3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment

Third Battalion, Parachute Regiment
Cap badge of the Parachute Regiment
Active	1941–1948 1948–Present
Country	United Kingdom
Branch	British Army
Type	Airborne infantry
Role	Air assault infantry
Size	Battalion
Part of	16 Air Assault Brigade
Garrison/HQ	Colchester Garrison
Motto(s)	Utrinque Paratus (Latin for "Ready for Anything")
Commanders
Notable commanders	Gerald Lathbury Richard Lonsdale
Insignia
Identification symbol

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. Based at Merville Barracks, Colchester Garrison, their barracks in England, personnel regularly deploy outside of the United Kingdom on operations and training.

All personnel will have completed the Pre Parachute Selection (P Company) course at Depot PARA at Catterick, North Yorkshire (previously Aldershot, Hampshire), entitling them to wear the maroon beret.

A unique part of the 3rd Battalion is the inclusion of the Guards Parachute Platoon, which is incorporated into B Company and also known as 6 (Guards) Platoon. The Guards Parachute Platoon is made up of volunteers who have passed P Company from the five Regiments of Foot Guards and Infantry qualified members of the Household Cavalry; they can be distinguished from other paratroopers by a "blue red blue" patch sewn to their beret beneath the Parachute Regiment cap badge.

Impressed by the success of German airborne operations during the Battle of France, the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill directed the War Office to investigate the possibility of creating a corps of 5,000 parachute troops. On 22 June 1940, No. 2 Commando was redeployed to parachute duties and on 21 November re-designated the 11th Special Air Service Battalion, with both a parachute and glider wing, the men of which took part in the first British airborne operation, Operation Colossus, on 10 February 1941. The success of the raid prompted the War Office to expand the airborne forces, setting up the Airborne Forces Depot and Battle School in Derbyshire in April 1942, and creating the Parachute Regiment as well as converting a number of infantry battalions into airborne battalions in August 1942.