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39 years

Old 2nd May 2021, 06:50
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"A finger fumble I think - KRT is a 1000 (K) lbs Retarded Tail (RT)

Actual weapon used was KFF - 1000 (K) lbs Free Fall (FF)"

Quite right! Blame old age.

Mog
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Old 2nd May 2021, 07:45
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That long ago😳

Originally Posted by Mogwi
39 years ago today, Hermes carried out the first UK carrier strike mission since Suez when 12 Sea Harriers of 800 NAS attacked Stanley and Goose Green airfields on East Fakland. Despite the extremely heavy AAA, small arms and missile defence around Stanley - and the 35mm AAA at Goose - only one aircraft was hit. A lot of damage was done at both airfields and several aircraft were destroyed on the ground.

In the afternoon, SHARs took out a Canberra, 2 X Mirage 3s and a Dagger. 'Twas a busy day and as Brian Hanrahan (BBC reporter) said, "I counted them all out and I counted them all back again".

I should add that Black Buck 1 had also attacked Stanley with 21 bombs from a Vulcan before our dawn raid and set a world record for the longest bombing mission. Quite a feat of aviation and planning but unfortunately the one KRT that hit the runway did not preclude its use. It did do wonders for the morale of the local Brits - though not so much for the Argentines!

Swing the lamp!

Mog
"I was frightened fartless" was the reply to one short interview if I recall. Great honesty.
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Old 2nd May 2021, 09:44
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"I was frightened fartless" was the reply to one short interview if I recall. Great honesty.
Was that not from an interview with a GR1 crew after the first night of Op Granby? I’m sure the sentiment was true for many participants in both conflicts though.
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Old 2nd May 2021, 11:52
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wrt Sam Drennan he was a serial “offender”. A true one off.

Seven years later, by then a major serving with the Northern Ireland Regiment AAC, Drennan was called out on December 16, 1989 to Croslieve Hill in south Armagh to evacuate a soldier who was seriously injured after falling on the rocky slope, where his unit was to relieve another patrol positioned at an observation post on Croslieve Hill.
The injured soldier, explained Drennan’s official award recommendation, “was badly concussed and unable to move”. It added: “There was a suspicion that his skull had been fractured.”

At the time it was snowing heavily, visibility was poor and there were gale force winds.

Because of these conditions, the crew of another army helicopter that had initially been called out to airlift the casualty was forced to abandon the attempt.

However, “due to the seriousness of the casualty’s condition, Major Drennan volunteered to attempt the casevac [casualty evacuation],” in his Lynx helicopter, revealed the award recommendation.

“Undeterred by the conditions, Major Drennan, with the greatest skill, determination and daring, edged his aircraft to the pick-up point, talking himself in by radioing to the troops on the ground,” it continued.

With the aid of his night vision goggles, Drennan managed to land the leading edge of the Lynx’s skids on the slope of the hill and the injured soldier was carried on board. Drennan safely landed back at his base and the soldier went on to make a full recovery.

For what his medal citation described as an “outstanding performance”, Major Drennan was awarded the prestigious Air Force Cross for his daring rescue a year later, in November 1990
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Old 2nd May 2021, 13:56
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It was a post-debrief interview with Brian Hanrahan on 1st May. The first thing my 6-year old son said to me on my return was, "Daddy, you said fart on the television!"

Nice to to know that he had missed me.

Mog
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Old 2nd May 2021, 14:04
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Found it!



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Old 2nd May 2021, 19:30
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Originally Posted by Douglas Bahada
wrt Sam Drennan he was a serial “offender”. A true one off.

Seven years later, by then a major serving with the Northern Ireland Regiment AAC, Drennan was called out on December 16, 1989 to Croslieve Hill in south Armagh to evacuate a soldier who was seriously injured after falling on the rocky slope, where his unit was to relieve another patrol positioned at an observation post on Croslieve Hill.
The injured soldier, explained Drennan’s official award recommendation, “was badly concussed and unable to move”. It added: “There was a suspicion that his skull had been fractured.”

At the time it was snowing heavily, visibility was poor and there were gale force winds.

Because of these conditions, the crew of another army helicopter that had initially been called out to airlift the casualty was forced to abandon the attempt.

However, “due to the seriousness of the casualty’s condition, Major Drennan volunteered to attempt the casevac [casualty evacuation],” in his Lynx helicopter, revealed the award recommendation.

“Undeterred by the conditions, Major Drennan, with the greatest skill, determination and daring, edged his aircraft to the pick-up point, talking himself in by radioing to the troops on the ground,” it continued.

