NAVAL AIR SERVICE
TRAINING MANUAL (1915)
H.M.S.O, London, 1915
A very rare original, Royal Naval Air Service Training Manual published in June 1915. Produced by the Air Department of The Admiralty in November 1914, just after the outbreak of war, this is a detailed handbook of R.N.A.S training from the time when the Naval Air Service was in its infancy. It includes a great deal of very useful information on all aspects of R.N.A.S. aviation, with sections on airship flight and maintenance, conventional aeroplanes and seaplanes, flying training, and the other activities of the R.NA.S. at the start of the First World War.
With ink stamps of 'Naval Airship Station, Walney Island, Barrow in Furness', dated '1st Sep. 1915' to the endpapers and title page. This is almost exactly the time Barnes Wallis returned to Barrow from the Artist's Rifles to resume his work on the HMA No. 9r airship. It is quite possible that Barnes Wallis may have used this book. (Barnes Wallis is best known for inventing the' Bouncing Bomb' used by the RAF in Operation Chastise - the "Dambusters" raid - to attack the dams of the Ruhr Valley in May 1943).
Subjects covered in the manual include: airship rigging and machinery, fire precautions, preparing for flight, landing, selecting a temporary base, breakdown procedure, history of airships, construction of aeroplanes, seaplanes, aero engines, aircraft maintenance, practical flying, handling a seaplane, aerial navigation, and aerial photography. The book is well illustrated with photographs, of aircraft and airships, diagrams and line drawings. There are three coloured plates, showing details of cable attachments, undercarriages, and aircraft control systems.
Naval Airship Station, Walney Island, Barrow: During the early 20th century Barrow in Furness played an important part in the pioneering developments in British airship production. Between 1910 and 1920 the HMA No. 9r, R80, and the SS class airships were constructed by Vickers for the Royal Navy at Cavendish Dock and at RNAS Walney. HMA No. 9r was a rigid airship designed by Hartley Pratt and Barnes Wallis and built by Vickers at Walney Island. It was ordered in 1913 but did not fly until 27 November 1916 when it became the first British rigid airship to do so. It was dismantled in June 1918 after being flown for around 165 hours, mainly for experimental purposes.
The construction shed at the Cavendish Dock at Barrow was too small for the new design so a new hangar was built at Walney Island. The new shed was 540ft long, 150ft wide and 98ft high, and had a 6in thick concrete floor with handling rails embedded into it which extended 450ft into the adjacent field. As a safety measure the shed had eight fire extinguishing jets fed by a dedicated reservoir. A gasbag factory employing 100 staff was also set up beside the shed. In March 1914 work began at Cavendish Dock on Airship HMA No. 9r, and when war broke out in August the Admiralty immediately requisitioned the huge shed and dock for use as a Royal Naval Air Service Station.
Despite competing demands for materials and manpower for other projects, construction on No. 9r continued during the first months of the war. But the project was no longer favoured by the Admiralty - Winston Churchill, First Lord of the Admiralty, was unenthusiastic about airships, and on 12 March 1915 he cancelled the order for the airship. When work on the airship was suspended by the Admiralty, Pratt and Barnes Wallis left to join the Artists’ Rifles. After the German Zeppelins had proven their efficiency as weapons of war with their devastating raids on the North Sea ports, a rethink by the Admiralty led to a decision to resume work on the airship. In July 1915 Vickers were given orders for a range of rigid and non-rigid airships, and at the beginning of September 1915, Barnes Wallis and Pratt were transferred from the Artists Rifles to the RNAS, with Barnes Wallis being posted to RNAS Walney and Pratt to Kingsnorth. The No. 9r had its maiden flight on 27th November 1916, before eventually leaving Barrow in April 1917. As airship building expanded, the hangar at Cavendish Dock was given a ‘sister’ airship building on Walney Island. The structure was bigger and stood for many years, building HMA 23, HMA 26 and the development HMA 23X Class airships designated R.27 and R.29. Barnes Wallis went on to work on the design of the R.80, which launched on 19th July 1920 at Walney Island.
The Royal Naval Air Service (R.N.A.S.) was the air arm of the Royal Navy, under the direction of the Admiralty's Air Department, and existed from 1st July 1914 to 1st April 1918, when it was merged with the Royal Flying Corps to form a new service, the Royal Air Force, the first of its kind in the world. At the outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, the R.N.A.S. had 93 aircraft, six airships, two balloons and 727 personnel. The Navy maintained twelve airship stations around the coast of Britain from Longside, Aberdeenshire in the northeast, to Anglesey in the west. During its first year the R.N.A.S. continued to be the Naval Wing of the Royal Flying Corps, but was administrated by the Admiralty's new Air Department. On 1st August 1915 the Royal Naval Air Service officially came under the control of the Royal Navy. In addition to seaplanes, carrier-borne aircraft, and other aircraft, the R.N.A.S. also maintained several fighter squadrons on the Western Front.
Condition:
In very good condition. The boards are in good condition with general signs of wear and use, bumping to the corners, and some marks. The binding and hinges are good and secure. The text, illustrations and fold-out diagrams are in very good condition. With ink stamps of 'Naval Airship Station, Walney Island, Barrow in Furness', dated '1st Sep. 1915' to the endpapers and title page.
Published: 1915
Blue boards with gilt titling
Illustrated with photographs, diagrams, drawings and fold-outs (some coloured)
Dimensions: 160mm x 245mm
Pages: 338
