The Falklands SAS mission known as 'Op Certain Death'

Operation Plum Duff was a recce mission by the SAS ahead of the planned Operation Mikado, which aimed to take out Argentina's remaining Exocet missiles following the attack on the HMS Sheffield.
Mikado was nicknamed 'Operation Certain Death' by many, as it involved landing two Hercules 2000 feet apart on a runway at Rio Grande airbase and then allowing SAS personnel to jump out of the aircraft, kill the enemies and disable the aircraft that carried the missiles.
Op Plum Duff was unsuccessful. For a while, London HQ continued to insist that Op Mikado was going ahead, but it was eventually abandoned.
This is the story behind the mission that never happened.
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Thumbnail image: Harry Burgoyne.
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[@logicbehind8653]

OHHH I remember this episode..amazing and brave! The helicopter was a Sea King and the crew was helped by people to reach Punta Arenas. The remains of the helicopter were collected by local people. I still have a piece of a blade of the main rotor of that helicopter at home. It has a patch like a repair and a serial number inside the aluminum skeleton. Greetings from Chile!

[@matrixbadger]

Qué guay!

[@checktheplaylist101]

😃👍

[@KillingDeadThings]

Nice wee souvenir.

[@dotdashdotdash]

❤️ Chile

[@fingmoron]

Respect to the people of Chile, the support given by your nation during that war helped us win.

[@stetomlinson3146]

There is a book, "Exocet Falklands" by Ewen Southby-Taylor, that tells the full story of this. It was a "rogue mission", dreamt up by The SAS, without any military or political backing. It was never countenanced by the top military people, back in the UK, or even Margaret Thatcher. It was part of a two part mission, this was part one. Both would have been doomed to failure from the start. The Argentinian military were waiting for them, having tracked the helicopter from just after it left the task force. The leader of the Argentinian Airfield Security Group had actually been trained by the British a few years before the war, to defend airfields from such an attack. He knew they would try it, and knew how to prevent it. The author, tells of 3 operations, 2 mounted by the SAS and one by The SBS that were all cancelled because they would have been catastrophic for both special forces groups. Well worth a read.

[@TrickyDicky51]

To fill in some of the detail you should read Special Forces Pilot. In addition to the three Operations referred to By Ewan, there were other SF ops on the mainland which were not cancelled.

[@EnglishVeteran]

So much BS in your comment. Utter fiction! Maggie asked for options. This Op. was called unofficially called “The Option” by those tasked! Tell me, what EW Radar used by The Argies, was capable of tracking a Seaking at low level over a heavy sea? Chile had of course been hosting 51 Squadron throughout. Nimrod R’s.

[@stetomlinson3146]

@@EnglishVeteran Have you read the book? He has interviews from both sides of the conflict. He has senior officers from The Royal Navy, Royal Marines, British Army, SAS, RAF as well as UK civil servants. The Argentine officer in charge of the airbase left considerable information, as did other Argentine pilots and officers. So which part is rubbish? Were you in any of the rooms where it was planned? Involved in any of the ops covered in the book? Or have any inside political or civil service knowledge of events then?

[@FIREBRAND38]

@@EnglishVeteran You don't know as much as you think you do. This mission was being pushed by General DLB in the face of common sense. The pilot's expected to fly it weren't even in one the planning.

[@sebastianschonfeld3446]

Soy argentino y tengo entendido fue al revés. Fue una operación planificada por Tatcher y los altos mandos británicos, y los que se oponían era el mismo SAS por considerarla una misión "suicida". Nunca se intentaría llevar una acción sin decisión política. Se trataba de un ataque a territorio continental argentino. Podía activar el TIAR (Tratado Interamericano de Asistencia Recíproca) con graves consecuencias. Pasa que el fácil hundimiento del Destructor HMS Sheffield con misil exocet en represalia por el hundimiento del viejo Crucero Belgrano, causó conmoción no solo por ser el primer buque británico hundido en combate luego de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, sino porque sus Portaaviones quedaban muy vulnerables. El hundimiento o puesta fuera de combate de uno de ellos podría significar perder la batalla. Destruir ese sistema de armas (avión Súper Etendard -misiles Exocet y pilotos) paso a ser una prioridad. Pero planificarlo es una cosa, realizarlo con éxito es otra. Fue un fracaso desde el inicio esa operación. Y ataque naval o aéreo a esa base estaba condenada a la derrota. A los Portaaviones no les quedó otra que alejarse de las Islas, tratando de quedar fuera del alcance de la aviación argentina. La flota pago el precio, fue bombardeada una y otra vez . Igual fue acertado, el Portacontenedores Atlántic Conveyor, cargado de pertrechos y helicópteros pesados, fue hundido por exocetes cuando se acercó a las islas. No obstante y pese a ser negado por Gran Bretaña, el Portaaviones Invincible fue atacado y dañado el 30 de mayo. Encima, técnicos argentinos desmontaron un exocet naval, lo modificaron para ser lanzado desde tierra y fue disparado éxitosamente desde la costa de Malvinas impactando al Crucero ligero HMS Glamorgan. Los británicos ganaron con lo justo y s costa de sufrir graves perdidas, por eso no pudieron imponer una rendición incondicional a la guarnición argentina de Malvinas integrada por soldados conscriptos. El Comandante argentino negocio el cese del fuego contando con toda su fuerza en la Capital Malvinenses para evitar una matanza inútil y proteger a la población civil que quedaba en medio de la batalla ( ya tres mujeres kelpers habían muerto por bombardeo británico) pero ese Comandante argentino tacho de puño y letra el termino "incondicional" y Jeremy Moore tuvo que aceptarlo, ya estaban sus fuerzas agotadas, escasas de munición y necesitaba que sus buques no siguieran siendo diezmados por la aviación argentina.

