Only 20 Sea Harriers
When the Falklands Conflict began Argentina seemingly had a massive advantage in the skies. They had over 100 aircraft of varying types. Some could operate from the Argentinian mainland and others could operate from airstrips on the Falklands themselves. Meanwhile, the British Task Force initially had only 20 Sea Harriers which could fit on its two aircraft carriers, HMS Hermes and HMS Invincible. It was up to them to protect the Task Force at sea as well as the troops on the ground, but to many that seemed like an impossible task.
In this 3rd episode of our Falklands series IWM Curator Paris Agar examines the conflict in the air. Just how big was the Argentinian advantage? How did each side change their strategy? And how did British pilots beat the odds and take control of the skies? To answer those questions and more Agar takes an in-depth look at the aircraft of the Falklands Conflict including the Vulcan, Pucará, Wessex and Harrier.
Credit to : Imperial War Museums
