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The 3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment (3 PARA), is a battalion sized formation of the British Army's Parachute Regiment and is a subordinate unit within 16 Air Assault Brigade. Roled as an Airborne light infantry unit, the battalion is capable of a wide range of operational taskings.
The Parachute Regiment is the airborne infantry regiment of the British Army. The 1st Battalion is permanently under the command of the Director Special Forces in the Special Forces Support Group (SFSG).
On the 12th November 1942 the 3rd Battalion captured the German airfield at Bone in Tunisia, the first British Army battalion level parachute operation. They were relieved by 1st Army; thereafter the battalion fought as line infantry for the rest of the campaign.
3rd Battalion (3 Para) made the last-ever British full-battalion parachute drop in Suez in 1956. The following year, the Glider Pilot Regiment was disbanded, leaving the Parachute Regiment in a single-regiment corps. During these years the regiment served on Cyprus, in Bahrain and Aden.
During the parachute assault on the Primosole Bridge in Sicily on 13th July 1943 the 3rd Battalion drop was scattered alongside that of the 1st and 2nd Battalions. A two-day hard fought action developed at the bridge until they were relieved by the sea-landed Durham light Infantry.
Member of 3rd Parachute Battalion takes illegal immigrant back on board ship at Haifa docks, 1947.
A member of 3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment, leans against a mud wall in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, 2011. The Parachute Regiment's 2nd and 3rd Battalions both served as Principal Manoeuvre Units during Operation HERRICK XIII (November 2010-April 2011). 3 Para had previously seen action in Helmand in 2006 and 2008. ...