[@strangelee4400]

It sounds like something Blackadder would say. 'We have an exciting new mission for you Captain Blackadder'. -'Yes Sir. Would this mission by any chance be named ''Operation Certain Death'' perhaps..?'

[@rayw.cunningham8643]

Managed to train with British Soldiers along with some SAS. They are some very tough individuals and like a good fight. Have a high degree of respect for them. One thing I can honestly say is that it’s not about who is better to them but we are all equal. Would go into battle side by side with them.

[@richardnixon4345]

Fake Valor. You peeled potatoes behind the lines

[@rayw.cunningham8643]

@@richardnixon4345 I have you Fake Valor hanging. I do not know you and I know you do not know me. To make a lame comment shows you lack of knowledge. I do not have to fake anything. My 25 years are for real. I know did not walk in my boots all over FRG along with the many other countries that I have been.

[@richardnixon4345]

@@rayw.cunningham8643 of course you have.

[@seymourbutts9364]

Hi Ray it's "Twizzle" hope you are keeping well.

[@richardnixon4345]

@@seymourbutts9364 twizzle....is that you?

[@Tor010]

The French we're selling Argentina those Exocets... there's an interesting documentary on how MI5 stopped the sales buy buying up the Exocets posing as different countries... someone has it

[@wayneabel5421]

I've looked but couldn't find it if you know share

[@MRMK24]

@@wayneabel5421 although his comment isn't quite right about the background of the situation, he's more or less right. How could you not find anything on it if you supposedly looked? I find that rather baffling, this isn't a new subject and is well documented. I put it to you that you didn't bother to even open your Google search.

[@wayneabel5421]

I ment the documentary,,I know south Africa was involved in supplying parts and alledagly excess to the argies

[@G58]

Sounds more like SIS area of ops.

[@stetomlinson3146]

@@wayneabel5421 The book, not the documentary, is called Exocet Falkland and is available from Amazon books. It's written by Ewen Southby-Taylor. I've had it for ages on my Kindle. It's well worth a read.

[@mikewingert-savagelyerudite]

A friend of mine, SGT Ray Alderson, 47, AD RCT from RAF Lyneham, was part of an Air Despatch team prepped at Ascencion to do an engine running discharge for this op.

[@Hughenn]

I was privileged enough to go on two air to air refuelling flights while serving in Ascension Island. The C130 and Victor are two phenomenal aircraft but the skill of both aircrews was out of this world.

[@rodrigoquiroga8590]

I knew this episode many years ago. Although I m argentine, I was happy to know that those brave SAS men were not conducted to such a suicidal operation

[@Sgt_Bill_T_Co]

There were many brave people on both sides, it's a shame the whole episode happened, RIP all those who died from whatever side.

[@dannybatterbee2444]

If they did do it they would of been successful. Its the SAS, the best. This would of been there bread and butter carrying out such a task.

[@rodrigoquiroga8590]

@@dannybatterbee2444 Do not be ridiculous; I very much respect SAS capabilities. However Superman is only Hollywood. No one could land an Hercules with AA missiles and 6 x 35 mm Oerlikon AA artillery firing against you at point blank range. Even then, there were 600 very well trained marines armed to the teeth beside the airstrip. Last but not least, in any case, it would had been a useless nonsense operation since there was just one Exocet left.

[@ThePsiclone]

@@dannybatterbee2444 120 AT MOST against 1500 marines + base personnel? which for a base that size is going to be 500 to 700 so 2000 to 2200 total. Outnumbered 18 to 1 out in the open on an airfield??? Yeah they'd have been successful....successfully slaughtered.

[@rossib6974]

@@dannybatterbee2444 ,stop your nonsense .The SAS lost many battles to Talibans and Iranians in Afghanistan and Syria and English troops ran out of both countries ! Everyone is Vulnerable in resistance wars including SAS ok

[@lewiselliott6274]

There are a few missions dubbed “Op Certain Death”. There is only one true Op Certain Death post WW2 for me and that was Op Barras.

[@darrenbishop1619]

Every operation doesn’t go to plan obviously but the bravery n improvisation of the SAS is second to none n I mean non n the fact is the SAS is the best trained special forces regardless of the ego’s of certain other countries shall we say 🫡 n that’s definitely not taking nothing away from the other professionals. Unfortunately one of the only things left we have to b proud of, thank GOD for the SAS💪🏻

[@truthmediarebel5816]

This comment was not made by me. Thank you the Deep State for using my name I must frighten you.

[@ktwei]

The British do a lot of these "operation certain deaths"

[@asmaar566]

Used to it now

[@willw8011]

The British (and Russians) have very big egos. It leads them to do things beyond their abilities. The British military has also always had capability gaps, bad leadership, and a need for the dramatic.

[@wetincornwall6882]

@@willw8011 but, the dregs from our sink estates, get it done and prevail.

[@davidedbrooke9324]

We are told we are looking for tea.

[@davidedbrooke9324]

@@willw8011 lol, we also have had the worlds biggest empire, the world is made by and in our image too, suck on that .

[@MrDidz]

I remember the strange story of the Sea King landing in Chile, now I know why.

[@pete8938]

Fantastic video

[@FIREBRAND38]

4:07 Compounding the recce team's difficulties was the ludicrous last minute decision for them to carry demolition charges in "case they got a chance to blow up an aircraft" using the planning principle for many overloaded operations of "you never know". Out came rations and cold weather gear from their Bergens so an element tasked with pre-attack surveillance of a target could walk maybe onto it and blow up airplanes and/or missiles. Brilliant!

[@alejandro1904]

The last exocet hit HMS Invincible.

[@littleshep5502]

No, it really didn't

[@jonathantarrant2449]

I believe at the time the ARA helped foil the plans aswell, 2 of the older destroyers were based along the coast, close to the airfield and would have used their radars to pick up incoming aircraft, and possibly their 5in dual purpose guns to knock them down

[@type1krush205]

Just thinking what Paddy Mayne would have done ??

