mb Alley’ while HMS Yarmouth comes alongside to rescue her crew; a cataclysmic explosion rocks HMS Antelope late on May 23; HMS Coventry heels over after being struck by three 1,000lb bombs off Pebble Island
ch in the midst of the threat of air amphibious assault force had been
et and submarine attack. “Frightened slowly making its way through the
ns faces everywhere – a total fear with South Atlantic.
ve which you learn to live. It amazes It was an eclectic force. The
ts me that people are not on the verge assault ships Fearless and Intrepid
ed of panic.” (venerable even in 1982), ferries,
to cruise liners, RFA tankers,
Intelligence chiefs had all but merchantmen, escorts.
as dismissed Argentine air power In the month since a rather
d’s before the war. Most enemy jets dispiriting meeting between
were obsolete or obsolescent. Sea senior staff officers, the plan to
me Dart and Seawolf missiles would re-take the Falklands had changed
eir knock the enemy out of the sky. dramatically. No more thoughts of
ss But in practice, it wasn’t working building an airstrip on the western
ed out like that – or at least not as island before striking east.
rs. much as Whitehall had hoped. In Stanley too and its environs had
me the first three weeks of war, Sea been ruled out – the islands’ capital
he Dart and Seawolf had accounted would probably be the heart of
ed for just one enemy aircraft apiece. Argentine resistance.
Part of the problem was the Planners’ eyes fell upon the
ed Falklands terrain which the sheltered waters of San Carlos,
dy attacking planes jinked through a rugged inlet in East Falkland
p’s and hugged to avoid British radar. shaped rather like the coast of
ng And part of the problem too Cornwall or Italy, nearly 90 miles
was that the Fuerza Aérea Argentina from Stanley.
often avoided battle, much to the San Carlos was relatively
st task force’s frustration. undefended; the hills which flanked
ld On May 12, HMS Brilliant and it would make it difficult, but not
ht Glasgow were sent in close to the impossible, to attack shipping by
Falklands ostensibly to bombard air.
d, air defences – but in reality to The plan was complex: the
his entice the enemy to come out to invasion force, led by HMS Fearless
ng play. and Intrepid, would head into San
ed The Argentinians obliged. Carlos to put Royal Marines and
es’ Glasgow’s Sea Dart played up, then Paras ashore around the inlet; a
her 4.5in gun, then did its 20mm force of frigates and destroyers
es Oerlikon. Seawolf was working would stand guard against enemy
eff fine, thankfully. Brilliant downed jets in Falkland Sound; overhead
● A brief respite during the dark for the air engineers of HMS Hermes, her hangar fi lled with Sea Harriers proud tradition to live up to; the
le two enemy Skyhawks, while a third Sea Harriers would provide cover,
and a Sea King previous two bearers of the name
rn plunged into the sea taking evasive operating from the carrier task
had gone down fighting gloriously,
action. force far from the landing site.
clanged the metallic voice, distorted in loading docks on to 100-ton but never six. They got one. He
one charging the German battlefleet
es’ But when the Argentinians “Will not be a picnic,” 3
by the Tannoy. “Be strong and bold landing craft, small, sluggish boats corkscrewed into Fanning Head.
in the dark at Jutland, the other
eir returned for a second go, the missile Commando Brigade’s commander
and merciful in battle.” which would carry them to the Maybe two more were discouraged,
trying to defend carrier HMS
m systems on both ships failed to Julian Thompson succinctly
shore. Ian Gardiner felt unease as but the remainder came on. The
Glorious from the Scharnhorst and
ad engage. Four Skyhawks got through, observed, “but I feel absolute
Royal Marine Capt Ian Gardiner 45 Commando slowly made their frigate briefly vanished behind
Gneisenau.
ell one unleashing a 1,000lb bomb confidence that we will succeed.”
So far F184 was upholding the
wandered around the mess decks way across San Carlos in three plumes of water as some of the
which smashed into the starboard
tradition. She had thwarted one
and passageways of stores ship RFA cramped boats. In the pre-dawn bombs spun into the water. But two
hull just above the waterline with The plan was ready. As the third
attack by Skyhawks just after lunch.
