The site was first used as a military establishment when the
War Office acquired the site for a Wireless and Observers School in 1917 before changing to the school of Army Co-operation in 1918 on the site of the Winchester Racecourse. In 1918, an airfield was built for the
Royal Flying Corps (RFC), but before it was completed, the RFC was amalgamated with the
Royal Naval Air Service to form the
Royal Air Force. Nonetheless, the RFC does seem to have operated there to some degree before amalgamation, as Lieutenant Harold Percy Dawson, RFC, was killed in an air accident stated to be at Worthy Down on 9 March 1918.
Royal Air Force The first squadron to use the airfield was
No. 58 Squadron RAF which was reformed there on 1 April 1924. The squadron flew the
Vickers Vimy and the
Vickers Virginia before moving to
RAF Upper Heyford on 13 January 1936. On 7 April 1927,
No. 7 Squadron RAF moved from
RAF Bircham Newton and stayed until 3 September 1936, flying the Virginia IX/X and the
Handley Page Heyford II/III before moving to
RAF Finningley. During this time,
No. 102 Squadron RAF formed at the airfield on 1 October 1935, flying the Heyford II/III before leaving on 3 September 1936 for RAF Finningley. Also on 1 October 1935,
No. 215 Squadron RAF reformed at the airfield; they flew the Virginia X and left on 14 March 1936 for RAF Upper Heyford. On 8 August 1936,
No. 49 Squadron RAF, flying the
Hawker Hind, moved from
RAF Bircham Newton; they left on 14 March 1938 for
RAF Scampton. The next squadron to arrive was
No. 35 Squadron RAF, on 26 August 1936, flying the
Fairey Gordon, Vickers Wellesley and the
Fairey Battle. They left for
RAF Cottesmore on 20 April 1938. The last squadron to use RAF Worthy Down was
No. 207 Squadron RAF, which moved to the airfield on 29 August 1936, flying the Gordon and Wellesley before leaving on 20 April 1938 for
RAF Cottesmore. The only Royal Air Force Squadron to use the airfield when it was under Royal Naval control was the Southampton University Air Squadron, who flew their
de Havilland Tiger Moth trainers there during 1945–46.
Station commanders Royal Navy The site was recommissioned by the
Royal Navy in 1939 as HMS
Kestrel, and used as a flying station by the
Fleet Air Arm. During this time, the site was featured on the news when
Lord Haw-Haw (William Joyce) claimed the
Kriegsmarine sank HMS
Kestrel. In 1950, it was placed in a state of care and maintenance until 1952, when it was re-established as HMS
Ariel II and used as an engineering training school. The following squadrons were based at Worthy Down at some point: •
700 Naval Air Squadron between June 1945 and 1945 •
734 Naval Air Squadron used the airfield between February 1944 and sometime in 1945 with the
Armstrong Whitworth Whitley GRVII. •
739 Naval Air Squadron (BADU) between September 1943 and September 1944 with the
Airspeed Oxford. •
755 Naval Air Squadron formed at the airfield during 1939 and flew various aircraft including the
Blackburn Shark,
Hawker Osprey,
Westland Lysander and
Curtiss SO3C Seamew. •
756 Naval Air Squadron – 1939–1943 •
757 Naval Air Squadron – 1939–1943 •
763 Naval Air Squadron – December 1939 – June 1940 • 763 (FAA Pool) Naval Air Squadron – February – July 1941 •
800 Naval Air Squadron – 1938–1939 •
803 Naval Air Squadron – 21 November 1938 •
806 Naval Air Squadron – May 1940 •
807 Naval Air Squadron – 15 September 1940 •
808 Naval Air Squadron – 1 July 1940 – 5 September 1940 •
811 Naval Air Squadron – October 1939 •
815 Naval Air Squadron – 15 October 1939 – May 1940 •
822 Naval Air Squadron – October 1939 •
848 Naval Air Squadron – November 1959 – March 1960 • Air Electrical School – June 1952 – 1 November 1960 Additionally,
Supermarine used the airfield in the development of the
Spitfire from December 1940 to March 1944. ==Current use==