700 Naval Air Squadron
| 700 Naval Air Squadron | |
|---|---|
700 NAS badge
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| Active | 1940-1944 1944-1949 1955-1961 1998-2008 2009-2014 2014- |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Branch | Royal Navy |
| Role | Operational Evaluation Unit |
| Part of | Fleet Air Arm |
| Garrison/HQ | RNAS Yeovilton and RNAS Culrose (700X Squadron) |
| Motto(s) |
Experientia docet (Latin: "Experience teaches") |
700 Naval Air Squadron (700 NAS) is a squadron of aircraft in the Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm.
700 NAS was originally formed on 21 January 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 as a pool and Headquarters for all catapult aircraft embarked on battleships and cruisers - chiefly the Supermarine Walrus flying boat, together with the Fairey Seafox and Fairey Swordfish floatplanes. Initial equipment comprised 42 Walruses together with 11 Seafoxes and 12 Swordfishes.
On 21 June 1940, a Walrus (P5666) of 700 Squadron on the cruiser HMS Manchester found the German battleship Scharnhorst but Manchester did not engage.
Trailing German capital ships in the lead up to the Battle of the Denmark Strait, Walrus L2184 of 700 NAS from HMS Norfolk was damaged by shellfire from Prinz Eugen in the Denmark Strait on 23 May 1941 while still 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) NAS sank the Italian submarine Ondina, along with the South African surface vessels Protea and trawler Southern Maid, east of Cyprus.
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Wikipedia