More nonsense from Nigel - who has written a new book!
 

https://hushkit.net/2020/06/23/myths...#comment-54258Snippets:

Q: If you could have changed one thing about British air operations in the Falklands what would it have been?

No-one claims that the RAF won the Falklands Air War alone or unaided, and I’ve never heard any RAF officer deny the tremendous contribution of the Royal Navy. His contention that “They proclaimed loudly and strongly to the British public that the Royal Air Force had won the air war over the Islands” is deluded.

On the other hand, Nigel Ward himself has spent most of the past 38 years trying to deny that the RAF made any contribution, and has consistently denigrated and rubbished its personnel and aircraft. (That’s when he hasn’t been vociferously shouting down the other Sea Harrier squadron in the Falklands – you know, the one that scored more kills than Ward’s…..)

Ward claims that “all air to air kills by British forces since 1948 have been achieved by naval aircraft – not one by RAF aircraft.” That ignores the kills scored by RAF pilots in RN and USAF aircraft, not least one Flt Lt Dave Morgan – the leading scorer in the Falklands War.

Moreover he picks the 1948 date very carefully, as, on 22 May 1947, the RAF did shoot down four Egyptian fighters (Fg Off Cooper and Fg Off Bowie both shot down one REAF Spitfire each and Fg Off McElhaw got the other two), all while flying Spitfire XVIIIs with 208 Squadron).

Some reports suggest that the Tempests of No.6 Squadron downed an Israeli Spitfire. There are also persistent rumours that certain 208 Sqn pilots later extracted their revenge on the IAF by shooting down any IAF aircraft they later encountered, including a number of transport aircraft, and that this was subsequently hushed-up to avoid escalating the situation.

In Korea, a Flight of RN Sea Furies did down a MiG-15, while RAF pilots, including Sqn Ldr John Merrifield, Flt Lts John Nicholls, John Granville-White, RTF Dickinson, John Lovell got MiG kills while flying Sabres in Korea, with Nichols claiming a Mig on his 99th mission. Squadron Leader Graham Hulse got three kills in Korea. A further 4 kills were made by Canadian nationals who were still in the RAF and flying USAF Sabres in Korea.

Some sources also list Alan Jenkins, and Dennis Dunlop.

With regard to Black Buck, Ward repeats the tired old ‘only one bomb on the runway’ trope, when the plan – to drop a stick diagonally across the runway meant that this was exactly what was intended. Black Buck was also intended to demonstrate that the mainland was ‘at risk’ and this was achieved.

Ward’s slur on the Nimrod ASW effort is unworthy even of him, but I was pleasantly surprised that his Hush Kit piece was at least less full of lies, exaggeration and nonsense than his recent evidence to the House of Commons Select Committee.

Ward’s visceral hatred for the RAF is such that you’d almost think that someone in RAF blue had slapped him in his pram, or that he’d been failed by OASC...

Wait till he starts on the effectiveness of the RAF in Gulf War One.......

It would appear that his publisher finds that controversy sells more books.

...and that his doctor thinks the local mental health services are already severely stretched.

Oh dear.

Well, we need to bear in mind that 21 of the 63 bombs delivered against Stanley weren’t aimed at the runway - they were meant to be airburst, but the old adage that the 90 way selector gave 89 opportunities to get something wrong kicked in, and they ended up impact-fused. Two of the four SEAD missions didn’t reach the islands (BB3 was cancelled and didn’t launch because of adverse headwinds and BB4 because one of the tankers’ HDUs went US and the refuelling plan was scuppered, leading to an air abort) so he’s twisting the figures again to suggest that a single radar was struck out of 4 sorties, when it in fact saw one radar struck out of two.

His claims about the Nimrod are quite untrue - while the files show a number of problems, he’s clearly not bothered to read them and is regurgitating the same inaccuracies about the Nimrod that he has been for the last ten years at least.

As I’ve said numerous times before, I yield to nobody in my admiration for him as the boss of 801 Sqn, or his development work on the SHAR before that - but his ludicrous attempts to reframe history based upon his perceptions and recollections, despite literally tons of evidence to the contrary is execrable and can only be regarded with dismay at best...

Also, counting 1,000 lb bombs on Stanley, let’s not forget the psychological impact on those poor Argentinian conscripts in their tents. The craters from Martin Withers’ stick are still clearly visible on Google Earth.

Wasn't this the same person, who IIRC, (according to Rowland White's book - Vulcan 607,) compromised COMSEC on BB1 by trying to contact the Vulcan? By all means have a different viewpoint on another Sevice's contribution, but to knowingly put that crew at risk is, at best, unprofessional to say the least. Clown.

Having worn both shades of Blue, I do find this inter-Service rivalry rather sad. I thought we were all on the same side?

Blimey! So they are.

Sharkey Ward would not agree.

Mad, Sad or Bad.....take your pick...

Totally agree, he did a hugely impressive job down there.
But since then, his rantings are not worthy of him and his slurs on the professionalism and sacrifices of so many, especially those no longer with us, make him a very sad figure.

