| Royal Naval Air Station Capel Royal Air Force Station Folkestone |
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| Located Near Folkestone, Kent, England | |
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Shown within Kent
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| Type | Airship station |
| Coordinates | 51° 6′ 21″ N, 1° 13′ 37″ E |
| Built | 1915 |
| Current condition |
Closed |
| Occupants | Royal Naval Air Service Royal Air Force |
| Battles/wars | First World War |
Royal Naval Air Station Capel (later Royal Air Force Station Folkestone) was a First World War airship station near Folkestone, Kent.[1]
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When Germany declared in February 1915 that it would commence unrestricted submarine warfare the Royal Navy responded with the building of airship stations around the coast.[1] Being close to the Dover straight the open fields east of Capel-le-Ferne were seen as ideal location for a base and work started in April 1915.[1] Although not completed the base was official opened on 8 May 1915.[1] The first airship for Capel was to have been SS-1 the first of a new sea scout class of non-rigid airships, on delivery to Capel from RNAS Kingsnorth on 7 May it hit telegraph wires and was destroyed. Despite the accident more sea scouts were soon delivered to Capel.
Following the successful repair to SS-10 at Capel production of the airships moved from Kingsnorth to Capel, although by 1916 production had moved again to Vickers at Barrow and RNAS Wormood Scrubs.[1] The engineering section at Capel went on to design an improved variant of the SS airship which would be known as the SSZ.[1] The SSZ had an improved aluminium covered ash-framed car and was fitted with a 75hp Rolls-Royce Hawk aero-engine, it was fitted with a 70,000 cu ft (2,000 m3) envelope and test flown in August 1916.[1] When the Admiralty were informed about the new airship they censured the air station for carrying out unauthorised modifications, but on the other hand ordered the type into production.[1]
The airships carried out patrols along the English coast and escorted shipping across the channel always on the look out for submarines.[1] In April 1918 the Royal Air Force was formed and Capel became RAF Folkestone, it had by then three large airship sheds and a grass landing area.[1] On 16 September 1918 SSZ.1 while under the command of a United States Navy officer depth-charged and sunk submarine UB-103.[1]
Two sub-stations were used at Godmersham Park north of Wye and Wittersham south of Tenterden were active. The sites were used as mooring-out bases where the airships could be secured in a sheltered area.[1]
Following the end of the First World War the station was closed in 1919. In the Second World War the site was used as a radio monitoring station.[1]