible for co-coordinating all of the other specialist air agencies that included for example aircraft product, this was particularly the case during the interwar years as the problem was further exacerbated because operational command control of aircraft from warships was the responsibility of the Admiralty and the Royal Air Force was responsible for administration and training under the Air Ministry, this situation would not be rectified until two years before second world war. In 1924 saw the creation of a specific Fleet Air Arm. The air section now was put under the control of the Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff of the Admiralty Naval Staff where it was renamed Air Division [6] until 1928 when it was renamed the Naval Air Division. [7] The administration of the Fleet Air Arm and all its functions on land still remained in the hands Air Ministry despite on-going Admiralty opposition till July 1937 [8] when both departments of state settled the dispute by returning the Fleet Air Arm to the Admiralty. At first only carrier-aircraft were involved, by May 1939 full administrative and operational control in regard to naval air warfare was passed to the Admiralty [9] In April 1941 operational control of the land-based Coastal Command finally passed to the Admiralty.[10] The staff division underwent a number of name changes following Naval Staff re-structuring and new functions were assigned to it, including the Air Warfare and Training Division, (1941–1943), the Naval Air Warfare & Flying Training Division,[11] (1943–1950) and the Naval Air Warfare Division, (1951–1962), the Naval Air Division, (1963–1964) Post the merger of the Admiralty into the new Ministry of Defence in April 1964 this division it continued in its own name until May 1966 when its remit was amended and it became the Directorate of Naval Air Warfare.

Directors

Director Air Division

Included:[12]

Director Naval Air Division

Director Air Warfare and Training Division

Director Naval Air Warfare and Flying Training Division

Director Naval Air Warfare Division

Director Naval Air Division

Deputy Directors

Included:[13]

Sources

Notes and References

  1. Book: Cumming. Anthony J.. The Royal Navy and the Battle of Britain. 2010. Naval Institute Press. 9781591141600. 166. en.
  2. Book: Stationery Office. H.M.. The Navy List. 28 February 1962. Spink and Son Ltd, London, England. 906–908.
  3. Web site: Archives. The National. Records of Naval Staff Departments. discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. National Archives, 1883–1978, ADM Division 10. 1 March 2017.
  4. The Navy List, April–June 1968, p. 525. HM Stationery Office. London, England.
  5. Book: Gates. David. Jones. Ben. Air Power in the Maritime Environment: The World Wars. 2016. Routledge. 9781317183433. 91.
  6. Book: Hamilton. C. I.. The Making of the Modern Admiralty: British Naval Policy-Making, 1805–1927. Feb 3, 2011. Cambridge University Press. 9781139496544. 292. en.
  7. Book: Studies. Royal United Services Institute for Defence. Brassey's annual: the armed forces year-book. 1931. Praeger Publishers.. 146. en.
  8. Web site: Archives. The National. Records of Air Department, Fleet Air Arm, Royal Naval Air Service and Department of Aircraft Equipment. discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. National Archives, 1914-1971, ADM Division 11. 1 March 2017.
  9. Web site: The History of the Fleet Air Arm Officers Association, FAAOA . fleetairarmoa.org . 1 March 2015.
  10. Web site: Archives. The National. Air Ministry and Admiralty: Coastal Command: Registered Files. discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk. National Archives, 1930–1974, ADM 15. 1 March 2017.
  11. Book: Llewellyn-Jones. Malcolm. The Royal Navy and Anti-Submarine Warfare, 1917–49. 2007. Routledge. 9781134172733. 201. en.
  12. Web site: Mackie. Colin. Senior Royal Navy Appointments from 1865. Gulabin. Colin Mackie, p.41, January 2017. 1 March 2017.
  13. Web site: Mackie. Colin. Senior Royal Navy Appointments from 1865. Gulabin. Colin Mackie, p.42, January 2017. 1 March 2017.

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