Falklands War Trivia

1. What type of aircraft provided the offensive element of the 'Black Buck' operations?

From Quiz The 'Black Buck' Operations

Answer: Vulcan

The Vulcan entered service in the 1950s as part of the RAF's strategic bomber force. Its distinctive delta wing shape and powerful Rolls-Royce Olympic 301 engines gave it an almost fighter-like manoeuverability. In 1982 it was due to be retired from front-line service but the Argentine invasion of the Falkand Islands put its retirement plans on hold.

From Quiz From San Carlos to Stanley - A Conflict Timeline

Answer: Rex Hunt

The British garrison on the Falkland Islands numbered just sixty eight members of the Royal Marines and the Royal Navy. After a series of gun battles it became clear that continued British resistance would result in an unacceptable level of casualties. It was after giving consideration to this fact that the Governor, Rex Hunt, agreed to surrender to the Argentine commander, General Mario Menendez, that same day. The following day the Argentine invasion was condemned by the UN Security Council.

From Quiz The Sea Battle for the Falklands

Answer: HMS Glamorgan

HMS Glamorgan had been carrying out an inshore bombardment in support of the Royal Marines on Two Sisters, and was returning out to sea when an Exocet was launched from a trailer ashore. The ship was steaming at high speed and was able to turn away from the track of the missile, which therefore struck on the port upper deck by the helicopter hangar rather than on the ship's side where it would have penetrated and caused enormous damage. Nevertheless it killed most of the flight crew and destroyed a Wessex helicopter; a number of cooks in the galley, which was directly below the hangar, were also killed.

From Quiz The Malvinas/Falklands War

Answer: HMS Clio

The British forces captured the small Argentinian garrison and expelled the Argentinian Governor, Luis Vernet.

From Quiz Battle for the Falklands II

Answer: ARA General Belgrano

ARA Veinticinco de Mayo was the Argentine light fleet aircraft-carrier. Ironically, she was built in Britain and served as HMS Venerable in the British Pacific Fleet post WWII. She survived the Falklands War but was scrapped in 1999. The submarine Santa Fe, formerly the USS Catfish, was badly damaged in South Georgia by a helicopter attack. She was abandoned by her crew and later sunk by British Forces in Grytviken Sound. Isla de los Estados was a supply ship sunk by 4.5" gunfire from HMS Alacrity. The sinking of the Belgrano was the greatest single loss of life during the conflict (more than 300 of her crew died) and remains controversial to this day. This was the first time that torpedoes had been used in action since WWII, and the first (and only) operational sinking carried out by a nuclear submarine.

From Quiz The Battle for the Falklands

Answer: Resolution 502

Resolution 425: Israel/Lebanon 1978. Resolution 678: Kuwait/Iraq 1990. Resolution 1284: Created UN arms monitoring in Iraq 1999. Resolution 502: Called for the withdrawal of Argentine troops from the Islands and the immediate cessation of hostilities.

From Quiz The 'Black Buck' Operations

Answer: Phantom

Thirteen Handley Page Victors performed the in-flight refuelling role on the first operation as part of a complex fuel plan to ensure that a single heavy bomber got to its target and back - a distance of 6,800 miles. Although eleven were originally planned, two more Victors had to be dispatched as a contingency to re-fuel the aircraft on the final leg of their return. 1.5 million pounds (around 750,000kg) of aviation fuel was used. A Nimrod maritime patrol aircraft was employed in the Mid-Atlantic to guide the returning bomber to its final re-fuelling rendezvous. Sea Harriers flew a CAP (Combat Air Patrol) to protect the bomber against the possibility of interception by the Argentine Air Force on its approach to target.

From Quiz From San Carlos to Stanley - A Conflict Timeline

Answer: General Leopoldo Galtieri

General Galtieri took control of Argentina in December 1981 the last of the military junta that had been in power in Argentina since 1976 after a coup against the civilian government at the time. At the time of the invasion Argentina was experiencing serious economic difficulties and it is generally believed that the invasion was used by the junta to divert attention away from the dire situation at home.

