I'm glad for you reminding that Argentina was a eper opponent back then. They had solid jets, good missiles, trained pilots, a friggin airccraft carrier and submarines too. They even used the same destroyer as the UK did. The UK beating them off the islands was basically considered impossible by the world, even the US told them they couldn't do it. The Brits went anyway and proved the entire world wrong.
They used the same Destroyer as us because a few years before, we sold it to 'em! :) In fact, so much was similar between the 2 sides, right down to the rifles the troopers carried.
@@jamesbutton2904 the FAL right? Wasn't the argentine version capable of full auto and the English task force modified theirs during the trip down to do the same.
@@samuelwilliams3130 Yup. That was the only difference between them, all because the Generals of the time didn't trust our squaddies not to go haywire and let all their ammo off in one go!
I used to work with a Falklander when that conflict was on, and he was very worried about his parents in Stanley... but they were OK as it turned out....
My dad was a crew chief on that Vulcan Squadron. They had to scavenge bits from aircraft museums to outfit those planes. I even had a Vulcan bomb aiming joystick converted to use on my Commodore Amiga back in the day
You want to know how old the Vulcan actually was, it was one of the first aircraft in the world to have fly by wire technology, it paved the way for the F18, F16, the typhoon, the F15 with this technology and I am glad I have had the chance to sit in Vulcan XJ823
there is a lot of rivalry between the branches of military in the UK but as a former para who was on the ground on the Falkland Islands we had the greatest of respect for the Royal Navy and the RAF in particular for what they did to help us, it was amazing to have the harriers in the sky with ground attack capability.
Harrier was retired far too quickly. It wasn’t stealthy or especially fast but none were lost to Argentine aircraft and they gave excellent ground attack cover. US Marines are still using them. So much for being outdated.
A friend of mine was in the marines and was sent to the Falklands. He said the hardest fight was with the Paras on the way down on the same ship. Was this true?
I was in the army when the Falklands were invaded. Placed on standby for deployment. I lost friends when the Galahad was hit, another saw action on Tumbledown. I felt left behind, twiddling my thumbs waiting for orders that never came. This raid still holds the record, all the others landed to refuel during the missions. The Vulcan was a fantastic aircraft and it was huge, I have seen loads flying during my school camp close to one of the bases. They have a very distinctive howling sound. USAF didn't like them because they were used as opposing forces in North America air defence exercises. Twice they beat the defences to hit their targets. We did have a joke after the Stanley raid. What does Mr Spock's mother and Port Stanley Airport have in common? They've both been f****d by Vulcans.
@@ragupasta yes. In the mid 60’s I believe. The RAF were tasked as enemy forces on an annual exercise run by the USAF. The Brits were an attacking strategic force that American interceptors were tasked to bring down. The first year they hit New York and Washington with the simulated loss of only 2 Vulcans. The second year, they simulated a hit on New York, washington and Las Vegas with zero losses. They weren’t invited back for a third year 😂
@@smudger746.... Operation skyshield 1&2 in 1960&1961. The Pentagon were so pissed all reference to Vulcans was classified for nearly 50 years, finally being declassified in 1997 !
The pilot of that raid, Martin Withers, lives a few miles from me and I've met him several times. He's one of the most modest, quiet men you'll ever meet. He doesn't appear like a war hero, but he is one.
I think that Flt Lt Biglands (named as flying White 4) was one of my A-level physics teachers. We knew he was ex-RAF, but he was completely self-effacing and made it sound like flying tankers was essentially a delivery job. The Ch4 documentary with Martin Withers and others came out several years after I left school, and while I had vague recollections of the Falklands conflict from my early childhood, I wasn't aware of Black Buck until much later.
The Vulcan was truly an incredible aircraft. Two aircraft that have given me goosebumps and made me actually emotional. To see and hear a Spitfire in full flow and when Vulcan XH558 made her last flights tour across the UK…. I will never forget that incredible Howl she made.
Saw one fly at RIAT 2016 I believe it was and I'll tell you now mate it was bloody awesome. And like you say seeing the spitfires fly in formation is mint aswell. Recently saw the Lancaster flying near me too! Seriously something else
I saw XH588 at Dawlish in 2015 (she first flew in 1960). The pilot flew a right to left with the underside facing the crowd. The engines sang like a sewing machines. Then he lit the burners and stood her on the tail and up into the clouds. A few years before, she was flying over Duxford and literally stopped traffic. People jammed in the anchors and jumped out to watch the plane doing circuits. Absolutely stunning.
This is what makes us Brits proud of the RAF, facing the odds like in the Battle of Britain, and "flying by the seat of their pants" to overcome those odds. True heroes, every one of them.
This operation made me laugh and I was actually serving with the RAf at that time. And today what has happened. A block on recuriting white men in favour of women and ethnics. It took 104 years to build a eputation and it took the CAS Sir Mike Wigston 3 days to destroy it
@@jimwalsh8520 indeed. My family were RAF bomber command and they took a steaming dump on the RAF and the memory of the lost aircrews. Absolutely not what they gave their lives for
Yep and the Falklands is known globally as it's where the harrier earned it's place in history, got the see a harrier in person in 2015, ironically it was on a base
Yes, and the 2 year's versus the Germans, the seminal World At War episode 4: ALONE, It must be because its narrated by Lawrence Olivier or that you actually get to hear from the likes of Oberbannsturmfuhrer Adolf Galland of the Luftwaffe, Apparently it cost £11,600,000 into days money the most ever spent on a factual documentary series.
I remember reading about a local woman in Stanley, who heard the bombs from the Vulcan. That was good news, but she still didn't know if the British really were coming to save them. But a week or two later, she heard gunfire from the airfield across the bay from Stanley. That was not uncommon, as the Argies kept practicing with their turboprop Pucara attack aircraft that could still use what was left of the runway. But this sounded different. So she looked out, and saw small jet aircraft strafing the airfield, and Argie gunfire back at them. It took her a few seconds to realize what this must be. Carrier-based British single-seat jets attacking the airfield. And that must mean that the Royal Navy was close by! They were coming to the rescue! Best feeling ever! 🥲
Great story, my son's a Royal Marine and was one of the ten Marines (two from each regiment) chosen to represent Commando brigade for the Falklands 40th anniversary celebrations and he said he learned more from speaking to locals who'd been there during the invasion and recapture, he said it was a truly emotional experience to see how much it meant to Falklanders, many of whom assisted our troops by transporting them in their landrovers or just simply giving them shelter in their barns while they were yomping overland to Port Stanley.
As in the seizure of the Altmark by HMS Cossack to recapture British prisoners, the shout went up: "The Navy's here!" For those who do not know the story, in early WWII Altmark was a German supply ship supporting German commerce raiders. Surviving crew men from sunken vessels were transferred to her. Being pursued by the RN, she had run for shelter in a Norwegian fjord. At that point Norway was strictly neutral and would not allow the British access (the German line being "prisoners, what prisoners?"). So ignoring the nearby gunboat HMS Cossack, a destroyer, sailed up the fjord and took Altmark by boarding, freeing the captives! I reckon Nelson would have approved. Presumably the Norwegian gunboat also turned a blind eye! I remember "The Navy's here" being a catchphrase implying all is well, someone who doesn't pee about has taken control of the situation. I refuse to say exactly when that was.
There most certainly is a book, is called 'Vulcan 607' by Roland Whyte. And it is an absolutely cracking read! I can def recommend it 👍 Love the channel and content - all top class - keep them coming Sir!, 🇬🇧🇺🇸👍😊
He also wrote a book called Phoenix Squadron with the two Buccaneers over British Hondurus. Also a great read. The Black Buck 1 documentary is good, it has 1st hand accounts from the pilots
There are some great documentaries about this raid on YT. There is one that has interviews with the pilots and gives some background to the planes. (only months away from being broken up for scrap before the war started).
Saw one good documentary about them get those old bombers up and running. One British airman described some situations that would be fitting of a Mighty Python sketch. They were searching for one critical part when they found it. It was in the pilots lodge area. The old steel part somehow became an ash tray. No, I'm not kidding. 😀
i flew 2 sorties tht night in a victor tanker. A short trip to give our fuel to another tanker and a long one some hours later to meet the vulcan as it came out of the falklands. Dick Russel, a victor QFI who did the refuelling in the vulcan told me later they did not even have enough fuel to reach Brazil! A really long night. Repeated several times!!!!!!
I agree, My father was part of the BP volunteers that manned the fuel tankers and the fact the attack aircraft went back to mainland Argentina to protect their own airspace against Vulcan attack, probably kept that fleet safe too.
Avro Vulcan is an absolute beast. Same engines as Concorde. The last flying Vulcan did a flying tour over the UK prior to being decommissioning. If you haven't seen it look at check out 'When Britain Nuked America....Twice!' by Mark Felton. It's been done to death a bit by Reaction channels, but it is interesting and gives interesting detail on Vulcan tactics etc.
