RNVR (Air) Branch Remembered

The Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (Air) Branch was remembered with a Commemorative Service and dedication of a memorial plaque at the Fleet Air Arm Memorial Church, Yeovilton on Wednesday 31 July 2024.

The Service was followed by the unveiling of de Havilland Chipmunk G-RNVR, a lovingly restored and popular historic Fleet Air Arm training aircraft specifically restored by the team at Navy Wings to be a flying memorial and national focus of remembrance for the RNVR (A) Branch and wider RNVR, ensuring the legacy of the RNVR continues to live on, inspiring audiences for decades to come.

The Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNVR) served with distinction in every theatre of the war throughout the Second World War. Distinguishable from their regular counterparts by the ‘wavy’ gold rank braid worn on the sleeves of their uniforms, the RNVR also became the mainstay of the Fleet Air Arm with many RNVR serving in the RNVR (Air) Branch. By the end of WW2, the RNVR was 45,000 strong, of whom over 8,000 were aircrew.

The contribution of the Branch after the war was no less significant. RNVR Squadrons represented half the Fleet Air Arm’s strength right through to the late 1950s. Many converted to jets and contributed fully to the front line effectiveness of the Service. 6,200 RNVR personnel lost their lives in WW2 of which 1,544 were naval aviators in the RNVR (Air) Branch.

RNVR (Air) Branch veterans and their families attended the service, together with current serving members of the Fleet Air Arm and today’s RNR (Air) Branch, to remember the service and sacrifice of the RNVR. Veterans who attended the service included, Peter Rainbird CBE DL, who served in the RNVR (Air) Branch from 1952-1957, flying 8 different aircraft types including the Seafire Mk 17, Sea Fury FB 11 and Attacker.

As WW2 progressed, RNVR Officers outnumbered their regular counterparts by three to one. Members of the RNVR (A) Branch flew the Swordfish in the Battle of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, took part in the Battle of Taranto, the sinking of the Bismarck and the attacks on the Tirpitz. They also flew Seafires and Corsairs in the Pacific, and Hurricanes with Douglas Bader in the Battle of Britain. Hardship was expected and met. Deeds of bravery were many and three of the five top Royal Navy fighting aces of WW2 were members of the RNVR (A). The Branch also saw active service in the Korean war in the early 1950s.

After the service, guests were hosted by Navy Wings for the unveiling of Navy Wings Chipmunk G-RNVR ‘Spirit of Hill Street’ by President of the Charity, Admiral Sir George Zambellas GCB DSC ADC DL.

Guest Speaker at the unveiling event was Commander Phil Richardson OBE whose grandfather, Lt Cdr Ron Richardson, served in the RNVR and was killed in action during the attacks on the Tirpitz in 1944. Phil spoke of the incredible bravery of the attack, of finding the crash site of his grandfather’s Hellcat years later on a mountainside in Norway, and of an amazing friendship recently formed with the grandson of his father’s wingman, due to the courage and camaraderie of the RNVR pilots of 1840 NAS eighty years ago.

Navy Wings was one of the beneficiary charities following the closure of the RNVR Officers’ Association and sale of the Association’s Headquarters and Club House, 38 Hill Street, London, in 2022. The grant gifted to the Charity was in recognition of the unequalled contribution made by the RNVR (Air) Branch to the Fleet Air Arm and came with specification that it was to be used to dedicate a permanent memorial to the RNVR and RNVR (Air) Branch.

The RNVR Officers’ Association came into being at the end of WW2 when RNVR personnel were demobilised but wanted to stay in contact with each other. Shared experiences and strong friendships forged in times of difficulty and hardship created unswerving bonds and the founding members of the Association acquired 38 Hill Street in 1946 to offer its members a meeting place where they could reunite and socialise in London. More recently known as the Naval Club, the camaraderie and friendships enjoyed at 38 Hill Street were lifelong.

The grant gifted to Navy Wings by the RNVR Officers’ Association enabled the Charity to refurbish a Pegasus engine for the Swordfish and restore a Chipmunk, an aircraft held in great affection by pilots worldwide. A much loved aerobatics aircraft, the Chipmunk embodies a sense of fun and nostalgia and the name ‘Spirit of Hill Street’ seemed intensely apposite. Inspired by the service, friendships and humility of the Volunteer Reserves, who served their country with distinction and continued to enjoy those friendships for the rest of their lives, the Swordfish and Chipmunk Spirit of Hill Street’ will fly on for years to come as an enduring legacy to the RNVR.

Chipmunk G-RNVR ‘Spirit of Hill Street’ (military registration WB657) saw service with the Royal Navy’s Britannia Flight at Roborough. Owned by Navy Wings, with special dispensation to continue to fly in the military markings of Britannia Flight, she will be a national and public focus of remembrance for the RNVR.

CEO of Navy Wings, Commodore Jock Alexander said, “The unveiling of Chipmunk G-RNVR ‘Spirit of Hill Street’ is a special day for the Charity. The aircraft not only embodies the spirit of the RNVR in a fitting and dynamic way, but she also provides a direct link between the RNVR (A) Branch, the Fleet Air Arm, and today’s RNR (Air) Branch, providing a focus of history and heritage for the RNR today.”

Chipmunk G-RNVR will also provide Navy Wings pilots with valuable experience of handling tailwheel aircraft as they progress on to flying the Swordfish and other more advanced aircraft in the heritage collection, including the Sea Fury and Seafire, just as their forbears in the RNVR (A) Branch would have done. With direct links to the RNVR ebbing away, Chipmunk G-RNVR will be a daily reminder of the great contribution and steadying influence made by the RNVR to the Royal Navy and the country.