RNAS Culdrose

RNAS Culdrose
Culdrose
Characteristics
ICAO code	EGDR
Coordinates	50 ° 5 '10 "  N , 5 ° 15' 21"  W Coordinates: 50 ° 5 '10 "  N , 5 ° 15' 21"  W.
Height above MSL	81 m (266  ft )
Transport links
Distance from the city center	15 km southwest of Falmouth
Street	2 km to the
Basic data
opening	1947
operator	Royal Navy
Runways
12/30	1831 m of asphalt
18/36	1051 m of asphalt
07/25	1028 m of asphalt

The Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose , or RNAS Culdrose for short , and the additional designation HMS Seahawk , is a military airfield of the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) of the British Royal Navy (RN) near Helston in the south-west of Cornwall , England . Along with RNAS Yeovilton, the base is one of two land bases for RN aircraft. Culdrose is one of the largest helicopter bases in Europe; the squadrons are used for naval warfare , such as submarine hunting .

history

In 1942 the Admiralty began investigating the area south of Helston for possible use as an air base. The station was finally opened five years after this investigation began. The base initially served the Naval Fighting School , but quickly took on other tasks. These included the trials of the RN's first fighter jets, training of crews for early warning aircraft and, as a land base, of carrier-based aircraft. Over the years, the operation of fixed wing aircraft was gradually reduced in favor of helicopters; however, the tasks have hardly changed over the decades.

The type that has been stationed here the longest so far was the Westland Seaking in various series from 1969 to 2018 .

The Olympic flame

A British Airways civil aircraft named Firefly brought the Olympic flame in special containers from Athens to this airport on May 18, 2012 as the starting point of the 70-day relay race of the Olympic flame before the opening of the 2012 Olympic Games in London . The airport received the IATA code CDR specifically for this flight in order to enable the civil aircraft to fly to this military airfield using a computer.

Todays use

Currently (2018) the station is the type base for the Merlin HM.2 helicopters .

• 700X. Naval Air Squadron , drone squadron with Scan Eagle
• 727th Naval Air Squadron , school squadron equipped with the Tutor T.1
• The 736th Naval Air Squadron , school squadron equipped with the Hawk T.1 / T.1A , is to be disbanded in late 2019
• 750th Naval Air Squadron , school squadron equipped with Avenger T.1 training aircraft
• 814th Naval Air Squadron , on-board helicopter task force for destroyers and frigates, equipped with the Merlin HM.2
• 820th Naval Air Squadron , aircraft carrier squadron equipped with the Merlin HM.2

There are also other non-flying formations. A few miles south on the Lizard Peninsula , the southernmost point of the United Kingdom, is Predannack, an alternative airport. Here training circuits can be made with the helicopters without disturbing the aircraft on the main base.

swell

• Olympic torch: Top pilot's most 'precious cargo' BBC News May 18, 2012.

Web links

• Homepage of the RNAS Culdrose

Individual evidence

1. ↑ The Packet Camera Club's photo of the day, UK West Country, October 8, 2018