[@asan1050]

Thanks!

[@TheLondonForever00]

Can't believe I'm sitting here and it's the 18th of May to!

[@robertfrost4086]

As a civilian with no experience or knowledge of the military - what I take from this is 'you are on your own' .... Politicians make decisions and expect you to overcome anything and risk it all. Fortunately the UK had a functional and professional force. Deep respect for you all.... You did this with limited resources and still do to this day

[@FIREBRAND38]

The point is they didn't do it. The recce mission was a failure and Operation Mikado never launched.

[@alejandro1904]

Limited resources? It was the third military force in the planet at that time.

[@robertfrost4086]

@@alejandro1904 respectfully.... that is a shocking comment ... did you use google? or wiki?

[@robertfrost4086]

@@FIREBRAND38 you were there then?

[@MsLuchoGonzalez]

Do you know of any other SAS operation on the Patagonian coast? 10 kilometers south of my city a helicopter Bell UH-1H exploded while flying along the coast and many believe it was shot down by SAS commandos.

[@tonkerdog1]

I doubt it Luis.

[@MsLuchoGonzalez]

@@tonkerdog1 I think the same, besides this region did not have much strategic importance, the Mirage III will operate from a runway 300 kilometers south of this place.

[@tonkerdog1]

@@MsLuchoGonzalez I used to fly with Kris Ward who was a Harrier pilot. His dad Sharky war was also a Harrier pilot in the war. I’m now in the Middle East flying, and some of my training was done by an Argentinian Super Etendard pilot who also flew in the war. His best friend who left here was a British Vulcan pilot who bombed the islands and was my ex trainer!

[@MsLuchoGonzalez]

@Phil Tierra del Fuego is part of Patagonia and is an island shared between Chile and Argentina, nice trip.

[@LogieT2K]

If i had to guess the helicopter probably was lost due to weather or mechanical failure We had a hury crash like that here in NZ in 2012 on its way to an ANZAC day ceremony. Flying low next to a small mountain range in fairly low visibility and flew straight into the terrain all but on board died

[@terrypoole7978]

It was some spectacular feet. 8000 miles away.Opperation on the go. Just like the Iranian Embassy, goes to show how highly training the British Forces are.

[@michaelanderson7715]

1. feat 2. it didn't happen

[@oldsoulboy6483]

A good friend of mine was on this mission.

[@STILLETTOHEELS59]

There is a book, written by the pilot of the Sea-King in 'Operation Plum Duff', called 'SPECIAL FORCES PILOT' ; well worth a read as he covers this incident in detail.

[@sealove79able]

How many were there on those c130s?

[@ENGBriseB]

The SAS words can't describe the excellence that they give to their country and to the world.

[@jasoncornthwaite8387]

very highly trained upgraded common folk with viking,celt,germatic,roman,ect,ect blood.the rest of world will never understand this

[@ENGBriseB]

SAS Wherever they come from they are the Best trained people in the world. Special Air Service. Plus the SBS UK Elite Forces. "Who Dares Wins" Plus the SBS 'Not By strength, by guile'

[@kawagonzo6951]

Lehman: British Would Have Lost Falklands War Without U.S. Support May 29, 1988 LONDON (AP) _ Britain would not have recaptured the Falkland Islands from Argentina in 1982 without U.S. military assistance, former U.S. Navy Secretary John Lehman was quoted Sunday as saying. In a British Broadcasting Corp. television interview to be broadcast Wednesday night, Lehman also says U.S. involvement in the Falklands war led indirectly to the Irangate scandal, the Observer newspaper reported. The weekly said Lehman’s interview will be included in the latest episode of ″An Ocean Apart,″ a BBC documentary series on British-American relations. ADVERTISEMENT ″Britain would have had to have withdraw from the Falklands″ if the Reagan administration withheld support, it quoted Lehman as saying. U.S. military aid in the 74-day war, in which Britain recaptured the South Atlantic archipelago from invading Argentine forces, has been a closely guarded secret, the Observer said. ″Lehman is the first senior U.S. official to claim that the Pentagon’s supplies of intelligence and material were so great as to have been decisive,″ it said.

[@jasoncornthwaite8387]

@@kawagonzo6951 maggie and reagan relationship at the time was borderline cheating on their partners ,lol.prob true the usa was feeding intelligence ,good call....but highly trained soldiers,,only british soldiers ,, sailed thousands of miles to fight a war the world said was impossible to win? it all comes down to the man or woman on the battlefield ...yes you need good intelligence in war, why do u think a very small country had the biggest empire the world has ever seen,,plus we have sbs,sas

[@jasoncornthwaite8387]

and james bond,,ect,ect lol

[@brandonhamilton833]

Well done boys. Well done!

[@kawagonzo6951]

Lehman: British Would Have Lost Falklands War Without U.S. Support May 29, 1988 LONDON (AP) _ Britain would not have recaptured the Falkland Islands from Argentina in 1982 without U.S. military assistance, former U.S. Navy Secretary John Lehman was quoted Sunday as saying. In a British Broadcasting Corp. television interview to be broadcast Wednesday night, Lehman also says U.S. involvement in the Falklands war led indirectly to the Irangate scandal, the Observer newspaper reported. The weekly said Lehman’s interview will be included in the latest episode of ″An Ocean Apart,″ a BBC documentary series on British-American relations. ADVERTISEMENT ″Britain would have had to have withdraw from the Falklands″ if the Reagan administration withheld support, it quoted Lehman as saying. U.S. military aid in the 74-day war, in which Britain recaptured the South Atlantic archipelago from invading Argentine forces, has been a closely guarded secret, the Observer said. ″Lehman is the first senior U.S. official to claim that the Pentagon’s supplies of intelligence and material were so great as to have been decisive,″ it said.

