Naval Air Stations and the Defence of Dockyards : Transactions of the Naval Dockyards Society Volume 14, April 2021; Conference held at the National Maritime Museum Greenwich 16 April 2016 /Nicholas Blake (editor).

"The Royal Naval Air Service was formed from the Naval Wing of the joint Royal Flying Corps (1912), but from 1914, when the RFC became the flying branch of the British Army, it was administered by the Admiralty Air Department. It merged with the RFC as the RAF in 1918. In 1924 the Fleet Air Arm was formed of RAF units operating from RN ships, brought under Admiralty control in 1939. Naval Air Stations guarded dockyards and promoted research and development. In 1917 the first night-time Gotha raid on Chatham Naval Barracks led to the first anti-aircraft gun emplacements. Wartime bombing caused Naval Air Stations to be built around British and overseas coasts, particularly along the English south coast."--Provided by the publisher.