They were Bristol Olympus, which evolved into Rolls Royce olympus engines. Most notable difference, is the Vulcan didn't have re-heat, whereas Concorde did. Martin Withers often flew XH558 (last flying Vulcan)
@@capncolyep. Same engine model, different types. Vulcan uses the RR Olympus 201 and 301 series. While Concorde uses the Olympus 593, which is same used by the infamous BAC/BAE TSR.2
I remember reading that the vulcans were missing a part needed for air to air fuelling, as it was years before since they last did this, with much searching they found the part in the officer mess being used as an ashtray
It is an amazing book. Possibly the best aviation book I've ever read. Although 'Skunk Works' does come in very close. Books, huh? Who remembers them? 😉
Some other Black Buck Stories that I remember - When all the Victors were coming back to Ascension they were landing into the wind very short on fuel, because of the direction of the wind they'd normally have to turn round and taxi the length of the runway to vacate it, after each landing, but because they were so low on fuel there wasn't enough time so some of them had to just pull right to the end of the runway and sit there hoping that the ones behind them wouldn't have any brake problems! Secondly because the Victor tanker came further south to refuel the Vulcan on its return leg it didn't have enough fuel to make it back to Ascension if it gave the Vulcan enough fuel to get home - the crew made the decision to pass the fuel anyway and radioed Ascension so in order to get one of the tankers that had already landed had quickly refuelled and scrambled out to refuel him - which they managed to do.
There's also the story of what happened when the refueling probe broke off on one of the Vulcans returning to Ascension on a subsequent raid - it ended up landing in Rio de Janiero
And remember that the returning Victor crew could not call for aid until AFTER the attack took place , to avoid alerting the enemy to funny goings on , all the other radio traffic was on minimum power , so they wited for the code call from the Vulcan .
@@philstothard8333 If I remember correctly, Tuxfords aircraft didn't radio they were low on fuel because of the radio silence, but the planners on Wideawake realised his a/c would be low on fuel and scrambled a tanker to meet it.
On the age of the AVRO Vulcan and it’s technology, it’s worth remembering that the maiden flight of the AVRO Vulcan was 1952, just 11 years after the maiden flight of the AVRO Lancaster, it was, in essence designed toward the end of WW2.
The Vulcan was due to be retired within months. The bomb guidance "computer" was not updated because precision bombing wasn't needed with a nuclear bomb. Some of the refueling equipment had to come from retired planes in Canada. The vulcan squadrons were not front line by this time. Nuclear capability having moved to submarines. The crews had to get up to combat readiness in weeks
Vulcans had nuclear strike as their primary mission until they where phased out of service as part of SACEUR's NATO nuclear strike force. The majority of the refueling equipment removed from Vulcans in Museums didn't go on to other Vulcans, but were used in crash programs to give the RAF C-130 Hercules and Nimrods AAR capability.
I think you'll find the Tornado GR1's took over the nuclear capability from the Vulcan. I was posted to 617 Sqn at Marham in early '82 and was on my Tornado courses whilst the war was going on. The Sqn then worked up to strike declaration to NATO in '82 or early '83 if I remember correctly together with 27 Sqn, 9 Sqn etc at Honington and later the various Sqns in Germany: 15, 16, 17, 31 etc.
@@125brat Yes they did, but as you have stated, there is a major difference between when a squadron forms and equips with a new aircraft and when it is declared combat ready (declared to SACEUR). Normally takes 12 to 18 months. A Squadron being taken off NATO Orbat and being disbanded can be on the same day (though there can be a few weeks between the two to allow disposal of equipment and have the wrap up events)
The USA built the Wideawake Airfield, on Ascension Island, during WW2. It subsequently became a Joint Intelligence "Listening Post", NASA Coms station and Cable & Wireless facility. In 1982, for a brief period, it was the world's busiest runway; today, it also serves as a stop-off point for the flight to RAF Mount Pleasant, on East Falkland.
Flying back from FI in '97 courtesy of Crab Air, 03:00 Local, nigh on 40°C the Castle Lager was something like £3 for 6, the beer was kept in a chest freezer!
Unfortunately at the moment it doesn't, the runway has been closed to the FI airbridge since 2017. They are routing through Cape Verde, they were using Senegal for a bit. Runway should be repaired and open again mid '23. Then the airbridge will come back. For now we get an A400 once every 3 weeks and the US puts a C17 in at about the same frequency. So yeah it's pretty quiet!
Add into the equation the chief designer of the Vulcan Roy Chadwick most famous design was the WW2 Avro Lancaster, as for air to air refueling, one of the Vulcan pilots described it as being like "inserting wet spaghetti upa cats arse"
Mid air refuelling dates back to the 1920s in very basic form in the US. The modern concept was designed in the 1930s in the UK and perfected towards the end of WWII as a way of getting Avro Lancasters on to very long range bombing missions against Japan. Look up Tiger Force.
It’s correct that the B2 took the record for the longest bombing mission but it’s important to remember that there is a key difference. The B2 always benefitted from pre-positioned refuelling assets eg Guam, Diego Garcia, or US assets based in UK when doing Kosovo. For the Vulcan raid, everything required had to take off from Ascension. Oh, and the book everyone has mentioned (which is great!) explains that there was no diversion available for landing. After dropping bombs it was, literally, Ascension or bust!
@@MyScubasteve I think you need to go and research why and how they ended up in Brazil. In a war (which is what it was) you need to be able to be based in your own territory or that of allies. There were no allies in South America… at best there were neutral nations. Brazil refused, several times, to give Black Buck 6 clearance to land and when they did it was because the crew were a bit liberal with the truth and just went for it. Brazil impounded the jet - hardly a neutral stance - an action which was expected which is why the tried to dispose of a lot of documents and ordnance before landing. That’s why Ascension or bust. Go and look it up before making unqualified statements. If you think I’m wrong give me some references that support your view - or your experience/qualifications for why you know different. Happy to discuss.
I don't know about now, but at the time of the Falklands conflict the Royal Marines had an Illustrator Branch as part of their reconnaissance capability. During the fighting three of the instructors produced cartoons to send out to the troops to keep morale up. Afterwards they were put into a book to raise money for the South Atlantic Fund. A lot of the jokes are at the expense of the other British forces (SBS disguised as sheep being surprised by lonely Argentinean soldiers out on the moors, Royal Navy ratings gluing turf onto the deck of an aircraft carrier to make the RAF Harrier pilots feel at home), but there's also one of a Vulcan swooping low over Port Stanley airport with one worried looking Argentinean soldier shouting to another "Caramba Pablo... if that's the size of their planes... just how big is their aircraft carrier?!". It might be worth checking ebay for "Up The Falklands! Cartoons from the Royal Marines", by Warrant Officer Roy Carr, Colour Sergeant Arthur Huddart, and Sergeant John R. Webb.
There's a classic one by Tugg, Matelot loafing by the guard rail shouts to a few royals in a landing craft "Ere! Royal! How'd you manage a run ashore then?"
Hi Theo, I knew about this raid but it was really great watching it and learning how risky it was, everyone in that Vulcan should of got a medal, anyway I just wanted to say that my father served on the Falklands and he brought back an Argentinian bayonet for my mates collection.🇬🇧🤙
The Bombing computer on the Vulcan was a later development of H2S, the WWII system, and the computer used bicycle chains and pulleys, not string, as it was intended to survive nuclear radiation in the attack. It worked well. The problem was that they had no maps of the South Atlantic, so they had mostly-blank maps turned upside down, with numbers and target pencilled in.
My late husband's RAF groundcrew career (1960-1982) coincided with the V force and QRAs. He worked on First and second line maintenance of Victor and Vulcan electronics, and especially the Navigational Bombing Systems (NBS). His last 2yrs were spent on the Nimrod development but the project, which he said was cancelled for political reasons; saddled the RAF with the vastly inferior American AWACS system. It seems to me that it was just one more poor political decision which, added to TSR2 and Blue Streak, helped destroy Britain's major independent military industry. Our last Hurrah was the world-beating Harrier jump-jet but, when they couldn't scotch that too, our "leaders" sold a manufacturing licence to the USA, thus depriving the UK of the employment and financial rewards of UK-based production. Nowadays, we are reduced to buying American kit or building bits ofEurofighters. Life changes. But, in my view, some of our decline is self-inflicted and due to our unwillingness to invest in the long-term view.
It must have been a major shock to the Argentinian military, because they would have assumed that the Falkland Islands were out of bombing range. As the Vulcan was designed as a nuclear bomber, they didn't think that the Vulcan needed a high precision bombing computer 💣
there was a doc few years back its called " Operations Black Buck Falklands' Most Daring Raid " its on youtube too but you hear it from the pilots and electronic officers them self's from this flight as they are talking about what happend getting there and back
Thanks for recommending that one, just watched it. Fantastic to hear from actual airmen who took part in the raid and how close to aborting or failure. Great documentary 👌
Ascension Island Is very interesting becasue it was originall just a big rock. Basically a rocky volcano. Charles Darwin and others in the navy teraformed it and now it has tropical forests. It was a stopping point and had a base used by the navy for a long time. They would stop there on their way to checking on Napoleon who was exiled on St Helena.
