Fairey Firefly - Operational Service

Operational Service

The primary variant of the aircraft used during the Second World War was the Mk I, which was used in all theatres of operation. In March 1943, the first Firefly Mk Is were delivered but they did not enter operational service until July 1944 when they equipped 1770 Naval Air Squadron aboard HMS Indefatigable. The first operations were in Europe where Fireflies carried out armed reconnaissance flights and anti-shipping strikes along the Norwegian coast. Fireflies also provided air cover during strikes on the German battleship Tirpitz in 1944.

Throughout its operational career, the Firefly took on increasingly more demanding roles from fighter to anti-submarine warfare stationed mainly with the British Pacific Fleet in the Far East and Pacific theatres. Fireflies carried out attacks on oil refineries and airfields and gained renown when they became the first British-designed and -built aircraft to overfly Tokyo.

After the Second World War, the Firefly remained in front line service with the Fleet Air Arm until the mid 1950s The UK also supplied the aircraft to Canada, Australia, Denmark, Ethiopia, the Netherlands Naval Aviation Service, India and Thailand. The Royal Canadian Navy employed 65 Fireflies of the Mk AS 5 type onboard its own aircraft carriers between 1946 and 1954. It also had some Mk I Fireflies, and sold several additional examples of these to Ethiopia in the early 1950s.

British and Australian Fireflies carried out anti-shipping patrols and ground strikes off various aircraft carriers in the Korean War as well as serving in the ground-attack role in the Malayan Emergency. The Firefly's FAA front line career ended with the introduction of the Gannet. Several versions of the type were developed later in its career to serve as trainers, target tugs and drone aircraft. As an example, the Indian Navy acquired 10 aircraft in the mid-50s for target tug purposes.

In 1960, in response to Indonesian territorial demands and threats, the Netherlands deployed Firefly AS.Mk 4s to Dutch New Guinea. As Indonesian forces began to infiltrate the territory, the Fireflies carried out a few attack operations in early 1962, before a political settlement was negotiated.