[@jude_the_apostle]

The french actually had a ‘kill switch’ for Exocet missiles. A device which emitted signals to neutralise the missiles. They never told Britain. Keeping up french-anglo relations

[@cambo123451]

Sounds "legit."

[@markedwards2310]

Made up story by the press - no such thing existed.

[@Sgt_Bill_T_Co]

And when the French radar seeker did not work, the French turned to an English company to sort the problem. Sadly they did....

[@raypurchase801]

The French being French.

[@raypurchase801]

@Phil We Brits saved the French in two world wars. They've never forgiven us.

[@doogleticker5183]

Better result than the Doolittle raid in WWII.

[@panismith1544]

Ha!! The family that adopted me, in New Zealand, and who originally came from England, My Aunts son, who she raised, in England...so that would make him my cousin, but not by blood, He did the planning for the strategic assaults on the Falkland island for all the British forces..& got a OBE, from the queen, for his efforts He did say in a interview he was only doing his job. He eventually retired his rank, Before retirement was Air Vice Marshall of the RAF,

[@grahamtaylor6883]

He sounds like someone you'd want to invite to a dinner party to get the get all those behind the scenes stories. Excellent work.

[@prillewitz]

Super!

[@eigenvalue5775]

"Operation Certain Death." Devil-May-Care attitude. "Who Dares Wins," was it?

[@waynetaylor6337]

The devil would not like to meet these boys ever they are worse than the devil but controlled of course they have a temple switch that God himself allows them to use now and again

[@kawagonzo6951]

Lehman: British Would Have Lost Falklands War Without U.S. Support May 29, 1988 LONDON (AP) _ Britain would not have recaptured the Falkland Islands from Argentina in 1982 without U.S. military assistance, former U.S. Navy Secretary John Lehman was quoted Sunday as saying. In a British Broadcasting Corp. television interview to be broadcast Wednesday night, Lehman also says U.S. involvement in the Falklands war led indirectly to the Irangate scandal, the Observer newspaper reported. The weekly said Lehman’s interview will be included in the latest episode of ″An Ocean Apart,″ a BBC documentary series on British-American relations. ADVERTISEMENT ″Britain would have had to have withdraw from the Falklands″ if the Reagan administration withheld support, it quoted Lehman as saying. U.S. military aid in the 74-day war, in which Britain recaptured the South Atlantic archipelago from invading Argentine forces, has been a closely guarded secret, the Observer said. ″Lehman is the first senior U.S. official to claim that the Pentagon’s supplies of intelligence and material were so great as to have been decisive,″ it said.

[@rjds1800]

Madness

[@loganv0410]

The Generals still proceeding like the Somme never happened, or at least like Sandhurst et al never learned a thing from the Somme.

[@rodrigoquiroga8590]

Neither the Somme nor Gallipoli...

[@timgosling6189]

Hi Harry, how are you?

[@richardmillward8200]

Good men

[@jjsmallpiece9234]

Nevertheless, the military logic makes sense. Sacrifice 2 aircraft and a squad of soldiers to take away the risk of losing ships in the main attack force. If we had lost either aircraft carrier, the war would have been lost.

[@UKinQ8Gaming]

This is amazing to hear, what worries me is the current generation thats able to be selected from for such tasks is dwindeling due to the softening of society these days. I have nothing but respect for these people regardless of your position. They did as asked and the mission and orders were priority.

[@KoreanRambo]

The number of special forces has doubled since 1999, my brother in Christ. Have faith in the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

[@DianaKazimiera-]

🤔 great respect 🕊️

[@philaitch8586]

I was on Nimrods, we refuelled behind Victors, Vulcans and Hercules. Refuelling behind slower aircraft in a shallow dive was a normal procedure, just ask SR71 pilots.

[@pobinr]

Why add music?

[@garystadler5583]

The plan for Operation magarto reminds me of macv sog operations during the vietnam war high risk but high reward operations to destroy or disrupt enemy weapons and supplies and gain intelligence for the mission

[@cycleSCUBA]

This reinforces the not to be taken lightly 'contract' that U.K. Service Staff have that they are expendable, no more than chess pieces - but such is our love for Queen and Country. 🇬🇧

[@williamevans7454]

Queen Elizabeth for ever

[@G58]

That’s not how you spell central banks and multinational corporations, but by all means perpetuate the tired old myths that support this ludicrous pantomime as Brenda shuffles towards her bunting adorned oblivion. The primary purpose of the monarch is to legitimise the legislation drawn up by parliament. It serves no other purpose other than a cover for the actual Crown which is essentially the City of London, which the reigning monarch has to as for permission before visiting - because it is not part of the United Kingdom, just as DC is not part of the United States of America, and The Vatican City is not part of Rome. Flag waving is for slaves. Do some basic research before replying. Oh, and remember that Brenda was photographed giving a salute to a diminutive Austrian of dubious origins, just before the second episode of imperialist slaughter began. We’ve been trained to believe that her uncle David was the weak one who collaborated with those nasty Naaazees, and good old Winston saved us…! Both of those narratives are as incorrect as they are tragically hilariously ridiculous.

[@jameswilson8820]

Or what we are capable of doing😎🇬🇧

[@rossib6974]

England with its unapologetic Queen symbol of Slavery Genocide of occoupied natives with Racist discrimination as ongoing . The USA Buffollo Racial Terrorist was an Azov declared Soldier that England supports .

[@nathanrobbins8513]

HAHAHAA Queen. You are a subject by a german Windsor.. Fool

[@weeddegree]

Standard procedure for the french.. good missile I must say.

[@1951woodygeo]

Most of there Operations are certain death it’s just the fact they are the best that rarely happens and that they lose someone .

[@brusselssprouts560]

All of them are/were the right stuff!

[@dtaylor9673]

One known Exocet in service would equate to one dead Carrier. The mission would be considered almost impossible, but i was surprised the mission was called off. (I wouldn't want to be on it though)

[@soxnation1000]

Even if that were true (which it proved not to be), then this mission would just have resulted in a sunk carrier plus 120 more dead.