From Quiz The Sea Battle for the Falklands

Answer: Operation Paraquet

HMS Antrim, together with HMS Brilliant, HMS Plymouth, HMS Endurance and RFA Tidespring, closed on the South Georgia Islands to land special forces from the SAS and SBS on the Fortuna Glacier, but atrocious weather caused two helicopters to crash, resulting in a daring rescue, with "Humphrey", HMS Antrim's Wessex anti-submarine helicopter, lifting off in a blizzard carrying 20 men instead of the designed load of four.

From Quiz The Malvinas/Falklands War

Answer: Rosario

The operation was named after Virgen del Rosario (Rosario Virgin). Independencia was the name of an anti-guerrilla operation in the Argentinean province of Tucumán in 1975.

From Quiz Battle for the Falklands II

Answer: France

The Exocet missile had only recently been purchased by Argentina at the start of the conflict, and, despite frantic attempts to buy others, the Argentinian forces had only 5 of the airborne version of these deadly missiles. The Type 42 destroyer, HMS Sheffield, was badly damaged by one. Although the missile warhead failed to explode, the remaining rocket fuel caused a fire so severe that the ship had to be abandoned. She sank several days later while under tow by HMS Yarmouth. The container ship Atlantic Conveyer was also struck by an Exocet and also burned fiercely, eventually sinking under tow. In addition to the tragic loss of life, much needed equipment for the war, including 10 irreplaceable helicopters, was lost. HMS Glamorgan was damaged off Port Stanley by a land-based Exocet, but survived. Had the Argentinian forces possessed more of these missiles, or had they been able to take out the British aircraft carriers with the few they had, then the Falklands War might have had a very different outcome.

From Quiz The Battle for the Falklands

Answer: Alexander Haig

Rex Hunt was the British Governor in Stanley, Ronnie was President and Cyrus Vance was the Secretary of State before Alexander Haig.

From Quiz The 'Black Buck' Operations

Answer: Port Stanley Airfield

Vulcan XM 607's payload of twenty-one 1,000lb (450kg) bombs was dropped on Port Stanley Airfield (or BAM Malvinas as the Argentinians had re-named it). The principal objective of disabling the runway was achieved, with the southern third of the 130ft strip destroyed. A crater 115ft wide and 84ft deep had been created. Due to the first operation's success, the Argentinians were unable to operate fast fighter jets (in the form of its supersonic Mirage and Dagger fighters) from Port Stanley. A further consequence of the raid was its damaging effect on Argentinian morale. Admiral Lombardo, the Chief of Combined Operations, mistakenly believed that the raid was a prelude to an immediate full-scale invasion. His decision to initiate a pre-emptive offensive against the British task force led to the sinking of the General Belgrano and the retreat of the Argentine fleet to home waters - where it stayed for the duration of the conflict.

From Quiz From San Carlos to Stanley - A Conflict Timeline

Answer: SS Canberra and the QE2

At the time of the Falklands conflict, the British were still able to assemble an effective naval force to counter the Argentine invasion; the military vessels available included the aircraft carriers HMS Hermes and HMS Invincible along with a fleet of destroyers and frigates for protection. However, a lack of suitable troop carrying vessels forced the British government to press a number of civilian ships into service with the two large liners, the Canberra and the QE2 transporting 3 Commando Brigade and 5th Infantry Brigade respectively. Who can forget the news reports of the time showing soldiers training aboard these ships whilst living in the relative lap of luxury! The Uganda, a ship that this author sailed on as a schoolboy in the 1970s, was rapidly adapted for use as a hospital ship and provided essential medical facilities for the task force so far from home.

From Quiz The Sea Battle for the Falklands

Answer: ARA Santa Fe

After completing a resupply mission to South Georgia, Santa Fe was first attacked, some miles out to sea, by HMS Antrim's Wessex, which dropped depth charges on her, causing significant damage. She limped back towards land, undergoing torpedo attack (unsuccessful) from HMS Brilliant's Lynx, and being strafed by machine guns from both helicopters. Soon a Wasp from HMS Plymouth and two more from HMS Endurance arrived and attacked with AS12 missiles, three of which struck the Santa Fe. She limped into harbour in Grytviken but was so badly damaged that her crew abandoned her and she later sank at her moorings. She was finally towed out to sea by the Royal Navy in February 1985 and scuttled.

