In a historic occasion, Air Force’s No. 83 squadron reformed on January 1, 76 years after it was disbanded and has taken in the former Distributed Ground Station – Australia (DGS-AUS) unit.
No. 83 Squadron personnel will participate in a formation parade this coming Friday, February 26th, the 78th anniversary of the squadron’s original formation.
No. 83 squadron was originally formed on February 26, 1943, in Strathpine, Queensland.
The squadron was responsible for conducting home defence operations during World War II, flying P-39 Airacobra, Wirraways and Boomerang aircraft and was disbanded on September 18, 1945.
DGS-AUS was originally formed as a flight under No. 87 Squadron to process, exploit and disseminate intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.
DGS-AUS became an independent unit under Headquarters’ Information Warfare Directorate in January last year, and now is No. 83 Squadron.
Commanding Officer of No. 83 Squadron Wing Commander Andrew Miller said the squadron now start the rebuilding process.
“The term Distributed Ground System - Australia is a mission system descriptor. The unit required a designation in order to build its own history, customs and traditions,” he said.
“It was for this reason that No. 83 Squadron was reformed.
“No. 83 Squadron will employ the DGS-AUS weapon system, which is interoperable with coalition partners and has been developing since 2009.
"Similarly to being tasked with home defence in 1943, the reformed No. 83 Squadron will operate exclusively from RAAF Base Edinburgh in defence of Australia’s national interests.”
No. 83 Squadron’s original role was to provide protection and surveillance of sea lanes, protect military installations and to provide close tactical support to ground forces.
The reformed No. 83 Squadron will process, exploit and disseminate intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance for these same roles, and provide tailored analytical output for ADF operations.