List of air stations of the Royal Navy

This is a list of naval air stations of the Royal Navy. Naval air stations are shore establishments of the Fleet Air Arm (FAA), the branch of the Royal Navy (RN) responsible for the operation of naval aircraft.

Historically, RNAS referred to the Royal Naval Air Service, which was the aviation branch of the Royal Navy. This merged in 1918 with the Royal Flying Corps, of the British Army, to form an independent service, the Royal Air Force (RAF). Currently the abbreviation RNAS stands for "Royal Naval Air Station", and in common with Royal Air Force station naming convention, is always followed by a geographical place in which the air station is located.

Between 1918 and 1939, the Royal Air Force had provided the Fleet Air Arm to the Royal Navy, and Royal Naval Air Stations were consequently operated by Royal Air force personnel.

On 24 May 1939, operation of the Fleet Air Arm was returned to full Admiralty control under the Inskip Award, with Royal Air Force personnel replaced by Royal Naval personnel, or transferring to the Royal Navy.

As Coastal Command remained part of the Royal Air Force, Royal Naval Air Stations, since 1939, have generally operated ship-borne types of aircraft when it has been necessary for them to be operated from land bases.

Current naval air stations
The current Fleet Air Arm front-line operations are centred on two main operating bases (MOBs), each with a nearby satellite airfield: (Bold denotes Royal Navy shore establishment, italics denotes other controlled airbase with Fleet Air Arm unit)
 * RNAS Culdrose (HMS Seahawk) – Culdrose, Helston, Cornwall, England - (maritime Merlin operations, Royal Naval School of Flight Deck Operations)
 * RNAS Predannack (satellite airfield) – Mullion, Cornwall
 * RNAS Yeovilton (HMS Heron) – Yeovilton, Somerset, England - (Wildcat Maritime Force (MWF), Commando Helicopter Force (CHF), Joint Helicopter Command, Wildcat Demo Team)
 * RNAS Merryfield (satellite airfield) – Ilton, Somerset

Other airbases
Fleet Air Arm front-line operations are supported by other airbases with activity at:


 * HMS Gannet, which is a forward operating base of the Fleet Air Arm located at Glasgow Prestwick Airport, South Ayrshire in Scotland, used by detachments of Royal Navy Merlin HM2 helicopters which are deployed from RNAS Culdrose as and when required.
 * RAF Marham - Norfolk, England, the F-35B Lightning II main operating base and a Royal Air Force station, but home to the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm 809 Naval Air Squadron, which is part of Air Combat Force, under No. 1 Group RAF.

Similarly, second-line operations are also conducted from both RNAS Culdrose, with 750 Naval Air Squadron providing training for Royal Navy Observers and Royal Air Force Weapon Systems Officers (WSOs), and RNAS Yeovilton home to 727 Naval Air Squadron with flight assessment and training, but operations are also supported by other airbases:
 * Dedicated aircrew training for all three UK armed services sits with the UK Military Flying Training System (UKMFTS).
 * RAF Barkston Heath - Lincolnshire, England, home to the Defence Elementary Flying Training School, which includes the Feet Air Arm’s 703 Naval Air Squadron as part of the UKMFTS, and which operates the Grob Prefect T1 in the elementary flying training role.
 * RAF Shawbury - Shropshire, England. Home of the tri-service No. 1 Flying Training School, which includes the Fleet Air Arm’s 705 Naval Air Squadron, flying the Airbus Juno HT1. Elements of the Central Flying School (Helicopter) Squadron train helicopter flying instructors, and the Defence College of Air and Space Operations trains air traffic controllers for both the RAF and RN.

Several former airbases are operated by defence contractor QinetiQ in the test and evaluation role, with these locations owned by the Ministry of Defence (MoD).
 * The former Royal Air Force station at Boscombe Down in Wiltshire is the main facility, and this has a Fleet Air Arm presence.
 * MOD Boscombe Down, Wiltshire, England - Test and evaluation airbase operated by QinetiQ on behalf of the MoD. The Fleet Air Arm's 744 Naval Air Squadron is part of the Air and Space Warfare Centre, but predominantly based out of MoD Boscombe Down, and forms part of the Air Test and Evaluation Centre (ATEC).

