An F/A-18A/B Hornet aircraft from Number 75 Squadron will conduct a flypast and a handling display over the Tindal RAAF Base this afternoon.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
After a busy week of Anzac Day flypasts, this one is just for them.
The squadron will commemorate the 75th anniversary of its formation.
The display will occur over the base environs at 5.45pm.
Commanding officer Wing Commander Michael Grant said in celebration of this important occasion, an F/A-18A/B Hornet aircraft will conduct a flypast and handling display over its home base at Tindal.
“The display will be followed by a dinner function with invited guests and squadron members,’’ WGCDR Grant said.
WGCDR Grant outlined the squadron’s history from its formation in Queensland in March 1942, 75 Squadron became one of the RAAF's most famous units and was equipped with American-built Kittyhawk fighters.
“After playing its part in the first defeat of Japanese ground forces in the Pacific War, 75 Squadron, operating from a succession of bases, continued to attack Japanese garrisons for the duration of the war,” he said.
Key moments in the squadron’s history include: -
The Squadron's first permanent deployment after the war saw personnel operating Royal Air Force Vampire jet fighters in defence of the Mediterranean island of Malta.
After the Squadron's return to Australia in 1955, the Vampires were soon replaced by the highly manoeuvrable Sabre. This aircraft was in turn replaced by the supersonic Mirage in August 1965.
In 1967, 75 Squadron deployed to Malaysia and after sixteen years in Butterworth, Malaysia, returned to Australia, based at Darwin to await conversion to the F/A-18 Hornet and eventual relocation to RAAF Base Tindal in October 1988.
WGCDR Grant said 75 SQN have deployed aircraft and personnel to recent military operations as part of the international coalition against terrorism in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Indian Ocean.
“Today, 75 Squadron is one of the largest F/A-18 units in the air force.
“The squadron's remote location requires self-sufficiency, including large numbers of maintenance crews to maintain operational readiness,” WGCDR Grant said.