Air Forces in 1914 It Had Only Been Five Years Since the First Powered

Air Forces In 1914 it had only been five years since the first powered aircraft flight in Scotland. It had only been two years since the first military airfield in Scotland was opened in Montrose. When it came to defending the Midlothian and the naval base at Rosyth the planning anticipated an attack from the sea and not from the air. Early in the war suitable sites for airfields were purchased by the government. Turnhouse Farm west of Edinburgh was taken over and converted from farmland to airfield but there was no unit permanently based there until May 1916 when units of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) moved in. The German Navy had been developing their rigid airships, the Zeppelins, since 1900 and their first use as bombers took place in January 1915 over East Anglia. On the evening of 2 April 1916 Zeppelins L14 and L22 flew over North-East England and the Borders heading for the Forth and the battleships at Rosyth. Unfortunately for the civilians below they attacked Leith and Edinburgh instead of the naval base. There was no blackout in Edinburgh so it was easy for the two Zeppelins to navigate across the city. Eye witness reports published just after the war tell of the German aircraft stopping to get their bearings over the centre of the city during the attack. Thirteen people were killed and twenty four were injured. Several properties were damaged and the aircraft were able to attack with impunity. Apart from some sporadic gunfire from Arthur’s Seat the Zeppelins were free to roam over the City. A plane sent up to shoot them down failed to find them in the night sky and crash- landed injuring the pilot. In response to the threat of further attacks a new RFC squadron specifically raised to defend the Forth was formed at Thetford in England and in October 1916 one Flight (of six planes) of 77 Squadron was based at the RFC airfield at Turnhouse. Other Flights were based at other airfields in the Borders. Because of the basic aircraft being used and the large distances they had to cover on patrol the planes would often have to use other landing strips away from their bases. Between 1916 and 1918 landing grounds were established in the Lothians at Colinton, Gifford, Gilmerton, Hoprig Mains near Tranent, Penston near Macmerry, Skateraw and South Belton both near Dunbar, Tynehead near Borthwick, and West Fenton near Gullane. Some such as West Fenton developed into full airfields. At the same time the Royal Navy had decided to follow the Germans’ example and were using airships of their own. At first non-rigid 'blimps' were used and by 1917 rigid airships were deployed over the Forth. The airships were mainly used for anti- submarine and convoy protection patrols. (Convoys from the Forth concentrated in Largo Bay off Methil in Fife before departure) To support the airships the Navy wanted a suitable site for an air station in East Lothian. There was already a small naval airfield at East Fortune. It had been used as a sub-station by coastal patrol airplanes based at Montrose since late 1915. In August 1916 East Fortune became a Royal Naval Air Station and unlike the flimsy hangars built by the Royal Flying Corps at Turnhouse the Navy made East Fortune a proper air station with three large hangars built for the airships. On 1 April 1918 the Royal Air Force was formed from the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service. RFC Turnhouse and RNAS East Fortune became RAF airfields. In 1920 the airships left East Fortune and by 1922 the large airship sheds had gone too. The airfield accommodation at East Fortune was turned into a tuberculosis hospital. In 1940 East Fortune once again became an RAF base and was used until 1946 but the only aircraft now using its runway are micro-lights. Part of the old airfield is the National Museums of Scotland’s Museum of Flight. The wartime RAF squadrons left Turnhouse by the middle of 1919 and by November 1919 it was put up for sale. However it wasn’t sold and continued to be used by the RAF until 1996. Long before then it was being used by civilian aircraft and since 1947 it has been Edinburgh’s airport. .

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