Fleet Air Arm (RAN)
In 2000, following the removal from service of the land-based Hawker Siddeley HS 748 aircraft, the FAA became an all-helicopter force, operating in the anti-submarine warfare and maritime support roles.[2] This was approved as part of improvements to Australia's military, but opposition by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) prompted the Cabinet to disband the organisation in January 1928, shortly after its establishment.[7] A Fleet Air Arm was established on 3 July 1947 by the Commonwealth Defence Council to operate aircraft from these two carriers, and also maintain two former Royal Australian Air Force bases as support facilities: these became HMAS Albatross at Nowra, New South Wales, and HMAS Nirimba at Schofields, New South Wales.[13] The Fleet Air Arm operated in a strike, ground support, and escort role during the deployment, which saw three RAN pilots killed and a fourth seriously wounded, while thirteen aircraft were lost.[14] Meanwhile, Majestic was undergoing major upgrades during construction to operate jet aircraft, including the installation of an angled flight deck, steam catapult, and a mirror landing aid.[20] By the end of the 1950s, with Sydney decommissioned from service and refitted as a troop transport, it was decided that fixed-wing naval aviation would be replaced by a force of 27 Westland Wessex anti-submarine helicopters, to operate from Melbourne.[35] During the 1990s, the FAA ordered several refurbished Kaman SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopters to operate from the Anzac-class frigates in the anti-submarine and anti-surface roles.[46] An additional flying unit of the Royal Australian Navy was the Laser Airborne Depth Sounder Flight, based at Cairns, which, following the withdrawal of the HS748, operated the only remaining fixed-wing aircraft in the RAN's inventory.This unit was not under the operational control of the Fleet Air Arm, but was instead part of the Australian Hydrographic Service, with both RAN and civilian personnel.[52] Air defence of the fleet is primarily the task of the Hobart-class guided missile destroyers, armed with the SM-2 Standard SAM; these are supported when possible by the F/A-18 Hornets of the RAAF.[55] In the 2009 Defence White Paper, Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century: Force 2030, the government stated that the RAN needed 24 new naval combat helicopters by 2014, to replace the Seahawks and compensate for the cancelled Super Seasprite acquisition.[51][57] The requirement called for a helicopter capable of both anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare, as well as search-and-rescue and troop transport (primarily of boarding parties) roles.[58] In contrast, the MH-60 Romeo had been operational with the United States Navy since the end of 2005, and the commonality with the RAN's existing Seahawks would cut down on refamiliarisation training for pilots and maintenance personnel, the airframe has less interior space than the NFH-90 for the same approximate external size.
Fleet Air ArmNaval AviationRoyal Australian NavyNAS NowraRoundelsWhite EnsignAttackMH-60R SeahawkTrainerBell 429Eurocopter EC135TransportMRH-90 Taipanaircraft carriersRoyal NavyKorean WarHMAS SydneyVietnam WarRoyal Australian Air ForceUnited States Army AviationHMAS MelbourneHawker Siddeley HS 748anti-submarine warfareHistory of Australian naval aviationHawker Sea FuryRoyal Naval Air ServiceRoyal Air ForceCabinetamphibious aircraftNo. 101 Flight RAAFNo. 5 SquadronNo. 9 SquadronHMAS AlbatrossWorld War IIMajestic-classNowra, New South WalesHMAS NirimbaSchofields, New South Wales805 SquadronHawker Sea Furies816 SquadronFairey Fireflies21st Carrier Air Groupsteam catapultmirror landing aidColossus-classHMS VengeanceBristol SycamoreSikorsky S-51USS Philippine Seade Havilland Sea VenomFairey GannetWestland WessexGrumman S-2E TrackerMcDonnell Douglas A-4G SkyhawkRoyal Australian Navy Helicopter Flight VietnamExperimental Military UnitNo. 9 Squadron RAAFWestland Sea KingHMS InvincibleHarriersFalklands War1983 electionAustralian Labor PartyRoyal New Zealand Air ForceHMAS TobrukHS 748flightsfrigatesEurocopter EcureuilSikorsky S-70Adelaide-classAustralian ships deployed to support the international coalitionGulf WarOperation SolaceKaman SH-2G Super SeaspriteAnzac-classanti-submarineanti-surfaceList of Australian Fleet Air Arm flying squadrons723 Squadron725 SquadronMH-60R Romeo Seahawk808 Squadron822X SquadronInsitu ScanEagleCamcopter S-100HS 748s851 SquadronS-2 TrackersA-4 SkyhawkLaser Airborne Depth Sounder FlightCairnsAustralian Hydrographic ServiceBasic Flying Training SchoolTamworth AirportNo.2 Flying Training SchoolRAAF Base PearceNo.32 SquadronRAAF Base East SaleList of aircraft of the Royal Australian NavyMH-60R RomeoAdelaide classAnzac classSM-2 Standard SAMF/A-18 HornetsForeign Military SaleMaritime PatrolUnited StatesTrainer AircraftGermanyrotorcraftboardingSikorsky SH-60 SeahawkcommonalityCanberra-classF-35B LightningV-22 OspreytenderTony AbbottPrime MinisterDavid JohnstonMinister for DefenceAustralian SenateDepartment of Defencedefence white paper