The Raid on Pebble Island took place on 14-15 May 1982^{[citation needed]} during the Falklands War. Pebble Island is an island with within the Falkland Islands. Combatants United Kingdom Argentina Casualties 258 killed[1] 777 wounded 2 taken prisoner 649 killed 1,068 wounded 11,313 taken prisoner The Falklands War was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. ... Combatants United Kingdom Argentina Commanders Lt. ... Combatants United Kingdom Argentina Commanders Captain Boswell Strength 19 troops 13 troops Casualties 3 wounded 2 killed 6 wounded 5 captured The Battle of Top Malo House was fought on the 30th May 1982 during the Falklands War,[citation needed] between Argentinian Special Forces and a patrol formed from staff... The Battle of Mount Harriet was an engagement of the Falklands War which took place on the night of 11/12 June 1982 between British and Argentinian forces. ... The Battle of Two Sisters was an engagement of the Falklands War during the British advance towards the capital Stanley that took place on the 11th/12 June 1982. ... The Battle of Mount Longdon was an engagement of the Falklands War between British and Argentinian forces, which took place on the 11th/12 June 1982. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... (Redirected from 14 May) May 14 is the 134th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (135th in leap years). ... May 15 is the 135th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (136th in leap years). ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Combatants United Kingdom Argentina Casualties 258 killed[1] 777 wounded 2 taken prisoner 649 killed 1,068 wounded 11,313 taken prisoner The Falklands War was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. ... Pebble Island is one of the Falkland Islands, lying north of West Falkland. ...

Background

Immediately after the Argentines had seized the Falkland Islands they created an airstrip on Pebble Island. On it they based Pucará light attack aircraft that could have posed a major threat to British ground forces once they had landed on East Falkland.^{[citation needed]} Embarked Special Air Service assets were tasked with eliminating the threat, with naval support from the carrier HMS Hermes the Type 22 frigate HMS Broadsword as Hermes defensive escort and the County class destroyer HMS Glamorgan to provide Naval Gunfire Support.^{[citation needed]} Pebble Island is one of the Falkland Islands, lying north of West Falkland. ... The FMA IA 58 Pucará is a twin-engined counter-insurgency (COIN) aircraft made in Argentina, flown for the first time on August 20, 1969. ... East Falkland (beige) shown within Falkland Islands East Falkland, the largest of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic, has an area of 6,605 square kilometres. ... It has been suggested that SAS Troops be merged into this article or section. ... Three ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Hermes, after Hermes, the messenger god of Greek mythology: The first Hermes was a converted cruiser that was used as an experimental seaplane tender by the Royal Naval Air Service shortly before World War I. She was sunk by a... A group of Type 22s, with HMS Coventry in the foreground HMS Chatham, the last of the Batch 3 Type 22s, at the International Fleet Review, 2005 The Type 22 Broadsword class frigates are a class of warships built for the Royal Navy. ... The first HMS Broadsword was a Weapon class destroyer commissioned in 1948. ... HMS Devonshire The County class destroyers were large vessels built by the Royal Navy around the Sea Slug anti-aircraft missile system. ... HMS Glamorgan (D19) was a County-class destroyer of the Royal Navy. ... Naval gunfire support (NGFS) comprises the use of naval artillery to provide fire support support for amphibious assault troops. ...

Initial intentions

Initial intentions were for a Squadron strength air insertion from Hermes using personnel from D Squadron, 22 Regiment. The raiding party would destroy the deployed aircraft, ground crew and the force protection garrison before helicopter exfiltration to return to the deck before daybreak.^{[citation needed]}

Reconnaissance

Reconnaissance for the raid was conducted by personnel from the Boat Troop of D Squadron, conducting an infiltration by Klepper canoe. The patrol found that strong headwinds would increase the time taken to fly in from Hermes launch point, delaying time on target an reducing the available offensive window to 30 minutes, rather than the planned 90. In light of this information the planning emphasised the importance of destroying the aircraft as a priority, with support personnel as a secondary priority.^{[citation needed]} Mixed reconnaissance patrol of the Polish Home Army and the Soviet Red Army during Operation Tempest, 1944 Reconnaissance is the military term for the active gathering of information about an enemy, or other conditions, by physical observation. ... A folding kayak is a direct descendant of the original Inuit kayak made of animal skins stretched over frames made from wood and bones. ...

