15th Carrier Air Group
White Ensign
Active30 June 1945 to 30 March 1947
16 May 1947 - 15 January 1952[1]
CountryUnited Kingdom United Kingdom
Branch Royal Navy
TypeCarrier Air Group
SizeOne Colossus-class aircraft carrier plus support ships
Part ofFleet Air Arm

The 15th Carrier Air Group (15th CAG) was an aircraft carrier air group of the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm. It was initially formed in June 1945, for service in the British Pacific Fleet, until disbanding in March 1947. The group was embarked on the Colossus-class aircraft carrier, HMS Venerable (R63).

The 15th CAG reformed in May 1947, at RNAS Eglinton (HMS Gannet), in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, for embarkation on another Colossus-class aircraft carrier, HMS Vengeance (R71). In late 1951 the group was deployed on HMS Theseus (R64), a Colossus-class aircraft carrier. The 15th Carrier Air Group disbanded in January 1952, at RNAS Culdrose (HMS Seahawk), in Cornwall, England.

The 15th Carrier Air Group consisted of a number of squadrons of the Fleet Air Arm.[1]

SquadronFromToAircraftNotes
814 Naval Air SquadronJun 1945Mar 1947Fairey Barracuda to Dec 1945, then
Fairey Firefly
1851 Naval Air SquadronJun 1945Jun 1946Vought F4U CorsairTransferred to HMS Vengeance
802 Naval Air SquadronJun 1946Mar 1947Supermarine Seafire
802 Naval Air SquadronMay 1947Apr 1950Hawker Sea Fury15th CAG reformed at RNAS Eglinton
814 Naval Air SquadronMay 1947Nov 1950Fairey Firefly15th CAG reformed at RNAS Eglinton
809 Naval Air SquadronApr 1950Sep 1950de Havilland Sea Hornetreplaced 802 NAS
802 Naval Air SquadronSep 1950Jan 1952Hawker Sea Furyreturned and replaced 809 NAS
825 Naval Air SquadronJun 1951Sep 1951Fairey Firefly
814 Naval Air SquadronSep 1951Jan 1952Fairey Fireflyrejoined

History

1945 - 1947

The 15th Carrier Air Group was formed on 30 June 1945 and was based on the light aircraft carrier, HMS Venerable (R63), a Colossus-class aircraft carrier. The group initially consisted 814 Naval Air Squadron, flying the Fairey Barracuda, a carrier-borne torpedo and dive bomber aircraft, and 1851 Naval Air Squadron, flying the Vought F4U Corsair, an American fighter aircraft.[2] 814 NAS replaced its Fairey Barracuda with Fairey Firefly, a carrier-borne fighter aircraft, in December 1945. Then, in June 1946 1851 NAS transferred to another Colossus-class aircraft carrier, HMS Vengeance (R71), and 802 Naval Air Squadron replaced it in the CAG, bringing its Supermarine Seafire aircraft, a navalised version of the Supermarine Spitfire fighter.[1] The 15th CAG was disbanded in 1947.[2]

1947 - 1952

The 15th Carrier Air Group reformed on 16 May 1947 at RNAS Eglinton (HMS Gannet), located 1.3 miles (2.1 km) north east of Eglinton, in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, this time for the Colossus-class aircraft carrier, HMS Vengeance (R71), with 802 and 814 Naval Air Squadrons. Here, 802 NAS replaced its Supermarine Seafire aircraft with Hawker Sea Fury fighter aircraft. In April 1950, 802 NAS left the group and was replaced with 809 Naval Air Squadron, which brought with it de Havilland Sea Hornet twin-engined fighter aircraft, however, in the following September, 802 NAS returned and 809 NAS left the group.

In November 1950, only 802 NAS remained in the group as 814 NAS departed. It wasn't until June 1951 that the group was back to initial strength, when 825 Naval Air Squadron arrIves, which operated Fairey Firefly aircraft. However, 825 NAS only stayed for around three months and left in September 1951. It was replaced with 814 NAS, which re-joined the 15th CAG and the group embarked on another Colossus-class aircraft carrier, HMS Theseus (R64). The 15th Carrier Air Group disbanded on 15 January 1952, at RNAS Culdrose (HMS Seahawk) in Cornwall, England.[1]

Air Group Commanders

List of the commanding officers of the 15th Carrier Air Group, with date of appointment:[2][1]

1945 - 1947

  • Lt Cdr P. D. Gick, DSC, RN, 30 June 1945
  • Lt Cdr T. G. V. Percy, DSC, RN, 14 January 1946

1947 - 1952

  • Lt Cdr W. R. J. MacWhirter, DSC, RN, 16 May 1947
  • Lt Cdr J. G. Baldwin, DSC, RN, 15 March 1948
  • Lt Cdr J. N. Ball, DSC, RN, 16 May 1949
  • Lt Cdr J. O. Armour, RN, 19 April 1950
  • none, 22 November 1950
  • disbanded, 15 January 1952

See also

References

Citations

Bibliography

  • Sturtivant, R; Ballance, T (1994). The Squadrons of The Fleet Air Arm. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd. ISBN 0-85130-223-8.
  • Ballance, Theo (2016). The Squadrons and Units of the Fleet Air Arm. Air-Britain. ISBN 978-0-85130-489-2.
  • Wragg, David (2019). The Fleet Air Arm Handbook 1939-1945. Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, UK: The History Press. ISBN 978-0-7509-9303-6.
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