There’s a Victor Tanker on display at the Yorkshire Air Museum (just outside of York). While bombers have bombing marks on their sides, and fighters have kill marks, the tanker had petrol station symbols as marks of a successful mission. I think the museum has/had an exhibit on over the summer since it’s the 40th anniversary of the falklands conflict.
A few months ago I visited Norwich Airfield museum and found that they had a Vulcan bomber and that for a remarkable small fee you could have a guided personal tour and talk inside the cockpit, what a day. It’s a pity I can’t post a photo and video as it really shows the cramped interior for the 2 pilots and 3 crew
I recently had a bit of time on my hands in Norwich (UK). Went round to the aircraft museum by the airport. The Vulcan has no space at all literally a cockpit and a small room below for the electronic warfare, bomb operator, engineer. The Nimrod was basically a comet (first jet passenger plane) with spy equipment on. They also did similar missions down in the Falklands that aren't documented as much as the Vulcans. There were for listening in on communications and ship/sub hunting.
The development of air to air refuelling as we know it today was started late in and immediately after WW2. There is an airfield close to where I live where Lancaster bombers were converted to tankers and Gloster Meteors were the receiving aircraft operated out of for a while.
Modern flight refueling (drogue and probe) was pioneered in late 1930s for Imperial Airways by Flight Refueling Ltd (Cobham) - and still based in Bournemouth. There were other attempted methods have been around since the birth of aviation - but it was Cobhams probe and drogue system which succeeded and was tested by the RAF using the Meteors and Lancasters in the late 1940s. The USAF "flying boom" allows for higher fuel rates, but requires greater precision and coordination between the tanker and reciever. The probe & drogue is a more forgiving system.
The rifles were different, it was the same model however the Brits only had semi auto, the Argentine forces had the full auto capable version. Another thing to consider is that run sent a message to the Argentinians, our Vulcan can reach the Falklands, Argentina is even closer to us, the Vulcan was our nuclear bomber.
The UK Radar site i was on, i watched various a/c flying at night doing different types of attack. One i remember was 3 harriers jets flying in very close formation. On radar it shows a one blip. Getting close to the 'target' one harrier would break away, showing 2 blips heading for target. These are 'dummy' missile attacks... the two blips are fully armed harriers. Also watched a vulcan flip a switch and disappear on radar. We never heard what the pilots were up to.... enjoyed watching them practice. Happy days for me back then.
This is even more incredible when you know the Vulcans were due to be scrapped 3 months from this mission. They were 1960’s sub sonic nuclear bombers. They had balls of steel.
The crews having to train for this, is only a small part of the story. The refuelling probes etc, had been removed from the Vulcan, years before, so it had to be found and refitted. One probe, came from a Vulcan that had had an mishap at Goose Bay, many years before and was left there as uneconomic to repair. Another part, was being used as an ashtray, in some crewroom.
Hey buddy, as a British guy I have heard a lot about this raid before. It's an epic story. What is shocking is that most of the quality weapons the Argentinians had was supplied to them by our allies, the French!
To be fair to the French, the UK also supplied Argentina. They had 2 Type 42 destroyers with Lynx helicopters and associated weapons. Canberra bombers too. ARA Santisima Trinidad (the only type 42 built outside Britain) was in British waters for sea trials and crew training just 4 months before Argentina invaded.
@@tjp353 True, it's not really that surprising that the French supplied Argentina, before Argentina started to become really hostile they were just another country with relatively decent relations that most European countries like us and the French were happy to supply arms to on good terms. Even nowadays we Brits still sell arms and our decommissioned ships to friendly South American countries like Chile and Brazil, if the Falklands War hadn't happened it's entirely plausible that one of the Type 23 Frigates we sold to Chile might have been bought by Argentina.
The Vulcan & Victor were designed and built in the 1950's Air to air refuelling was brought in in the late 50's early 60's I believe, having been developed by both the US and the UK around the same time. The Vulcans hadn't been doing it for about a decade and were, technically already withdrawn from service at the time of the raid. Some parts of the refuelling system had to be acquired from Vulcans in museums! When asked what air to air refuelling is like one pilot replied "It's like trying to thread wet spaghetti up a cat's backside" It's also worth noting that the radar for the Vulcan was not designed for over large expanses of water, one was nabbed for it from a scrapped airliner, while we're on the subject of equipment, the bombing 'computer' was completely analogue and a key component was a bicycle chain... Roland White interviewed a number of the crew involved for his book Vulcan 607, it's a very good read.
one of my favourite ones from operations room. I even knew a fair bit about the Falkland's conflict, and despite knowing the Brits had bombed the runway - I had no idea how much of an ordeal the operation was to do it.
This raid was similar to the WW2 US Doolittle raid in that it was more about sending a message than actual results. This raid just like the US Doolittle raid made it clear that we had the will to fight no matter the difficultys and also was a huge moral boost to the public at home.
It's crazy to think that the iconic cold war Vulcan Bomber of the 1980s that was even featured in the James Bond film called Thunderball was designed and built not that long after WWII. I love the sound of the engines on the Vulcan as it flies above it is immense.
Initial designs were produced under Roy Chadwick in 1946 - who, 5 years earlier, had been working on designs for variants of the Lancaster such as the Avro Lincoln! Such a huge shift in technology and design philosophy is such a short time.
There were indeed 7 Black Buck raids, 2 were cancelled due to bad weather but 5 went ahead and hit the Falklands. 2 of the 5 used the new Shrike anti radar missile and 2 were slung on pylons used for the Skybolt missile under each of the massive wings of the Vulcan. One of these Shrike raids (Black Buck 6) managed to deliver one Shrike but the other 'hung up' but remained armed. Remember these missiles searched for radar signals as a target. This Vulcan itself (like the Victor earlier) sheared off its refuelling nozzle and had no way of making Ascension. So they tried to make Rio de Janeiro airport and they got there (as the pilot Squadron Leader Neil McDougall who was awarded the DFC) "on fumes" and some British bluster to appease the Brazilians who were shall we say more friendly to the Argentinians than us. There are some wonderful stories of how the crew managed to disable and remove the Shrike to avoid it getting loose and hitting some radar in Rio! Despite Argentinian requests the crew and bomber were, after some horse trading by the Skipper, allowed to leave Rio the day before the Pope was due to say Mass at the airport!
I think it's worth noting that runway denial wasn't the primary goal of these missions - it was making the Argentina forces realise they were within range of strategic bombers. It wasn't just delivering 21,000lbs of dumb iron, it was also "this could have been a nuke", "this could have been your capital", etc. The missions were more flex than effect.
In-flight refuelling was pioneered in the 1930s by Alan Cobham but the military only started to look at using it operationally at the end of the war, there were plans to use it for "Tiger Force" Lancasters as part of the invasion of Japan and even for the A-bomb missions if the "Silver plate" B29s were not ready in time.
The first air to air refueling was in 1923. Our modern refueling systems were invented in the late 1940's. They became popular in the early 1950's for bombers, and in the 1960's for fighters.
It's impressive. Someone had to figure out how to refuel the bomber (originally two of them) and all the other tankers. One tiny mistake and it's going to be unpleasant.
As others point out, Vulcan 607 is a great book, exactly what you're after. My dad worked and was friends with the pilot of Victor 4 (the one that turned around due to refueling gear problems) from around 2010 to 2017 I think -- the guy was known as Biggles and was still flying, training students with the RAF's University Air Squadron. My dad was working on Vulcan modifications at the time of the Falklands too, though not directly involved with this
It's worth looking up the Vulcan that landed in Chile (or thereabouts) during the Falklands business. Also the Royal Navy Sea King helicopter that was found burnt in Argentina during the same period.
Great video yet again, good to see a 'reaction video' which actually adds some content. The book 'Vulcan 607' is a very good book about this mission. Highly recommended.
I saw the last airworthy Vulcan, XH558, flying at a local air show a few years ago. They are phenomenal aircraft. At full chat, the engine intakes resonate and make a distinctive and haunting howling sound (search "Vulcan howl"). It sounds like hell just woke up.
One of the benefits of the "pulleys and string" targetting computer is that unlike a contemporary electronic computer it wouldn't be affected by an EMP after a nuclear bomb explosion. Accuracy for a nuclear bomb also doesn't need to be postcode perfect..
you realy need to check out the vulcan howl i could only imagine what some poor soldier in his fox hole on the falklands at night and the first thing he could have heard first
Cobham established Flight Refuelling Limited in 1934 to provide a solution for this problem. His company developed the pioneering 'probe and drogue' technique of in-flight refuelling which is still used today by air forces all over the world.
