Aircraft of today and yesteryear will perform a fly-past over Dartmouth next Thursday, November 19, as the Fleet Air Arm commemorates its greatest raid.

A Fairey Swordfish bomber followed by Hawk Jets will fly over Britannia Royal Naval College to mark the 75th anniversary of the raid on Taranto during the Second World War.

The raid on the Italian harbour took place overnight on November 11, 1940.

In two waves, 21 Royal Navy Fairey Swordfish airplanes, launched from HMS Illustrious, attacked the Italian Fleet in harbour. The operation effectively halved the Italian fleet and gave the Royal Navy a tremendous advantage in the Mediterranean.

A number of Fleet Air Arm helicopters will also be at BRNC on the day to give the Cadets under training the chance to take a close-up look at the aircraft and speak to the aircrew.

Midshipman Ieuan Roden, who is hoping to qualify as a Royal Navy pilot in the future, said: ’It’ll be really good to meet the navy aircrew. Sometimes flying seems like such a distant prospect when you’re marching across Dartmoor on exercise but days like this help to remind us of what we’re going to be doing when we join the Fleet.’

The 75th anniversary of the raid comes at a time when the Royal Navy is re-equipping with the state-of-the-art F35 lightning II stealth fighter and brand new Merlin and Wildcat Helicopters which will fly from the enormous new super carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth and her sister ship HMS Prince of Wales.

To become aircrew, cadets undergo a demanding training course which starts with the 30-week Initial Naval Training course at College, where they work alongside those destined for careers as engineers, logisticians and seaman officers.

On completion of this initial stage they undertake an advanced aptitude test called Grading. Here they are assessed during an accelerated flying course where they will go from zero experience to flying aerobatics in just 12 hours.

Once successfully through grading they learn to fly in a small propeller aircraft before moving on to larger and more advanced aircraft and helicopters.

A number of the pilots will be selected for fast jet training which will see them travel to the USA to train and serve alongside US Navy Top Guns on the Nimitz class aircraft carriers before returning to the UK, bringing with them valuable experience.

To complete the 75th anniversary commemorations of the raid on Taranto a charity dinner will be held at the college.

As well as the cadets, current aviators and engineering officers serving in the Fleet Air Arm will be in attendance.

The guest of honour is Vice Admiral Walter E ‘Ted’ Carter, the Superintendent of the US Naval Academy. He graduated from the US Navy Fighter Weapons School Top Gun in 1985.

The event will raise money for the Fly Navy Heritage Trust, the charity that keeps the Royal Navy’s historic flight of vintage aircraft in operational condition, maintaining Britain’s Naval Aviation Heritage.

For more information, go to http://www.fnht.co.uk/taranto.html