[@thefullenergychannel2879]

I didn't know they used the last Exocet missile on the Invincible I followed the entire Falklands conflict from beginning to end

[@fhlostonparaphrase]

They launched it at/towards the Invincible, but didn't score a hit. Something which is a source of Argentine legend, who claim that they hit Invincible, sunk Invincible, but it was covered up afterwards 😛

[@planet_69]

They didn't, the last exocet was fired 18 days later at hms Glamorgan from the shore.

[@paulbarlow9907]

was this by general meltchett

[@l228spn]

Baaah!

[@maquettemusic1623]

Op Mikado was exemplary of the commitment the SAS had to achieving the objective and securing the fleet, attempting to prevent further tragedy if more ships were hit. That said, thank God it didn't happen. It would've been a public relations disaster the Argentinians would've capitalised on, and on top of the loses from the May 19th helicopter crash would've left the SAS severely undermanned and having paid a horrific price for their efforts in the war.

[@kawagonzo6951]

Lehman: British Would Have Lost Falklands War Without U.S. Support May 29, 1988 LONDON (AP) _ Britain would not have recaptured the Falkland Islands from Argentina in 1982 without U.S. military assistance, former U.S. Navy Secretary John Lehman was quoted Sunday as saying. In a British Broadcasting Corp. television interview to be broadcast Wednesday night, Lehman also says U.S. involvement in the Falklands war led indirectly to the Irangate scandal, the Observer newspaper reported. The weekly said Lehman’s interview will be included in the latest episode of ″An Ocean Apart,″ a BBC documentary series on British-American relations. ADVERTISEMENT ″Britain would have had to have withdraw from the Falklands″ if the Reagan administration withheld support, it quoted Lehman as saying. U.S. military aid in the 74-day war, in which Britain recaptured the South Atlantic archipelago from invading Argentine forces, has been a closely guarded secret, the Observer said. ″Lehman is the first senior U.S. official to claim that the Pentagon’s supplies of intelligence and material were so great as to have been decisive,″ it said.

[@maquettemusic1623]

@@kawagonzo6951 And you've commented this why?

[@kawagonzo6951]

@@maquettemusic1623 for everyone to know the truth !!!! argentina rejected Soviet Union help in 82 knowing that it would lead to the ww3...uk instead got nato help ...so yes it wasn't a pic nic as they want you to believe

[@jonb3311]

One of Peter de la Billière's most stupid ideas, that ruined the careers of two men who had far more sense than him.

[@futonclutch5040]

Yep, abysmally planned and doomed to fail had the operation commenced.

[@pip5461]

I remember meeting Peter out there, his handshake nearly broke my wrist, and his breath was equally strong...

[@futonclutch5040]

Got himself banned from SAS regiment reunions due to his books.

[@jonb3311]

@@futonclutch5040 According to one former B squadron member, after the Falklands, he did a debrief and made a right arse of himself and was laughed off the stage.

[@tonywilliams1748]

I'm watching this forty years TO THE DAY that my friend was in the Falklands war. God bless 2 & 3bn Para....happy trails Stevie F if you see this...TJ😎🙂🙂🙂🙂🙂

[@pjofurey6239]

Meanwhile, months before members of the SBS has swum out of torpedo tubes off shore of George sound

[@U2QuoZepplin]

Thank goodness we had friendly countries like Chile and Brazil in the region.

[@maggieo]

I'm reminded of what WWI soldiers would say about the generals, "Donkeys leading lions."

[@Roscoe.P.Coldchain]

Yes and all the while it comes out that the French built in a kill switch inside the missile and could of disarmed it saving all the welsh guards life’s on the Sheffield..That’s what thanks we get for liberating Paris in 1945

[@HORNET6]

Disarm it when and by whom?

[@timhancock6626]

Welsh Guards on HMS Sheffield ? I think you will find they were on RFA Sir Galahad. The French were always extremely kind to my father and the survivors of his regiment in Normandy on their occasional visits to pay their respects to lost comrades.

[@fbloke75]

Maybe they allowed the attack to proceed to prevent the British ships from falling into Argentine hands? 3 July 1940, 1,297 French servicemen slaughtered by British Navy… and you feel they owed Britain a favour for its wartime activities. Go read a history book, if you can drag yourself away from GBnews for five minutes 😂

[@longtabsigo]

Good thing they were not part of the raid at St Nazarre

[@heybabycometobutthead]

Every time I see Argentine comments saying "Las Malvinas" I ponder on how they found a video titled "Falklands". They must have had to type in "Falklands" in the search bar, which must have infuriated them, why they continually look for English videos to start arguments is beyond me, Churchill once said "a fanatic is someone who never changes the subject and never shuts up". In Argentine primary schools they actually indoctrinate children with this fanatical nonsense, it's actually pretty sick doing this to children, and not teaching them to form their own opinions objectively.

[@heybabycometobutthead]

@Phil I believe commonwealth nations should refuse any migrants from Argentina, they'll only bring their poison with them.

[@ricbarker4829]

I hate to burst your bubble, but if you put "Las Malvinas" in the KZbin search, you get a shitload of results with "Falklands" in the title, nice try though.

[@heybabycometobutthead]

@@ricbarker4829 Well they still had to click on the video didn't they! sorry to burst your bubble.

[@ricbarker4829]

@@heybabycometobutthead Your whole premise was that they had the indignation of having to type in "Falklands", they didn't.

[@heybabycometobutthead]

@@ricbarker4829 My premise was they specifically look for British videos to start arguments, they do, I've watched a dozen Argentine videos on the Falklands war and found a couple of comments from British people starting arguments, but you can go to literally ANY Falklands war video on KZbin and the entire comment section is littered with Argentine comments starting arguments, this is a fact.

[@strangelee4400]

I had to yomp to goose green...well there were no lavvies!