Stromness to check on his men. The half-light, the sight of these craft struck, one in the missile magazine,
on an almighty crash. With sangfroid week of May 1982 loomed, the
Deep in the frigate’s bowels Marine
green berets of 45 Commando had was unmistakeable. We’re sitting one in the aft boiler room. Again
he reminiscent of Beatty 70 years ships were ready. The men were
Engineer Artificer Ken Enticknap
been well fed. They had checked ducks, thought Gardiner. It only neither bomb exploded, but two
he before, someone in Glasgow’s ready. In fact, the men were itching
and his shipmates tried to follow
and re-checked their kit. They had needed a heavy machine-gun or a men were killed instantly as two
mn operations room muttered: What to go. Most had been cooped up
the battle. They had no idea if it
been fully briefed. They knew what well-aimed bomb to wipe out most Sea Cat missiles vaporised.
in the bloody hell was that? for more than a month now, and
was day or night. All they could do
was expected of them. of 45. But no enemy fire came. The
Mercifully for the destroyer, the frustration was beginning to seep
was lie down on the cold deck and
“Contentment was what I marines landed safely. It was broad daylight now, and
es bomb had simply passed, smashing in. It wasn’t fear of the enemy
count the rockets wooshing and the
identified,” recalled Gardiner. “The Ewen Southby-Tailyour guided aboard the cruise ship Canberra, 42
ay its way out of the port side, without especially. It was spending weeks
guns crackling and banging above
atmosphere was not unlike a rugger one of Fearless’ landing craft Commando’s Lt Frank Allen was
nd exploding. No-one was injured, on end crammed in a tin box; there
them. The men lost count after 30
changing room before a match – carrying men of 2 Para up San sorting out getting supplies ashore
although the sea sloshed through were only so many times you could
rounds.
each man going about his business Carlos. With five yards of beach to his already-landed comrades.
gh the holes as Glasgow rolled in the watch re-runs of Grease on video.
Twenty-two minutes in the fading
preparing himself.” left, the craft touched the bottom. Canberra was leading a charmed
on heavy sea. She would be patched “Few of us are sleeping well
light of an autumn day would seal
It was a fine autumnal night. The The hydraulic ramp lowered and life – so far; one bomb had narrowly
up, but her war was over. and this is nothing to do with the
Ardent’s fate.
South Atlantic was almost glassy. the airborne troops shuffled off. missed her. It all seemed so surreal
he In the corridors of power there impending landings but the living
Nearly five hours after it had
The stars flickered in their heavenly It was all an anti-climax. “This is on this fine autumn day.
was consternation. Two ships conditions,” Maj Ewen Southby-
last concentrated its efforts on the
arch. The sole noise came from supposed to be an invasion,” one “I keep remembering the lovely
frigate, the Fuerza Aérea Argentina
designed solely to shoot down Tailyour recorded in his diary the engines of more than a dozen trooper muttered. peaceful dawn we saw this morning
singled out Ardent. First a trio
in enemy aircraft had been wounded, aboard assault ship HMS Fearless. ships edging their way towards San There was no sign of the enemy. – the water was still, the clouds
of Daggers raced across Falkland
an one fatally. It was, one senior officer “This is not the way to get the Carlos in darkness, all artificial “We could not believe our luck,” were tinged rose with the coming
Sound, attacking the frigate from
ey worried, “profoundly disturbing physical and emotional rest people light extinguished. recalled Southby-Tailyour. “This sun, and skeins of geese trailed
the stern; two bombs hurtled into
and does not augur well for the need before carrying out an assault. Aboard Fearless, the commandos should have been the Argentinians’ across the sky,” he recorded in his
the flight deck and hangar. It felt,
an future”. Oh, for the proper ships to do this were tucking into their final meal last chance to forestall any British diary.
Ardent’s captain Cdr Alan West
es The ace up the sleeve was the job and not have to cobble the whole before battle: hamburgers, fish re-possession.” It was, the major Allen’s 42 comrades were in a
recalled, “as though a giant was
ny Sea Harrier. If ship missile systems bloody thing together each time...” cakes, bacon, eggs, tomatoes, a wrote, “a very satisfying moment.” fierce fire-fight, assaulting enemy
holding the ship by the stern and
on were behaving erratically, the jump Cobbled together or not, strange yet strangely delicious troops. Tracer ripped across the
whacking it down on the sea.” West
ed jets and their small band of pilots Operation Corporate in all its might combination. hillside, then suddenly ceased. A
watched as the Sea Cat missile
as were not. as it mustered off the Falklands was It was now gone 2am – 11pm on garbled radio message was picked
launcher was tossed in the air like
d. Four Argentine aircraft had a stirring sight, almost reminiscent May 20 back home. Men strained up: Enemy section now identified as
a toy, coming down to land on
ol; fallen victim to the Muerta Negra of Normandy four decades before. for their first glimpse of the islands I
T took the Argentinians until
mid-morning to react. The light
mist which had hung over San
Carlos at dawn had evaporated jumble of rocks. I say again, enemy...
the flight deck, crushing Ardent’s
ed – the Black Death – as the Harrier “As far as the eye can see there they were to liberate. There wasn’t to leave a bright autumn day. At Elsewhere, the Royals and
supply officer Lt Cdr Richard
quickly became known on the first are ships,” Southby-Tailyour much to see. “Black hills against Rio Grande airfield, nine Daggers Paras continued to forge their
Banfield.
day of battle. enthused as the amphibious and a slightly less black sky,” recalled lifted off. It took them an hour to bridgeheads on sacred British soil.
