807 Naval Air Squadron 807 Naval Air Squadron ( 807 NAS ) was a Naval Air Squadron of the Royal Navy . Second World War . 807 Squadron was formed at Worthy Down in September 1940 , equipped with Fairey Fulmar Is . Three were embarked on HMS " Pegasus " , where they remained until February 1941 , when the entire squadron embarked on for convoy duties . Re - equipped with Fulmar IIs in April 1941 , 807 Squadron joined and saw action defending the Malta convoys between July and September . Many of the squadron ' s aircraft were lost in the sinking of " Ark Royal " in November 1941 . Four surviving machines were flown off to North Front , Gibraltar . The squadron was gradually re - equipped with replacement Fulmars , which were joined by Sea Hurricane s , after which the squadron joined . In June 1942 the squadron flew off the carriers HMS " Argus " and to cover Operation Harpoon . 807 Squadron received Supermarine Seafire s in June 1942 , and rejoined HMS " Furious " in August . They took part in Operation Torch , the North African landings , and by March 1943 were back in the UK . By May 1943 the squadron had been assigned to and provided cover for the Allied invasion of Sicily . " Indomitable " was damaged by a torpedo in July , causing 807 Squadron to transfer to , from which they supported the Allied invasion of Italy . The squadron returned to Britain aboard , subsequently joining the 4th Naval Fighter Wing . Elements of the squadron were lent to the Desert Air Force serving in Italy for several weeks in April 1944 , with the entire squadron flying off HMS " Hunter " to support Operation Dragoon , the landings in the South of France in August 1944 . In March 1945 the squadron joined the Eastern Fleet aboard HMS " Hunter " and provided cover during the re - occupation of Rangoon , and attacks on enemy shipping in the Andaman Sea . Recommissioning . The squadron was recommissioned on 1 October 1958 at RNAS Lossiemouth under the command of Lieutenant Commander Keith Leppard . 807 NAS immediately began a hectic work up period and participated in a major exercise 15 days after commissioning . 807 remained at Lossiemouth throughout 1959 , working up and taking part in exercises and trials . Aerobatic displays . In September 1959 the squadron performed in front of thousands of spectators at Farnborough Airshow with a display of formation aerobatics . The naval aviators began their display with a six stream takeoff to form a four aircraft aerobatic team and two soloists . One of the singletons performed a target banner pick up using an extension fitted to its deck arrestor hook . Meanwhile the four aircraft formation returned for a transonic pass at 700 mph followed by a short aerobatic display . Included in this sequence was what the Naval commentator described as an ' original manoeuvre ' , a fast pass in open box formation with a rapid individual roll by each Supermarine Scimitar ; the " Twinkle Roll " was created . The two singletons touched down from the left and immediately folded their wings whilst one aircraft from the other four detached and approached from the right , landing head on between them . Ship - based service . On 10 November 1959 Lieutenant N . Grier - Rees RN carried out a successful ejection from a Scimitar when his flying controls locked . The squadron finally embarked on HMS " Ark Royal " on 3 March 1960 where it remained for the next year , taking part in major exercises and carrying out cold weather trials in the Arctic Circle . In March 1961 , 807 transferred from " Ark Royal " to HMS " Centaur " . Scimitar operations from this ship proved difficult due to her small size and slower speed than " Ark Royal " , resulting in restrictions on launch and recovery weights . This prevented them from being used to their limits ; problems that became more acute in tropical climates with little or no natural wind . Before leaving for the Far East in October 1961 the aircraft were modified to carry AIM - 9 Sidewinder air to air missile s and AGM - 12 Bullpup air to ground missile s . The latter were command guided by a joystick in the cockpit of the launching aircraft . Flight refuelling capability was also added at this time . On 21 October 1961 Lieutenant P . M . Hessey fired the first successful live Sidewinder from a British aircraft when he destroyed a meteor target aircraft over the Aberporth Ranges . After 7 months in the Middle and Far East 807 NAS disbanded aboard " Centaur " in Portsmouth on 17 May 1962 .