To add context to the age of the Avro Vulcan, the original impetus for a fast jet nuclear bomber was issued by the British government in 1946 and the specification was written in 1947/48. No one had any experience with fly deltas so not only did Avro have to design and build an aircraft that no one had yet built, but they had to do it with a wing design that had no research behind it. Avro built two smaller test aircraft, the first flew in 1949 only to have a fatal crash a few months later. Avro was literally on the bleeding edge with this design. The British have always produced outstanding jet aircraft, but these designs have always suffered from the "British" disease - failure to upgrade. the government just wouldn't spend the money for major refits so crews had to soldier on with old designs having even older equipment. Imagine H2S was the worlds first terrain mapping radar and it flew with the RAF Pathfinder squadrons in WWII. It was still in use with the Vulcans until retirement.
The original AA refuelling was done with a normal hose and nozzle, (like you would get on an airfield tanker truck) this would be lowered from and aircraft flying above the receiving aircraft. A crewman from the receiver, would grab the hose and refuel through the normal gravity fed system. Thank heavens that Cobham invented the probe and drogue system.
I heard a rumor. That not only did the argies worry about the mainland been bombed by the vulcan. They were concerned that the vulcan had the ability to drop nukes
The US foreign secretary told Margaret Thatcher it was a tiny remote Island thousand miles away from British mainland, can't they just let them have. To which Margaret Thatcher replied, a bit like Hawaii.
Falklands Combat Medics is a fantastic documentary about seurgeon-captain Rick Jolly OBE. One of the best documentaries on the Falklands conflict I've ever seen
The book "Doctor for Friend and Foe: Britain's Frontline Medic in the Fight for the Falklands" by Surgeon Commander Dr Rick Jolly tells the story of an intriguing military career and a fascinating historic account of "the red and green life machine" as the field hospital set up in the abandoned abattoir at Ajax Bay became known. Great read for anyone interested in the history of this conflict.
He had the unique distinction of being decorated by both sides in the conflict, because he saved the lives of so many argentinian troops. See his Wikipedia entry - in 1998 he visited Argentina & sent a list of the Argentine wounded he had treated ahead of him to ask the authorities what had become of them. At which point, the argentines realised how many lives he had saved, so those people he treated held a big parade for him & the argentine government awarded him a medal for his efforts. He had to ask the Queen for permission to wear it...
It's even more amazing to think they had to scrounge the parts to even make the Vulcans able to refuel. The Vulcans at this time were winding down to retirement, and had the refueling probes decommissioned some time before. The whole operation was an amazing logistical triumph. It was also close run just to get the Victor tankers all home! Try reading Vulcan 607!!
My parents took me to see the Vulcan and harriers at an air display at RAF church Fenton in about 1979/1980. The sound of the Vulcan and harriers are with me to this day. Still go to air displays. Been to Mildenhall, an RAF/USAF base. You guys do a great hog roast.
Air-to-air refuelling had been experimented on before WWII, sometimes by passing containers of fuel from plane to plane, sometimes by dangling a hose and connecting it to the tank on the receiver. Post-WWII, two systems were developed, the 'probe and drogue' in the US, and the 'basket' in the UK. Some US tankers now use both systems.
Probe and Drogue was developed in the UK. Flying Boom was developed in the USA. USAF were first to use both operationally. The line and hose system was used operationally by Imperial Airways. just before the start of WWII.
The pilot of the vulcan in this mission was also the display pilot of XH558, the only vulcan to fly displays after retirement up until she was finally grounded in 2015.
As has been mentioned by others here, the book, ‘Vulcan 607’ is a great read about these events, and leading up to them. I last read it several years ago. I vaguely remember reading an account in the book of how the British were at the Pentagon?, and they were presenting to the Americans their plan. If I remember correctly, they were asking the Americans to get fuel to Ascension Island for the British planes, as the British were unable to get enough fuel there fast enough in time. The British told the Americans how much fuel they needed. The Americans said there is no way you are going to uses that much fuel! The British then said, we are sure gonna try! If I remember right, the Americans then diverted one or more supply ships of some kind to Ascension. Ships that apparently were originally destined for American bases. I think the book then said the American bases were going have to go without fuel for a while? "Operations Black Buck Falklands' Most Daring Raid", is a good documentary to watch too. About the first of several bombing raids.
Yes, I've read the book mentioned by Roy, below. It really brings home the 'skin of their teeth' nature of this mission. The Vulcan was well past its 'sell by' date when it carried out these raids. The crews (and of the superannuated tankers, too) were heroes all. The RAF were still having to use museum pieces by the time of the first Gulf War. Canberras (PR9) and Buccaneers which had been around for decades did a great job. But of course it was the people who flew them who made the difference.
It was great to read some of these comments, especially from those that went down there. As my old Dad would have said, "Up to our necks in muck and bullets"! I tried to get into the RAF for a flying commission, ( failed ) but as all the pilots that didn't come back from there were about my age at the time, maybe it was just as well! I had moved to Canada by then, and would rush home at lunch hour to listen to the BBC World Service on how it was going!
This mission was never about winning a war - but making a political statement of "we can hit you - wherever you may be*. I work in Logistics, civilian not military, and still to this day the effort, planning and execution is absolutely remarkable. No country, has ever pulled off something as audacious as this before. The Vulcan crews were king of the hill for getting there and back, but for me the tankers, planners and the huge effort for that single one to get there and home safely are the true unsung hero's. Absolutely incredible.!
launching a Vulcan from and Landing a Vulcan on a carrier would not have been an option. It might have been an option had HMS Habakkuk been built, but any other... A Vulcan has a similar wingspan to a B-17 During the Cold War, Vulcans were the UK nuclear deterent, so pinpoint accuracy wasn't that important
I'm glad for you reminding that Argentina was a eper opponent back then. They had solid jets, good missiles, trained pilots, a friggin airccraft carrier and submarines too. They even used the same destroyer as the UK did. The UK beating them off the islands was basically considered impossible by the world, even the US told them they couldn't do it. The Brits went anyway and proved the entire world wrong.
They used the same Destroyer as us because a few years before, we sold it to 'em! :) In fact, so much was similar between the 2 sides, right down to the rifles the troopers carried.
@@jamesbutton2904 Except their Type 42 carried surface to surface anti ship missiles (Harpoon?), the RN did not.
We were willing to lose men even with the eyes of the world upon us
@@jamesbutton2904 the FAL right? Wasn't the argentine version capable of full auto and the English task force modified theirs during the trip down to do the same.
@@samuelwilliams3130 Yup. That was the only difference between them, all because the Generals of the time didn't trust our squaddies not to go haywire and let all their ammo off in one go!
Hey 👋, I'm actually from the falklands. I always love it when people react to our history
I used to work with a Falklander when that conflict was on, and he was very worried about his parents in Stanley... but they were OK as it turned out....
My dad was a crew chief on that Vulcan Squadron. They had to scavenge bits from aircraft museums to outfit those planes. I even had a Vulcan bomb aiming joystick converted to use on my Commodore Amiga back in the day
That's dope!
I heard that after an unsuccessful search of the stores the tip of the fuelling probe, by chance, was found in the mess. Used as an ashtray.
@@russcattell955i I heard that as well on a different video 😂
Wasn't one part found being used as an ashtray
Roland White wrote “Vulcan 607” ace read
Utter respect. True British grit, determination and ingenuity.
You want to know how old the Vulcan actually was, it was one of the first aircraft in the world to have fly by wire technology, it paved the way for the F18, F16, the typhoon, the F15 with this technology and I am glad I have had the chance to sit in Vulcan XJ823
there is a lot of rivalry between the branches of military in the UK but as a former para who was on the ground on the Falkland Islands we had the greatest of respect for the Royal Navy and the RAF in particular for what they did to help us, it was amazing to have the harriers in the sky with ground attack capability.
Harrier was retired far too quickly. It wasn’t stealthy or especially fast but none were lost to Argentine aircraft and they gave excellent ground attack cover. US Marines are still using them. So much for being outdated.
A friend of mine was in the marines and was sent to the Falklands. He said the hardest fight was with the Paras on the way down on the same ship. Was this true?
A Para? Did you have help with the spelling in that post?
😏
@@bob_the_bomb4508 Spell check derrrr.😁
Thanks for your service 🇬🇧.
I was in the army when the Falklands were invaded. Placed on standby for deployment. I lost friends when the Galahad was hit, another saw action on Tumbledown. I felt left behind, twiddling my thumbs waiting for orders that never came. This raid still holds the record, all the others landed to refuel during the missions.
The Vulcan was a fantastic aircraft and it was huge, I have seen loads flying during my school camp close to one of the bases. They have a very distinctive howling sound. USAF didn't like them because they were used as opposing forces in North America air defence exercises. Twice they beat the defences to hit their targets.
We did have a joke after the Stanley raid. What does Mr Spock's mother and Port Stanley Airport have in common? They've both been f****d by Vulcans.
Didn't the Vulcan "Nuke" New York twice? I could be wrong on that, but it rings a bell.
