No 3 Squadron (3SQN) was originally established at Point Cook in September 1916 and was the first Australian Flying Corps squadron to arrive on the Western Front. It operated from a number of airfields in France and Belgium between August 1917 and the Armistice on 11 November 1918, serving with distinction in support of ground forces. After the war, the squadron returned to Australia and was disestablished, and dormant until 1922 when it briefly reappeared before being closed down again. On 1 July 1925, 3SQN was re-formed at RAAF Richmond with a mix of aircraft. 

After the Second World War started, 3SQN was deployed to Egypt, where it operated in an army cooperation role before transitioning to fighter operations. The squadron served with distinction in the Middle East and the Mediterranean, having destroyed more enemy aircraft than any other RAAF unit.

In 1948, 3SQN was re-formed at RAAF Fairbairn and, in 1956, it re-equipped with the Australian-built Sabre CA-27 jet fighter at RAAF Williamtown. 3SQN was based at Butterworth in Malaya (later Malaysia) from 1958 to 1967 before relocating to Williamtown and re-equipping with Australian-built Mirage IIIO fighters. 3SQN re-deployed to Butterworth in 1969 and remained there until 1986 as a key element of the Integrated Air Defence System before returning to Williamtown to re-equip with its new Australian-produced Hornet F/A-18 aircraft. In 2016, the squadron deployed an element to the Middle East in support of Operation Okra and, in 2017, the Hornet took its last flight with 3SQN before being replaced by the 5th-generation Lockheed-Martin F-35A Lightning II in 2018.

Gathered here are some of our 3SQN stories compiled as part of History and Heritage – Air Force’s Living History Program.

About Thomas Carmody

Thomas James Carmody was born in Ballarat East in Victoria on 15 April 1892, the eldest of six children of Michael Carmody and Mary McManamny. A telephone mechanic in Warrnambool prior to the First World War, Tom enlisted as a private (later called 1st Air Mechanic) in what was to become 3SQN, Australian Flying Corps, on 8 September 1916.

Tom served with distinction during the war, becoming the only Australian to have been awarded the Meritorious Service Medal for Gallantry twice.

For more on the medals he received decades after his wartime service, read the Defence News article, War hero's medals awarded after 80 years.