Map of stations within the UK
Map of the United Kingdom showing active naval air stations, including forward operating bases and satellite airfields, Ministry of Defence (MOD) airfields with a Royal Navy presence and Royal Air Force (RAF) stations with a Royal Navy presence.

Former naval air stations
When control of the Fleet Air Arm was transferred from the Royal Air Force, four of its existing airbases, in the United Kingdom, were also transferred to the Fleet Air Arm, these were: Donibristle, Lee-on-Solent, Ford, and Worthy Down. At that time when operating overseas, the Fleet Air Arm still needed to rely on lodger facilities at Royal Air Force stations abroad.

During the early period of the Second World War the Royal Navy worked to acquire its own airfields, both in the UK and near to strategic bases abroad. Some of these were purpose built and others were transferred over from the Royal Air Force.

These lists covers Fleet Air Arm establishments, located both on the British Isles and overseas. It includes Air Stations, Air Sections, Air Maintenance & Repair Yards, Lodger units at RAF bases, and training establishments. The bases are listed alphabetically, by geographical location.

Key to the types of establishments:


 * BCAS - British Commonwealth Air Station
 * MONAB - Mobile Naval Air Base
 * RAF - Royal Air Force
 * RAAF - Royal Australian Air Force
 * RCAF - Royal Canadian Air Force
 * RNAS - Royal Naval Air Station
 * RNAY - Royal Naval Air Yard
 * RNAMY - Royal Naval Aircraft Maintenance Yard
 * RNARY - Royal Naval Aircraft Repair Yard
 * RNADC - Royal Naval Aircraft Direction Centre
 * RNAE - Royal Naval Air Establishment
 * RNATE - Royal Naval Aircraft Training Establishment
 * RNTE - Royal Naval Training Establishment
 * SAAF - South African Air Force
 * TAMY - Transportable Aircraft Maintenance Yard
 * USAF - United States Air Force
 * USNAS - United States Naval Air Station
 * USNAF - United States Naval Air Facility

British Isles
This list is of former air stations of the Royal Navy within the British Isles, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles (Orkney and Shetland), and over six thousand smaller islands. The Channel Islands, off the north coast of France, are normally taken to be part of the British Isles. The list includes airbases wholly operated by the Admiralty and those where RN lodger units operated, sometimes under a RN Air Section.

Weapons Ranges
List of former Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm air weapons ranges (AWR) within the United Kingdom,although FAA aircraft have used other weapons ranges in the UK and abroad, operated by other authorities:

Overseas
This list is of former air stations of the Royal Navy located outside of the British Isles. The list includes airbases wholly operated by the Admiralty and those where lodger facilities from the RAF were granted and operated under a RN Air Section.

Mobile Naval Air Base
The Mobile Operational Naval Air Base (MONAB) were designed to have all the capabilities of an air station or an aircraft carrier, to support the Fleet Air Arm, and that could be deployed anywhere around the world. There were eleven commissioned units, ten MONABs and one Transportable Aircraft Maintenance Yard (TAMY), ten of these saw active service for the British Pacific Fleet:

Former naval air stations by ship name (HMS xxx)
HMS means His Majesty's Ship (or Her Majesty's Ship).

Some smaller and some very early Naval Air Stations in the list above were not commissioned as HM Ship(s). Those below were commissioned and, therefore, have a ship's name. Royal Navy shore bases and naval air stations have traditionally been named in the same manner as seagoing ships.

Officers were appointed to HMS xxx rather than to RNAS xxx and, similarly, ratings' Service Certificates will show only the name of the ship when drafted to a Naval Air Station. Thus, this list may help when researching family history records.