From Quiz The Malvinas/Falklands War

Answer: Mirage V

After the 1967 war Israel asked Dassault Breguet (producer of the Mirage IIIC) to develop a lighter machine, with less electronic and more space for additional fuel and weapons. The result was Mirage V. When Franco-Israeli relations deteriorated and France sold the Mirage V to Libya, Israel developed its own "Mirage V", named "Kfir". The first test group of aircraft was named "Nesher" and the second "Dagger".

From Quiz Battle for the Falklands II

Answer: Brigadier-General Ernesto Horacio Crespo

The Southern Air Force was an air arm specifically created for the conflict, and included the Argentine Naval Aviation Command. General Crespo was responsible for the hasty training of the FAS, the majority of whose crews' previous training had been for an anticipated short-range war with Chile. Instead, the British tactic of stationing the carrier fleet 100 miles NE of the Falklands forced them to fight at the extreme limits of their fuel, where aircraft like the Dagger and Mirage 3 were at a huge disadvantage, since they could not spend more than a few minutes in the target area, and any attempt to escape by using their afterburners and superior speed would have meant running out of fuel well before reaching the Argentine mainland. Crespo's pilots showed high levels of professionalism, competence and great courage in pressing home their attacks. In contrast, the Argentine Navy was largely confined to skulking in port after the sinking of its most powerful capital ship. The land forces, although numerically superior, and deploying some very effective regular soldiers, consisted mainly of ill-equipped, poorly-trained and badly-led very young conscripts.

From Quiz The Battle for the Falklands

Answer: Santa Fe

Captain Largos was the Argentine Commander who surrendered on board HMS Antrim. The notorious Lieutenant Astiz surrendered on board HMS Plymouth and General Mario Menendez was the Argentine military governor of the "Las Islas Malvinas".

From Quiz The 'Black Buck' Operations

Answer: Five

During the first half of May 1982, four more missions were carried out by RAF Vulcans on Argentinian radar installations and defences. Like the first one, they relied on support from Victor K2 tanker aircraft, Nimrod patrol aircraft and naval Sea Harriers flying CAP. The subsequent raids were subject to a completely revised re-fuelling plan; the first raid was a 'close run thing' because of miscalculations about how much fuel a fully laden Vulcan flying in close formation over 3,400 miles would burn up. Some thirty thousand pounds of additional fuel were carried on the subsequent missions.

From Quiz From San Carlos to Stanley - A Conflict Timeline

Answer: South Georgia

Under 'Operation Paraquet', the tiny island of South Georgia was retaken by a combined force made up from members of the Royal Marines, Special Air Service and Special Boat Service on 25th April 1982, a full five days before the arrival of the main party in the two hundred mile exclusion zone imposed around the Falkland Islands by the British. Prior to the British assault on Argentine forces on South Georgia, the submarine ARA Santa Fe had been attacked and badly damaged whilst on the surface by helicopters from HMS Antrim, HMS Brilliant and HMS Plymouth, an action which led to the vessel being abandoned by its crew in the harbour at King Edward Point. After a short bombardment of Argentine positions by Royal Navy vessels, the Argentine troops there surrendered without further fighting.

From Quiz The Sea Battle for the Falklands

Answer: HMS Hermes and HMS Invincible

Laid down in 1944 but not launched until 1953, HMS Hermes was an old lady by the time the Falklands campaign began (although in 2011 she remained in service as INS Viraat, flagship of the Indian Navy). HMS Invincible was much newer, having been commissioned only 2 years before the war started. HMS Illustrious was rushed out of the shipbuilder's yard as the war started, but did not arrive in theatre until 27 August 1982, two months after the ceasefire. HMS Ark Royal was not commissioned until late 1985.

