On 28 April 1942, "Saury" cleared Fremantle for her third war patrol, but, three days later, a crack in the after trim tank caused her to return to Australia. On 7 May, she again departed Fremantle and headed north. By 14 May, she was off Timor; and, by 16 May, she was in the Flores Sea, en route to the Banda Sea and the eastern Sulawesi (Celebes) coast. On 18 May, off Wowoni, she fired three torpedoes at an enemy cargo-passenger ship without effect. She remained in the area for two days to intercept enemy traffic to Kendari; then moved north to hunt in Greyhound Strait and the Molucca Passage. On 23 and 24 May, she was off Kema, whence she rounded North Cape to patrol off Manado on the tip of northern Sulawesi.