With the aid of his night vision goggles, Drennan managed to land the leading edge of the Lynx’s skids on the slope of the hill and the injured soldier was carried on board. Drennan safely landed back at his base and the soldier went on to make a full recovery.

For what his medal citation described as an “outstanding performance”, Major Drennan was awarded the prestigious Air Force Cross for his daring rescue a year later, in November 1990
Wasn't aware of that. Either that or I've forgotten about it.
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Old 3rd May 2021, 00:00
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Originally Posted by taxydual
Any link to Mogwi's book, please.
Amazon. Amazon.

Well worth reading.
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Old 3rd May 2021, 03:21
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Ordered. Many Thanks.
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Old 3rd May 2021, 04:21
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Mogwi

You, Sir, are as cool as a cucumber. I’ve shown more excitability after a BFM training sortie. During that interview you would think you were debriefing a trip to the corner shop.

I’d like to think I would have been just as cool, calm and collected. However, I feel the reality is that I’d have been jabbering like a monkey and making no sense whatsoever.

BV
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Old 3rd May 2021, 11:54
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Sam Drennan sad thread.
https://www.pprune.org/military-avia...dfc-afc-2.html
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Old 3rd May 2021, 15:59
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We are now longer after Op Corporate than we were at the time from WW2. Where did the years go?

I echo MPN11's remarks.
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Old 4th May 2021, 12:40
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May 4th saw our first losses. One of our SSNs had sunk the General Belgrano on the 2nd and we were under no illusions that they would want our blood. Sure enough, 2 Exocet missiles were launched at us on the 4th, one hitting and crippling HMS Sheffield, which I witnessed from my cockpit on Hermes' deck.

A few hours later, Nick Taylor was shot down during a second attack on Goose Green. His SHAR was hit behind the cockpit by 35mm and he crashed onto the airfield, where he is buried to this day. We surmised that he had flown through his leader's chaff cloud and picked up the radar lock meant for the first aircraft. nick's aircraft was the Sea Eagle trials jet and was not fitted with a radar warner.

He would not be the last.

Mog
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Old 10th May 2021, 09:22
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The annual service at Nick's grave on the airfield at Goose Green. 4th May 2021. They still remember.

Mog
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Old 11th May 2021, 15:35
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What a great tribute to LT Taylor, and a great photo. Thanks for posting.
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Old 12th May 2021, 04:23
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12th of May 1982.
Two British ships were attacked by the Argentine Air Force. Two flights of four MD A-4Bs attacked the HMS Brilliant and HMS Glasgow.
Most of the raiders of the first flight were shot down by the Sea Wolf missiles. Three A-4Bs were shot down,
First Lieutenant Nivoli, First Lieutenant Bustos, and Lieutenant Ibarlucea were killed by the Sea Wolfs. Only one A-4B survived, Alferez Vazquez could return to his base after launching his bomb without success.

The second flight was initially luckier, First Lieutenant Arraras could hit the HMS Glasgow with one 1000 lbs bomb, but it didn´t explode.
While overflying a Not Flying Zone returning to the continent, the First Lieutenant Fausto Gavazzi was shot down by friendly fire over Goose Green.

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Old 13th May 2021, 01:03
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/stories-57075711
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Old 23rd May 2021, 15:25
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The landings were successfully carried out in San Carlos Water on the 21st, with air raids from mid-morning until dusk. This left HMS Ardent sunk and three other escorts damaged but we managed to get some 3500 troops ashore. 2 of our AAC Gazelles were shot down by enemy forces and a GR3 was downed by a Blowpipe missile at Port Howard.

The GR3s of No1(F) destroyed a Puma and Chinook near Mount Kent and SHARs took out 9 attacking aircraft, with ships and ground troops accounting for 8 more. This was by far the fiercest fighting we had seen to date.

On the 23rd my winger and I bounced four helicopters over West Falkland and I knocked a Puma down with wingtip vortices at very (20') low level before gunning a A109A gunship and then firing my last couple of rounds at a further Puma, knocking off its tail pylon. This dramatically reduced the helo support available to the Argentine forces. Luckily all the crew survived to tell the story, although I did believe for several days that the GR3 pilot who had been shot down on the 21st had been in one of the Pumas.

Busy days!

Mog
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Old 23rd May 2021, 17:03
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Yes, you are right....it was a very busy day for everyone.

Cheers.




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Old 23rd May 2021, 17:20
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Had our Pumas been deployed to the FI, as was originally planned, things might have been rather chaotic with regard to which side they actually belonged to.
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