A familiar sight in skies above Cornwall and Devon but less so elsewhere, AeroResource considers the unique and specialised operations of the FOST Dauphin helicopter which performs an important role on behalf of the Royal Navy. For those living in the United Kingdom’s most western counties, the sight of Hawk T1A’s from 736 Naval Air Squadron (based at Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose, Cornwall) operating alongside Draken Aviation Falcon 20Cs (based at Bournemouth International Airport, Dorset) plus other NATO and foreign participants conducting Fleet Operational Sea Training (FOST) has been a familiar one for many years. Equally familiar in some respects albeit less well known, is the significant supportive role played by two Aérospatiale AS365 N2 Dauphins (now Airbus Helicopters) which have supported FOST and its experts who operate out of the Royal Navy bases in Plymouth, Devon, and the Clyde in Scotland with a small team based at Northwood in Middlesex. FOST provides operational sea training for all surface ships, submarines and Royal Fleet Auxiliaries of the Royal Navy. These two unique helicopters and its specialised aircrew facilitate a range of vitally important FOST missions which includes transportation of senior Staff Officers, participation in major NATO exercises such as Exercise Joint Warrior, and radar trials. It should be noted that due to the sensitivities surrounding the aircraft’s operational role, it was not possible to include quotations. Aircrew and other personnel within the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence (MoD) supported the production of this article in full.
