The Air Battalion Royal Engineers (ABRE) was the first flying unit of the

British Armed Forces The British Armed Forces, also known as His Majesty's Armed Forces, are the military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests, s ...

to make use of

heavier-than-air An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines. ...

craft. Founded in 1911, the battalion in 1912 became part of the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

, which in turn evolved into the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

Establishment

In 1911, following the growth in early aviation activity, the

War Office The War Office was a department of the British Government responsible for the administration of the British Army between 1857 and 1964, when its functions were transferred to the new Ministry of Defence (MoD). This article contains text from ...

issued instructions for the

School of Ballooning The School of Ballooning was a training and test centre for British Army experiments with balloons and airships. It was established at Chatham in Kent in 1888. The School moved to Stanhope Lines, Aldershot in 1890 when a balloon section and de ...

, which had originally been formed in 1888, to be expanded into a

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions ...

. An order was issued on 28 February 1911 for the formation of the Air Battalion of the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is head ...

effective 1 April the same year. The initial establishment was 14 officers and 150 other ranks. Officers could be selected from any branch of the service whereas other ranks were selected from the Corps of Royal Engineers. Pilots had to already have earned a

Royal Aero Club The Royal Aero Club (RAeC) is the national co-ordinating body for air sport in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1901 as the Aero Club of Great Britain, being granted the title of the "Royal Aero Club" in 1910. History The Aero Club was foun ...

certificate from a private flying school. The GBP 75 charge for flight training was reimbursed only if the student passed the course.

Structure and activities

The battalion comprised two

companies A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared go ...

and a headquarters located at

Farnborough Farnborough may refer to: Australia * Farnborough, Queensland, a locality in the Shire of Livingstone United Kingdom * Farnborough, Hampshire, a town in the Rushmoor district of Hampshire, England ** Farnborough (Main) railway station, a railw ...

. The commander of the Air Battalion was Major Sir

Alexander Bannerman Sir Alexander Bannerman (7 October 1788 – 30 December 1864) was a Scottish merchant, vintner, politician and British colonial governor. Early life Known as "Sandy", he was born on 7 October 1788 in Scotland. He was the eldest son of merchant ...

. No. 1 Company, at Farnborough, was equipped with

airship An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air. In early ...

s and was under the command of Captain

Edward Maitland Edward Maitland (27 October 18242 October 1897) was an English humanitarian writer and occultist. Life He was born at Ipswich on 27 October 1824, was the son of Charles David Maitland, perpetual curate of St. James's Chapel, Brighton; he was ...

, an experienced

balloon A balloon is a flexible bag that can be inflated with a gas, such as helium, hydrogen, nitrous oxide, oxygen, and air. For special tasks, balloons can be filled with smoke, liquid water, granular media (e.g. sand, flour or rice), or lig ...

and airship pioneer. He also helped pioneer the

parachute A parachute is a device used to slow the motion of an object through an atmosphere by creating drag or, in a ram-air parachute, aerodynamic lift. A major application is to support people, for recreation or as a safety device for aviators, w ...

and in 1913 made the first parachute jump from an airship. No. 2 Company, at

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Salisbury Plain Salisbury Plain is a chalk plateau in the south western part of central southern England covering . It is part of a system of chalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England formed by the rocks of the Chalk Group and largely lies wit ...

, was equipped with aeroplanes and was commanded by Captain John Fulton. A mechanical engineer from the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It came into being when created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of ...

, Fulton had been an early enthusiast of military flying and had attended the world's first

air show An air show (or airshow, air fair, air tattoo) is a public event where aircraft are exhibited. They often include aerobatics demonstrations, without they are called "static air shows" with aircraft parked on the ground. The largest air show ...

Rheims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded by ...

in 1909. He had earned his pilot's certificate, number 27, on 15 November 1910. On 17 September 1911, Lt. R.A. Cammell, R.E. was killed in the crash of a Valkyrie monoplane at Hendon airfield; a 1922 account of the formation of the RAF states this was the only fatal accident in the Air Battalion. On 14 February 1912, Lt. Barrington-Kennet flew a government-bought aeroplane – a two-seater

Nieuport Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars. History Beginnings Originally formed as Nieuport-Duplex in ...

monoplane with a 50 hp Gnome engine – 249.5 miles in 4 hours and 32 minutes, setting a record.

Creation of the Royal Flying Corps

In October 1911, Italy's use of aircraft in combat against the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...

in Tripoli,

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...

led to the formation of a sub-committee of the

British Imperial Defence Staff British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

to recommend policy for the future of British military flying. The committee recommended the formation of a separate flying corps and on 13 April 1912 the Royal Flying Corps was created, with the Air Battalion becoming its Military Wing on 13 May. No. 1 Company became

No. 1 Squadron RFC Number 1 Squadron, also known as No. 1 (Fighter) Squadron, is a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was the first squadron to fly a VTOL aircraft. It currently operates Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft from RAF Lossiemouth. The squadron motto, '' ...

on 1 April 1911. No. 2 Company became

No. 3 Squadron RFC Number 3 Squadron, also known as No. 3 (Fighter) Squadron, of the Royal Air Force operates the Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 from RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire, since reforming on 1 April 2006. It was first formed on 13 May 1912 as one of the first sq ...

on 1 April 1911 and a detachment of No. 2 Company became

No. 2 Squadron RFC Number 2 Squadron, also known as No. II (Army Co-operation) Squadron, is the most senior squadron of the Royal Air Force. It is currently equipped with the Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4 at RAF Lossiemouth, Moray, since reforming there on 12 Januar ...

on 13 May 1912. File:1911 Valkyrie Racer plan-elev.jpg, ASL Valkyrie File:Nieuport IVG at Malmso.jpg, Nieuport IV File:Breguet IV-folded.jpg, Breguet III

References

External links

Royal Engineers Museum
Royal Engineers and Aeronautics

Origins of the Royal Flying Corps/Royal Air Force

Early British Military Ballooning (1863) {{Use British English, , date=September 2018 Military units and formations established in 1911 Battalions of the British Army British military aviation History of the Royal Air Force Units of the Royal Engineers 1911 establishments in the United Kingdom

Establishment

Structure and activities

Creation of the Royal Flying Corps

See also

References

External links