Country of origin:

France

Description:

(IIIO [F]) Single-seat all-weather interceptor;
(IIIO [A]) Single-seat fighter and close-support aircraft;
(IIID) Two-seat fighter trainer

Power Plant:

One 9,436 lbst (13,624 lbst with afterburning) SNECMA Atar 09C turbojet

Specifications:

Armament:

Two 30 mm DEFA 5-52 cannon; 907 kg (2,000 lb) stores on centre-line; two 454 kg  (1,000 lb) stores under wings; in the intercept role primary armament Matra R-530 air-to-air missile

History:

The Mirage III emanated from Dassault’s Mirage I, which was powered by two 1,640 lbst Armstrong Siddeley Viper turbojets with provision for a rocket motor in the rear fuselage. This aircraft was flown for the first time on 25 June 1955. Development led to the Mirage III, a larger, heavier aircraft with two 3,300 lbst Dassault R-70 engines. Eventually the single SNECMA Atar 101 G 1 turbojet of 9,900 lbst with reheat and a rocket motor were installed, and the prototype Mirage III-01 flew for the first time on 17 November 1956.

An order was then placed by the French Air Force for ten Mirage IIIAs, with the SNECMA Atar 09B engine of 13,225 lbst, with reheat, increased wing area, and other changes. The first pre-production aircraft was flown on 12 May 1958.

At this time the Australian Government was showing interest in the Mirage III as a replacement for the CAC-built Sabre in Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) service, so Dassault fitted a pre-production Mirage IIIA with a Rolls Royce Avon 67 engine rated at 16,000 lbst with reheat. This machine flew on 13 February 1961. In December 1960 the Australian Government chose the Mirage with the French Atar 09C engine.

The Mirage IIIO, the Australian variant, was basically similar to the Mirage IIIE, and was built for the RAAF by the Government Aircraft Factory (GAF) and the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation (CAC). The latter used the designation CA-29 for the type. CAC also manufactured the Atar engine under licence.

Two pattern aircraft (A3-1 and A3-2) were supplied by the French manufacturer, the first (A3-1) flying at Bordeaux on 14 March 1963, being handed over to the RAAF at Villaroche near Paris on 9 April, subsequently being flown to Australia in a Lockhed C-130 Hercules. The second aircraft (A3-2) remained in France until August 1965 for further testing. Two further aircraft were shipped to Australia as fully equipped major assemblies and completed at Avalon, the first of these (A3-3) being flown on 16 November 1963.

GAF built 98 single-seat aircraft at Avalon, VIC, the French content of the aircraft being reduced as GAF sub-contracted the wings, tail and engine to the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation. By the time A3-16 had been completed it was the first aircraft primarily built of Australian manufactured parts.

The initial order placed was for 30 aircraft (A3-1 to A3-30); a further order for 30 being announced in 1962, these becoming A3-31 to A3-60. Because of the success of the program, a further 40 were ordered in 1963 (A3-61 to A3-100).

Two variants of the single-seat variant were built: 48 IIIO [F] (serials A3-1 to A3-48) primarily for all-weather interception; and 52 Mirage IIIO [A] (A3-49 to A3-100) primarily as attack aircraft. Deliveries of single-seat variants concluded in 1968. In addition, ten Mirage IIIDs were ordered, these being similar to the French IIIB. These were two-seat trainer versions of the Mirage IIIE (A3-101 to A3-110) and were delivered between 1966 and 1968. A further six were ordered early in 1971 (A3-111 to A3-116).

The role of the three RAAF fighter squadrons equipped with the Mirage was divided between ground attack and air defence. In the ground attack role it could carry standard or laser guided 227 kg (500 lb) or 454 kg (1,000 lb) high explosive bombs. It was fitted with two DEFA twin 30 mm cannon for strafing. In the air defence role the Matra radar homing missile was the prime weapon for interception and was carried on the centre-line; and heat-seeking AIM-9 Sidewinders were carried under the wings.

To extend the range combinations of external tanks could be carried, varying from 500 litres (110 Imp gals) to 1,300 litres (286 Imp gals) and 1,700 litres (374 Imp gals). With long-range fuel tanks the range could be extended to 3,200 km (1,989 miles).

During service of the Mirage with the RAAF over a period of 17 years, about 38 aircraft were written off in accidents. For many years the Mirage operated effectively as the backbone of Australia’s air defence system.

The first two-seat Mirage IIID (A3-101) flew on 6 October 1966 and was accepted by the RAAF on 10 November that year, this model having the Cyrano II nose radar removed, a second cockpit installed and the avionics re-located to the nose. These aircraft were imported fuselages built in France and fitted with Australian CAC-built wings and vertical tail surfaces. One aircraft (A3-26) remained in France from 1965 to 1968 to test the trial installation of equipment for the IIIO [A] variant. Following this the remainder of the fleet of Mirage IIIO [F] aircraft were converted to IIIO [A] configuration.

