The Royal Navy established a base (“Port T”) – later RAF Gan from
1957 – on the island of Gan (pronounced “Gun”) in 1941, during World War
II. During the Cold War it was used as an outpost.
The original naval base was established as a fall-back for the
British Eastern Fleet. Despite public pronouncements to the contrary,
the official view was that the main base at Singapore would be untenable
if the Japanese made serious headway in Malaya and Java – which, in the
event, is what happened in 1942. The intention had been to operate from
Trincomalee, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). Upon inspection, however, the
naval commander-in-chief, Admiral James Somerville found the port
inadequate, vulnerable to a determined attack and open to spying. An
isolated island base with a safe, deep anchorage in a suitably strategic
position was required, and Addu City met the requirements. Once
available, its facilities were used extensively by the Fleet.
Royal Navy engineers landed in August 1941 from HMS Guardian
to clear and construct airstrips on Gan for the Fleet Air Arm. In the
interim, Catalina and Sunderland flying boats operated from jetties on
the northern, sheltered side of Gan. Large oil tanks were built on Gan,
and on Hitaddu Island on the western edge of the atoll; vital elements
for a naval base. These were visible from a long distances at sea, but
this was unavoidable, given the atoll’s low profile.
Ship’s supplies for the fleet were provided from a pair of Australian refrigerated ships, Changte and Taiping
that included Attu in a number of bases that they serviced regularly.
Three times these ships replenished forty or more ships of the Eastern
Fleet. Several large Australian Imperial Force troop convoys also
refueled at Addu on their way from Aden to Fremantle, Western Australia.
The six major islands were garrisoned by the 1st Royal Marine Coast
Defence Regiment, manning shore batteries and anti-aircraft guns. To
facilitate the defence, causeways were built connecting the western
islands of Gan, Aboohéra (Eyehook), Maradhoo and Hithadhoo and, much
later in the war, they were linked by a light railway. Attu was an
unpopular posting due to the hot, humid climate, lack of recreational
facilities and lack of socialising with the local population.
The Japanese remained unaware of the base’s existence until their
plans for expansion in south-east Asia had come to nothing, even during
their carrier raids in the Indian Ocean in April 1942. Later in the war,
submarine reconnaissance established the base’s existence. Despite
openings into the lagoon being permanently closed by anti-submarine
nets, the German U-boat U-183 torpedoed the tanker British Loyalty
in March 1944 (she had been previously torpedoed and sunk at Diego
Suarez); it was an impressive long-range shot from outside the atoll
through a gap in the anti-torpedo nets. Although seriously damaged, the
tanker did not sink. She was not fully repaired but kept as a Ministry
of War Transport Oil Fuel Storage Vessel. There was significant oil
pollution after this incident and British personnel were used to clean
the lagoon.
On 5 January 1946, British Loyalty was scuttled southeast of
Hithadhoo Island in the Addu City lagoon. After some years of leaking
oil, she has become a popular dive location.
In 1957, the naval base was transferred to the Royal Air Force. As
RAF Gan, it remained in intermittent service until 1975, when British
Forces withdrew.
Most of the employees who had experience working for the British
military spoke good English. When the base at Gan was closed for good
they turned to the nascent tourism industry for employment. As a result,
there was an influx of Addu people to Malé seeking employment in the
nearby resorts and also looking for education to their children. RAF Gan
is now a Tourist Resort, Equator Village, with the airstrip now being
Gan International Airport.
