ONE PROUD OWNER!
CONGRATULATIONS to Flight Sergeant Damian Andrew GARDINER
(pictured above with 3SQN in Arizona in 2018) on the award of his CONSPICUOUS
SERVICE MEDAL (CSM) in the 2022 Australia Day
Honours List.
“For meritorious achievement in F-35A
Lightning II stealth fighter maintenance management at No.3 Squadron
for the Royal Australian Air Force. FSGT GARDINER displayed extraordinary
technical ability and interpersonal skills in the development
and implementation of essential maintenance practices during the
introduction of the F-35A Lightning II at No.3 Squadron. His
continuous commitment to improving maintenance effectiveness ensured
operational objectives were met, further enhancing F-35A Lightning
II capability. He is an exceptional Senior Non-Commissioned
Officer and maintenance practitioner, who demonstrates superior
judgement, conspicuous dedication and superb technical expertise.”
A new picture has been added to our RE8 “Aircraft” page, showing the wreckage
created by the disastrous 1925 Melbourne fire that destroyed 3
Squadron’s record-breaking WW1 RE8, A4397, and also the German
Halberstadt that the Squadron captured in mid-air, plus several other
rare planes acquired by the War Memorial.
Also added to our RE8 page:
Links to WGCDR John BENNETT's comprehensive “ADF Serials”
articles on the RE8 Serials and Markings of 3AFC
WW1 Aerial Reconnaissance article.
(“Serials” table see page 72.
Reconnaissance article starts page 57. )
Other articles in John's extensive series are:
3AFC Foundation (Page 42);
1918 Summer Offensives (Page 29);
1918 Brisfits and the Hindenberg Line
(Page 20).
RE8 Presentation Aircraft (Page 42)
Our 'Aircraft' section now has a great new Hawker Hurricane Data Page, authored by
our member Paul McGUINESS. This comprehensive listing
discusses the 40 Hurricane aircraft used by 3SQN in the early months
of 1941; a "high-scoring" era in which the Squadron had the rare
privilege of operating better-performing aircraft than
those fielded by the Axis! Paul has listed all the key dates,
personalities, victories and losses, airfields and engagements, with
stirring eyewitness accounts of all 3SQN's major Hurricane battles,
plus some interesting photos.
Added a 'Lifetimes' entry for Lyall
Klaffer, a 3SQN Mustang pilot in Canberra post-war who
went on to a stellar RAAF career, creating several aviation "firsts"
and exhibiting great airmanship.
The 'Shot Down' section of our 'Stories' page has had a
thrilling new tale added: Nicky
BARR's own account of one of his adventurous escapes from
German captivity, in the depths of the Italian winter.
A 1942
"Desert Song" added to our Poems and Songs section - "There'll Always be a Squadron that's known as
Number Three!"
“Prim”
PRIMROSE was a 3SQN Intelligence Officer in the Middle East
in 1940/41, who had been an RAF biplane bomber pilot in WW1.
A biographical interview
with Prim has been added to our website Lifetimes section,
dealing mostly with his WW1 experiences and his later life in the
Australian Outback and the Pacific Islands.
A fantastic new WW2 diary has been added to our 'Stories'
section. Emotional
Journey: The 1942-45 Diary of 3SQN Fitter Corporal Colin
FAEHSE.
Colin was one of the notable personalities of the 3SQN
groundcrew in North Africa and Italy, often representing the group in
discussions with Senior Officers and being chosen for a RAAF WINGS magazine
interview describing 3SQN's amazing journey "From Alamein to the
Alps". Colin was also separated from his new bride and baby
boy for more than three years and his diary provides a rare insight
- explicitly revealing the pressures that most of the 3SQN men were
under, but did not mention publicly.
Our Association is very lucky to have knowledgeable
members who were "on the spot" when historical events occurred!
Our member Mac COTTRELL has pointed out that a
photo used in our Vance DRUMMOND tribute-page "Commanding Officer Down" (supposedly
Mirage A3-77 prior to its crash on 17 May 1967) was actually a
different aircraft on a date later in 1967.
Mac says: "Taken at RAAF Amberley during the
period 13 to 16 October 1967 when I was a member of No.10 Mirage
Air Defence Conversion Course. I am front-row, second from
right."
Vance's page has now been updated with a colour picture
of the "Lizard" camouflage scheme used on 2OCU Ground-Attack
Mirages at the time.
[And also on later 3SQN Mirages, once the replacement C.O., Jake
NEWHAM, started to take delivery of new-production aircraft. At the time when Vance was killed, there
was essentially no existing 3SQN equipment or personnel establishment
- other than a thin manila folder! All of the prospective
aircrew and groundcrew were in training with other units.]
We’re sorry to report that our dear friend Arthur
PARDEY has died, aged 96.
