Airborne forces of Australia

Airborne forces raised by Australia have included a number of conventional and special forces units. During the Second World War the Australian Army formed the 1st Parachute Battalion; however, it did not see action. In the post-war period Australia's parachute capability was primarily maintained by special forces units. In the 1970s and 1980s a parachute infantry capability was revived, while a Parachute Battalion Group based on the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR) was established in 1983. However, following a reorganisation 3 RAR relinquished the parachute role in 2011, and this capability is now maintained by units of Special Operations Command.

History
Like the British Army, Australia did not have a parachute operations capability at the outbreak of the Second World War; however, the demonstration of the effectiveness of such forces by the Germans in the early stages of the conflict soon provided the impetus for their development. In November 1942 the Paratroop Training Unit (PTU) was formed, while approval was granted for the establishment of the 1st Parachute Battalion in August 1943. Later, an airborne artillery battery and engineer troop were also raised in support. Members of Z Special Unit were also trained in parachuting for covert operations against the Japanese. The PTU also developed techniques for the aerial delivery of stores. Despite this, the first Australian Army unit to conduct an operational parachute jump was the 2/4th Field Regiment, after a section of artillerymen with no parachute training jumped with their guns in support of US paratroopers during the Landing at Nadzab on 5 September 1943. Z Special Unit teams were parachuted into the interior of Borneo during 1945 as part of the preparations for the Australian-led Borneo Campaign. The 1st Parachute Battalion reached full strength by January 1944, but, although it was warned for action a number of times, including the possible rescue of prisoners of war held at Sandakan in 1945, it did not see any fighting. After the war it participated in the reoccupation of Singapore, before being disbanded in early 1946.



Initially, no requirement to maintain airborne forces in the immediate post-war period was foreseen. However, in October 1951 Airborne Platoon was formed as part of the Royal Australian Regiment, although it had no operational role and was primarily used to develop parachute and special forces techniques. Meanwhile, the Parachute Training Wing was formed at RAAF Williamtown under the control of the Royal Australian Air Force, and was responsible for all parachute training for Army, Navy and Air Force personnel, with the first course commencing in September 1951. Regardless, during this period Australia's parachute capability was primarily maintained by special forces units, consisting of two reserve Commando Companies raised in 1955 and the 1st Special Air Service Company formed in 1957 (later expanded to a regiment in 1964). Although during the Vietnam War the primary method of insertion used by the Special Air Service Regiment (SASR) was by helicopter, 3 Squadron made an operational parachute jump 5 km north west of Xuyen Moc on 15–16 December 1969.

Later, the Australian Army looked to revive a parachute infantry capability, with D Company, 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (6 RAR) forming a trial airborne company in 1974. Meanwhile, the Army also took over responsibility for parachute training at this time, with Airborne Platoon being absorbed into the Parachute Training School (PTS). Yet the capability was not maintained and it was not until 1980 that airborne company was re-raised by 6 RAR. Moves then began to develop a parachute capable battalion, with the 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (3 RAR) selected for this role in 1983. Based at Holsworthy Barracks in Sydney, 3 RAR subsequently formed the basis of the Parachute Battalion Group, which also included an engineer troop, signals detachment, artillery battery, and medical support, including a parachute surgical team. In September 1999, 3 RAR deployed to East Timor as part of INTERFET, although not in the parachute role. The battalion helped secure Dili during the early stages of the operation, before conducting patrols along the West Timor border and later secured the Oecussi Enclave. The bulk of the battalion returned to Australia in December 1999.



As part of the "Hardening and Networking the Army" initiative in 2006 it was announced that 3 RAR would be reorganised as a light infantry battalion. Meanwhile, the battalion or its sub-units subsequently served multiple operational tours in East Timor, the Solomon Islands, Iraq and Afghanistan. 3 RAR subsequently relinquished the parachute role in 2011. As a result of the decision to no longer maintain a conventional parachute capability, this role is now provided by the 2nd Commando Regiment instead. Other units from Special Operations Command, including the SASR and the reserve 1st Commando Regiment, also maintain a range of parachute capabilities. These forces are supported by the PTS located at Nowra since 1986, parachute riggers from the Royal Australian Army Ordnance Corps and an air dispatch squadron provided by the Royal Australian Corps of Transport. The Army Parachute Display Team, also known as the "The Red Berets", is based at PTS.