Below decks, Ken Enticknap
nd Since then Argentine pilots had carrier groups merged. “Tankers, Ewen Southby-Tailyour. Still, the reach Falkland Sound. But those who turned to look at
and his comrades were attempting
of avoided direct combat with 800 RFAs, landing ships, cruise liners, fireworks were impressive. The guns Deep in the heart of HMS the battle raging over San Carlos
to stem the water pouring into
he and 801 Naval Air Squadrons. cross-Channel ferries, assault ships, of the escorts pounded Fanning Antrim, the ‘woosh’ of chaff being and Falkland Sound were treated
his ship. It was “absolute chaos
ad It was the wrong move, Sharkey frigates, destroyers and aircraft Head, gateway to San Carlos. fired, the bangs and thuds of Sea to the greatest, most terrifying yet
– water, smoke and very limited
sh Ward, observed. What worried the carriers.” Cat missiles and the destroyer’s mesmeric show on earth.
light.” His party quickly got to work
ed bearded flier and his comrades was If Galtieri could only see this lot, Aboard his flagship, Sandy 4.5in gun, provided the morning’s They watched the Argentine jets
with pumps and pails. Despite the
attrition. The Harriers numbered he would give in, the green beret Woodward pondered the day to soundtrack. The ship’s battle was racing in low, the Sea Cat missiles
chaos, Enticknap was confident: in
as barely two dozen; the enemy could mused. The hour for compromise come. Unlike Nelson, Jellicoe, perhaps 15 minutes old when racing up towards them, Rapier
20 minutes he’d sort the mess out.
th muster more than 100 fighters and had passed, the major continued Beatty and Cunningham, he Antrim was rocked by “something missiles on the hillside joining in
Ardent struggled into the heart
bombers. in his diary. would not be directly in the line like a giant mule kick, followed the barrage. The marines and Paras
of Falkland Sound at 15 knots,
his The Fuerza Aérea Argentina “The world will see that Britain of fire. He placed his faith in the by some horrendous crashing and joined in with anything they could,
trailing acrid black smoke across the
es should have taken the fight to the really is a powerful nation in intent band of brothers commanding the exploding sounds,” recalled leading 5,000 men pouring fire on the
water. She was an unmistakeable,
d, enemy. “They would have lost a lot and determination.” destroyers and frigates in Falkland hand Rowdy Yates. Antrim had aerial foe. When the enemy hurtled
unmissable sight. The Argentinians
at of jets, but eventually the weight of Sound and the Sea Harrier pilots been struck by a 1,000lb bomb into the water or disintegrated in
pounced, this time fatally.
ar numbers would have told,” wrote above them. He knew Argentine which passed through the missile mid-air, the men cheered.
In the sights of his aged Skyhawk,
Ward. planes would attack in force “and magazine and lodged itself in the
Capitan de Corbeta (Lieutenant
it the Navy’s record at surviving aft toilets without exploding. No ship this fateful Friday was
Commander) Alberto Philippi
r’s concentrated air attack was not one perhaps more exposed than the
lined up Ardent’s stern as he roared
ay to inspire confidence.” On HMS Argonaut’s bridge, sailors frigate HMS Ardent, stationed on
over the water at 250ft. He pressed
er watched as half a dozen Skyhawks her own in Grantham Sound, a
his trigger and four 500lb bombs
my W
HILE the Sea Harriers I
T was a little after midnight
– 9pm the previous day, local
time – on Friday May 21
when the loudspeakers aboard
from Hermes and HMS Antrim crackled into life.
Invincible had been The destroyer, accompanied by
softening up the frigate HMS Ardent, was racing It was still dark as the soldiers of raced low over West Falkland bearing good ten miles south of the main
spun and twisted through the air,
defences of the Falklands and into Falkland Sound at 29 knots to 2 and 3 Para and commandos of down on their ship. The Argonauts landings in San Carlos.
then smashed into the frigate.
w,” attempting to draw the enemy safeguard the impending landings. 3 Commando Brigade clambered could engage one, perhaps even Ardent had a proud motto –
ry air force to battle, the sluggish “The eyes of the world are upon us,” down nets or stepped off ramps two jets attacking simultaneously, Through fire and water – and a Continued on page ivmarina
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