Service with distinction

No 75 Squadron received its Mirages during 1966/67 and was deployed to RAAF Butterworth in Operation Fast Caravan when 23 Mirage IIIOs left Williamtown on May 15 1967, replacing No 3 Squadron’s Sabres. The route flown was Williamtown-Townsville-Darwin-Djuanda-Butterworth. The formation included three aircraft as reserves, in excess of the actual number destined for Butterworth, flown by 2 OCU pilots. The operation was conducted as a complete joint force under the command of the CO No 75 Squadron which saw the Mirages accompanied and assisted by three C-130s from No 37 Squadron Richmond, two Canberras from No 2 Squadron Amberley and two Neptunes from No 10 Squadron Townsville. An example of support was information relayed by Canberras, flying ahead of the Mirages, advising details of estimated winds and ground speeds.

A second Mirage deployment to RAAF Butterworth was made by No 3 Squadron which departed from Williamtown on February 14 1969 with the arrival of Mirages A3-81 to A3-100 inclusive, plus dual seat A3-107 flying the same route. The total force of 40 Mirage combat aircraft contributed to Australia’s defence obligations and remained in the region until their withdrawal in May 1988. Initially the two squadrons specialised in different roles: the silver-painted Mirage IIIO(F) aircraft of No 75 Squadron with Cyrano IIA air intercept radar concentrated on all-weather air defence while No 3 Squadron’s camouflaged IIIO(A), with ground-mapping radar doppler and radar altimeters for all-weather, low-level penetration, focused on strike/ground attack tasks. Late in 1969 No 75 Squadron re-equipped with the Mirage IIIO(A) with both squadrons converting to multirole duties. In addition, Mirages were periodically deployed from Butterworth or Darwin to Singapore, initially at Tengah and later Paya Lebar when Changi became the new international airport.

The longest flight for a single-engined jet in RAAF history was conducted on January 26 1966 and involved four RAAF Mirage IIIOs from No 75 Squadron, each equipped with two 374 gallon ferry tanks, supported by a Hercules and Neptune. They covered the 1,410 miles from Williamtown to Auckland in two hours and nine minutes, and later participated in an air pageant to commemorate the official opening of Auckland’s new international airport on January 29.

Mirage deliveries continued joining No 76, 77 and 79 squadrons. The last production aircraft, Mirage IIIO(A) A3-100, was delivered from Avalon to Williamtown to No 3 Squadron on January 22 1969. Delivery of the first IIID, A3-101, was made to 2 OCU on November 11 1966. Mirages remained in RAAF service until replaced by McDonnell Douglas F/A-18A Hornets from August 29 1986, gradually joining No 3, 75 and 77 Squadrons, while No 79 Squadron was disbanded on June 30 1988. The last three Mirages were operated by ARDU with the final RAAF Mirage flight made by A3-101 on February 8 1989 from Edinburgh to Woomera.

During their RAAF career, 47 Mirages were lost due to a variety of factors, with the tragic loss of 14 aircrew. Of the losses, 25 involved ejections. There were some eventful episodes involving pilot and aircraft survival. The first Mirage, A3-1 was lost on December 7 1964 flown by RAF exchange pilot SQNLDR Tony Svensson during engine surge trials. When a spin developed into a uncontrollable vertical dive, he made a supersonic ejection at 750kt suffering serious multiple injuries from wind blast. On May 30 1966, Mirage A3-29, flown by FLTLT Garry Cooper, suffered a flame-out at 1,500ft after a bird ingestion into the intake. The speed of 380kts (704km/h) enabled the pilot to zoom climb to 3,800ft and land successfully on an abandoned wartime airstrip at Tomago without injury in a flight time of 1m 30sec after the power loss. The Mirage was towed back to Williamtown via the Pacific Highway and returned to service.

Surviving RAAF Mirages had a new lease of life serving with the Pakistan Air Force. After withdrawal from RAAF service, 48 aircraft were flown to Woomera for storage pending a decision on their future. After being offered for sale for $100 million, a contract was signed on April 15 1990 and the eventual amount received was believed to be somewhat less. Aircraft were transferred by road to Whyalla for shipment. Included in the transaction were the 48 ex-Woomera examples (40 single seat IIIOs and eight IIIDs), two complete IIIO aircraft from Point Cook (shipped from Geelong) and five incomplete aircraft stored at Darwin, Dubbo and Orchard Hills. The flyable examples comprised 42 single-seat aircraft and eight dual trainers. Included was a large spares supply and ground handling equipment.

The Mirages fulfilled Australia’s air defence needs and SEATO and ANZUK deployments with distinction. Fortunately, several Mirages were donated by the Government for display at locations around Australia to enable future generations to inspect this important part of Australia’s military aviation heritage.

‘Fortunately, several Mirages were donated for display at locations around Australia’