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The Courier and Advertiser, Saturday, January 18, 2003. file: G:\Courier\Features\Logos\Weekender logo(bw).eps RNAS (Royal Naval Airship Station) Auldbar, which later became RAF Auldbar, is the least known air base in Tayside. Today only a few folk are aware of its precise whereabouts. From there airships flew over most Angus towns and villages, and possibly Dundee, en route to their patrol areas over the North Sea during the later stages of the first world war. Here, Laurie Rogers tells its story. Flying without wings t was the only airship station built in the region and uniquely the only mooring-out station in Scotland. On such bases, as the name implies, airships were Imoored out in open woodland, From left: Grant Stewart, Laurie Rogers and Gordon Stewart tethered to metal masts, as distinct with what was probably the main drain for the base. from being housed inside a hangar at a larger base. Today, it is a little-known fact that from a friend last autumn. While breaking away at Auldbar a year previously. the Royal Naval Air Service ordered talking to the Rev. Brian Ramsay, the over 200 airships during the first Other “battlebags” including the Coastal kirk minister, I mentioned that I had class may have operated from the base world war, more than any other been researching, albeit with limited nation. They operated from 24 major because C25 is recorded as having made a success, Auldbar's location and he balloon landing at Balmackie, near Dundee and and 28 mooring-out or sub-stations, immediately suggested I should ringing most of the UK. Of these, two was damaged by wind when 'moored out' in contact Grant Stewart of Guthrie, a February 1918. On being repaired it major stations, Longside, otherwise member of his congregation who known as LANABO, six miles west of disappeared on patrol on July of that year was also searching for the site. After following an attack on a U-boat which also Peterhead, and East Fortune, three informing me that I had been up “the miles east of Drem in East Lothian, failed to return to base. NS 8 force landed at wrong dreel” he put me in touch with Johnshaven in August, as did SSZ 66 at and the sub-station at Auldbar were retired forester Gordon Stewart of sited in Scotland. Arbratha (possibly Arbroath?) around the same Pitkennedy, whose father has time. As in the second world war, the worked in the area and told him of main threat to Britain’s maritime the station. Compared with the trenches a rating’s life at supremacy was the German U-Boat Auldbar would have been regarded by troops This galvanised me into phoning as a cushy number, but it was not comfy in and in both struggles they came both the FAA and RAF museums and within measurable distance of cutting winter with one writer in the monthly magazine the calls produced a rich vein of wryly commenting that the romantic, sylvan Britain’s lifelines and forcing it to sue information which had been retrieved for peace. scenery could not make amends for the from their archives since my previous insidious damp and the harsh, penetrating cold. It was in this context that the inquiries. This took the form of a Awakening in the morning felt like “a living navy’s airships were introduced, map of the base, the flying log of the semblance to an iceberg. At night in the huts particularly around coastal waters first CO and photographs and copies (tents) the moisture condenses on the fabric where many of the early submarines of the monthly magazine, The and falls pat to the ground whilst chill draughts sought their prey. Being able to fly Battlebag, produced by the parent force one to don a leather coat.” “low and slow”, and virtually hover, station. they could force the U-boats to Another writer describes Saturday out in From walking the area with the two Forfar after the airships were recalled. “And submerge, attack them with bombs, Stewarts it could be reckoned that or call for assistance by wireless to now for tea. That’s one thing that Forfar is head the main gate of the camp was and shoulders above Peterhead. There are one any nearby destroyers to hunt and approximately one mile north of the sink them. or two good tea shops where you can sit down bungalow known as Pinegrove on with a knife and tackle to a square meal without The proud boast of the aircrew the Letham-Brechin road. The map paying hotel prices. Bridies flourish at Forfar, a was that no merchant vessel was by CO Capt, J. Havers, to the scale kind of pastry meat highly flavoured with sunk in convoy by a U-boat when an of one inch equalling 25 paces, onions, and an eightpenny one will keep you airship was on patrol overhead. I first learned of the existence of these Angus shows a frontage extending for 350-400 yards, going a whole evening.” airships through a casual conversation with a jutting southeastwards in the form of a flattened British airships were basically powered Time has removed virtually all traces of the balloons inside a rubberised fabric envelope, now deceased local newsagent many years triangle for a similar distance, with four airship ago. He told me that they often flew over the berths near the point. It was throughout its base with the exceptions of possibly the main underneath which was a car or gondola for entry and one of the gondola pits. As a teenage crew and engines with direction being Forfar Steeple, were based in Montreathmont existence a tented base although plans were in Moor and that the concrete foundations of the hand to erect huts which were probably forestry worker, Gordon helped to plant the controlled by a fin and rudder. Such craft were area with young fir trees during which operation known as non-rigid, while improved versions mooring masts were still visible. This aborted by the end of the war. Most of the tents he came across three of the four pits. with a keel as a backbone were called semi- information then entered the realms of the were erected along the roadway. The four rigids. Towards the end of the war the Admiralty Craigie Column but the sequels added little airship berths were known as The Nest and the So one dreich December day we went were developing rigid airships, similar to the information to the original item except that one landing area was northwards of two roadside searching for them, a difficult task because the German Zeppelins, which utilised metal reader remembered oak trees which area is now criss-crossed with deep drainage framework as their skeleton. his parents telling have grown since ditches, fallen firs, dense undergrowth and him that the aircrew the base was copses of naturally regenerated trees. Even The two principal types of “battlebags” waved to the citizens abandoned more though Gordon knew their approximate spawned several different classes such as the below as they than 80 years ago. location, it seemed we were searching for a SS, Coastal, Zero, North Sea and SSZ. Taking floated majestically According to Capt. needle in a haystack. Just when it seemed that the Coastal as a representative example, this overhead. However, it Havers’ log, four success had eluded us we stumbled across type was 196 feet long, powered by one 150hp was only around two airships were two water-filled rectangular hollows in line tractor engine and a 200hp pusher, carrying a years ago that I stationed at the astern. We were both puzzled why there should five-strong crew, sitting in an open cockpit one became sufficiently base although they be two rectangular cuts, but close inspection of behind the other and comprising a coxswain, interested to try and shuttled to and the old, fuzzy photographs showed that the discover something from Longside for Coastal class at least had skids or skis at the about the mystery overhaul and front and rear of their gondolas for landing. base, only to realise I maintenance. They These would have fitted comfortably into the was 50 years too late were SSZ 57, SSZ pits, leaving the engines and crew to obtain a quick 58, SSZ 65 and compartment easily accessible to the answer. Inquiries to SSZ 66, all of mechanics. Mystery solved perhaps! the Royal Navy, Fleet which were built at Since it is the only airship pit in Scotland and Air Arm and Royal Air Kingsnorth, an one of the few in Britain it’s probably just a Force museums drew airship factory in matter of time before Historic Scotland blanks and it soon the South of becomes interested. The other three pits, if became obvious that England, and accessible and not completely concealed or ignorance of even the underwent their infilled, must all be within 60-70 yards radius, correct name of trials between April but that’s a search which will have to wait for a the base was a and May 1918, fine spring, dry-under-the-foot day. If they can stumbling block. operating from be found, Auldbar can become another minor Similar calls to local Angus shortly Angus tourist spot. Scotland features numerous estate offices, the afterwards. The visitor attractions based on far less. Forestry Commission four ships flew over and farmers in the 1000 hours in their The writer would like to acknowledge the area were equally operational careers assistance of the Fleet Air Arm museum in unsuccessful, as was but had been the preparation of this feature, particularly a search through struck off strength that of Mrs Jan Keohane, its assistant Forfar library’s file of by November 1919 curator.

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