Jungle Squadrons - The Early Years
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De colonization continued throughout the 1950's. For the armed services there was little change since Britain retained most of her worldwide defence commitments. Technology, however, both yesterday's and tomorrow's was to add a whole new dimension to the Royal Navy's capabilities. The light fleet carriers HMS Bulwark and HMS Albion were too small for the new generation of aircraft about to enter service, but both ships were ideally suited for conversion to the new role of Commando carrier, a 'floating fortress' of Royal Marines and the latest Wessex helicopters. Bulwark was the first to be converted and in 1961 when Iraq started making threatening gestures towards neighbouring Kuwait with whom Britain had a defence agreement, Bulwark with 42 Commando on board and 848 Squadron, now equipped with Whirwind Mk 7 helicopters arrived from Karachi within 48 hours. |
Over 600 Marines and their equipment were disembarked by helicopter. This demonstration along with the arrival of HMS Victorious and her fixed-wing air group was sufficient to defuze the situation without a shot being fired.
HMS Albion completed her conversion in 1961 and was enroute from Mombassa to Singapore with 40 Commando and 846 Squadron embarked. The Sultan of Brunei requested assistance from Britain against cross-border guerilla attacks from Indonesia. Once again, honouring a defence agreement, HMS Albion was diverted to the area and troops disembarked to Kuching. Initially dubbed 'Confrontation' it was later to be known as the 'Indonesian Confrontation' and was to last 3 1/2 years. Both 845 and 846 Squadrons, with their mix of Whirlwind and Wessex helicopters, were to play a vital role in the eventual successfull outcome.
While conditions ashore were similar to those a decade earlier in Malaya, this time there was always a Commando carrier acting as a floating base just far enough off shore to be seen. During this period the reader is invited to decide which ship was the actual 'Grey Ghost'. The Fleet Air Arm also set up a Forward Operating Base (FOB) at Nanga Gat, close to the Indonesian border. Given the nature of the task, its location and reliance on the support of the local community, all who were based there were encouraged to speak the local language, even eat and wear local dress, in short to become part of the local community as far as possible. During 'Confrontation', 845 and 846 Squadrons, now known (and still known) as 'Junglie' Squadrons, flew thousands of sorties transporting troops and equipment in the swamps and tropical jungles of SE Asia. In addition of having to cope with the monsoon, maps were primitive and radar of little use, the mark 1 eyeball being a most effective instrument.
By 1966 the 'Indonesian Confrontation' was over and the Commando carrier more than proved its worth. It's a measure of the success of the Junglie Squadrons that both 846 (1963) and 845 (1964) won the Boyd Trophy, an annual award for the best squadron in the Fleet Air Arm.
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