@@ragupasta Yup!!!
@@ragupasta No, you're correct. You should be able to find some YT videos on it.
@@ragupasta yes. In the mid 60’s I believe. The RAF were tasked as enemy forces on an annual exercise run by the USAF. The Brits were an attacking strategic force that American interceptors were tasked to bring down. The first year they hit New York and Washington with the simulated loss of only 2 Vulcans. The second year, they simulated a hit on New York, washington and Las Vegas with zero losses. They weren’t invited back for a third year 😂
@@smudger746.... Operation skyshield 1&2 in 1960&1961. The Pentagon were so pissed all reference to Vulcans was classified for nearly 50 years, finally being declassified in 1997 !
The pilot of that raid, Martin Withers, lives a few miles from me and I've met him several times. He's one of the most modest, quiet men you'll ever meet. He doesn't appear like a war hero, but he is one.
I think that Flt Lt Biglands (named as flying White 4) was one of my A-level physics teachers. We knew he was ex-RAF, but he was completely self-effacing and made it sound like flying tankers was essentially a delivery job. The Ch4 documentary with Martin Withers and others came out several years after I left school, and while I had vague recollections of the Falklands conflict from my early childhood, I wasn't aware of Black Buck until much later.
His book is a wonderful description of how stressful it was and how they coped.
Is it not ironic, that some of the men that have seen the worst, are the most modest... Respect for their service and heart..
They don’t make many like him. He is the definition of leadership.
The Vulcan was truly an incredible aircraft. Two aircraft that have given me goosebumps and made me actually emotional. To see and hear a Spitfire in full flow and when Vulcan XH558 made her last flights tour across the UK…. I will never forget that incredible Howl she made.
Saw one fly at RIAT 2016 I believe it was and I'll tell you now mate it was bloody awesome. And like you say seeing the spitfires fly in formation is mint aswell. Recently saw the Lancaster flying near me too! Seriously something else
Yep, and that last flight in October 2015 was also piloted by Martin Withers. Nice touch.
I saw XH588 at Dawlish in 2015 (she first flew in 1960). The pilot flew a right to left with the underside facing the crowd. The engines sang like a sewing machines. Then he lit the burners and stood her on the tail and up into the clouds.
A few years before, she was flying over Duxford and literally stopped traffic. People jammed in the anchors and jumped out to watch the plane doing circuits. Absolutely stunning.
This is what makes us Brits proud of the RAF, facing the odds like in the Battle of Britain, and "flying by the seat of their pants" to overcome those odds. True heroes, every one of them.
This operation made me laugh and I was actually serving with the RAf at that time. And today what has happened. A block on recuriting white men in favour of women and ethnics. It took 104 years to build a eputation and it took the CAS Sir Mike Wigston 3 days to destroy it
@@jimwalsh8520 indeed. My family were RAF bomber command and they took a steaming dump on the RAF and the memory of the lost aircrews. Absolutely not what they gave their lives for
@@jimwalsh8520 he’ll be replaced soon enough.
Yep and the Falklands is known globally as it's where the harrier earned it's place in history, got the see a harrier in person in 2015, ironically it was on a base
Yes, and the 2 year's versus the Germans, the seminal World At War episode 4: ALONE, It must be because its narrated by Lawrence Olivier or that you actually get to hear from the likes of Oberbannsturmfuhrer Adolf Galland of the Luftwaffe, Apparently it cost £11,600,000 into days money the most ever spent on a factual documentary series.
I remember reading about a local woman in Stanley, who heard the bombs from the Vulcan. That was good news, but she still didn't know if the British really were coming to save them. But a week or two later, she heard gunfire from the airfield across the bay from Stanley. That was not uncommon, as the Argies kept practicing with their turboprop Pucara attack aircraft that could still use what was left of the runway. But this sounded different. So she looked out, and saw small jet aircraft strafing the airfield, and Argie gunfire back at them. It took her a few seconds to realize what this must be. Carrier-based British single-seat jets attacking the airfield. And that must mean that the Royal Navy was close by! They were coming to the rescue! Best feeling ever! 🥲
Great story, my son's a Royal Marine and was one of the ten Marines (two from each regiment) chosen to represent Commando brigade for the Falklands 40th anniversary celebrations and he said he learned more from speaking to locals who'd been there during the invasion and recapture, he said it was a truly emotional experience to see how much it meant to Falklanders, many of whom assisted our troops by transporting them in their landrovers or just simply giving them shelter in their barns while they were yomping overland to Port Stanley.
As in the seizure of the Altmark by HMS Cossack to recapture British prisoners, the shout went up: "The Navy's here!"
For those who do not know the story, in early WWII Altmark was a German supply ship supporting German commerce raiders. Surviving crew men from sunken vessels were transferred to her. Being pursued by the RN, she had run for shelter in a Norwegian fjord. At that point Norway was strictly neutral and would not allow the British access (the German line being "prisoners, what prisoners?"). So ignoring the nearby gunboat HMS Cossack, a destroyer, sailed up the fjord and took Altmark by boarding, freeing the captives! I reckon Nelson would have approved. Presumably the Norwegian gunboat also turned a blind eye!
I remember "The Navy's here" being a catchphrase implying all is well, someone who doesn't pee about has taken control of the situation. I refuse to say exactly when that was.
There most certainly is a book, is called 'Vulcan 607' by Roland Whyte. And it is an absolutely cracking read! I can def recommend it 👍 Love the channel and content - all top class - keep them coming Sir!, 🇬🇧🇺🇸👍😊
Yes, Vulcan 607 is a great read. Incidentally the actual aircraft is at RAF Waddington where it is being restored.
Very good book.
Yes, I can thoroughly recommend this book.
He also wrote a book called Phoenix Squadron with the two Buccaneers over British Hondurus. Also a great read.
The Black Buck 1 documentary is good, it has 1st hand accounts from the pilots
@@chrisbulley1834 Yep, read that one too - and yep also a fantastic read 😊👍
There are some great documentaries about this raid on YT. There is one that has interviews with the pilots and gives some background to the planes. (only months away from being broken up for scrap before the war started).
Saw one good documentary about them get those old bombers up and running. One British airman described some situations that would be fitting of a Mighty Python sketch. They were searching for one critical part when they found it. It was in the pilots lodge area. The old steel part somehow became an ash tray. No, I'm not kidding. 😀
Here are the boys
th-cam.com/video/rpRtEABdxNc/w-d-xo.html
i flew 2 sorties tht night in a victor tanker. A short trip to give our fuel to another tanker and a long one some hours later to meet the vulcan as it came out of the falklands. Dick Russel, a victor QFI who did the refuelling in the vulcan told me later they did not even have enough fuel to reach Brazil! A really long night. Repeated several times!!!!!!
As they say in the United States, "Thank-you for your service".
Or, as we say in the UK, "Nice one. Fancy a pint?" ;)
Thank you sir.
Cheers mate,you’ve earned the t shirt.
Were you at the 35th anniversary get-together at Brunty? Seems ages ago now.
@@125brat yes I was and yes it does seem ages ago
the damage to the Stanley runway was useful but the fact that we proved we could if neccessary hit Argentina was probably even more important
I agree, My father was part of the BP volunteers that manned the fuel tankers and the fact the attack aircraft went back to mainland Argentina to protect their own airspace against Vulcan attack, probably kept that fleet safe too.
Avro Vulcan is an absolute beast. Same engines as Concorde. The last flying Vulcan did a flying tour over the UK prior to being decommissioning. If you haven't seen it look at check out 'When Britain Nuked America....Twice!' by Mark Felton. It's been done to death a bit by Reaction channels, but it is interesting and gives interesting detail on Vulcan tactics etc.
Mark is amazing, highly recommend anyone to go watch
Yeah it flew a few hundred feet above my house on its manchester airport fly over
They were Bristol Olympus, which evolved into Rolls Royce olympus engines. Most notable difference, is the Vulcan didn't have re-heat, whereas Concorde did.
Martin Withers often flew XH558 (last flying Vulcan)
I was there for it’s final flight over the old AVRO factory in greater Manchester
@@capncolyep. Same engine model, different types.
Vulcan uses the RR Olympus 201 and 301 series. While Concorde uses the Olympus 593, which is same used by the infamous BAC/BAE TSR.2
The best book by far is called "Vulcan 607" by Roland White. An excellent read
Harrier 809 is another great read of his
Agreed. Great book.
Totally agree, superb book. Definitely worth a read Theo!
Such a great book!
I remember reading that the vulcans were missing a part needed for air to air fuelling, as it was years before since they last did this, with much searching they found the part in the officer mess being used as an ashtray
Its an absolutely true story.
haha, I was scrolling hoping someone recounted this part of the story
Not sure it was the officers mess, but a techies crewroom in a hangar.
Vulcan 607 is a great book about this. Explains training, fuel plan and issues and the bombing run tactics
It is an amazing book. Possibly the best aviation book I've ever read. Although 'Skunk Works' does come in very close.
