British Commando Raid Destroys 11 Argentine Aircraft on Ground

Dear Fellow Earthlings, On the 14th of May 1982 the people of the Falklands felt hopeless and hopeful at the same time. The very nature of the occupation made the Islanders feel trapped, but the bulletins coming in from the BBC World News Service as well as telegrams from friends and relatives back in Great Britain gave the Islanders hope.

One BBC bulletin would soon be informing the Islanders that a British SAS (Special Air Service) squadron had just carried out a successful nighttime raid on the Argentine airstrip located at Pebble Island. They had destroyed six Pucara ground attack aircraft as well as five other aircraft.

On that forbiddingly dark, stormy May 14th night, 42 SAS fighters (two men sent out three days earlier to scout out the area, 40 more inserted by helicopter on that very night), had made their way to the airstrip. There, they destroyed the 11 aircraft mentioned in the previous paragraph. That done, the SAS raiders met up with a helicopter at a pre-arranged location and were whisked to the carrier (HMS Hermes) from whence they had come. All 42 of the SAS commandos returned safely.

The SAS had decided on the raid for they knew that the planes based at Pebble Island could inflict severe casualties among any troop concentrations attempting to land on the beaches of the Falklands.

Since the planned invasion area was at Port San Carlos (only 43 kilometers by air from the Pebble Island airstrip), the SAS had determined that the planes had to be destroyed.The raid would severely hamper the Argentines' ability to attack British ground troops once the invasion of the Falklands began.

Steve Walker Earthsaver and Jingles Creator

© 2013 Steve Walker, The Jingles-The Japan Foundation for English Pronunciation, Summit Enterprises.