The Raid

During the night of the 14 May two Sea King HC4 Helicopters of No. 846 Naval Air Squadron, part of the Commando Helicopter Force, departed with 45 members of D Squadron on board. The delivery point was some 6km (3.7 miles) from the airstrip on Pebble Island. Mountain Troop was tasked with the destruction of the Argentine aircraft, while the remaining personnel acted as a protection force, securing approaches to the airstrip, and forming an operational reserve. The raiding party de-planed they unloaded over 100 L16 81mm Mortar bombs, explosive charges, and M72 66mm rockets to carry into the engagement zone, with each man in the raiding party carried at least two mortar bombs.^{[citation needed]} May 14 is the 134th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (135th in leap years). ... The Westland Sea King is a license-built version of the Sikorsky helicopter of the same name, built by Westland Helicopters. ... The Commando Helicopter Force (CHF) is a component of the British Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm. ... The M72 LAW (Light Anti-Tank Weapon, also referred to as the Light Anti-Armor Weapon or LAW) is a portable one-shot 66 mm anti-tank weapon, designed in United States by Talley Defense Systems, produced by Nammo Raufoss AS in Norway. ...

Approach navigation was conducted by a member of the Boat Troop who had carried out the reconnaissance.

As the raiding party approached the target they spotted an Argentine sentry, however were not compromised, allowing them to enter the target and lay charges onto seven of the aircraft. Once all the aircraft had been prepared the raiding team opened up with small arms fire and M72 rockets strafing the aircraft, some of which were engulfed in fireballs as they were hit by rockets. All of the aircraft had at least been riddled with bullets, had their undercarriages shot away and their fuselages were full of holes. Following this cue the Glamorgan then began laying down fire on the Argentine positions on the airfield using high explosive rounds, hitting the ammunition dump and fuel stores.^{[citation needed]}

The defending force did not engage until the entire raiding party had re-grouped and prepared to move out, laying down a small amount of small arms fire. One British soldier was hit and wounded with the raiding party returning fire using small arms and M203 launched grenades, resulting in the death of the Argentine Commanding Officer and the suppression of any defensive effort.^{[citation needed]} M203 generally refers to the U.S. Militarys designation for a single shot 40 mm grenade launcher that attaches to the M16 assault rifle or the M4 Carbine. ...

Exfiltration

The wounded man was hauled back to the recovery site with the raiding party reaching the aircraft by the required time for transportation back to Hermes before daybreak. The decision was made to proceed with exfiltration rather than returning to destroy the defending force.

Aftermarth

Assets destroyed during the raid totalled:

• Six Pucarás
• Four Turbo Mentor jets
• One Skyvan utility transport aircraft
• Destruction of the ammunition dump
• Airstrip damaged beyond useful repair

The raid was considered a complete success, reminiscent of the type of operation carried out by the SAS in World War II.^{[citation needed]} The FMA IA 58 Pucará is a twin-engined counter-insurgency (COIN) aircraft made in Argentina, flown for the first time on August 20, 1969. ... A Beechcraft T-34B Mentor The Beechcraft T-34 Mentor is a military trainer aircraft derived from the Beechcraft Bonanza. ... SC.7 Skyvan at Oulu Airport, Finland. ... This article is becoming very long. ...

See Also

• Falklands War
• Falkland Islands
• Pebble Island

Combatants United Kingdom Argentina Casualties 258 killed[1] 777 wounded 2 taken prisoner 649 killed 1,068 wounded 11,313 taken prisoner The Falklands War was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. ... Pebble Island is one of the Falkland Islands, lying north of West Falkland. ...

External Links

• http://www.naval-history.net/F38opsweek7.htm
• http://www.britains-smallwars.com/Falklands/sas.htm