HMAS Albatross (air station)

{{Short description|Naval base in Australia}} {{About|the Royal Australian Navy base|other Australian warships of the same name|HMAS Albatross}} {{DISPLAYTITLE:HMAS ''Albatross'' (air station)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2022}} {{Use Australian English|date=May 2013}} {{Infobox military installation | name = HMAS ''Albatross'' | ensign = | ensign_size = | native_name = {{small|Naval Air Station (NAS) Nowra}} | partof =  | location = {{NSWcity|Nowra}}, New South Wales | nearest_town =  | country = Australia | image = Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Bell UH-1B Huey VH-NVV (ex N9-3104) hovering at Naval Air Station Nowra (YSNW).jpg | image_size = 300 | alt = | caption = A RAN Bell UH-1B Huey VH-NVV hovering at NAS Nowra in January 1996 on the occasion of the 1996 Air Day at HMAS ''Albatross''. | image2 =  | alt2 = | caption2 = | type = Naval air station | coordinates = {{coord|34|56|56|S|150|32|13|E|region:AU-NSW|display=inline,title}} | gridref = | image_map = | image_mapsize = | image_map_alt = | image_map_caption = | pushpin_map = | pushpin_mapsize = | pushpin_map_alt = | pushpin_map_caption = | pushpin_relief = | pushpin_image = | pushpin_label = | pushpin_label_position = | pushpin_mark = | pushpin_marksize = | ownership = Department of Defence | operator = Royal Australian Navy  | controlledby =  | open_to_public =  | site_other_label =  | site_other =  | site_area =  | code =  | built = {{Start date|1942|05}} | used = {{unbulleted list|{{nowrap|{{air force|Australia}} (1941–1944)}}|{{navy|United Kingdom}} (1944–1945)|{{nowrap|{{navy|Australia|1913}} (1948–1967)}}|{{nowrap|{{navy|Australia}} (1967–present)}}}} | builder = | materials = | height =  | length =  | fate =  | condition = | battles = | events = | current_commander = Captain Robyn Phillips, RAN | past_commanders =  | garrison = Fleet Air Arm | occupants = {{bulleted list|{{nowrap|723 Squadron with EC135 T2+ helicopters}}|{{nowrap|725 Squadron with MH-60R Seahawk helicopters}}|808 Squadron with MRH-90 helicopters|816 Squadron with MH-60R Seahawk helicopters|822X Squadron with Schiebel Camcopter S-100}} | website = {{URL|navy.gov.au/establishments/hmas-albatross|HMAS Albatross}} | IATA = NOA | ICAO = YSNW | FAA = | TC = | LID = | GPS = | WMO = | elevation = {{Convert|400|ft|m|0|order=flip}} | r1-number = 03/21 | r1-length = {{convert|2046|m|0}} | r1-surface = Asphalt | r2-number = 08/26 | r2-length = {{convert|2094|m|0}} | r2-surface = Asphalt | r3-number = | r3-length = | r3-surface = | h1-number = | h1-length = | h1-surface = | airfield_other_label =  | airfield_other =  | footnotes = Sources: Australian AIP and aerodrome chart<ref name="AIP">{{AIP AU|YSNW|name=Nowra}}, [http://www.airservicesaustralia.com/aip/current/dap/SNWAD01-127.pdf Aeronautical Chart] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120411103148/http://www.airservicesaustralia.com/aip/current/dap/SNWAD01-127.pdf |date=11 April 2012 }}</ref> }} '''HMAS ''Albatross''''' is the main naval air station for the Royal Australian Navy's (RAN) aviation branch, the Fleet Air Arm. The base, located near Nowra, New South Wales, was formally established in May 1942 as Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) base '''RAAF Nowra''', then was transferred to the Royal Navy as HMS ''Nabbington'' in 1944, and operated as a naval air station until it was decommissioned in late 1945. In 1948, the airfield was commissioned into the RAN as HMAS ''Albatross'', as the primary shore base for the Fleet Air Arm. Since 2011, five squadrons of the Fleet Air Arm operate from ''Albatross''. The current commander of the base is Captain Robyn Phillips, RAN.

The base is home to the military airport '''Naval Air Station (NAS) Nowra''' {{airport codes|NOA|YSNW}}, completed in June 1941.