[@onetrickhorse]

Ha! Hope you packed plenty of Mars bars!

[@ivanbasson982]

I Have only 2 words of comment... Saryet Matkal...

[@alantoon5708]

Fortunately it was not proceeded with....

[@G58]

The way Maggie thanked Pinochet was interesting wasn’t it…? Alway heartwarming when the prime minister is cozy with a despotic mass murderer and gives him safe passage…! Newton’s third law

[@G58]

@Phil And SIS collaborated with CIA to put Mugabe in power. The intelligence agencies serve the interests of the banks and multinational corporations. Peace

[@G58]

@Phil it actually goes back to Francis Walsingham who was Elizabeth 1’s infamous spymaster. The banking link really becomes obvious during the Napoleonic war when Rothschild made use of his network of spies to amass sufficient profits to gain control over the Bank of England. In order to begin to understand the true situation around the Cambridge situation, it’s necessary to attempt to separate fact from fiction, and make some sense of the narratives employed. During the Cold War, the USA was supplying technology to the Soviet Union. This included the Gaz truck factory, supplied by Ford via Fiat in Italy. But it even extended to intercontinental ballistic missile technology! So the alleged issues between the US and UK intelligence agencies were a narrative designed for public consumption. We also need to remember that whenever spies are revealed, it is usually in order to protect more valuable assets, and to distract the masses from whatever is really going on. A case in point could be Roger Hollis of course, and therefore by extension, another could be James Jesus Angleton. Every whistleblower, even Peter Wright, is also only a limited hangout. The mainstream media is just the propaganda arm of the intelligence services and the commercial interests of the banks and multinational corporations. What we are told by dear old Frank Gardner comes directly from his main employer just over the river. And all the wars of course are proxy wars begun by assets run by the intelligence agencies on behalf of their real masters. Or it’s just like Smiley and Jason Bourne…! 🧐

[@G58]

@Phil Research the connections between the number 201, everything that’s going on in the world, and the Jesuit Order. The evidence is irrefutable. Let me know what you find. Only 7 years ago I would not have believed it, despite researching this subject since 9-11. Bear in mind that my background is in that game, and I was initially attempting to prove the case FOR UBL being responsible for 9-11, and arguing against the ‘conspiracy theories’ that the USA and Israel collaborated. It’s a very very deep rabbit hole. But the evidence is there if you look for it employing the first principles. Good luck.

[@YAHUAHsgotmysix]

1937 map ??

[@LogieT2K]

Yep, old maps and charts

[@LogieT2K]

Thats how unimportant that part of world was untill the conflict started haha

[@chrismac2234]

Op certain death has been used every time they get out the land rover.

[@COIcultist]

Only five missiles? They tried to fire 3 at the Glamorgan from the Falklands after this point in time.

[@javierbrito4436]

Those were ship based missiles (MM38) bright and secretly converted into land based ones.

[@canerguener8664]

A planning in the tradition of Mountbatton

[@michaelshanemoore4248]

Good film very informative wasn't it.

[@stevedunn5546]

Please correct me if I am wrong. Excocet French. Rhinemetal German. Let's hope they did not sell them to the Argentinians during the conflict.

[@wills2552]

Wow, well thank goodness they decided to cancel it for all involved.

[@jaybee9269]

The Chileans were quite eager to mess with the Argentines in the 1980s.

[@kawagonzo6951]

they were lucky argentina chose wrong war one to fight!...Argentina should have destroy Chile instad

[@MadAdventure919]

There is an important part that they forgot to mention. The Brazilian government at the time informed Thatcher that if there was any aggression on the South American mainland by any European countries, Brazil would invoke the TIAR (Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance) in other words, all South American countries would enter the war. This was the main reason for the British to abort the mission and concentrate solely on the Falklands.

[@adamdriver1016]

All? Chile? Not a 'cat in hell's' chance that any South American country would have declared war on the UK over this. When your economy is broken and drug gangs are destroying your country, do you really want to declare war on the UK, with the reprecssions that entails?

[@MadAdventure919]

@@adamdriver1016 In 1982 geopolitics were very different from today. The main player in South America is Brazil. Brazil's response to England was that, if any European country attack the American continent, all member countries of the alliance would enter the war. That's why the SAS mission was aborted. This document is well detailed in the files of the CIA and the Brazilian defense department. The Brazilian and American governments were very emphatic in warning England not to expand the war beyond the Falklands. The Chile military probably would be neutral and expelled afterwards.

[@adamdriver1016]

@@MadAdventure919 England? England hasn't existed for over two centuries. My friend, if you wish to discuss history then you have to get the basics right.

[@MadAdventure919]

@@adamdriver1016 whatever Mr. G.B

[@lawrencejob]

Please take the vignette button away from the editor

[@brokenarrow2753]

Argentinians quickly understood that explosive charge of the Exocet was slightly underpowered so they decided to shoot them by pair against British ships with bright success. Argentinian pilots were fresh from their Super Etendard training in France and had proven to be very proficient at it. 4 fighters of the type had been delivered to the fleet alongside 5 Exocets only, while 20 had been previously paid and ordered. There's no doubt of the disastrous consequences for the 2nd Naval power of the time if the 20 missiles would have been delivered to the Argentine Navy before the french embargo took place!

[@maryjane-ei4hl]

Had Argentina waited for all 20 Exocets to be delivered before they attacked the Falklands , the war would have been very much more terrible. The British would have known that Argentina possessed 20, and so would have kept their ships far away in safety until the threat was eliminated or reduced massively. The only way the British could have reduced the huge threat posed by 20 Exocets, would have been to send their Vulcans to bomb Argeninian air bases . It would have been terrible. Great loss of life in Argentina, some British Vulcans shot down, and the war escalating to terrifying proportions . The Argentinian government were stupid all along, they were stupid to invade. I am grateful however that their stupidity extended to not waiting for the complete order of Exocets. I'm glad the war was over quickly , and that the suffering less than it could have been.

