British air forces in the Falklands War

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This is a list of the units, aircraft and casualties of the British air forces in the Falklands War. The numbers in bold are the number of aircraft used in the war, the numbers in brackets are the number of lost aircraft. For a list of air forces from Argentina, see Argentine air forces in the Falklands War.

Contents 1 Units 1.1 Army Air Corps 1.2 Royal Marines 1.3 Fleet Air Arm 1.4 Royal Air Force 1.5 Armament 2 Casualties and aircraft losses 3 External links

[edit] Units

[edit] Army Air Corps

• No. 656 Squadron Army Air Corps - (Gazelle AH.Mk.1, Scout AH.Mk.1) 6 (1), 6

[edit] Royal Marines

• 3 CDO Brigade Air Squadron - (Gazelle AH.Mk.1, Scout AH.Mk.1) 9 (2), 6 (1)

[edit] Fleet Air Arm

• 737 Naval Air Squadron - (Wessex HAS.Mk.3) 2 (1) (HMS Antrim & HMS Glamorgan)
• 800 Naval Air Squadron - (Sea Harrier FRS.Mk.1) 12 (2) (HMS Hermes)
• 801 Naval Air Squadron - (Sea Harrier FRS.Mk.1) 8 (4) (HMS Invincible)
• 809 Naval Air Squadron - (Sea Harrier FRS.Mk.1) 8 (HMS Hermes) & (HMS Invincible)
• 815 Naval Air Squadron - (Lynx HAS.Mk.2 and HAS.Mk.3) 14 (3) (Type 42-destroyers, Type 21 and Type 22 frigates)
• 820 Naval Air Squadron - (Sea King HAS.Mk.5) 9 (HMS Invincible)
• 824 Naval Air Squadron - (Sea King HAS.Mk.2) 5 (RFA Fort Rosalie) & (RFA Olmeda)
• 825 Naval Air Squadron - (Sea King HAS.Mk.2) 10 (Atlantic Causeway & RMS Queen Elizabeth 2)
• 826 Naval Air Squadron - (Sea King HAS.Mk.5) 9 (2) (HMS Hermes)
• 829 Naval Air Squadron - (Wasp HAS.Mk.1) 9 (HMS Endurance, HMS Bristol, Leander class & type 12 frigates)
• 845 Naval Air Squadron - (Wessex HU.Mk.5) 15 (2) (RFA Tidespring, RFA Tidepool, RFA Fort Austin & Port San Carlos)
• 846 Naval Air Squadron - (Sea King HC.Mk.4) 15 (3) (HMS Hermes, Fearless class, SS Canberra, Elk & Norland)
• 847 Naval Air Squadron - (Wessex HU.Mk.5) 24 (Atlantic Causeway, RFA Engadine & Port San Carlos)
• 848 Naval Air Squadron - (Wessex HU.Mk.5) 15 (6) (HMS Endurance, RFA Olna, Atlantic Conveyor & Astronomer)

[edit] Royal Air Force

All four engined heavies operated from Wideawake Airfield, Ascension Island, but flew in the war zone.

• No. 1(F) Squadron - (Harrier GR.Mk.3) 10 (4) (HMS Hermes & Port San Carlos)
• No. 18 Squadron - (Chinook HC.Mk.1) 4 (3) +1 at Wideawake
• No. 29 Squadron - (Phantom FGR.Mk.2) 3; only at Wideawake
• No. 39 Squadron - (English Electric PR.Mk.9 Canberra) 2; Clandestine operations from Chile
• No. 42 Squadron - (Nimrod MR.Mk.2) _{13 MR.2 from all squadrons}
• No. 44 Squadron - (Vulcan B.Mk.2) 2
• No. 47 Squadron - (C-130 Hercules)
• No. 50 Squadron - (Vulcan B.Mk.2) 1
• No. 51 Squadron - (Nimrod R.Mk.1) 3
• No. 55 Squadron - (Victor K.Mk.2) _{20 Victor K.2 from both squadrons}
• No. 57 Squadron - (Victor K.Mk.2)
• No. 70 Squadron - (C-130 Hercules)
• No. 101 Squadron - (Vulcan B.Mk.2) 1
• No. 120 Squadron - (Nimrod MR.Mk.2)
• No. 201 Squadron - (Nimrod MR.Mk.2)
• No. 202 Squadron - (Sea King HAR.Mk.3) 1 only at Wideawake
• No. 206 Squadron - (Nimrod MR.Mk.2)

[edit] Armament

• L44A1 GPMG (General Purpose Machine Gun)
• 30 mm ADEN Cannon
• AIM-9B Sidewinder AAM (Air-to-Air Missile)
• AIM-9G Sidewinder AAM (Air-to-Air Missile)
• AIM-9L Sidewinder AAM (Air-to-Air Missile)
• AGM-45 Shrike Air-to-Surface ARM (Anti-Radiation Missile)
• BAe Sea Skua Air-to-Surface anti-ship missile
• Aerospatiale AS.12 ASM (Air-to-Surface Missile)
• Paveway LGB (Laser Guided Bomb)
• BL755 Cluster bomb
• 1,000 lb. General Purpose Bomb
• CRV-7 2.75in Folding Fin Rockets
• Mk. 46 Torpedo Torpedo
• Mk. 11 Depth charge

[edit] Casualties and aircraft losses

• • Human losses:
    • 2 Army Air Corps
    • 4 3 Commando Brigade Air Squadron Royal Marines
    • 17 Fleet Air Arm
  • Passengers
    • 1 Royal Air Force
    • 18 Army - Special Air Service
    • 3 Army - Royal Corps of Signals

• • Aircraft Lost in the Air:, _{no suffix: Fleet Air Arm}
    • 3 Westland Gazelle AH.Mk.1 Army and Royal Marines
    • 4 Harrier GR.Mk.3 RAF
    • 2 Sea Harrier FRS.Mk.1
    • 1 Scout AH.Mk.1 Royal Marines
  • Flying accidents in the war zone
    • 4 Sea Harrier FRS.Mk.1
    • 2 Westland Sea King HC.Mk.4
    • 2 Westland Sea King HAS.Mk.5
    • 2 Westland Wessex HU.Mk.5
  • Lost onboard a ship
    • 3 Chinook HC.Mk.1 RAF
    • 3 Westland Lynx HAS.Mk.2
    • 1 Westland Wessex HAS.Mk.3
    • 6 Westland Wessex HU.Mk.5
  • Self-destruct in Chile
    • 1 Westland Sea King HC.Mk.4

[edit] External links

• British site about British Aircraft lost
• Britains Small Wars.com:
• Argentine Air Force (FAA) official site about the Malvinas/Falkland Air War

Falklands War
Military forces | Argentine ground forces | British ground forces | Argentine air forces | British air forces | Argentine naval forces | British naval forces
Timeline | Background | Invasion | Falklands War
Battles | Goose Green | Mount Harriet | Two Sisters | Mount Longdon | Mount Tumbledown | Wireless Ridge
Operations | Algeciras | Canbelow | Corporate | Black Buck | Keyhole | Paraquat | Purple Warrior | Rosario | Sutton