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| Following the Argentine occupation of the Falkland Islands, on 2nd April 1982, the United Kingdom swiftly despatched a task force to recover the islands. British helicopters played an important part in the ensuing conflict with their anti-submarine warfare (ASW) equipment and their ability to attack surface ships, while other helicopters could provide close support to land forces. Probably the most important role, played by the British helicopters, was the provision of ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore transport, for troops and their supplies. This included the evacuation of casualties. The Argentine forces also used helicopters extensively, some being fitted with rocket launchers or machine guns, but their operations, in the Falklands area, were limited to transport and liaison missions. | ||||
| On 3rd April a SA330L Puma and an Aerospatiale Alouette III were used to land Argentine troops at Grytviken on the British Dependency of South Georgia, administered from the Falkland Islands but 1300km to the south-east. A unit from the British garrison of 22 Royal Marines brought down the Puma and damaged the Alouette, with small-arms fire. The British Marines, eventually forced to surrender, were evacuated to an Argentine ship and were soon repatriated to the UK. | ||||
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Two weeks later, on 21st April, a force of British ships, including HMS Antrim and RFA Tidepool, joined HMS Endurance off South Georgia. An unwise decision to land SAS troops on the Fortuna Glacier, using two Westland Wessex HU.5s, XT464 and XT473, from RFA Tidepool, led by Antrim's Wessex HAS.3, XP142, was followed by a call, on the following day, for their premature evacuation by the three helicopters, in the face of treacherous weather. | |||
| Blizzard conditions during the evacuation caused both loaded Wessex HU.5s to crash on the glacier, fortunately without serious injuries. The Wessex 3 had to fly back to HMS Antrim, with its passengers, but it returned when the weather improved three hours later, with much of its dipping sonar equipment removed from the cabin to reduce weight and increase space. All seventeen of the remaining aircrew and SAS men were then rescued from the glacier. | ||||
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On 25th April the submarine Santa Fe, which had been ferrying Argentine marines and supplies onto South Georgia, was attacked by two Westland Wasps HAS.1, XS527 and XS539, from HMS Endurance. They were followed by Antrim Flight's Westland Wessex HAS.3, XP142, a Wasp HAS.1, XT429, from HMS Plymouth and two Westland Lynx HAS.2s, XZ725 and XZ729, from HMS Brilliant. Although they inflicted significant damage, using depth charges, torpedoes and AS.12 missiles, Santa Fe was able to land its crew at Grytviken's jetty, before being beached in the harbour. | |||
| Three hours later an assault on South Georgia itself was launched, using Antrim's Wessex HAS.3 and Brilliant's two Lynx HAS.2s, to land seventy-five troops on the shore opposite Grytviken. Meanwhile Antrim and Plymouth bombarded the area around the Argentine positions. A gunnery officer ferried in, by a Wasp HAS.1, to a mountain vantage point above the settlements, directed the barrage. It was late afternoon before the British troops started to approach the Argentine defences. At this point white flags began to appear and the garrison surrendered without loss of life on either side. | ||||
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The Task Force mounted constant
helicopter anti-submarine (ASW) and surface patrols, in all weather conditions,
from the time it left Ascension on 16th April. Westland Sea King HAS.5s
and Westland Lynx HAS.2s were used, equipped with advanced dipping sonar
equipment. Soon after midnight on 3rd May two Argentine patrol ships, operating inside the Total Exclusion Zone (TEZ) around the Falklands, were reported to have opened fire on a 826 Squadron Sea King HAS.5, ZA129, which was flying low, on ASW patrol duties. |
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| The Sea King called in 815 Squadron Lynx HAS.2s from HMS Coventry (XZ242) and HMS Glasgow (XZ247), each of which was armed with two new, unproven, Sea Skua missiles. The two Lynx, using their radar, released their missiles, causing one ship to disappear immediately and the other, 'Alferez Sobral', to have its bridge structure severely damaged. The captain and six seamen were killed. This episode marked the first use of sea-skimming missiles in the conflict. Later investigation indicated that there was probably only one ship, which, having sailed from Stanley to search for the crew of an Argentine Grupo 2 Canberra, shot down two days earlier, was attacked by both Lynx. |  |
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| Another dangerous task, carried out by Sea Kings, was to act as decoys, to deflect sea-skimming missiles away from surface ships. This tactic was sometimes combined with the dumping of chaff ('window') to provide an alternative radar target for missiles. | ||||
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| HMS Coventry
listed to port and sank twenty minutes after being hit by bombs from Argentine A-4 Skyhawks
on 25th May.