[@tomsoki5738]

@@maryjane-ei4hl Given the difficulty of getting enough conventional bombs to the mainland to do the job I wouldn’t rule out the use of tactical nuclear weapons

[@maryjane-ei4hl]

@@tomsoki5738 Neither would I. As I said it could have become terrible .

[@kawagonzo6951]

@@maryjane-ei4hl Lehman: British Would Have Lost Falklands War Without U.S. Support May 29, 1988 LONDON (AP) _ Britain would not have recaptured the Falkland Islands from Argentina in 1982 without U.S. military assistance, former U.S. Navy Secretary John Lehman was quoted Sunday as saying. In a British Broadcasting Corp. television interview to be broadcast Wednesday night, Lehman also says U.S. involvement in the Falklands war led indirectly to the Irangate scandal, the Observer newspaper reported. The weekly said Lehman’s interview will be included in the latest episode of ″An Ocean Apart,″ a BBC documentary series on British-American relations. ADVERTISEMENT ″Britain would have had to have withdraw from the Falklands″ if the Reagan administration withheld support, it quoted Lehman as saying. U.S. military aid in the 74-day war, in which Britain recaptured the South Atlantic archipelago from invading Argentine forces, has been a closely guarded secret, the Observer said. ″Lehman is the first senior U.S. official to claim that the Pentagon’s supplies of intelligence and material were so great as to have been decisive,″ it said.

[@paulshuttleworth6261]

I don’t think we would have dropped nukes on them. I think there would probably be a different flag flying The Falklands, with a Cold War between Britain and Argentina. Nuclear subs blockading Argentinian ports and a diplomatic solution eventually. I’ve never seen any firm evidence why they DIDN’T wait for Exocets.

[@robertmuller5039]

Very brave men!

[@jaxthedog909]

Sorry I thought op certain death was fighting the west side boys when 12 Irish rangers were taken hostage it wasn't the actual name.

[@planet_69]

If they had put sufficient forces there to defend the place the argys wouldnt have invaded.

[@jonwalker8415]

like the light brigade, they knew the consequences, but would have gone anyway...

[@joelgalvan8358]

Adage is, do not mess with the , iron maiden.

[@1geoser]

How nuts is this: „Suicide mission…“ basically we expect soldiers to commit suicide but viewers, viewers! Might suffer unbearable psychological trauma by watching this. Sic transit gloria mundi.

[@davidedbrooke9324]

Plum duff, mmmmm

[@jeraldsamuel5598]

This whole program contains dubious and questionable claims 1. The account of air 2 air refuelling by Victor tanker to Hercules sounds implausible. I don't belive a Victor could not have flown slow enough and a Herc fast enough to synchronise speeds in level flight. Even if they could not didn't the RAF have VC-10 tankers at the time??? 2. Did the recce force helicopter really fly from a task force ship. Some books claim it flew from Chile???? 3. Why no mention of co-operation from Chilean gov 4. SAS man's claims about air 2 air refuelling method would have been more BELIEVABLE coming from the Herc pilot 5.Obvious question, why did not RAF launch a VULCAN raid on Rio Grande at low level dropping mix of air burst/ time delay bombs aiming for the aircraft sheds at Rio Grande and repeat the trick against other Argentine air bases. Vulcan strike against Port Stanley Airport a wasted effort against the WRONG TARGET. 6. SAS clearly NOT supermen🙄.

[@benwholoves4450]

Random: why do old men not groom their eyebrows?

[@willbrink]

One of the worlds top military nations in their time and easily the best navy in their time, are bloodied badly by a third world military over worthless islands. A true low point for Brits, and without the highly trained and dedicated people they had such as the SAS, would have been much worse. They may even have lost...

[@littleshep5502]

It wasn't really bloodied badly, and it was also up against a much larger force

[@willbrink]

@@littleshep5502 They lost way more ships than they should have, and considering their opponents, where far more bloodied than one would expect. They were simply very poorly prepared to meet the challenge and admitted as much. Hopefully lessons learned, but we in the US seem to fail to learn from our hard lessons too sadly.

[@littleshep5502]

@@willbrink The CIA thought otherwise. The rumours about sattelite information (which was one image sent to both sides, to let them know America was watching), comes from the fact there was a spy sattelite moved to watch the conflict. They noted how it was rather impressive that they kept most of the ships safe, when only having 20 harriers up at any one time, against a force that had 190 planes at its disposal. Britain lost 6 ships, took down 8, lost ten planes, took down 45, lost 250 ish men, and (officially, evidence suggests hiding of casualties) took down 650 men. By all means it was a sucess

[@jasoncornthwaite8387]

a true low point for brits? we are in the 80s ,no empire, world got stronger as it does,,the argies had better tech , more of ,ect,ect,, and a small country sailed miles away with the best ,clever,ect,ect army ,the brits at the time just showed the world were it all started from,a few highly trained nutters,,lol

[@acidpunker1]

Your grasp of military history, strategy and tactics is second to everyone.

[@garagenigel]

And Thatcher and the Tories take credit for this all of this!

[@mbak7801]

The Falklands was a super success and very much thanks to Maggie. So yes she and the Conservative party can be justifiably proud.

[@garagenigel]

@@mbak7801 yeah that much of a success she was considering a ceasefire! She and they could have avoided the war completely! Absolute embarrassment! All those dead soldiers on both sides for nothing!

[@englishjona6458]

😂

[@paulmorris6177]

Amazing how far tech has come since then! Now our stealths can go in, bomb an airport, runways and missile batteries and never been seen by those radars, let alone fired on by the guns!

[@zkcessnaguy]

Nowadays the Excocet/Super Etendard threat would be dealt with using submarine launched Tomahawk cruise missiles.

