This articleneeds additional citations forverification.(February 2013) |
Royal Air Force Gan,commonly known asRAF Gan,is a formerRoyal Air ForcestationonGanisland, the southern-most island ofAddu Atoll,which is part of the larger groups of islands which form theMaldives,in the middle of theIndian Ocean.ItsmottoisEn Route,which signifies its importance as a strategicstaging postfor enabling RAF aircraft to reach their onward destinations at their bases in theFar East.
RAF Gan | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Motto:En Route | |||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Military | ||||||||||
| Owner | Ministry of Defence, UK | ||||||||||
| Operator | Royal Air Force(RAF) | ||||||||||
| Location | Ganisland,Addu Atoll,Maldives | ||||||||||
| Built | 1957 | ||||||||||
| In use | 1957–1 April 1976 | ||||||||||
| Time zone | Maldives Time (MVT)(UTC+5) | ||||||||||
| ElevationAMSL | 2 m / 6 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 00°41′29″S073°09′22″E/ 0.69139°S 73.15611°E | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
  RAF Gan Location onAddu Atollin the Maldives  RAF Gan RAF Gan (Indian Ocean) | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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Information correct during operational period by the Royal Air Force | |||||||||||
Following the departure of theRoyal Air Force(RAF) in 1976, the former RAF Gan airfield was developed into a civilian airport, and is now known asGan International Airport.
History
editThe area was originally established as amilitarybase for theRoyal Navy(RN) in 1941.Royal Navy engineers began constructingairstripson Gan island from crushed coral in August 1941 for theFleet Air Arm(FAA). Around this time, the original inhabitants of Gan were forcibly relocated to the nearby Feydhoo.
The airfield was operational between 1942 and 20 March 1945, as a secondary base forTrincomalee,Ceylon. It was part ofHMS Haitanwhich becameHMS Moraga.[1]
During theSecond World War,in 1942, theRoyal Air Force(RAF) had its bases in the islands ofAddu Atoll,Maldives. The RAF first had a presence onHithadooin 1942, when a detachment of RAF personnel were sent fromRAF China BayinCeylonto service and turn around the RAFShort SunderlandandConsolidated PBY Catalinaflying boats that were flying regularly into the Addu Atoll lagoon. At the end of the war, all military installations were either removed or abandoned.
In 1956–57, at the request ofSWRD Bandaranaike,the Royal Air Force handed over its bases in Ceylon to theRoyal Ceylon Air Force.The loss ofRAF Negombomeant that a replacement staging post was needed between its bases in the Middle East and Far East, and the location was virtually limited to Gan. Hence Royal Air Force Station Gan became established in the late 1950s as a stopover on the reinforcement route to theFar East Air Forcebased inSingapore.The previous reinforcement route had passed through countries that had formerly been British territory, but were now independent, and sometimes hostile nations.RAF Mauripur,to the west ofKarachi,by then aPakistan Air Forcestation, had RAF personnel attached for staging airfield purposes until 1956, when the staging role between the Middle East and Far East fell to RAF Gan.
It was extensively used as astaging postby bombers, fighters, and transports, on their way toSingaporeand other destinations in east Asia during the late 1950s and the 1960s. Other foreign military forces occasionally used the facilities. However, as the 1970s dawned, the United Kingdom was withdrawing from its commitmentseast of Suez.By the end of 1971, the RAF Far East Air Force was disbanded, and the major rationale for Gan was gone. Traffic was now much less frequent, but the base still remained open for a few more years. By 1975, extremely few British military aircraft used the base, and it was closed. On 1 April 1976, the entire island with its airfield was handed back to the Maldivian Government. At the same time as RAF use of the airfield ceased, the RAF gained access to the newly built airfield 200 miles (320 kilometres) to the south of Gan on theBritish Indian Ocean Territory(BIOT) island ofDiego Garcia.In 1977 theSoviet Unionrequested use of the Gan airbase, but this was denied by PresidentIbrahim Nasir,who wanted theMaldivesto remain neutral.[2][3]
The base was used by No. 1125 Marine Craft Unit between 1 May 1970 and 29 March 1976.[4]
RAF Gan today
editFollowing the handover back to the Maldivian Government, the island was left to fall into disrepair for many years, but as funds allowed the airfield was subtly developed into a civilairportnow known asGan International Airport.Most of the base is now a tourist resort called Equator Village: the former military buildings remain and have been converted into rooms and other facilities on the resort. The former military hospital is now a dive centre.
See also
edit- RAF Hithadhoo– communications site for RAF Gan
- List of former Royal Air Force stations
References
editCitations
edit- ^Sturtivant & Ballance 1994,p. 390.
- ^"Soviets Fail in Bid for Indian Ocean Base".The Washington Post.26 October 1977.Retrieved27 February2024.
- ^"'Maldives' Dexterous Diplomacy: Global Multilateralism as Foreign Policy ".26 December 2023.Retrieved27 February2024.
- ^Sturtivant & Hamlin 2007,p. 187.
Bibliography
edit- Sturtivant, Ray; Ballance, Theo (1994).The Squadrons of The Fleet Air Arm.Tonbridge,UK: Air-Britain (Historians).ISBN0-85130-223-8.
- Sturtivant, Ray; Hamlin, John (2007).Royal Air Force flying training and support units since 1912.Tonbridge,UK: Air-Britain (Historians).ISBN978-0851-3036-59.