Books, huh? Who remembers them? 😉
Agreed. Just read Vulcan 607 and it is just brilliant. Informative and entertaining, it’s an epic story.
Some other Black Buck Stories that I remember - When all the Victors were coming back to Ascension they were landing into the wind very short on fuel, because of the direction of the wind they'd normally have to turn round and taxi the length of the runway to vacate it, after each landing, but because they were so low on fuel there wasn't enough time so some of them had to just pull right to the end of the runway and sit there hoping that the ones behind them wouldn't have any brake problems! Secondly because the Victor tanker came further south to refuel the Vulcan on its return leg it didn't have enough fuel to make it back to Ascension if it gave the Vulcan enough fuel to get home - the crew made the decision to pass the fuel anyway and radioed Ascension so in order to get one of the tankers that had already landed had quickly refuelled and scrambled out to refuel him - which they managed to do.
There's also the story of what happened when the refueling probe broke off on one of the Vulcans returning to Ascension on a subsequent raid - it ended up landing in Rio de Janiero
And remember that the returning Victor crew could not call for aid until AFTER the attack took place , to avoid alerting the enemy to funny goings on , all the other radio traffic was on minimum power , so they wited for the code call from the Vulcan .
@@philstothard8333 If I remember correctly, Tuxfords aircraft didn't radio they were low on fuel because of the radio silence, but the planners on Wideawake realised his a/c would be low on fuel and scrambled a tanker to meet it.
On the age of the AVRO Vulcan and it’s technology, it’s worth remembering that the maiden flight of the AVRO Vulcan was 1952, just 11 years after the maiden flight of the AVRO Lancaster, it was, in essence designed toward the end of WW2.
The Vulcan was due to be retired within months.
The bomb guidance "computer" was not updated because precision bombing wasn't needed with a nuclear bomb.
Some of the refueling equipment had to come from retired planes in Canada.
The vulcan squadrons were not front line by this time. Nuclear capability having moved to submarines. The crews had to get up to combat readiness in weeks
Quite so, also a mechanical "computer" is invulnerable to a EMP.
One of refuelling probe parts was found in the officers mess being used as an ash tray
Vulcans had nuclear strike as their primary mission until they where phased out of service as part of SACEUR's NATO nuclear strike force. The majority of the refueling equipment removed from Vulcans in Museums didn't go on to other Vulcans, but were used in crash programs to give the RAF C-130 Hercules and Nimrods AAR capability.
I think you'll find the Tornado GR1's took over the nuclear capability from the Vulcan. I was posted to 617 Sqn at Marham in early '82 and was on my Tornado courses whilst the war was going on. The Sqn then worked up to strike declaration to NATO in '82 or early '83 if I remember correctly together with 27 Sqn, 9 Sqn etc at Honington and later the various Sqns in Germany: 15, 16, 17, 31 etc.
@@125brat Yes they did, but as you have stated, there is a major difference between when a squadron forms and equips with a new aircraft and when it is declared combat ready (declared to SACEUR). Normally takes 12 to 18 months. A Squadron being taken off NATO Orbat and being disbanded can be on the same day (though there can be a few weeks between the two to allow disposal of equipment and have the wrap up events)
Great little vid, cheers mate! (ps,love the Yorkshire Tea sign in the background)
The USA built the Wideawake Airfield, on Ascension Island, during WW2. It subsequently became a Joint Intelligence "Listening Post", NASA Coms station and Cable & Wireless facility. In 1982, for a brief period, it was the world's busiest runway; today, it also serves as a stop-off point for the flight to RAF Mount Pleasant, on East Falkland.
Flying back from FI in '97 courtesy of Crab Air, 03:00 Local, nigh on 40°C the Castle Lager was something like £3 for 6, the beer was kept in a chest freezer!
Unfortunately at the moment it doesn't, the runway has been closed to the FI airbridge since 2017. They are routing through Cape Verde, they were using Senegal for a bit. Runway should be repaired and open again mid '23. Then the airbridge will come back. For now we get an A400 once every 3 weeks and the US puts a C17 in at about the same frequency. So yeah it's pretty quiet!
12:40 The analogue computing system was impervious to the electromagnetic shock produced by a nuclear explosion...
Yeah, string tends to be 😂🤣.
Add into the equation the chief designer of the Vulcan Roy Chadwick most famous design was the WW2 Avro Lancaster, as for air to air refueling, one of the Vulcan pilots described it as being like "inserting wet spaghetti upa cats arse"
British plans rarely go smoothly, but we're experts at adapting lol
Mid air refuelling dates back to the 1920s in very basic form in the US. The modern concept was designed in the 1930s in the UK and perfected towards the end of WWII as a way of getting Avro Lancasters on to very long range bombing missions against Japan. Look up Tiger Force.
It’s correct that the B2 took the record for the longest bombing mission but it’s important to remember that there is a key difference. The B2 always benefitted from pre-positioned refuelling assets eg Guam, Diego Garcia, or US assets based in UK when doing Kosovo. For the Vulcan raid, everything required had to take off from Ascension. Oh, and the book everyone has mentioned (which is great!) explains that there was no diversion available for landing. After dropping bombs it was, literally, Ascension or bust!
Or Brazil if you were in the right place when something went wrong, which happened on Black buck 6.
No! One raid landed in Brasil!
@@MyScubasteve your point is?
@@FL-by9xz It wasn't ascension or bust?
@@MyScubasteve I think you need to go and research why and how they ended up in Brazil. In a war (which is what it was) you need to be able to be based in your own territory or that of allies. There were no allies in South America… at best there were neutral nations. Brazil refused, several times, to give Black Buck 6 clearance to land and when they did it was because the crew were a bit liberal with the truth and just went for it. Brazil impounded the jet - hardly a neutral stance - an action which was expected which is why the tried to dispose of a lot of documents and ordnance before landing. That’s why Ascension or bust. Go and look it up before making unqualified statements. If you think I’m wrong give me some references that support your view - or your experience/qualifications for why you know different. Happy to discuss.
I don't know about now, but at the time of the Falklands conflict the Royal Marines had an Illustrator Branch as part of their reconnaissance capability. During the fighting three of the instructors produced cartoons to send out to the troops to keep morale up. Afterwards they were put into a book to raise money for the South Atlantic Fund. A lot of the jokes are at the expense of the other British forces (SBS disguised as sheep being surprised by lonely Argentinean soldiers out on the moors, Royal Navy ratings gluing turf onto the deck of an aircraft carrier to make the RAF Harrier pilots feel at home), but there's also one of a Vulcan swooping low over Port Stanley airport with one worried looking Argentinean soldier shouting to another "Caramba Pablo... if that's the size of their planes... just how big is their aircraft carrier?!".
It might be worth checking ebay for "Up The Falklands! Cartoons from the Royal Marines", by Warrant Officer Roy Carr, Colour Sergeant Arthur Huddart, and Sergeant John R. Webb.
There's a classic one by Tugg, Matelot loafing by the guard rail shouts to a few royals in a landing craft "Ere! Royal! How'd you manage a run ashore then?"
"Up the Falklands" and "Carry on Yomping" - I have both the books, and are ones I don't lend out.
Hi Theo, I knew about this raid but it was really great watching it and learning how risky it was, everyone in that Vulcan should of got a medal, anyway I just wanted to say that my father served on the Falklands and he brought back an Argentinian bayonet for my mates collection.🇬🇧🤙
The Bombing computer on the Vulcan was a later development of H2S, the WWII system, and the computer used bicycle chains and pulleys, not string, as it was intended to survive nuclear radiation in the attack.
It worked well.
The problem was that they had no maps of the South Atlantic, so they had mostly-blank maps turned upside down, with numbers and target pencilled in.
My late husband's RAF groundcrew career (1960-1982) coincided with the V force and QRAs. He worked on First and second line maintenance of Victor and Vulcan electronics, and especially the Navigational Bombing Systems (NBS). His last 2yrs were spent on the Nimrod development but the project, which he said was cancelled for political reasons; saddled the RAF with the vastly inferior American AWACS system. It seems to me that it was just one more poor political decision which, added to TSR2 and Blue Streak, helped destroy Britain's major independent military industry. Our last Hurrah was the world-beating Harrier jump-jet but, when they couldn't scotch that too, our "leaders" sold a manufacturing licence to the USA, thus depriving the UK of the employment and financial rewards of UK-based production. Nowadays, we are reduced to buying American kit or building bits ofEurofighters. Life changes. But, in my view, some of our decline is self-inflicted and due to our unwillingness to invest in the long-term view.
It must have been a major shock to the Argentinian military, because they would have assumed that the Falkland Islands were out of bombing range. As the Vulcan was designed as a nuclear bomber, they didn't think that the Vulcan needed a high precision bombing computer 💣
there was a doc few years back its called " Operations Black Buck Falklands' Most Daring Raid " its on youtube too but you hear it from the pilots and electronic officers them self's from this flight as they are talking about what happend getting there and back
Yes, he should watch this.
