Guns in the sky: Merlin fliers ship 18th Century cannon ashore in Cornwall

A Merlin from RNAS Culdrose made the short hop to St Michael’s Mount to transfer the guns from the tidal island to shore for refurbishment.

Moving the heavy iron guns, some weighing up to half a ton off the famous island in Mounts Bay was proving a challenge for staff – but not for a Merlin Mk2 as a underslung load.

In a carefully planned operation, the historic artillery pieces were ferried one at a time across the sea to the mainland, where they could be transported by road for specialist restoration.

“These cannons are an important part of St Michael’s Mount’s story,” said Henry Mathews, Head of Land and Property at St Aubyn Estates, which manages the mount in partnership with the National Trust.

“Their removal is the first step in specialist work to conserve them for the future, and we are grateful to the Royal Navy for its support.”

Initial examination suggests all the cannons are English. The crests on three of the guns appear to be from the reign of King George II (1727 to 1760), but further careful paint removal is required.

The cannons have been painted in the past but, where the paint has failed, salt spray has caused them to rust. Most of the guns appear to have corroded over the centuries before previous protective layers were applied.

The job of shifting them from the island’s castle to a car park in Marazion fell to the crew of Atlantic Flight, part of the Navy’s 814 Naval Air Squadron.

“Transferring stores or equipment between ships or from ship-to-shore is one of the core capabilities of the Merlin helicopter. It is something our crews regularly practise at Culdrose,” said the Flying Tigers’ Commanding Officer Commander Ben Kerley.

“So to carry out this exercise in a realistic setting has been a real benefit to the crew as they prepare for operational service. It also supports the preservation of this important historic collection.”

Atlantic Flight is currently in its working-up period before deploying to a Royal Navy frigate later this year to protect UK waters and carry out anti-submarine warfare patrols in the North Atlantic.

The exercise to move the guns was dubbed Cormoran’s Throw, in honour of the legendary giant who is said to have created the mount. The story goes that Cormoran and fellow giant Trecobben, of Trencrom near St Ives, used to hurl massive boulders at each other for fun.

Pictures courtesy of Ted Munns/West Penwith Photography