Arthur was our last-surviving 3SQN Pilot to see combat in
World War II.
In addition to his interesting flying experiences, Arthur
forged a great career as a self-made businessman. His
fascinating biography
is now in our 'Lifetimes' section.
“Comedy
of Errors” - An amusing 1950 RAAF crash story by Stan CURRAN
[NB. Non-fatal – except to the reputation of the Pilot…] has
been added to Stan’s
tribute web-page.
2021 was the RAAF's Centennial Year. We
celebrated with a number of spectacular functions, including an excellent
address by AVM Joe IERVASI, Air Commander Australia,
summarising the highs and lows of the RAAF's century.
Tim ALSOP
and Darren CLARE show off their “lockdown
art-project”, celebrating the 100th Birthday
of our W.A. President and WW2
veteran member Felix
SAINSBURY on 14 May 2020.
[See also other
Photos from the RAAF Official set.]
The new “Australians at War Film Archive” with its
extensive transcripts, videos and photos of many WW2 veterans, is on our
'Links' page.
Our Stories page
now includes a wonderful account of the unearthing of fragments of shot-down 3SQN
Mustangs from 1945 by a Slovenian aviation-archaeologist, "Miha"
MIHEV.
Three new 'Lifetime'
essays: Former 3SQN 1966 Commanding Officer Keith MARTIN;
Bruce
GRAYSON - whose spectacular RAAF career included
commanding 3SQN Mirages in Malaysia in the late 1970s;
and a historical tribute to Harry
COBBY, top WW1 fighter ace, CO3 1931-32, and the recipient
of the George Medal in WW2 for Bravery.
Another great article by Steve
MACKENZIE has been added to our 'Aircraft' page, showing
rare photos and original drawings of 3SQN’s
Hawker Hurricanes.
(The Squadron racked-up big victory totals on this mount, during
the first four months of 1941.)
Photos from the 3SQN
Association Visit to Williamtown on the 25th of October 2019
have been posted to our "Past Events" page.
A fantastic new
magazine photo-spread has been added to our "Operation Thoroughfare"
February 2019 Event page.
A heart-warming Air Corps tale from
the End of WW1:
"Dog of
War" - the true story of Rin-Tin-Tin.
A dramatic new 1944 combat story told from the German
side: "Sunk
by 3 Squadron".
This page also includes a letter from Padre McKay describing
conditions at Cutella base, the originating point of this
raid.
Added to our 'Images'
page - our Member Des SHEEHAN has made a fantastic
discovery in an old storage box at home. A “Museum Quality”
autograph
book, in excellent condition, that had been kept by his
father, 3AFC RE8 pilot Malcolm SHEEHAN.
New photos have been added to Brian Weston's story "Mirage Metamorphosis".
Newcastle
-
Monday 10th December, 2018
- A MOMENT IN
HISTORY.
A35-009
taking off from Luke Air Force Base, Arizona.
An illustrated poem added about WW2
Prisoners of War: "Northward
to Thai."
Two new photo-essays:
Centennial
of REMEMBRANCE DAY, added
to our 'Past Events' page.
And “Gardens of Memory”,
showing a fascinating selection of 3AFC graves from WW1, in their (now)
beautiful settings - both in England and on the Western Front.
Sadly, another two of our few remaining WW2 veterans
have passed away:
A new 'Lifetimes' entry has been created for Instrument Fitter
Donny Nicholls;
and we have added new illustrations to the fascinating interview with
Engine Fitter Slim
Moore MiD.
Further tributes harking back to the Sabre era:
Some excellent "Sabre Aerobatic Team" photos are featured in our
'Lifetime' tribute to former 3SQN Malaya pilot Geoff Jenkins.
AVM Fred
Barnes - who led 3 Squadron into the 'Jet Age' in
1956 - died on Saturday 4th August 2018. He was a significant
figure in 3SQN Post-War History,
A major new World War One feature - "The Battle of Hamel".
And some "off-duty" fun back at the aerodrome:
Decoding "The
Side Slipper" - has insights into a 3AFC
"trench-mag" from 1918.
A major article featuring 3SQN's new F35s appeared in
several Sunday papers across Australia on 22 July 2018.
“Our
Aussie Top Guns: F-35 Flight to the Future”, has
several outstanding photographs of the men and women of the Squadron.
(The work of photographer
Nathan EDWARDS.)
We’ve added an
excellent, and darkly humorous, story written by Bruce ‘Poodle’
Wood [3 Squadron’s “Last Mirage C.O.”]:
“Mirage
Missile Misfire”.
The biography of Merv
Beck (a 3SQN WW2 Armourer who became a famous Police
Inspector and corruption-fighter) is now on our 'Lifetimes' page.
Pete Scully has
submitted a wonderful interview that he personally recorded with Padre Bob DAVIES.
