The Naval Officer-in-Charge, Aden, was an administrative appointment of British Royal Navy originally established in 1839 as the Senior Naval Officer, Aden. He was responsible for HMS Sheba.^[1] It was a sub-command of the Flag Officer, Middle East.^[2]

In 1839 the Royal Navy carried out an operation called the Aden Expedition led by Captain Henry Smith under orders from the Commander-in-Chief, East Indies, in the south east Arabian Peninsula its occupation of Aden was mainly for strategic reasons as Aden provided control of the entrance to the Red Sea a naval base was first established here at the same time.^[3] In 1869 the Suez Canal was opened and the British Empire established a number of protectorates in Southern Arabia mainly as a shield against further expansion by the Ottoman Empire who were occupying the rest of Yemen.^[4] In the 19th century and early twentieth century it was a major coaling station that sat on an important trade route from India.^[5] During World War Two the main naval formation based in Aden was the Red Sea Force.^[6]