The Second Battle of the Falklands

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OTD in 1982 the operation to liberate the Falklands from the Argentine junta moved into its decisive phase as the ground campaign began.

Six weeks after sailing from the UK, the task group began putting Royal Marines and soldiers ashore at San Carlos, a remote bay on East Falkland, with the ultimate goal of seizing the capital Stanley, 50 miles away.
Frigate HMS Ardent bore the brunt of enemy air attacks on May 21 1982. A succession of direct hits and near misses left the Type 21 a blazing, twisted mess, forcing CO Cdr Alan West – the future First Sea Lord – to abandon ship with the loss of 22 of his men.

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There's some corner of a foreign field that is for ever England.

Never were the words of Rupert Brooke more apt – though we must add Scotland, Wales and Ireland to his original verse – than in the Falklands, where islanders have named beaches, bays, harbours, islets and inlets after the 258 souls killed in the 1982 conflict.

Every British Serviceman killed in the liberation of the islands – 255 in all – plus three locals who lost their lives have been honoured by today’s inhabitants of the South Atlantic island chain, an honour connected with last year’s 40th anniversary of the war.

The result is the Falkland Islands Memorial Map, with 258 previously-unnamed stretches of coastline, beach or ridges among other geographic features, plus a string of roads around the Mount Pleasant complex, now bearing the names of all those listed on the Roll of Honour.

Continues at - https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-l ... en-of-1982

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Marine engineers from HMS Queen Elizabeth and Glasgow face tough physical challenges in the name of worthy causes this summer.

Provisional Leading Engineering Technicians Nicholas Deary and Paul Blissett are taking on the ‘Three Peaks Challenge’ – scaling the highest mountains in England, Scotland in Wales inside 24 hours – while Glasgow’s PO Colin Chalmers is taking on a 50km ‘ultra marathon’ around the southern Lake District.
See - https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-l ... me-charity

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HMS Hermes (R12) prepares to leave Portsmouth Dockyard for the Falkland Islands on April 5, 1982. HMS Invincible (R05) is already on her way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvKFAbKoCHY

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UK battles to reverse EU endorsement of ‘Islas Malvinas’ name

Buenos Aires celebrates ‘diplomatic triumph’ after summit with European leaders uses Argentine term for Falkland Islands
See - https://www.ft.com/content/68c0efff-31b ... 6f9e970733

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Hidden Harriers

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CHINOOKS

The RAF received its first 30 Chinooks in 1978. One of them – ZA718, Callsign Bravo November – became famous. Four Chinooks were aboard are aboard the Atlantic Conveyor sent to the Falklands in 1982. The others went down when the cargo ship was sunk, but Bravo November had the luck to be airborne and made an emergency landing on the Hermes. It was the only utility helicopter that British forces had at the time and worked exceptionally hard. Certainly harder than the Argentine chinooks. Designed to carry a maximum of 55 fully equipped troops it carried more than 80 at times. Bravo November retired to RAF Museum Cosford only last year.

[Extracted from a Sunday Times article regarding speculation over the latest order for more Chinooks.]

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Falkland Islands Gov

A service of remembrance was held today [Yesterday] in Falklands for M.V. Atlantic Conveyor which was hit by Exocet missiles.
We also remembered H.M.S Coventry which was sunk by Argentine A-4 Skyhawks.

We will remember them

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SS Atlantic Conveyor

Sailing for Ascension Island on 25 April 1982, Atlantic Conveyor carried a cargo of six Wessex helicopters from 848 Naval Air Squadron and five RAF Chinook HC.1s from No. 18 Squadron RAF. At Ascension, she picked up eight Fleet Air Arm Sea Harriers (809 Squadron) and six RAF Harrier GR.3 jump jets.
One Chinook of B flight No. 18 Squadron RAF left Atlantic Conveyor to support operations on Ascension.

With the aircraft stored she then set sail for the South Atlantic. On arrival off the Falklands in mid-May, all of the Harriers were off-loaded to the carriers; the GR.3s going to HMS Hermes while the Sea Harriers were divided amongst the existing squadrons on Hermes and HMS Invincible. With the additional aircraft on Hermes, a Lynx HAS.2 helicopter was flown and parked on Atlantic Conveyor on 20 May 1982.

Due to the presence of both fuel and ammunition that were stored below decks, the incendiary effect of the unburnt propellant from the missiles caused an uncontrollable fire. When the fire had burnt out, the ship was boarded but nothing was recovered. While under tow by the requisitioned tug Irishman, Atlantic Conveyor sank in the early morning of 28 May 1982. Six Westland Wessexes, three Boeing Chinooks, and a Westland Lynx were destroyed by fire; only one Chinook (ZA718 'Bravo November') and one Westland Wessex, were saved. The loss of these helicopters meant that British troops had to march on foot across the Falklands to recapture Stanley.