848 NAS 2nd commission as a helicopter unit continued when it was re-equipped at Worthy Down with the troubled Whirlwind HAS.7 in Nov 1959, in preparation for ultimate deployment to Singapore from spring 1960.
On 14 Mar 1960, HMS Bulwark departed UK with 42 CDO RM and sixteen Whirlwinds of 848 NAS, via Malta, Cyprus, Aden and Colombo for Singapore, where they disembarked on 30 May 1960. Bulwark also carried some unassigned Whirlwinds to Singapore as a precaution against their unreliable gearboxes, to replenish spares held at the local RN Aircraft Handling Unit.
Other Whirlwinds were cycled through the unit to replace accidents or even-out flying hours for the helicopter pool and the unit was again at full strength when it was called upon to assist Kuwait against threats from Iraq in a rapid deployment in Jul 1961.
848 NAS re-embarked HMS Bulwark in Singapore in early Sep 1962 for the voyage back to the UK before the local security situation dramatically deteriorated with Indonesia in Dec 1962. The unit disembarked to RNAS Culdrose on 19 Dec 1962 and several of the Whirlwinds were sent to Fleetlands for depth maintenance and others were cycled through the maintenance system before the unit disbanded on 30 Jul 1963.
List of Royal Navy 848 Naval Air Squadron Whirlwinds helicopters