(One of the “3 Padres” in the
Mediterranean in WW2.)
100 years on, about the only topic that will
reliably produce disagreement between Australians and Canadians is:
"Who
shot down the Red Baron?"
Well, 3 Squadron Association's Historian Emeritus, Neil
Smith, has now produced a new summary of his father's comments on
the case.
- And James "Lee" Smith DFC was worth listening to, since he
was the man who led the 3AFC party into "No Man's Land" on the
Western Front to recover the Baron's aeroplane and body.
Thanks to some super
satellite-reconnaissance and on-the-ground foot-slogging by our
Tasmanian-based friend Graeme Kenderdine, the 1939 Illawarra bushland memorial
to No.3 Squadron's first WW2 casualty,
Pilot Officer Jack Ohlmeyer, has been revealed for all to see!
The first F-35 with 3 Squadron
markings arrived at the Squadron's base in Phoenix, Arizona in
December 2017...
Jake NEWHAM’S comment
on the changeover to 3SQN’s F-35s: “The change has arrived
unexpectedly. In a way, it’s sad to quit the established
situation.
- Funny reaction, as this has happened thrice in my service
lifetime!”
Pete SCULLY’s take on
the Squadron's new plane:
“Exciting stuff! - I wish I was starting again!”
A new
'Event' photo-essay: 3
Squadron's “Named in Battle” Day:
Several 3SQN Assn. members enjoyed an excellent function on January 18,
2018, at Hunters Hill (Sydney),
commemorating 100 years exactly since the number “3” was
first officially used by our Squadron.
A fresh WW1 story from April 1918: "Convoy to the Somme",
by Air Mechanic Harold Edwards.
Stan CURRAN’s story
“Recruiting Hi-Jinks,
1948” hilariously recounts some rather ill-advised low-flying,
that is unlikely to EVER be repeated.
Also a testimonial for
Bob Gray,
a 3SQN General Hand from 1941 to '43, who died at the ripe old
age of 97 and left us some great stories
"Cricketing News" - Keith
Kildey was a great 1942 3SQN combat leader, a top shot, and
he also got some good reviews in the Sports pages.
Added to our 'Lifetimes' section: Ron Susans, a decorated
3SQN Kittyhawk pilot in WW2, had a most interesting RAAF career
post-war, retiring as an Air Vice Marshal.
Fantastic News! - 3SQN’s World
War II Narrative Combat Reports, 1940-45, have been digitised and
are displayed on the Australian National Archives
website.
These reports were submitted by 3SQN pilots after significant
air-combat incidents. They contain more detail than was typically
transferred to the Squadron Operations Record Book.
(Some of the forms are even in the original pilot’s handwriting!)
There are over 1,200 pages, but they are in date order, so it’s easy to
jump to the right era for any particular pilot.
1940 reports start from page 7; 1941 from p45; 1942 (p700); 1943
(p1200); 1944 (p1264); and 1945 (p1292).
Air combat incidents fell-off markedly in the latter years of the war,
as the skies were swept of Axis aircraft!
Added to our 'Poetry' page, the
moving song lyric "Brothers
in Arms".
And a classic WW1 poem: "An
Irish Airman Foresees his Death"
Several photos and a gripping news-report have been
added to our article on 3SQN carrying-out Australia's
first-ever free-fall Parachute Jumps, in 1926.
Some valedictions from old 3SQN Newsletters have been
added to our 'Lifetimes' page:
Jim Jelley,
Johnny Taylor,
Ken McRae,
Jack Hamilton, Al
Rawlinson and Ron
Caddy.
Added:
Tributes to our deceased members Jeff
Love and Mick
O'Mullane.
A dramatic new article by Jim Hall: "Mirage Collision"
- A definitive analysis of the loss of 3SQN's "last"
operational fatality to date, FLTLT Perry Kelly, in 1976.
"Fights
in the Air" - 1916. - An interesting letter from
the Western Front in France, written at the time that the Squadron was
being born (back in Australia at Point Cook).
"Good Morning... Syria!" - A
modern-day eyewitness account, from a RAAF F18 Pilot, of flying in 'Operation
OKRA' - 2016.
An interesting new description of a jolly party thrown
for the 3SQN boys in 1925 (after their "disaster-packed" flight from
Victoria) has been added to our article "Welcome
to Richmond".
VALE
In
the space of only a few sad weeks in mid-2016, our Association lost four
of our esteemed WW2 veterans. In our 'Lifetimes' section
we celebrate their long lives…
Val St.
Leon, Tom
Russell, Chas
Wannan and Dusty
Lane.
An amusing cartoon
has been added to our 1942 story of Bobby Gibbes' daring landing next
to an enemy-occupied desert airstrip to rescue Rex Bayly, who had been
shot down during a 3SQN attack.