==History== The current site of HMAS ''Albatross'' was identified in 1938 and land was purchased in June 1939. Construction proceeded at what seems to be a leisurely pace considering it was war time, until the airfield was declared operational in June 1941. The airfield was used by squadrons of the Bristol Beaufort torpedo bombers of RAAF when it opened in May 1942. Martin Marauder bombers of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) were also based there in 1942–43 for training as torpedo bombers.<ref name=RANhistory>{{cite web |url=http://www.navy.gov.au/history/base-histories/hmas-albatross-history |title=HMAS Albatross History |work=Royal Australian Navy |publisher=Australian Government |access-date=5 August 2017 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.defence.gov.au/Environment/PFAS/docs/Albatross/Reports/Stage1PSItExecutiveSummary.pdf |author=Aurecon Australasia Pty Ltd |title=Investigation of per- and poly- fluoroalkyl substances at HMAS Albatross: Preliminary Site Investigation (Executive Summary) |work=Department of Defence |publisher=Australian Government |date=29 September 2016 |access-date=5 August 2017 }}</ref>

In 1944, the need for the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy for shore bases led to RAAF Nowra, due to its proximity to Jervis Bay, being transferred to the RN, being renamed HMS ''Nabbington''. This base was used by Mobile Overseas Naval Air Base (MONAB) No. 1 from 21 December 1944 to 15 November 1945. The base supported the British Pacific Fleet's aircraft carriers by providing shore based facilities for the Carrier Air Groups when the carriers were in Sydney for repairs and resupply. At the end of the Pacific War the British Pacific Fleet returned through its main base in Australia and FAA Squadrons transited through HMS ''Nabbington'' until it was decommissioned on 15 November 1945.<ref name=RANhistory/>

[[File:RAN McDonnell Douglas A-4G Skyhawk taxiing during the Fleet Air Arm 21st Anniversary of HMAS Albatross at Nowra October 1969.jpg|thumb|left|A-4 Skyhawk at Nowra in 1969.]] thumb|300px|The control tower at NAS Nowra photographed in early 2003, shortly before it was demolished and replaced by another tower, just visible in the background.

{{HMS|Nabswick}} (Mobile Naval Air Base / MONAB 5) moved from the nearby Jervis Bay airfield to Nowra where it operated until 18 March 1946 when the unit was decommissioned and the site was returned to the RAAF.<ref name=RANhistory/>

In 1947, the RAN's own Fleet Air Arm was formed, and the Nowra airfield was chosen to be its main shore base. HMAS ''Albatross'' was commissioned on 31 August 1948, taking the name previously carried by the RAN's seaplane carrier, and the first squadrons were delivered by the Australian aircraft carrier {{HMAS|Sydney|R17|6}} in May 1949. Over the course of the next decades, the RAN purchased larger, faster and more capable aircraft, which led to the facilities at ''Albatross'' being expanded - workshops and test facilities for jets were installed following the entry into service of the De Havilland Sea Venom in 1955, while a new control tower was built in 1958. The purchase of A-4 Skyhawks and S-2 Trackers with advanced avionics led to more facilities being installed in the late 1960s to service them.<ref name=RANhistory/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.navyhistory.org.au/a-short-history-of-hmas-albatross/ |title=A Short History of HMAS Albatross |work=Naval Historical Review |publisher=Naval Historical Society of Australia Inc. |edition=Reprint |date=June 2004 |access-date=5 August 2017 }}</ref>

On 5 December 1976, a fire was deliberately lit by a Fleet Air Arm member in the aircraft hangar. The fire destroyed or seriously damaged twelve of the thirteen S-2 Trackers in the RAN's possession.<ref name=CT61276A>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131799483 "12 RAN Aircraft Burnt"] ''The Canberra Times'' – 6 December 1976, p. 1 (National Library of Australia) Retrieved 21 October 2015</ref><ref name=CT61276>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article131799497 "Nowra Air Station Fire"] ''The Canberra Times'' – 6 December 1976, p. 1 (National Library of Australia) Retrieved 21 October 2015</ref><ref name=CT1449>[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110732860 "Court Martial After Nowra Base Fire"] ''The Canberra Times'' – 14 April 1977, p. 9 (National Library of Australia) Retrieved 21 October 2015</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Lind |first=Lew |title=The Royal Australian Navy - Historic Naval Events Year by Year |orig-year=1982 |edition=2nd |year=1986 |publisher=Reed Books |location=Frenchs Forest, NSW |isbn=0-7301-0071-5 |oclc=16922225 |page=291}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Hall |first=Timothy |title=HMAS Melbourne |year=1982 |publisher=George Allen & Unwin |location=North Sydney, NSW |isbn=0-86861-284-7 |oclc=9753221 |page=19}}</ref>

The Skyhawk and Tracker squadrons flew from the aircraft carrier {{HMAS|Melbourne|R21|6}} until the carrier was decommissioned on 30 June 1982. This signalled the beginning of the end of the Fleet Air Arm's front line fixed wing capabilities, and also a scaling back of activities at ''Albatross''.<ref name=RANhistory/>

In February 1991 RNZAF A-4 Skyhawks were stationed at the base to provide the ADF with Air Defence Support and participated in many exercises often flying below radar coverage and ambushing Australian warships on a number of occasions. A total of six Skyhawks and 50-60 RNZAF personnel were stationed at Nowra until No. 2 Squadron RNZAF and No. 75 Squadron RNZAF were disbanded following election of the Labour Government under Helen Clark in December 2001.