Thanks for recommending that one, just watched it.
Fantastic to hear from actual airmen who took part in the raid and how close to aborting or failure.
Great documentary 👌
@@craigevans8912 just loved how chilled they was about everything and its always great to hear from the people them self
Ascension Island Is very interesting becasue it was originall just a big rock. Basically a rocky volcano. Charles Darwin and others in the navy teraformed it and now it has tropical forests. It was a stopping point and had a base used by the navy for a long time. They would stop there on their way to checking on Napoleon who was exiled on St Helena.
The "good old Vulcan" was quite a Plane. You should react to the youtube video about how the Vulcan nuked the USA...twice 😁
The synchronisation required to get 1 Vulcan, to it's target, is just amazing! Skill, and bottle, by the crews, exceptional!
There’s a Victor Tanker on display at the Yorkshire Air Museum (just outside of York).
While bombers have bombing marks on their sides, and fighters have kill marks, the tanker had petrol station symbols as marks of a successful mission.
I think the museum has/had an exhibit on over the summer since it’s the 40th anniversary of the falklands conflict.
A few months ago I visited Norwich Airfield museum and found that they had a Vulcan bomber and that for a remarkable small fee you could have a guided personal tour and talk inside the cockpit, what a day. It’s a pity I can’t post a photo and video as it really shows the cramped interior for the 2 pilots and 3 crew
There’s one at Wellsbourne airfield, Warks, you can do the same. Well worth a tenner.
Yes there's one at Newark air museum
I recently had a bit of time on my hands in Norwich (UK). Went round to the aircraft museum by the airport. The Vulcan has no space at all literally a cockpit and a small room below for the electronic warfare, bomb operator, engineer. The Nimrod was basically a comet (first jet passenger plane) with spy equipment on. They also did similar missions down in the Falklands that aren't documented as much as the Vulcans. There were for listening in on communications and ship/sub hunting.
The development of air to air refuelling as we know it today was started late in and immediately after WW2. There is an airfield close to where I live where Lancaster bombers were converted to tankers and Gloster Meteors were the receiving aircraft operated out of for a while.
Air to air refueling was carried out by commercial airlines before world war two
Modern flight refueling (drogue and probe) was pioneered in late 1930s for Imperial Airways by Flight Refueling Ltd (Cobham) - and still based in Bournemouth.
There were other attempted methods have been around since the birth of aviation - but it was Cobhams probe and drogue system which succeeded and was tested by the RAF using the Meteors and Lancasters in the late 1940s.
The USAF "flying boom" allows for higher fuel rates, but requires greater precision and coordination between the tanker and reciever. The probe & drogue is a more forgiving system.
The rifles were different, it was the same model however the Brits only had semi auto, the Argentine forces had the full auto capable version. Another thing to consider is that run sent a message to the Argentinians, our Vulcan can reach the Falklands, Argentina is even closer to us, the Vulcan was our nuclear bomber.
The UK Radar site i was on, i watched various a/c flying at night doing different types of attack. One i remember was 3 harriers jets flying in very close formation. On radar it shows a one blip. Getting close to the 'target' one harrier would break away, showing 2 blips heading for target. These are 'dummy' missile attacks... the two blips are fully armed harriers. Also watched a vulcan flip a switch and disappear on radar. We never heard what the pilots were up to.... enjoyed watching them practice. Happy days for me back then.
This is even more incredible when you know the Vulcans were due to be scrapped 3 months from this mission. They were 1960’s sub sonic nuclear bombers. They had balls of steel.
The crews having to train for this, is only a small part of the story. The refuelling probes etc, had been removed from the Vulcan, years before, so it had to be found and refitted. One probe, came from a Vulcan that had had an mishap at Goose Bay, many years before and was left there as uneconomic to repair. Another part, was being used as an ashtray, in some crewroom.
Hey buddy, as a British guy I have heard a lot about this raid before. It's an epic story.
What is shocking is that most of the quality weapons the Argentinians had was supplied to them by our allies, the French!
To be fair to the French, the UK also supplied Argentina. They had 2 Type 42 destroyers with Lynx helicopters and associated weapons. Canberra bombers too. ARA Santisima Trinidad (the only type 42 built outside Britain) was in British waters for sea trials and crew training just 4 months before Argentina invaded.
@@tjp353 and the 25th May was a British built carrier.
Yep, it's a strange old world out there!
@@tjp353 True, it's not really that surprising that the French supplied Argentina, before Argentina started to become really hostile they were just another country with relatively decent relations that most European countries like us and the French were happy to supply arms to on good terms.
Even nowadays we Brits still sell arms and our decommissioned ships to friendly South American countries like Chile and Brazil, if the Falklands War hadn't happened it's entirely plausible that one of the Type 23 Frigates we sold to Chile might have been bought by Argentina.
I’ve never heard of the French, being our allies! 😂🤣
The Vulcan & Victor were designed and built in the 1950's
Air to air refuelling was brought in in the late 50's early 60's I believe, having been developed by both the US and the UK around the same time.
The Vulcans hadn't been doing it for about a decade and were, technically already withdrawn from service at the time of the raid. Some parts of the refuelling system had to be acquired from Vulcans in museums!
When asked what air to air refuelling is like one pilot replied "It's like trying to thread wet spaghetti up a cat's backside"
It's also worth noting that the radar for the Vulcan was not designed for over large expanses of water, one was nabbed for it from a scrapped airliner, while we're on the subject of equipment, the bombing 'computer' was completely analogue and a key component was a bicycle chain...
Roland White interviewed a number of the crew involved for his book Vulcan 607, it's a very good read.
one of my favourite ones from operations room. I even knew a fair bit about the Falkland's conflict, and despite knowing the Brits had bombed the runway - I had no idea how much of an ordeal the operation was to do it.
I think the majority of the population of accention island is actually usaf personnel as they have a base there aswell 👍
This raid was similar to the WW2 US Doolittle raid in that it was more about sending a message than actual results. This raid just like the US Doolittle raid made it clear that we had the will to fight no matter the difficultys and also was a huge moral boost to the public at home.
Dude stop. Doolittle was child's play in comparison. Stop glorifying yourself
I hope they eventually make a movie of this.
It's crazy to think that the iconic cold war Vulcan Bomber of the 1980s that was even featured in the James Bond film called Thunderball was designed and built not that long after WWII. I love the sound of the engines on the Vulcan as it flies above it is immense.
Initial designs were produced under Roy Chadwick in 1946 - who, 5 years earlier, had been working on designs for variants of the Lancaster such as the Avro Lincoln! Such a huge shift in technology and design philosophy is such a short time.
There were indeed 7 Black Buck raids, 2 were cancelled due to bad weather but 5 went ahead and hit the Falklands. 2 of the 5 used the new Shrike anti radar missile and 2 were slung on pylons used for the Skybolt missile under each of the massive wings of the Vulcan.
One of these Shrike raids (Black Buck 6) managed to deliver one Shrike but the other 'hung up' but remained armed. Remember these missiles searched for radar signals as a target. This Vulcan itself (like the Victor earlier) sheared off its refuelling nozzle and had no way of making Ascension. So they tried to make Rio de Janeiro airport and they got there (as the pilot Squadron Leader Neil McDougall who was awarded the DFC) "on fumes" and some British bluster to appease the Brazilians who were shall we say more friendly to the Argentinians than us.
There are some wonderful stories of how the crew managed to disable and remove the Shrike to avoid it getting loose and hitting some radar in Rio! Despite Argentinian requests the crew and bomber were, after some horse trading by the Skipper, allowed to leave Rio the day before the Pope was due to say Mass at the airport!
There is a Book "Vulcan 607" out there all about this mission.
I think it's worth noting that runway denial wasn't the primary goal of these missions - it was making the Argentina forces realise they were within range of strategic bombers. It wasn't just delivering 21,000lbs of dumb iron, it was also "this could have been a nuke", "this could have been your capital", etc. The missions were more flex than effect.
Superb flying by Tanker Pilots Well done Bob Tuxford and the team..
In-flight refuelling was pioneered in the 1930s by Alan Cobham but the military only started to look at using it operationally at the end of the war, there were plans to use it for "Tiger Force" Lancasters as part of the invasion of Japan and even for the A-bomb missions if the "Silver plate" B29s were not ready in time.
The first air to air refueling was in 1923. Our modern refueling systems were invented in the late 1940's. They became popular in the early 1950's for bombers, and in the 1960's for fighters.
i knew Martin withers when i was a lad, a fantastic fellow and with plenty of stories and pictures
If you want the complete story of the bombing raid. read "Vulcan 607" by Rowland White
Puiblished by Corgi Books 2006
the British have gigantic balls.
Yes we do!
It's impressive. Someone had to figure out how to refuel the bomber (originally two of them) and all the other tankers.
One tiny mistake and it's going to be unpleasant.
