Summary
of British Ships & Aircraft Departing
Royal Navy Ardent, Cmdr A W J West (awarded
DSC)
RN Argonaut, Capt C H Layman (DSO) MVO RN Hecla, Capt G L Hope RN Herald, Cmdr R I C Halliday RN Hydra, Cmdr R J Campbell RN
Royal Fleet
Auxiliary
Plumleaf,
Capt R W M Wallace RFA Regent, Capt J Logan RFA Tidepool, Capt J W Gaffrey RFA (from
Curacao)
Merchant
Ships Atlantic Conveyor, Capt I H
North (post DSC) and NP 1840, Capt
M H G Layard (CBE) RN Anco Charger, Capt B Hatton British Dart, Capt J A M Taylor and NP
1800 British Wye, Capt D M Rundle (OBE) Europic Ferry, Capt W J C Clarke (OBE) and NP 1860, Lt
Cmdr C E K Roe RN Fort Toronto, Capt R I Kinnier and NP
1750 Uganda, Capt J G Clark and NP 1830, Cmdr
A B Gough RN and Surgeon Capt A J Rintoul
RN
Helicopters
Embarked No.848 A Flt - 2 Wessex
HU.5's, Regent 6 Wessex HU.5's of No.848 D Flt and 5
Chinooks of 18 Sqdn RAF on Atlantic
Conveyor, 3 Scouts of 656 Sqdn AAC on Europic Ferry
Task Force Departures
from Monday 19th April - Only now were two more
frigates ready to leave for Ascension. On Monday, type 21 "Ardent" and
Leander class "Argonaut" (pictured below)
sailed from Devonport along with two RFA's from Portland
- support tanker
"Plumleaf" and replenishment ship
"Regent". That same day, the first of four white painted and Red
Cross-marked hospital ships departed. Liner
"Uganda" cut short a children's Mediterranean
cruise and arriving at Gibraltar spent the weekend having
full medical facilities installed before heading south.
She was followed from Gib on Tuesday
by survey ship "Hecla", and from Portsmouth on Saturday by "Herald" and
"Hydra" all in the role of ambulance ships. One
of their main tasks would be to ferry casualties between
"Uganda" in the planned Red Cross Box
and Montevideo.
Monday 19th also saw the departure from Southampton of
"Fort Toronto" as the only fresh water tanker
with the Task Force
through to the end of the war. And by the end of the week, three more tankers were on their
way as fleet refuellers - "British Dart" after
delayed loading at Loch Striven, "Anco Charger"
from Fawley, and "British Wye" from Devonport.
Finally on Sunday, another two RO-RO transports set
out as part of the build-up of 3 Cdo Bde.
After conversion at Southampton, ferry "Europic
Ferry" left Portland with much of 2 Para's equipment
and three Scouts. And joining her from Devonport was
container ship "Atlantic Conveyor" in an
aircraft and
helicopter support role, complete with flight deck,
fuelling and maintenance facilities, and carrying six
Navy Wessex and five RAF Chinook helicopters.
Ascension
- Now the ships of the Amphibious Group
started arriving to spend their time storing and
re-stowing, replenishing by helicopter, landing craft and
Mexeflote, and sending their troops ashore for limited
exercises and weapons training. The slower LSL
Group only stayed until the end of the following
week, but the others remained a week longer. Meanwhile,
and typical of the enterprise shown, "Elk" had
the sides of her upper deck cut away for helicopter
operations and added two 40mm Bofors. Two civilian tugs
also arrived to join RMAS "Typhoon", with
"Irishman" staying into early May, but
"Salvageman" soon headed for Tristan da
Cunha and on to South Georgia. During the week, RFA "Fort Austin" got back from
her rendezvous with "Endurance", re-stored and
returned south to join the CVBG. South Atlantic -
On Wednesday
21st the South
Georgia Group arrived off this forbidding island. Next
day, on the 22nd, two helicopters were lost on South
Georgia's Fortuna Glacier [first British aircraft losses -
b1,b2 -
see Part 22]. Still
on the 21st and far to the north, one of
"Hermes'" Sea Harriers intercepted an Argentine
Boeing 707 of Grupo 1 approaching the Carrier
Battle Group. This happened each time one of
them came near over the next three days, when in response
to warnings through diplomatic channels, they stayed
away. On Friday 23rd in the evening, the first Task Force
aircraft was lost at sea in the South Atlantic when one of "Hermes" five
remaining No.846 Sea King HC.4's flying on vertrep
crashed in poor weather with the loss of her crewman [third British
aircraft loss - b3].By Sunday 25th, and less than seven days from combat, the
carriers rendezvoused with the Advanced Group ships.
Before then in the South Georgia area, the two helicopters had
been lost, detached
frigate "Brilliant" had joined other ships
there in the helicopter attacks on submarine "Santa
Fe", and that same Sunday, the Argentine garrison on South Georgia was surrendering.
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HMS Hermes post-war (Courtesy -
MOD, Navy) |
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HMS Argonaut post-war in
Portland harbour,
south England (Courtesy - MOD, Navy) |
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Disposition
of British Ships, Aircraft & Land
Forces, including those departing |
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Other UK
Departures Transports Europic Ferry,
Atlantic Conveyor Tankers Anco Charger, British Dart,
British Wye Water tanker Fort Toronto |
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On Passage,
North Atlantic Ambulance ships Herald,
Hydra Hospital ship Uganda & Ambulance ship
Hecla FR Ardent, Argonaut RFA Plumleaf, Regent also RFA Tidepool
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Ships and
Aircraft in Ascension Area
RAF Aircraft Nimrods,
Victors, Hercules, VC.10's
3 Commando
Brigade & Amphibious
Group Ships
Assault ship
Fearless Transports Canberra, Elk RFA Stromness,
LSL Group
LSLs Sir
Galahad, Sir Geraint, Sir
Lancelot, Sir Percivale, Sir
Tristram RFA Pearleaf, FR Antelope,
Other Ships at
Ascension or Reaching the
Area on the Way South Tankers British
Esk, British Tay Tugs Irishman, Salvageman,
RMAS Typhoon
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Reaching
and Departing Ascension RFA Fort Austin
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Support
Tanker in South Atlantic RFA Appleleaf
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Carrier
Battle Group
CV Hermes,
Invincible; DD Glamorgan, FR Alacrity, Broadsword,
Yarmouth; RFA Olmeda, Resource |
Advanced
Group DD Coventry,
Glasgow, Sheffield, Fr Arrow |
with SBS & G Sqdn SAS
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In South
Atlantic RFA Brambleleaf
In or
Approaching Falklands Area SSN Splendid, Spartan,
Conqueror |
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South
Georgia Task Group DD Antrim, FR Plymouth, Ice
Patrol Vessel Endurance, RFA Tidespring M Coy 42 Cdo, SBS, D
Sqdn SAS joined by Fr Brilliant |
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