[@paulmorris6177]

@@zkcessnaguy…That would be ONE of the assets that we’d use. It’s called “Combined Arms” for a reason. Being a JTAC that could also call in IDF and NGF gave me a unique perspective on how much firepower one person/team can bring to bear!

[@tmanthemost1157]

If Britain would've invaded Argentina it would have been an international outrage and the USA would probably withdraw support. It was also mentioned by general Galtieri that it would also endanger the lives of the Flakland civilians

[@Genghis-Khan121]

Eh? We went to liberate the Falklands from Argentinian troops nothing more !! What’s invading Argentina got to do with anything???

[@tmanthemost1157]

@@Genghis-Khan121 It’s a response to another comment idiot do you think I just said that out of the blue lol

[@fhlostonparaphrase]

Invading and occupying the Falklands doesn't endanger the lives of the civilians then?

[@factsdontcareaboutyourfeel7204]

What support lmao

[@tmanthemost1157]

@@factsdontcareaboutyourfeel7204 The military aid that they gave to Britain and cut corners since NATO only applies to the northern hemisphere

[@festungkurland9804]

pretty dumb plan lol.

[@TheCatBilbo]

The best laid plans...& this wasn't one of them, like Operation Market Garden in WW2. Everyone, no matter how experienced, well-trained & talented at their role, needs someone to sometimes tell them, "No, this won't work - it's too risky, too many elements could go wrong; think again". That's especially true when some overestimate just how good they & their people are, because they are elite, successful & 'winners'. Or, they're taken-in by their own propaganda & self-belief: Hitler, Napoleon & now Putin are prime examples.

[@dusty7264]

Many of the SEALS that took out OSB didn’t think they were coming back either

[@MICHAEL-wg2lh]

You really believe that's actually happened lol

[@dusty7264]

@@MICHAEL-wg2lh sure it’s on U-Tube 😉

[@louissanderson719]

@@MICHAEL-wg2lh yep.

[@MICHAEL-wg2lh]

@@louissanderson719 lol

[@phluxtersharpe4646]

Horrible plan

[@outdooradventureHungary]

the Falkland War and Desert Storm 1991 was the high point of the western world since this time its just go down every day

[@tugmckiltoff1564]

Gruss aus England! We all owe Putin a great debt of gratitude for bringing us back together.

[@kawagonzo6951]

Lehman: British Would Have Lost Falklands War Without U.S. Support May 29, 1988 LONDON (AP) _ Britain would not have recaptured the Falkland Islands from Argentina in 1982 without U.S. military assistance, former U.S. Navy Secretary John Lehman was quoted Sunday as saying. In a British Broadcasting Corp. television interview to be broadcast Wednesday night, Lehman also says U.S. involvement in the Falklands war led indirectly to the Irangate scandal, the Observer newspaper reported. The weekly said Lehman’s interview will be included in the latest episode of ″An Ocean Apart,″ a BBC documentary series on British-American relations. ADVERTISEMENT ″Britain would have had to have withdraw from the Falklands″ if the Reagan administration withheld support, it quoted Lehman as saying. U.S. military aid in the 74-day war, in which Britain recaptured the South Atlantic archipelago from invading Argentine forces, has been a closely guarded secret, the Observer said. ″Lehman is the first senior U.S. official to claim that the Pentagon’s supplies of intelligence and material were so great as to have been decisive,″ it said.

[@outdooradventureHungary]

@@kawagonzo6951 and?

[@davidcowley]

Their bravery knows no bounds.

[@Baddad36]

The myth of the SAS being superhuman and phenomenally trained always takes a bash when stories such as this and of course the first Iraq war come out. With regards to the intelligence and senior officers above them, what a shambles.

[@Nick051967]

Not sure how you could watch that video and listen to the testimony of those involved and come to that conclusion.

[@onetrickhorse]

Superhuman, no. Phenomenally trained, yes. To repurpose and somewhat bastardise an old famous quote, "any sufficiently well-trained and organised group of soldiers will appear to be superhuman to the untrained and disorganised"...

[@craig3420]

yes nigel..everything going up..because of brexit

[@AA-69]

THATCHERS LACKIES !!!

[@dubb3835]

As a American I will only commit American blood (which I deem more precious than gold and diamonds) to aide 3 countries 1 Australia (the Valor they shown in ww2 I have no words) 2 UK (not the government bc well I'm American you know the stories but the average British soldiers are stand up men and their Valor in both ww1 and ww2 I again have no words) 3 Poland (my ancestral homeland and the polish solders are beast even under occupation they showed Valor) other than those 3 the world can burn

[@kawagonzo6951]

Lehman: British Would Have Lost Falklands War Without U.S. Support May 29, 1988 LONDON (AP) _ Britain would not have recaptured the Falkland Islands from Argentina in 1982 without U.S. military assistance, former U.S. Navy Secretary John Lehman was quoted Sunday as saying. In a British Broadcasting Corp. television interview to be broadcast Wednesday night, Lehman also says U.S. involvement in the Falklands war led indirectly to the Irangate scandal, the Observer newspaper reported. The weekly said Lehman’s interview will be included in the latest episode of ″An Ocean Apart,″ a BBC documentary series on British-American relations. ADVERTISEMENT ″Britain would have had to have withdraw from the Falklands″ if the Reagan administration withheld support, it quoted Lehman as saying. U.S. military aid in the 74-day war, in which Britain recaptured the South Atlantic archipelago from invading Argentine forces, has been a closely guarded secret, the Observer said. ″Lehman is the first senior U.S. official to claim that the Pentagon’s supplies of intelligence and material were so great as to have been decisive,″ it said.

[@aliancemd]

The title of the video should be "How UK fought its Imperialistic Wars across the globe but the mission was abandoned"...

[@petersummers5728]

Where were our harriers when Atlantic conveyor was being sunk? ??????? Hiding onboard our carriers??????

[@Ifakojesfd]

didn't have time to read the text :(