Third Fleet was originally formed during World War II on March 15, 1943 under the command of Admiral William F. “Bull” Halsey. He opened his headquarters ashore in Pearl Harbor, territory of Hawaii, on June 15, 1944. The fleet operated in and around the Solomon Islands, the Philippines, Formosa, Okinawa and the Ryukyu Islands. It also operated in Japanese waters launching attacks on Tokyo, the naval base at Kure and the island of Hokkaido.

Embarked aboard his flagship, USS Missouri (BB 63), Admiral Halsey led his fleet into Tokyo Bay on August 29, 1945. On September 2, surrender documents ending the war were signed on her decks. Third Fleet remained in Japanese waters until late September when its ships were directed to sail for the West Coast of the United States. On October 7, 1945 Third Fleet was designated a reserve fleet and decommissioned from active status.

On February 1, 1973, following a reorganization of the Pacific Fleet, the United States Third Fleet was recommissioned as an active fleet and assumed the duties of the former First Fleet and Pacific Anti-Submarine Warfare Force located at Ford Island, Hawaii. Third Fleet trains naval forces for overseas deployment and evaluates state-of-the-art technology for fleet use. Additionally, Third Fleet could deploy in the event of a major conflict. On November 26, 1986, Commander, Third Fleet shifted his flag from his headquarters ashore to resume status as an afloat commander for the first time since World War II, aboard USS Coronado (AGF 11). In August 1991, Third Fleet’s commander, his staff and the command ship, USS Coronado, shifted homeports to San Diego, California. In September, 2003, Commander, Third Fleet shifted his flag from the command ship USS Coronado (AGF 11) to headquarters ashore at Point Loma, San Diego, Calif.