Current and former officers of HMAS Albatross were welcomed back to Nowra on Saturday evening, for an elegant soiree at the Fleet Air Arm Museum.

The evening was an opportune time for many to reminisce.

In its 75 years, the Navy aviation unit has become part of the fabric of Nowra - many in attendance remembered them delivering Santa Claus to a Christmas parade by helicopter, or airlifting rooves on to the town's water reservoirs.

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But for Commodore David Frost, the anniversary was a chance to celebrate the current generation of serving personnel in Nowra.

Commodore Frost said his team had been immensely involved in operations on the home front, and his goal was to reconnect with the community in the wake of pandemic lockdowns.

"It is important to recognise that while we may wear this uniform during working hours, many of our people go home and don another uniform after hours - fire services, community activities, sporting activities, or surf life saving," he said.

"Our partners are working in the community, our children go to schools in the community. We are connected completely with this community.

"The Fleet Air Arm's rich history is attributed to the character of the people who serve and continue to serve... so I'd like to acknowledge some of the junior service personnel.

"The junior officers and sailors have demonstrated most recently their commitment to service, having undertaken domestic tasking with COVID, aged care, and flood assist this year alone."

On July 3, 1947, the Commonwealth Defence Council decided it was in the interest of the nation to establish a Fleet Air Arm.

It was a decision many years in the making, following the growth of naval aviation during the the Second World War.

By August 1948, Nowra's already active military base HMAS Albatross was commissioned as the official home of the Fleet Air Arm.

HMAS Nirimba (Quakers Hill, NSW) was also commissioned as a sister base.

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After its commissioning, members of the Fleet Air Arm were notably deployed in Korea and Vietnam.

Personnel from Nowra's 817 Squadron were integrated with the US Army 135th Assault Helicopter Company in Vietnam from 1967 until 1971.

In the following decades the Fleet Air Arm has played a role in the Gulf region and Iraq, East Timor, Somalia, Bougainville and the Solomon Islands.

The Fleet Air Arm Museum was established in the early 1970s, when volunteers began collecting relics and obsolete aircraft.

Today, it is one of the largest museums in regional New South Wales.

As part of its 75^th anniversary celebrations, the Fleet Air Arm was set to throw open the gates at HMAS Albatross.

While the public open day was postponed due to poor weather, Commodore Frost and his Fleet Air Arm aim to hold the event later in the year.