| Unit Name: | Flag Officer, Third Flotilla |
| Dates: | 1979 – 1992 |
| Country: |  United Kingdom |
| Size: | Flotilla |
| Command Structure: | Commander-in-Chief Fleet |
| Garrison: | HMNB Portsmouth |
| Commander1: | Rear-Admiral Peter G.M. Herbert |
| Commander1 Label: | First |
| Commander2: | Vice-Admiral the Hon. Sir Nicholas J. Hill-Norton |
| Commander2 Label: | Last |
The Flag Officer, Third Flotilla was the senior Royal Navy appointment in command of the Third Flotilla from 1979 to 1992.
The Western Fleet and Far East Fleet were merged into the single Commander-in-Chief Fleet in 1971. He had three new seagoing subordinates: Flag Officer First Flotilla, Second Flotilla and Flag Officer, Carriers and Amphibious Ships (FOCAS) each commanded by a rear admiral.[1] In December 1979 the post of FOCAS was re-named Flag Officer, Third Flotilla (FOF3).[2]
From 1981-1992 the Flag Officer Third Flotilla commanded the aircraft carriers; amphibious Ships; the Fleet Training Ship; and destroyers not allocated to First or Second Flotillas.[3]
In April 1992, the Third Flotilla was abolished, and the remaining two flotilla commanders became Flag Officer, Surface Flotilla[4] - responsible for operational readiness and training and Commander United Kingdom Task Group (COMUKTG), who would command any deployed task group.
| Post: | Flag Officer, Third Flotilla (FOF3) |
| Insignia: | Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg |
| Insigniasize: | 150px |
| Insigniacaption: | Ensign of the Royal Navy |
| Department: | Navy Department, Ministry of Defence |
| Reports To: | Commander-in-Chief, Fleet |
| Appointer: | Prime Minister |
| Appointer Qualified: | Subject to formal approval by the Queen-in-Council |
| Termlength: | Not fixed (typically 1–4 years) |
| Inaugural: | Rear-Admiral Peter G.M. Herbert |
| Formation: | 1979-1992 |
Included:[5]
| Flotilla structure[6] | |
| Parent: | Commander-in-Chief Fleet |
| Subordinate: | Third Flotilla (1979-1980)Units
|