The last day of May was nearly disastrous for 1(F). A SHAR from Invincible, returning from CAP, reported swept-wind aircraft at Stanley airport. The proverbial hit the fan and the captain of Hermes demanded an immediate attack, without waiting for confirmation. Two GR3s were sent to attack with 2” rockets and we sent two SHARs to support them with loft 1000lbers. I was returning from CAP, passing only a couple of miles south, when the attack started and had a grandstand view.
The airburst bombs were very spectacular and I watched, mesmerised, as the tracer started to cone onto the approaching GR3s. It seemed impossible that they could survive the weight of fire but they kept on through and departed flat out, to the east. No fighters were seen and CO 1(F) was understandably livid. By the end of the day, we had just one GR3 serviceable, the rest suffering from various degrees of battle damage, ranging from small holes to an engine change.
Changing an engine at sea in peacetime is a tricky operation; first the aircraft has to be secured onto trestles, the wing gear retracted and the wing removed. The engine can then be changed but has very small tolerances and requires a steady ship for a long period of time - not possible in wartime. The whole process is then reversed. Unfortunately, the spare GR3 engine had gone down with Atlantic Conveyor and it was some time before another could be sourced.
On this day, we also tried to use our newly-arrived LGB kits on our 1000lb free fall bombs. With no ground-based designators, we tried lashing with a GR3 whilst a SHAR lofted a bomb in. The weapon did not home properly and we discovered later that the designator was incompatible with the guidance on the bomb. Merde!
Mog