List of seaplane bases in the United Kingdom explained

This article lists both active and historic seaplane bases in the United Kingdom, many of which were either used for, or planned to be used for, the defence of the UK.

A seaplane base may be anything from a stretch of water where seaplanes were based to a full installation, either floating (powered or unpowered) or shore based, where seaplanes were serviced. In the UK these are presumed to be coastal.

Active seaplane bases

• Glasgow Seaplane Terminal, Glasgow
• Oban Bay, Oban
• Loch Lomond
• Tobermory, Isle of Mull
• Enniskillen

Proposed seaplane base

• Royal Albert Docks, London City Airport.^[1]

Former bases

• RAF Alness,^[2] Alness, Ross and Cromarty
• Bembridge Harbour, Isle of Wight (1915-1919)
• Brough Aerodrome, East Riding of Yorkshire
• RNAS Calshot/RAF Calshot, Hampshire
• RAF Castle Archdale, Lough Erne, Northern Ireland^[3]
• RAF Catfirth, Shetland Islands (1917-1919)
• Cromarty, Ross & Cromarty (1913-1915)
• RNAS Donibristle, Dalgety Bay, Fife
• RNAS Dundee (HMS Condor II),^[4] Dundee, Angus
• RNAS Felixstowe, Suffolk
• RAF Greenock,^{[5] [6]} Greenock, Inverclyde
• RNAS Hickling Broad, Norfolk
• RNAS Hornsea Mere, East Yorkshire
• RAF Houton, Orkney
• RNAS Kingsnorth, Kent
• RNAS Lawrenny Ferry, Pembrokeshire
• RNAS Lee-on-Solent (HMS Daedalus), Hampshire
• RAF Mount Batten, Plymouth, Devon (was RNAS Cattewater)
• Newhaven Seaplane Base, Tide Mills, east of Newhaven Harbour, Sussex
• RAF Pembroke Dock, Pembrokeshire^[3]
• RNAS Portland (HMS Osprey), Portland, Dorset
• RNAS Tresco, Isles of Scilly
• Sullom Voe, Shetland^[3]
• Westgate-on-Sea, Kent
• RAF Woodhaven,^[7] Woodhaven, Fife

See also

• List of air stations of the Royal Navy
• RAF Coastal Command
• Royal Air Force
• Royal Flying Corps
• Royal Naval Air Service
• Seaplane tender

References

1. Web site: Seaplanes to fly once more. The Telegraph. 22 April 2007 . 6 June 2021. 9 July 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190709095606/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1549320/Seaplanes-to-fly-once-more.html. live.
2. Web site: Secret Scotland - RAF Alness. www.secretscotland.org.uk. 6 June 2021. 19 August 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200819200427/http://www.secretscotland.org.uk/index.php/Secrets/RAFAlness. live.
3. London 2003, pp. 288–290.
4. Web site: Secret Scotland - HMS Condor II. www.secretscotland.org.uk. 6 June 2021. 13 August 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200813144545/https://www.secretscotland.org.uk/index.php/Secrets/HMSCondorII. live.
5. Web site: Royal Navy Air Stations in the UK - Fleet Air Arm Archive . 24 April 2006 . https://web.archive.org/web/20081017180110/http://www.fleetairarmarchive.net/Aircraft/Airstations/FAAAirStationsHomepage.htm . 17 October 2008 . usurped .
6. Web site: Stations-G. www.rafweb.org. 6 June 2021. 7 April 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180407130042/http://www.rafweb.org/Stations/Stations-G.htm. live.
7. Web site: Google Maps. Google Maps. 6 June 2021. 6 June 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210606100445/https://www.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=woodhaven+seaplane&sll=55.962654%2C-4.760513&sspn=0.180639%2C0.439453&g=Greenock%2C+Inverclyde&ie=UTF8&ll=56.556455%2C-2.955322&spn=0.711437%2C1.757813&t=h&z=9&msa=0&msid=107914619870586476405.0004546a4d92491327159. live.

• London, Peter. British Flying Boats. Stroud, UK:Sutton Publishing, 2003. .

External links

• HMS Osprey
• Index Of Naval Air Stations