From Quiz The Malvinas/Falklands War

Answer: Captain Pedro Giachino

Capitán Giachino was a Navy combat swimmer. He was promoted post-mortem. General Menendez was later appointed Military Governor of Malvinas until the surrender. Admiral Buser was the Navy commanding officer during Rosario Operation. Major Aldo Rico was the commanding officer of the 601 Special Forces Company.

From Quiz Falklands/Malvinas Conflict 1

Answer: A London taxi

Sir Rex Hunt commonly traveled around the main island in the taxi. He was also known to dress up in full gubernatorial regalia including his feathered hat.

From Quiz Battle for the Falklands II

Answer: San Carlos Water

San Carlos was selected largely because it was a sheltered anchorage with good landing access. Additionally, the high hills surrounding it effectively screened the British ships from Exocet attack. Unfortunately, they also screened incoming Argentine air attacks from the ships' anti-aircraft defences, and San Carlos became known as "Bomb Alley".

From Quiz The Battle for the Falklands

Answer: General Belgrano

Although reports at the time said Tigerfish missiles had been used, it was in fact older Mark 8 torpedoes that downed the ship.

From Quiz The Sea Battle for the Falklands

Answer: Barrow-in-Furness, Great Britain

ARA Hércules was a Type 42 destroyer, of British design and construction, exactly the same as five ships in the British task force, HMS Glasgow, HMS Exeter, HMS Cardiff, HMS Coventry and HMS Sheffield, the latter two of which were sunk by enemy action. Her sister ship, ARA Santissima Trinidad, was also a Type 42, but was the only ship of the class to be built outside Great Britain, at AFNE Rio Santiago, Ensenada.

From Quiz The Malvinas/Falklands War

Answer: ARA Hyplólito Bouchard and ARA Comandante Piedrabuena

The escorts did not try to hunt the attacker, and concentrated on rescueing the survivors. ARA 25 de Mayo was an aircraft carrier (ex British Colossus class). ARA Guerrico, Granville and Drummond are French A69 type corvetts. ARA Hércules and Santísima Trinidad are British Typo 42 destroyers. By the way, ARA means Armada de la República Argentina (Navy of the Republic of Argentina)

From Quiz The Battle for the Falklands

Answer: Super Etendard

Two missiles were fired by a Super Etendard fighter bomber. One missed but the other scored a direct hit and ignited a fire. The French-made Exocet missile penetrated deep into HMS Sheffield's control room. The blaze caused a poisonous smoke and the loss of the ship and 20 men.

From Quiz From San Carlos to Stanley - A Conflict Timeline

Answer: Exocet

The first of the British naval losses occurred on May 4th when the destroyer HMS Sheffield was abandoned after being hit by missile which killed twenty of her crew. The Royal Navy suffered a further loss on May 21 when the Type 21 frigate HMS Ardent was sunk by Argentine aircraft which resulted in the deaths of a further twenty two British sailors; however losses were not restricted to the British and the Argentine Air Force lost a total of fifteen aircraft shot down. On May 24th the British task force received another blow when the Type 21 frigate HMS Antelope had to be abandoned after an Argentine bomb that had penetrated to the interior of the ship detonated while it was being defused by Royal Engineers Bomb disposal officer, Staff Sergeant James Prescott. The following day a further British loss was recorded when HMS Coventry, a Type 42 destroyer, was sunk by Argentine Skyhawk attack aircraft, killing 19 of her complement.

From Quiz Battle for the Falklands II

Answer: Black Buck

These 8-hour, 7700-mile long Black Buck raids held the record for long distance bombing raids until the record was broken by US SAC B-52 and B-2 raids in the Gulf conflicts. Although the raids did little tactical damage, they had a strategic value in that they sent the message that the Argentine mainland was within bombing range, thereby diverting Argentine fighters, with the additional bonus that Argentine radar operators in the Falklands became very reluctant to "light up" their radars, allowing several Harrier bombing raids to go virtually unopposed. The other options all refer to the code names for radar equipment carried on Vulcan and Sea Harrier aircraft.

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