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‘File 7/2 III Landing grounds and seaplane anchorages’ [152r] (322/522)
The record is made up of 1 volume (251 folios). It was created in 24 Mar 1935-19 Dec 1935. It was written in English and Arabic. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .
Transcription
This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.
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Urgen t. Headquart ers> Boval Air Force .
I rucial Coast.
Reference your U/o D.3413-No.35, and your U/o
3546 # 11.351 dated 5th and 15th August 19351 respectively,
i- The sheltered water available for use as seaplane
anciiorages on the Irucial Coast consists of creeks which run
some distance inland. There are a number of these creeks,
most of which contain sufficient depth of water in one part
or another to permit of their use by seaplanes. They vary
mainly in the amount of safe water available, in the number
of directions in which alighting and taking-off is possible,
and, most important of all, in the extent to which the safe
water is clearly defined.
2. I thoroughly reconnoitred all the creeks along this
coast in 1931, and to the best of my recollection full reports
with sketches were submitted at the time to the Air Ministry,
and in any event should be available in the files at Air
Headquarters, Baghdad.
However, I think I can remember clearly the three creeks
mentioned in these conmuni cat ions.
3. At UMALQUAIWAIN there is plenty of water, permitting
alighting into practically all winds at all stages of the tide.
The limits of the safe water is, however, very undefined, being
bordered by large areas of shallow water and semi-submerged
mud banks, very dangerous for flying boats.
The alighting areas would, therefore, require to be thoroughly
buoyed and lighted before they could be safely used*
An equally strong objection to the creek is the lack of firm
banks in the vicinity of the alighting areas. The deep water
is for the most part separated from the shore by wide stretches
of mud only passable at high tide. A site for a civilian
air station of this kind should permit of :
(a) the location of a Rest House reasonably accessible
from the flying boat;
* (b) the flying boat itself being brought up to a pier or
jetty;
(c) the provision of slipways on firm ground.
No
About this item
- Content
The volume is a continuation of correspondence from ‘File 7/2 II Landing grounds and seaplane anchorages’ (IOR/R/15/2/264), its contents relating to ongoing negotiations between Arab rulers and the British Government, Royal Air Force, and Imperial Airways, on the installation and maintenance of air facilities along the Arab coast, between Qatar and Ra’s al-Khaymah. The principal correspondents in the file are Lieutenant-Colonel Trenchard Craven Fowle, Political Resident A senior ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul General) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Residency. in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , Lieutenant-Colonel Percy Gordon Loch, Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. at Bahrain, and Captain A Cole, Officiating Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. at Bahrain.
The main issues raised in the volume are:
1. Disagreements between British officials and Shaikh Shakbut bin Sultan of Abu Dhabi, over the installation of a petrol store at Abu Dhabi, not officially mentioned in the agreement signed between the two parties on 13 February 1935, and only verbally agreed upon. In a letter addressed to the Shaikh, dated 5 June 1935, Fowle threatened action against Abu Dhabi’s pearling fleet, should he continue to raise objections to the expansion of air facilities in his domains (folios 64-66). Fowle’s letter led to an angry exchange between Shaikh Shakbut and British officials aboard HMS Fowey (reported in a letter from Cole to Fowle, folios 93-97), which in turn led to protracted mediations prior to Shaikh Shakbut issuing a formal apology over his outburst (folios 122-23).
2. Proposals for a seaplane anchorage at Umm al-Qaywayn (folios 138-40a), including a visit to the Arab coast by Mr B Cross, Manager of the Near East Area for Imperial Airways Limited, in order to ascertain the best site for such a facility (folios 185-87).
The volume also contains a number of revised schedules of air facilities required along the Arab coast of the Gulf, listing facilities by both location and by RAF or civil aviation function (folios 68-72, 173-75a, 196-200).
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (251 folios)
- Arrangement
The volume’s correspondence is arranged in approximate chronological order, from the earliest items at the front of the volume to the latest at the end. Some items in the volume are marked with red or blue crayon numbers (for incoming or outgoing items respectively), and are prefixed by the letters S.No [Serial number]. This numbering system constitutes part of the original filing arrangement, and is referred to in the office notes at the end of the file (folios 230-44).
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: The volume is foliated from the front cover to the inside back cover, using circled pencil numbers in the top-right corner of each recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. . An earlier foliation system, which uses uncircled pencil numbers in the top-right corner of rectos, runs through the volume. The following anomalies occur in the main foliation system: 1a-1e, 79a, 140a, 167a, 195a, 241a. The following folios are fold-outs: 7, 11, 13, 20, 64, 76.
- Written in
- English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
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‘File 7/2 III Landing grounds and seaplane anchorages’ [152r] (322/522), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/2/265, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100023625741.0x00007b> [accessed 21 July 2026]
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/R/15/2/265
- Title
- ‘File 7/2 III Landing grounds and seaplane anchorages’
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, 1ar:1ev, 2r:19v, 21r:50v, 55v, 57v, 60r:79v, 79ar:79av, 80r:140v, 140ar:140av, 141r:166v, 167ar:167av, 169r:175v, 175ar:175av, 176r:202v, 204r:217v, 218v:241v, 241ar:241av, 242r:248v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence