The Fleet Air Arm facility for training mechanics and engineers is located near Portsmouth, Hampshire, and has undergone many recent name changes, but is commonly known as HMS Sultan, in Gosport.

A tour of the hangars and workshops was arranged in 2003, to allow us to learn more about the workings of the school and to freely take photographs as we required.

Each hangar and workshop deals with different aspects of aviation repair and maintenance, from flightline mechanics and aircraft handling, through to component repair and replacement, up to advanced aircraft battle damage repair procedures.

The facility houses a large number of aircraft, to allow for the various stages of training to be carried out by the students in a realistic environment.

Wessex helicopters are gradually being replaced by more modern Sea Kings, which are more realistic for avionics training as they are slightly more advanced in comparison to equipment fitted in the Wessex.

In addition, there are some Merlin, Gazelle and Wasp airframes here, to acquaint the students with other Fleet Air Arm types.

Thanks go to our hosts for the superb access granted to us.