Ad: This forum contains affiliate links to products on Amazon and eBay. More information in Terms and rules
40 years ago today. Casualties aside, the RN and much of the British military should be grateful for Argentina justifying their expansion (edit, I should have written "their current capabilities", rather than expansion, of which there's been little). Would the RN have the Queen Elizabeth class carriers had the Falklands not occurred? iDK.As above, on 2 April 1982, Argentine forces invaded the Falklands. General information here:
View attachment 663260Mirage
Looks like there is a series of events to mark the occasion.
Memorial events to mark Falklands 40th anniversary take shape
Veterans of the Falklands campaign have until the end of April to register their interest in one of this year’s key 40th anniversary events.www.royalnavy.mod.uk
Events planned to mark 40th anniversary of Falklands conflict
One ceremony in the UK will see veterans formally presented with the Freedom of the Falkland Islands by a link to the capital Stanley.www.forces.net
40 years ago today. Casualties aside, the RN and much of the British military should be grateful for Argentina justifying their expansion. Would the RN have the Queen Elizabeth class carriers had the Falklands not occurred? iDK.
One wonders what would have had happened were Galtieri and his regime waited until Thatcher's (Nott's) taken effect.As above, on 2 April 1982, Argentine forces invaded the Falklands. General information here:
View attachment 663260Mirage
Looks like there is a series of events to mark the occasion.
Memorial events to mark Falklands 40th anniversary take shape
Veterans of the Falklands campaign have until the end of April to register their interest in one of this year’s key 40th anniversary events.www.royalnavy.mod.uk
Events planned to mark 40th anniversary of Falklands conflict
One ceremony in the UK will see veterans formally presented with the Freedom of the Falkland Islands by a link to the capital Stanley.www.forces.net
It is ironic that for her reputation as an iron lady Thatcher intended on ripping HM's armed forces to shreds. And she still did, reducing frigates from 45 to 33 by the time she exited as PM in 1990, beginning an avalanche of naval cuts by her successors.One wonders what would have had happened were Galtieri and his regime waited until Thatcher's (Nott's) taken effect.
I'm really not convinced that your accusation that Thatcher "intended on ripping HM's armed forces to shreds" is accurate. The planned pain in the Nott 1981 Defence Review would have hit the RN hard but the rest of the services would have escaped lightly. Without trying to defend the 1981 Nott review it is worthwhile remembering the financial state of the UK in 1979 and then looking behind the ship numbers and looking at what ships were actually in the fleet in 1980.It is ironic that for her reputation as an iron lady Thatcher intended on ripping HM's armed forces to shreds. And she still did, reducing frigates from 45 to 33 by the time she exited as PM in 1990, beginning an avalanche of naval cuts by her successors.
View attachment 663490
Would the RN have the Queen Elizabeth class carriers had the Falklands not occurred? iDK.
One wonders what would have had happened were Galtieri and his regime waited until Thatcher's (Nott's) taken effect.
In Jan 1982 there were still 6 squadrons of Vulcans in service all well past their sell by date. By the end of the year that had reduced to just one flying a handful of tanker versions produced to boost the RAF Victor tanker fleet as a result of the Falklands. The Black Buck sorties to the Falklands really were their swan song.
A fair point. The UK's financial shape in 2022 is vastly better than 1979, but the fleet, especially the surface force has never been smaller. What's their excuse now?I'm really not convinced that your accusation that Thatcher "intended on ripping HM's armed forces to shreds" is accurate. The planned pain in the Nott 1981 Defence Review would have hit the RN hard but the rest of the services would have escaped lightly. Without trying to defend the 1981 Nott review it is worthwhile remembering the financial state of the UK in 1979 and then looking behind the ship numbers and looking at what ships were actually in the fleet in 1980.
Very much so. The aircraft selected for the Black Buck raids were among the last operating handful and none of the crews were current on in-flight refuelling (IFR) at the time. During the Black Buck raids they had to carry a sixth crewmember to visually aid in IFR.
This is a formation flight of Vulcans taken in 1984 shortly before their final retirement that took them around their former bases in the UK. In the foreground is XM597, which was the Vulcan that broke its refuelling probe on its Black Buck raid against BAM Malvinas (Stanley Airport) air defence radars and landed at Rio de Janeiro.
View attachment 663604Vulcans
A fair point. The UK's financial shape in 2022 is vastly better than 1979, but the fleet, especially the surface force has never been smaller. What's their excuse now?
Technology?A fair point. The UK's financial shape in 2022 is vastly better than 1979, but the fleet, especially the surface force has never been smaller. What's their excuse now?
IDK, the focus seems to be on the Type 32 frigates, intentionally designed to be low cost and low capability, akin to modern day Type 21s.Technology?