Her Lynx HAS.2 was still lashed to the deck, with a live Sea Skua
missile on its port pylon. Thanks to Steve Hale for the photograph. |
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It was not until
21st May that the British landings on East Falkland took place,
supported by eleven of 846 Naval Air Squadron's Sea King HC.4s and five of 845 Squadron's
Wessex HU.5s. The prime role of the larger helicopters was the
landing, and moving forward, of Rapier missile systems, fuel, artillery
and ammunition. Wasp and Lynx helicopters, from some of the frigates, patrolled the coastal inlets, near to San Carlos, looking for concealed Argentine vessels. A few days previously three Sea Kings had taken SAS men to nearby Pebble Island where they destroyed eleven enemy Pucara strike aircraft on the ground. Others had carried out raids in the Darwin and Goose Green areas. Short-term SAS observation posts were inserted, with help from Wessex HU.5s, on the mountains behind Stanley. On 21st May two Royal Marines Westland Gazelle AH.1s, XX402 and XX411,which were escorting 846 NAS supply Sea King HC.4s, were shot down, near Port San Carlos, by small arms fire from retreating Argentine troops, and a third, XX412, was badly damaged. From then on most shore-based light helicopters were confined to casualty evacuation and support roles, to minimise contact with the enemy. On 25th May, four
days after the 3rd Commando Brigade landings at San Carlos, Argentine A-4 Skyhawks bombed and sank the Type 42
destroyer, HMS Coventry, after a day of relentless air attacks. Fourteen
Sea Kings, from 846 and 826 Squadron on HMS Hermes, rescued more than 60 of the 283 survivors, flying them to nearby ships. Others
were rescued by small boats from HMS Broadsword. |
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| Fortunately one Chinook HC.1, ZA718, and one
845 Squadron Wessex HU.5, XT468, were
already
airborne, when 'Conveyor' was hit, but the remaining three Chinooks and all six of 848 Squadron's
Wessex
HU.5s were
reduced to burning wreckage. It had been planned that all four RAF Chinooks
would aid the advance of British troops, soon including 5 Infantry
Brigade, from San Carlos towards Stanley but, with only
ZA718 remaining, priority had to be given to heavy equipment and most of
the troops had to walk up to fifty miles before the hardest fighting began. An attempt to bring troops forward by sea ended in tragedy, on 8th June, with the bombing of 'Sir Galahad' and 'Sir Tristram', near Fitzroy. Heroic winchmen and pilots of four Sea Kings and one Wessex HU.5, flew into the dense, stifling, smoke around 'Sir Galahad', risking flames and exploding ammunition, to lift men from the deck and the sea. Others used their rotor downdraft to push inflatable liferafts away from the ship, which was surrounded by patches of burning oil. Many of 656 Squadron's Westland Scout AH.1s and Gazelle AH.1s flew casualties from the shore to the hospital ship 'Uganda' and to the field hospital at Ajax Bay. Fifty men died on the 'Sir Galahad' and three on 'Sir Tristram'. Thirty-nine of these were Welsh Guardsmen. Many more were wounded, almost all of them badly burned. |
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| On 11th June the British troops mounted a brigade sized night attack on Argentine positions in the mountains surrounding Stanley and. three days later, after more heavy fighting, the Argentine garrison surrendered. | ||||