I never met the gentleman, nor do I particularly want to after hearing some of the stories here and from other people who actually know him.

Maybe he is annoyed about the new Harrier 809 book that is coming out (not to hijack the thread)

https://www.waterstones.com/book/har.../9781787631588

Looking forward to reading that one, mostly because I have a family member who server on 809 NAS in the Falklands.

Looking at the link above, they need a number of pre-orders to actually publish the book, I doubt many here will be buying it.

That's for Joe Coles' 'Hushkit' book, which will be an entertaining read, not for Nigel Ward's latest piece of self aggrandising apoplexy-inducing nonsense, and certainly not for Rowland White's superb Harrier 809, which I've read, and which is astonishingly good.

Now come on children, play nicely. Just think of your index linked pensions....
Now run along with you calculators.

So, for balance, are any fisheads stepping up to support Mr Ward?

To be pedantically correct, the last RAF air to air kill was 25th May 1982 in RAFG. ;)

"In relation to the Falklands War, the Royal Navy made no big mistake."
Switching off air defence radar to make radio calls, failure to adjust EW database to recognise Exocet as hostile were obviously minor errors then, losing more than one ship and many lives.
I realise that this sounds awful; it is not aimed the RN, who were constrained by technical details, but to Ward himself.

Did a RAF pilot sleep with his wife?

b****r! There goes another keyboard :D

I pick all three!

My slightly more serious hypothesis about Sharkey:

He's one of those people who is his job. His job is gone, both in SHAR and retirement/career terms, and he can't let it go. He was an accomplished, brave, committed fighter pilot who doesn't see the bigger picture- he was a big fish in a tiny pond locally; but (like everyone else here who served) only a little cog in the big scheme of things. That's demonstrated by his one-dimensional whining about the RAF/carriers/Navy etc.

CG

CG
 

I completely agree. His naivety and narrow outlook is astounding for someone who reached the rank of Commander.

BV

Seems particularly graceless in the week that hard work by RN and RAF personnel have seen QNLZ and her crew declared trained and safe to conduct carrier strike operations. Perhaps some (maybe understandable) bitterness that a world he once dominated now goes on without him?

....and thereby, perhaps, is the clue. Was he prevented from going higher, where arguably he could have attempted to cause more sh*t-stirring? Or did he see the writing on the wall and leave? Either way, rather than reflecting on a worthy career and enjoying his retirement, he chooses to grind his axe ad infinitum... If he carries on, he'll end up as an incoherent, mumbling OAP sat in a corner and avoided by most people. Sad in a way, but it's his choice...

With a book on its way, then to some people any publicity is good for them.

He must have forgotten about the Jaguar downed by an F4 in Germany

Sorry, Vendee just noticed you got there first!

Its all very very sad- someone coming across his mad raving & ranting now will just pigeon hole him forever as a bitter and twisted nut case. he was better than that once..............

When was that? He was virulently and vituperatively anti-RAF (and anti-800, and anti-anything that wasn;t him or his) even before his first book.

Let’s be a weeny bit fair. He’s not the only somewhat peculiar individual on the block.

Anyone here ever worked for/with AJCB? Or a few other rather strange personalities? At my retirement interview, taking redundancy, I mentioned a few to my AOC, who replied “Oh, you had drawn a few short straws”. I declined to mention he was on the list!

Perhaps he found his Falkland experience later took a toll on his mental state, I wouldn't be so ready to judge too harshly, have seen it occur.

Yes, for not being handsome, witty and intelligent enough...obviously! They’ve all been hit with the ugly stick in the FAA :E

WAFUs :rolleyes:

Maybe the baddies were afraid to face RAF aircraft.

I was his QFI/Flt. Cdr. at Linton (JP's) in the late 60's when we had RN courses. He was the course leader (Lt. RN) and I found him one of the most competent students going ! What happened since then I have little idea, but did meet up again briefly in mid -70's at MOD, and he still seemed the same reasonable guy that I remembered. (Maybe it is my fault !!)

Bill

Met him at Deci during ACMI. Seemed a reasonable chap, but he spun some yarn about RM (or Para?) having shot dead some mercenaries they discovered in some hut on the Falklands...

He didn't show any antipathy towards the RAF at the time.

If you ask the standard person on the street about the Falklands,
a) they’ll say that the Vulcan raid was the most important part of the air war. They’ll not even know there was more than 1.
b) they’ll say that the RAF Harriers were brilliant. (They’ll have no idea Fleet Air Arm exists, all flying things are RAF right?)
c) They’ll say we lost all those ships because the French gave the Argentinians the codes to launch Exocet.
(I’ve not even checked if it’s true, I’ve been told it so any times, I’ve presumed that’s how it was reported at the time)

Do a a straw poll of any friends who have not served and this will be what they say, I guarantee it!

i think that’s all Mr Ward is grumpy about.

That may all be true, but it's his attacks ON the RAF, not his disputes over who did what, that bring him so low in our eyes.