3 Squadron, Australian Flying Corps
Australia's oldest and most illustrious fighter squadron, 3 Squadron was formed during WW1 in Egypt on September 19, 1916. The squadron saw brief action in the Middle East before moving to England to be equipped with RE8 aircraft. 3 Squadron was the first Australian Flying Corps squadron to move to France, and by the end of the war had flown over 10,000 operational hours in support of the ground forces in bombing, artillery spotting and reconnaissance roles. After the outbreak of WW2 the squadron again commenced operations in Egypt, and as part of the Desert Air Force participated with great success during the North African Campaign. During the subsequent invasion of Sicily, 3 Squadron achieved the distinction of being the first Allied squadron to be based on an enemy's homeland. By the end of the war, 3 Squadron had become the highest scoring Commonwealth fighter squadron with a total of 217.5 victories in air combat. |
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