The Falklands Conflict of 1982 - A Reflection 40 years on

The Falklands Conflict of 1982 – A Reflection 40 Years On

As Winston Churchill wrote, “There is nothing more exhilarating than to be shot at with no result”. From my experiences in the South Atlantic in 1982, this comment was to prove most apt on several occasions.

On leaving Berkhamsted School in July 1973, Mark Mans (Lowers 1973), Richard Morley (Incents 1973), and myself entered Sandhurst on the September intake. I was commissioned into the Royal Artillery (RA) and, following a posting to Germany, a couple of tours in Northern Ireland, nine months stationed on St Kilda, off the Outer Hebrides, and completion of the Commando and Parachute courses, I was posted, in 1979, to 29 Commando Regiment RA. This regiment provided indirect fire support, both artillery and naval gunfire, for the Royal Marines. I went there as a Captain and was employed as a Forward Observation Officer (FOO) in 7 Commando Battery (7 Bty) RA, being responsible for directing artillery fire in support of X Company of 45 Commando RM (45 Cdo RM), based in Arbroath, Scotland.

My rude awakening at 0430 on Friday, 2 April 1982, was to be the start of a very interesting, intriguing and invigorating four months. I was ordered into camp, along with the rest of the unit, and warned of possible military operations in the Falkland Islands. Where are they, was the first question?! By lunchtime, order, counter order, and counter-counter orders were flying about, as we started to prepare to deploy. I may add that we should have been going on Easter leave that day, having returned from a six week deployment to Norway the previous week, and some soldiers and marines had left early and had to be recalled, some hitching lifts back from various parts of the UK. On Friday afternoon, we were informed that a Task Force was being assembled and that we were to sail from Southampton on Sunday night. By some miracle (and hard work), we pulled together men, material, equipment and ammunition, leaving for Southampton at 23.30 on Sunday, 4 April. As my mother, who was visiting Rowena and I due to the arrival of our first daughter, Bryony, 2 months prior, commented, “Alasdair off to Ascension on Palm Sunday”!

Alastair Cameron with The Company Commander of X Compamy on the left, Battery Commander and the other Forward Observation Officer of 7 Commando Battery RA in the middle. Taken in Ajax Bay soon after landing

I, along with rest of 7 Bty, set sail for Ascension Island in the early hours on Monday morning, in a flat-bottomed Landing Ship Logistics, the Sir Percival. We sailed south under Royal Navy (RN) escort, arriving in Ascension on 19 April. Here, men and equipment were relocated in readiness for a land invasion and ships reloaded to enable the emerging military plan to be achieved. Some limited weapon, physical and tactical training was completed in readiness for future operations. Interestingly, up to date mapping of the Islands, critical to the accurate use of artillery, was not yet available and hastily provided maps had no grid lines and patches of blank, stating “obscured by cloud”!

We set sail for the Falklands on 1 May, and the South Atlantic is not the place to be in a flat-bottomed boat. As we sailed further south, the sinking of HMS Sheffield on 10 May and

the Atlantic Conveyor, with 32 sailors killed, brought home the potential vulnerability of our situation: a number of Chinook transport helicopters were lost on the Atlantic Conveyor which would have a significant impact on the movement of ammunition and equipment during the land battle. As a result, men and equipment would have to be moved on foot and across very rough terrain.

Landfall was made on 21 May at Ajax Bay, near San Carlos on East Falkland, the necessary mapping having been provided. Whilst it was an unopposed landing by landing craft, it was delayed, making us vulnerable to air attack as we went ashore a few hours after dawn. Enemy aircraft harried other aspects of the landings and, tragically, I witnessed, first hand, from our observation location on the flanks of Ajax Bay, the sinking of both HMS Ardent and Antilope within 48 hours of us being ashore. This was for real.

On 27 May, X Company (XCoy) moved out, along with the rest of 45 Commando (45 Cdo) RM and started heading east across East Falkland towards Douglas Settlement, Teal Inlet and Mount Kent. This was the infamous “yomping” of which much has been written: heavy loads, rocky and waterlogged terrain, with ever-increasing periods of sleet and snow as the winter set in, plus the incessant wind. There was virtually no shelter, and as night fell, we would dig protective trenches that soon filled with water! After 9 days, we reached the high ground of Mount Kent, which gave excellent views of Port Stanley and the surrounding area, including the strategically significant Argentinian occupied hill tops, including the important feature of “Two Sisters”.

I spent the following couple of days with my Forward Observation team of three soldiers directing artillery fire onto Argentinian positions and accompanying fighting patrols in support of the RMs as we prepared to press on to the capital. I do remember spending my 28th birthday in an observation position overlooking Stanley in freezing conditions and horizontal snow.

On 12 June, 45 Commando (45 Cdo) RM received orders to take the Two Sisters feature, which was well defended, and the attack was to be at night. The assault went in at 03.00 after a long and difficult approach march over very rocky terrain. I do remember the noise was intense and the tracer streaming down on us with bullets and shrapnel pinging off the rocks. Nevertheless, artillery and naval gunfire was key to the success of the attack, and with the loss of 8 marines from 45 Cdo RM that night, the feature was taken as dawn began to appear, but not before one of my party and myself, were bracketed by artillery fire, which knocked unconscious my comrade and blew me off my feet. Fortunately, no lasting injuries were sustained. Once we started consolidating on Two Sisters, burying the dead, setting up our own defences and making breakfast (!), orders were received to advance immediately on Stanley, as the Argentinians were now in retreat. We left our bergens behind and set off in pursuit. Having made it to Sapper Hill just outside Stanley, we were told to stop and remain there. Subsequently, we endured one of the coldest and wettest nights of our lives when we encountered a snow and sleet storm with nowhere to shelter and very little equipment, as our bergens had not been flown forward, as planned. My team ended up huddling together, Emperor Penguin style, with the outer pair changing places with the inner every hour! However, by the morning, it was clear that the Argentinians were in full retreat, and surrender followed later that day. My Forward Observation team marched proudly into liberated Stanley with the rest of X Coy, much to the delight and relief of the locals and probably a few politicians 8,000 miles away. Our first hot shower after 25 days soon followed, and we were looked after by local families in their homes.

Our return to the UK was a little more comfortable than the southward trip – heading home on SS Canberra, although we had to wait a few days whilst she was used to repatriate Argentinians back to Rio. We embarked on

Alastair wife his wife, Rowena, and with our baby daughter, Bryony reunited in July 1982

22 June and arrived in Southampton to the most fabulous reception on 11 July 1982, and a very welcoming embrace from Rowena, and baby daughter, Bryony. My only communication had been via letters, which were often greatly delayed. Of course, there were no mobile phones, no internet, no wifi and the only news came from the World Service, which we could pick up, somewhat illegally, with our military radios: Lilliburlero will be with me forever!

But nothing stood still on our way back to the UK, and my next posting was being planned, for which I had to be interviewed by the ship’s radio. Fortunately, I was selected, and within 3 weeks of my return, I was heading for the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst as an instructor, alongside several close friends, including Mark Mans.

I am under no illusions about the relative scale of our achievements: even the hardest fought battle in the Falklands was a bit of a skirmish compared to a number of Second World War fights. Yet, there was no build up or preparation prior to deployment, no carefully organised tour period, no pre-training and all 8,000 miles away. A majority of us made it back, unscathed: 255 were killed. We were all immensely proud of what had been achieved and as Ian Gardiner, in his excellent book, The Yompers, said, “The bond that exists between men who have endured and shared a war… is different to all other bonds.”

Alastair Cameron (Sw ’73)