Originally Posted by
WE Branch Fanatic
Ten Royal Navy vessels, plus elements of four Fleet Air Arm squadrons (troop carrying and submarine-hunting Merlins, Commando and anti-surface Wildcats and Hawk jets which have decamped from Cornwall to Scotland), Royal Marines of 3 Commando Brigade and the guns of their supporting artillery regiment, 29 Commando RA, plus senior staffs – around 2,000 men and women in all – represented the Senior Service.
Elements of four FAA squadrons? From the description that would be 815 NAS with Wildcat HM2 aboard the frigates, 847 NAS with Jungly Wildcat AH1s aboard Prince of Wales, either 845 NAS or 846 NAS aboard (somewhere - ????) with Merlin HC4, and Merlin HM2 aboard Prince of Wales. How many HM2s though - and from what unit? If we imagine it was a couple, and that a pair of Pingers were aboard Prince of Wales, then that means nine Merlin HM2s were embarked aboard the carriers, therefore if all nine were aboard the same carrier, that means six could be used for ASW and the three Crowsnest aircraft could concentrate on AEW.
The "
Hawk Jets" means 736 NAS
. I understand 814, 845 and 847 were involved so if 815 were, someone can't count.