That aircraft was the gate guard at my first base in Lincolnshire when I was in the RAF
That's 9,000 miles in total - there and back.
Imagine a Vulcan with Modern Avionics, Engines, Stealth Coating and Weapons. Such a Sexy Plane!!
As others point out, Vulcan 607 is a great book, exactly what you're after.
My dad worked and was friends with the pilot of Victor 4 (the one that turned around due to refueling gear problems) from around 2010 to 2017 I think -- the guy was known as Biggles and was still flying, training students with the RAF's University Air Squadron. My dad was working on Vulcan modifications at the time of the Falklands too, though not directly involved with this
It's worth looking up the Vulcan that landed in Chile (or thereabouts) during the Falklands business.
Also the Royal Navy Sea King helicopter that was found burnt in Argentina during the same period.
Great video yet again, good to see a 'reaction video' which actually adds some content. The book 'Vulcan 607' is a very good book about this mission. Highly recommended.
The world should have learnt by now; don’t underestimate our ingenuity
I saw the last airworthy Vulcan, XH558, flying at a local air show a few years ago. They are phenomenal aircraft. At full chat, the engine intakes resonate and make a distinctive and haunting howling sound (search "Vulcan howl"). It sounds like hell just woke up.
Or 'a dinosaur with a sore arse'. ;-)
They did the in air refueling as the vulcan wouldn't fit on a carrier. Pilots have said 'refueling is like pushing wet spaghetti up a cat's backside'
try and find the video with the pilots talking about being on the actual raid. they manage to make it sound like a schoolboy prank!😁
One of the benefits of the "pulleys and string" targetting computer is that unlike a contemporary electronic computer it wouldn't be affected by an EMP after a nuclear bomb explosion. Accuracy for a nuclear bomb also doesn't need to be postcode perfect..
you realy need to check out the vulcan howl i could only imagine what some poor soldier in his fox hole on the falklands at night and the first thing he could have heard first
Cobham established Flight Refuelling Limited in 1934 to provide a solution for this problem. His company developed the pioneering 'probe and drogue' technique of in-flight refuelling which is still used today by air forces all over the world.
To add context to the age of the Avro Vulcan, the original impetus for a fast jet nuclear bomber was issued by the British government in 1946 and the specification was written in 1947/48. No one had any experience with fly deltas so not only did Avro have to design and build an aircraft that no one had yet built, but they had to do it with a wing design that had no research behind it. Avro built two smaller test aircraft, the first flew in 1949 only to have a fatal crash a few months later. Avro was literally on the bleeding edge with this design.
The British have always produced outstanding jet aircraft, but these designs have always suffered from the "British" disease - failure to upgrade. the government just wouldn't spend the money for major refits so crews had to soldier on with old designs having even older equipment. Imagine H2S was the worlds first terrain mapping radar and it flew with the RAF Pathfinder squadrons in WWII. It was still in use with the Vulcans until retirement.
Lucky to have seen the vulcan fly at local airshows before it was finally grounded. Beautiful aircraft with a menacing sound! Big Beautiful beast!
The original AA refuelling was done with a normal hose and nozzle, (like you would get on an airfield tanker truck) this would be lowered from and aircraft flying above the receiving aircraft. A crewman from the receiver, would grab the hose and refuel through the normal gravity fed system. Thank heavens that Cobham invented the probe and drogue system.
Have you watched the video on how Britain Nuked America twice using Vulcan’s
I heard a rumor. That not only did the argies worry about the mainland been bombed by the vulcan. They were concerned that the vulcan had the ability to drop nukes
Conspiracy theory, par excellence. Nah!
The US foreign secretary told Margaret Thatcher it was a tiny remote Island thousand miles away from British mainland, can't they just let them have.
To which Margaret Thatcher replied, a bit like Hawaii.
Roland White's book Vulcan 607 is a brilliant read that details this raid. Importantly, it explains how they got all that fuel to Ascension.
This story is much crazier than documented here. Definitely worth finding another video.
Falklands Combat Medics is a fantastic documentary about seurgeon-captain Rick Jolly OBE. One of the best documentaries on the Falklands conflict I've ever seen
The book "Doctor for Friend and Foe: Britain's Frontline Medic in the Fight for the Falklands" by Surgeon Commander Dr Rick Jolly tells the story of an intriguing military career and a fascinating historic account of "the red and green life machine" as the field hospital set up in the abandoned abattoir at Ajax Bay became known. Great read for anyone interested in the history of this conflict.
He had the unique distinction of being decorated by both sides in the conflict, because he saved the lives of so many argentinian troops. See his Wikipedia entry - in 1998 he visited Argentina & sent a list of the Argentine wounded he had treated ahead of him to ask the authorities what had become of them. At which point, the argentines realised how many lives he had saved, so those people he treated held a big parade for him & the argentine government awarded him a medal for his efforts. He had to ask the Queen for permission to wear it...
His other book Jack Speak is hilarious, it partly goes to explain why matelots are thought of as wierd by the pongos & crabs.
The hospital at Ajax Bay had the enviable record of everyone who went in alive, came out alive.
Makes me proud
It's even more amazing to think they had to scrounge the parts to even make the Vulcans able to refuel. The Vulcans at this time were winding down to retirement, and had the refueling probes decommissioned some time before. The whole operation was an amazing logistical triumph.
It was also close run just to get the Victor tankers all home!
Try reading Vulcan 607!!
I have a copy of Vulcan 607 signed by Martin withers that I will keep till the day I pop my clogs. The Black Buck documentary is a must watch..
My parents took me to see the Vulcan and harriers at an air display at RAF church Fenton in about 1979/1980.
The sound of the Vulcan and harriers are with me to this day. Still go to air displays. Been to Mildenhall, an RAF/USAF base. You guys do a great hog roast.
Air-to-air refuelling had been experimented on before WWII, sometimes by passing containers of fuel from plane to plane, sometimes by dangling a hose and connecting it to the tank on the receiver.
Post-WWII, two systems were developed, the 'probe and drogue' in the US, and the 'basket' in the UK.
Some US tankers now use both systems.
Probe and Drogue was developed in the UK. Flying Boom was developed in the USA. USAF were first to use both operationally. The line and hose system was used operationally by Imperial Airways. just before the start of WWII.
You might be interested in the story of the MV Atlantic Conveyor and 809NAS
The Pilot that bombed Stanley airport ia a member of our Vet's club in Hull,Yorkshire.
The pilot of the vulcan in this mission was also the display pilot of XH558, the only vulcan to fly displays after retirement up until she was finally grounded in 2015.
As has been mentioned by others here, the book, ‘Vulcan 607’ is a great read about these events, and leading up to them. I last read it several years ago. I vaguely remember reading an account in the book of how the British were at the Pentagon?, and they were presenting to the Americans their plan. If I remember correctly, they were asking the Americans to get fuel to Ascension Island for the British planes, as the British were unable to get enough fuel there fast enough in time.
The British told the Americans how much fuel they needed. The Americans said there is no way you are going to uses that much fuel! The British then said, we are sure gonna try!
If I remember right, the Americans then diverted one or more supply ships of some kind to Ascension. Ships that apparently were originally destined for American bases. I think the book then said the American bases were going have to go without fuel for a while?
"Operations Black Buck Falklands' Most Daring Raid", is a good documentary to watch too. About the first of several bombing raids.
I watched the practice flights over the UK in the weeks before the raid from a beach .
Yes, I've read the book mentioned by Roy, below. It really brings home the 'skin of their teeth' nature of this mission. The Vulcan was well past its 'sell by' date when it carried out these raids. The crews (and of the superannuated tankers, too) were heroes all.
The RAF were still having to use museum pieces by the time of the first Gulf War. Canberras (PR9) and Buccaneers which had been around for decades did a great job. But of course it was the people who flew them who made the difference.
It was great to read some of these comments, especially from those that went down there. As my old Dad would have said, "Up to our necks in muck and bullets"! I tried to get into the RAF for a flying commission, ( failed ) but as all the pilots that didn't come back from there were about my age at the time, maybe it was just as well! I had moved to Canada by then, and would rush home at lunch hour to listen to the BBC World Service on how it was going!
This mission was never about winning a war - but making a political statement of "we can hit you - wherever you may be*. I work in Logistics, civilian not military, and still to this day the effort, planning and execution is absolutely remarkable. No country, has ever pulled off something as audacious as this before. The Vulcan crews were king of the hill for getting there and back, but for me the tankers, planners and the huge effort for that single one to get there and home safely are the true unsung hero's.
Absolutely incredible.!
Those Vulcans were beautiful looking planes.
launching a Vulcan from and Landing a Vulcan on a carrier would not have been an option. It might have been an option had HMS Habakkuk been built, but any other... A Vulcan has a similar wingspan to a B-17
During the Cold War, Vulcans were the UK nuclear deterent, so pinpoint accuracy wasn't that important
'Going above and beyond' is the phrase I'd use.