Tanker support was vital to the Vulcan bombing raid on Stanley Airfield in 1982. Victor K.2 crewman Mike Beer was on that mission…
IN FOCUS VICTOR IN THE FALKLANDS
After Argentine forces invaded the Falkland Islands on April 2, 1982, the UK government was swift to respond. A Task Force was to be assembled and dispatched to recover the islands. It would need air support, but the Falkland Islands were 8,000 miles distant. The only obvious forward operating base was Wideawake Airfield on Ascension Island, 3,900 miles from the UK and 4,100 miles from the Falklands. The airfield was long, although only wide enough to accommodate single aircraft takeoffs; there was limited parking space and no parallel taxiway… but the weather was invariably excellent. Frustratingly, there were no diversion airfields, so all planned missions had to land back on Ascension, which affected aircraft fuel planning.
A complex task
