No. 3 Squadron RAAF
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| 3SQN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Service | RAAF | ||
| FEG | Air Combat Group | ||
| Parent Unit | 81 Wing | ||
| Role | Air to Air Combat | ||
| Motto | Operta Aperta (Secrets Revealed) | ||
| Formed | September 19, 1916 | ||
| Base | RAAF Base Williamtown | ||
| Aircraft | F/A-18 | ||
| Callsign | Baron (Single Ship) Cobra(Multi Ship) Venom(Multi Ship) Raider(Multi Ship) Zulu(Multi Ship) |
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No. 3 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force fighter squadron. The Squadron was first formed in 1916 and currently operates F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from RAAF Base Williamtown.
[edit] History
No. 3 Squadron (NO.3SQN) was formed at Point Cook, Victoria on 19 September 1916. Shortly after, the unit was moved to England for training before becoming the first Australian Flying Corps (AFC) unit deployed to France in 1917. Squadron aircraft were used for bombing, artillery spotting and reconnaissance missions in support of British, Canadian and Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) forces, and by the end of the War had flown over 10,000 operational hours in support of ground forces. By this time, the unit was regarded as the best allied reconnaissance Squadron of World War I.
After the commencement of World War II, 3SQN sailed for Egypt, where despite being heavily outnumbered, provided air support to the British 8th Army during the ebb and flow of the desert campaign. 3SQN later participated in the liberation of Italy and Yugoslavia where the unit was well regarded for its highly accurate attacks against enemy shipping. With 217 enemy aircraft destroyed by the end of the War, 3SQN remains the highest scoring fighter Squadron in the RAAF. Following the War, the unit was disbanded, but was reformed as a fighter unit on 1 March 1956 at RAAF Base Williamtown, New South Wales. After deploying to Malaya in 1958, 3SQN Sabres, and subsequently Mirage IIIO jet fighters, operated from the Butterworth air base as part of the Five Power Defence Agreement. Following its return to Australia in 1986, 3SQN received its first F/A-18 Hornets, aircraft A21-8 and A21-9, on 29 August 1986 as the first operational unit to do so. The unit continues to operate the aircraft from its home base at RAAF Base Williamtown. In February 2002 during the early stages of the war on terrorism, personnel from 3SQN deployed to the British island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean to relieve 77SQN in providing air defence for the large coalition air base there.Squadron personnel also participated in 75SQN's deployment to the Persian Gulf in 2003.
[edit] Primary Mission
3 Squadron provides protection to the air and sea approaches to the Australian mainland.
[edit] External links
- 3 Squadron RAAF, Australian War Memorial squadron history 1925-1946
- RAAF Museum 3 Squadron
| Royal Australian Air Force flying squadrons | |
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| RAAF Units Under Australian Operational Control
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| RAAF Units Under RAF Operational Control During WWII
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| Joint RAAF-Netherlands East Indies Squadrons |
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