A number of RAAF units operated the Mirage: No 3 Squadron, equipped in 1969 at Williamtown, moving to Butterworth in Malaysia in February 1969; No 75 Squadron, the first unit to receive the Mirage in early 1964, moving to Butterworth in May 1967; No 76 Squadron, also equipped at Williamtown, but, following reduction in Government spending on defence, being disbanded in August 1973; No 77 Squadron moving to Butterworth from Williamtown in August 1973; No 2 (Fighter) Operational Conversion Unit (OCU) based at Williamtown carrying out conversion training with some single and two-seat Mirages; and the Australian Research and Development Unit (ARDU) at Edinburgh, SA for some years operating both single and two-seat variants, these being used for development testing. In August 1984 the Mirages were equipped with the Matra R.550 Magic missile.

Two Squadrons at various stages were based at Butterworth in Malaysia as part of the Five Power Integrated Air Defence Scheme; and a detachment was established at Tengah, Singapore. In March 1984 it was announced the permanent basing of RAAF aircraft and personnel at Butterworth would cease when the last Mirages returned to Australia. During the period of detachment of the Australian units there the crews regularly pitted their skills against Northrop F-5E Tiger IIs, Macchi MB-339s, Douglas A-4 Skyhawks and Hawker Hunters during exercises.

A number of Mirage aerobatic teams were formed, including the ‘Deltas’ in 1971, the Miracles in 1976 and a three aircraft team of specially painted aircraft, red, white and blue, for air diplays during 1981, these all coming from No 77 Squadron. The last flight of a RAAF Mirage was on 8 February 1989 when A3-101 was flown from ARDU at Edinburgh to Woomera, SA for storage pending export. First Mirage retired from the RAAF was A3-59 on 13 December 1985, having logged 3,878.2 hours in 18 years of flying, being retired because it had achieved the highest amount of airframe fatigue.

With the re-equipment of RAAF fighter squadrons with the McDonnell Douglas FA-18 Hornet commencing in 1987, Mirages were withdrawn from service, No 3 Squadron being the first to re-form. After retirement the survivors were flown to South Australia and put into storage for a time until 50 were sold to the Government of Pakistan, some 48 being exported from Woomera and two from Point Cook, VIC to make up the 50. Of these aircraft some 38 were up-graded with new avionics to meet Pakistan Air Force requirements, the remainder being cannibalised for spares.

Following retirement a few have been saved for museums, and these include: A3-51, A3-84 and A3-10 at the RAAF Museum at Point Cook; A3-3 and A3-102 at Fighter World at RAAF Williamtown; A3-41 on display at the gate at RAAF Wagga Wagga, NSW; A3-42 at Wangaratta , VIC for a period but later taken to the HARS Museum at Albion Park, NSW; A3-45 at Moorabbin, VIC; A3-115 at RAAF Edinburgh, SA; A3-16 at Classic Jets Museum at Parafield, SA, this aircraft having suffered a wheels-up landing at Melbourne airport, VIC in October 1974; A3-36 at the Darwin Aviation Museum, NT; A3-59 at Butterworth, Malaysia; and at least one privately owned. One, which was on display at the Bankstown Aviation Museum, NSW, following the closure of that museum, has been acquired by the Benalla Aviation Museum, VIC.

Mirages lost in accidents have include: A3-4 at Avalon on 3 August 1972; A3-8 at East Sale, VIC on 17 February 1978; A3-14 at Williamtown on 16 March 1976; A3-18 at Butterworth on 1 April 1974; A3-28 at Queanbeyan, NSW on 29 July 1966; A3-29 and A3-30 which collided at Bluff Downs, QLD on 9 April 1984; A3-32 off Penang, Malaysia on 29 October 1981; A3-37 at Singapore on 18 March 1969; A3-40 at Williamtown on 2 May 1986; A3-41 at Nowra, NSW on 6 April 1967; A3-43 at Williamtown on 1 September 1967; A3-46 at Darwin on 3 April 1967; A3-47 at Williamtown on 7 August 1979; A3-50 at Bulahdelah, NSW on 2 February 1977; A3-52 at Gloucester, NSW on 25 September 1967; A3-58 at Williamtown on 2 May 1980; A3-61 at Williamtown on 24 June 1976; A3-63 destroyed by fire at Butterworth on 17 July 1972; A3-67 at Butterworth on 8 June 1976; A3-69 which collided with a Royal Singapore Air Forcde (RSAF) Douglas A-4 Skyhawk on 30 March 1983; A3-70 at Williamtown on 30 October 1968; A3-74 near Darwin on 27 April 1972; A3-75 at East Sale on 18 February 1980; A3-76 near Adelaide, SA on 3 May 1984; A3-77 near Newcastle, NSW on 11 May 1967; A3-79 at Gloucester on 3 April 1973; A3-80 near Williamtown on 9 September 1981; A3-82 at Jervis Bay, NSW on 2 August 1983; A3-85 near Butterworth on 4 May 1972; A3-89 near Darwin on 20 June 1985; A3-94 at Butterworth on 5 December 1977; A3-95 at Williamtown on 16 March 1987; and A3-98 at Jahore, Malaysia on 6 July 1972.