==Facilities and operational units== {{as of|2017}}, ''Albatross'' served as the home base for the 723 Squadron, 725 Squadron, 808 Squadron, and the 816 Squadron of the Fleet Air Arm.<ref name=RAN>{{cite web |url=http://www.navy.gov.au/establishments/hmas-albatross |title=HMAS Albatross |work=Royal Australian Navy |publisher=Australian Government |access-date=5 August 2017 }}</ref> In addition, ''Albatross'' is the home base for the Navy Aviation Group, which coordinates all of the RAN's aviation activities. 'The following lodger units are located at ''Albatross'': *453 SQN Nowra Flight (ATC) *Naval Weather and Oceanographic Centre (NWOC) with embedded bureau forecaster - Tim Constable *Training Authority – Aviation *Naval Aviation Systems Program Office (NASPO) *Australian Joint Acoustic Analysis Centre (AJACC) *RAN Tactical Electronic Warfare Support Section (RANTEWSS) *Aircraft Maintenance and Flight Trials Unit (AMAFTU) *Australian Defence Force Parachuting School (ADFPS), Army *Training Ship Shoalhaven, Australian Navy Cadets *No. 330 (City of Shoalhaven) Squadron, Australian Air Force Cadets<ref name=330SQNAAFC>{{cite web|url=http://www.aafc.org.au/wings/3-wing/|title=3 Wing AAFC – NSW & ACT |work=Australian Air Force Cadets |year=2015 |access-date=9 April 2015}}</ref> *238 ACU Sholhaven, Australian Army Cadets In addition, ''Albatross'' is the home of the Fleet Air Arm Museum and the Royal Australian Navy Historic Flight.

Since 1986 there have been Learjet target tugs based at ''Albatross'', operated by civilian companies under contract to the RAN. The first company was Lloyd Aviation, then from 1990 to 1996 Fleet Support (a company later bought by National Jet Systems) and from 1996 until the present Pel-Air. Each company has used four to five Learjet 35/36 series aircraft to provide the services;<ref>''Australian Aviation'' magazine, ISSN 0813-0876; various issues between 1986 and 1996, including No. 34, September 1986; No. 59, August 1990; No. 83, December 1992 and No. 123, November 1996.</ref> present incumbent Pel-Air also uses IAI Westwinds for non target-towing support operations.

The naval base had the unusual distinction of being shared by a small civilian passenger terminal, which at various times was utilised by the Masling and later Southern Cross Airways companies flying Beechcraft Queenair propeller driven aircraft on scheduled services on Sydney - Nowra - Moruya. Until 2004, the Royal Australian Navy Gliding Association (RANGA) also operated from the runways at ''Albatross'' with a small fleet of gliders used by both Navy and civilian members.

==Motor racing== On 16 June 1947 and 7 December 1952 motor racing was held at HMAS ''Albatross''.<ref name="Walker">{{cite book|last1=Walker|first1=Terry|title=Fast Tracks - Australia's Motor Racing Circuits 1904-1995|date=1995|publisher=Turton & Armstrong|location=Sydney|isbn=0908031556|page=114}}</ref> The first meeting, featuring the 1947 Championship of New South Wales,<ref>Nowra Car Races, Australian Motor Sports, 15 July 1947, pages 26-31</ref> used all of the main runways, for a lap distance of {{convert|4.35|mi|km|order=flip}}, while the 1952 event used taxiways, hard-stands and aprons for a shorter lap of {{convert|1.6|mi|km|order=flip}}.<ref name="Galpin">{{cite web|last1=Galpin|first1=Darren|title=Nowra|url=http://www.silhouet.com/motorsport/tracks/nowra.html|website=GEL Motorsport Information Page|access-date=10 June 2017}}</ref>

==See also== * {{HMAS|Nirimba}} - a decommissioned RAN former aviation base near Blacktown, New South Wales * List of airports in New South Wales * List of Royal Australian Navy bases

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== * {{cite book |last=Lehan |first=Mike |year=2000 |title=HMAS Albatross: A Collection of Memories |location=Nowra |publisher=Australian Naval Aviation Museum}}

==External links== {{Commons category|HMAS Albatross (air station)}} * [http://www.navy.gov.au/establishments/hmas-albatross HMAS ''Albatross''] at [http://navy.gov.au navy.gov.au] * [http://www.royalnavyresearcharchive.org.uk/MONABS/index.htm Mobile Naval Air Bases of the Royal Navy]

{{Portal bar|New South Wales|Royal Australian Navy|Aviation}} {{Royal Australian Navy}} {{RAN Bases}} {{Airports in Australia}} {{Airports in New South Wales}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Albatross}} Category:Australian naval aviation Category:Royal Australian Navy bases Category:Airports in New South Wales Category:1948 establishments in Australia Category:Military airbases established in 1948 Category:South Coast (New South Wales) Category:Military installations in New South Wales Category:Motorsport venues in New South Wales