Happy New Year!

Happy Friday, Happy New Year!

I know it’s not Friday but I've lost all track of time over this festive period and today feels like Friday! 

As I switched from scale model making this week, pedalling instead for 20+ hours to complete the cycling 'Festive 500' (km) challenge, I thought I'd share a roundup of my 9 months of lockdown creations and will reopen the model factory, with a new creation, from next week .. there’s actually a sneak preview in the attached, which, if you've been paying attention, you may notice.

Wishing you all a safe, healthy and Happy New Year! 

James Bond's Autogyro "Little Nellie"

I thought, for my Christmas scale model build, I’d steer clear of anything military and share instead an iconic gadget from a James Bond film! For as far back as I can remember, before they became a commercial TV staple, Bond movies were a highlight in the Christmas & New Year TV schedule. It is for this memory that I make my excuse for building this Airfix 1:24 scale kit of Little Nellie, James Bond’s Autogiro from the 1967 film You Only Live Twice. As if I needed one! 

Airfix 1:24 scale Little Nellie

The model is Airfix's 1:24 scale kit, Little Nellie, James Bond’s Autogiro from the 1967 film You Only Live Twice. Little Nellie, named after music hall star Nellie Wallace, who has a similar surname to its inventor, was a Wallis WA-116 Agile, a British autogyro developed in the early 1960s by former Royal Air Force Wing Commander Ken Wallis. In 1962, five WA-116s were built by Beagle Aircraft at Shoreham, three were for evaluation by the British Army Air Corps, one kept for Wallis’s own use while aircraft number G-ARZB went on to be transformed into Little Nellie.

Just wondering, if anyone ever used the British Army Air Corps decals! 

You Only Live Twice's film director, Lewis Gilbert, first got the idea to use this Bondlike piece of equipment in May 1966, after reading an article on the Russian-American autogiro expert, Igor Benson, in a Time Magazine. Coincidentally, and before a meeting could be set up with Igor, Ken Adam, Lewis's production designer, heard a BBC interview with Ken Wallace who was about to fly his autogyro for an Italian film company who were making their own spy movie, Dick Smart 2.007, in Brazil! Adam invited Wallis to Pinewood to demonstrate his autogyro and a deal was immediately struck. Shooting was to start in six weeks, so, while Beagle-built WA-116 G-ARZB was made more Bondlike, with various rockets and a new paint scheme, Wallis had just enough time to complete his Dick Smart commitment in Brazil, before joining Little Nellie in Kagoshima, Japan.

Q explains to Bond the additional features of Little Nellie

On 18th September 1966 the arial film unit, led by cameraman Johnny Jordan, started filming Little Nellie’s scene; a dogfight with four Bell H-13 helicopters over Mount Kirshima in Japan. 

These storyboards helped the aerial unit visualise the fight between
  Little Nellie and the SPECTRE helicopters.

The scene opens with Bond flying Little Nellie over a volcanic landscape in search of SPECTRE's secret base. Bond then sees the shadow of four helicopters closing in on his own. He's got company! 

 

The lead helicopter closes in and opens fire with its twin machine guns; you hear Little Nellie take glancing hits, but there's no serious damage. Bond lets it close further, to within range of his 2 rear facing flamethrowers, and with a push of a button the helicopter is engulfed in a fireball. 

Bond pulls back on the joystick to climb above the second and through the clear bubble canopy of the helicopter below, the SECTRE pilot looks up to sees a cloud of aerial mines, hung beneath little parachutes, floating down towards him. Multiple explosions rip the rota blades apart and the helicopter plummets to the ground. 

Dropping in behind the third attacker, Bond fires off a volley of bullets from the 2 forward facing machine guns, but being unable to sight the target within the guns 100 yard kill zone, they fail to hit. Bond, selects another switch, labelled Rocket Launcher. In doing so, a deadly stream of 14 incendiaries and high explosives are released, emptying the two launchers and obliterating the third helicopter.

Bond can't shake the fourth off his six, but Little Nellie has one final surprise for her attackers. The  last button Bond has available, is marked A-A Missiles. 2 heat seeking missiles lignite, race forward, and then turn, like dogs picking up a scent, through 180 degrees, and strike the last attack helicopter, head-on.

SPECTRE 0 : Little Nellie 4.  

Bond reports back to base, Bond reports back to base, “Little Nellie got a hot reception, 4 big shots made improper advances toward her, but defended her honour with great success"!

Airfix 1:24 scale Little Nellie

While the final cut gave the film franchise an audience pleasing visual hit, and another iconic Bond collectable, to join the Aston Martin DB5, it was not created without circumstance. Nine days into the shoot, on 27 September, there was an accident while filming one of the dogfight scenes. John Jordan was sitting with his feet on the skidoo the camera helicopter to film from the side when one of the SPECTRE helicopters flew in too close, slicing through the skid and Jordan's leg! The SPECTRE helicopter crashed into the mountainside, while the camera helicopter managed an unorthodox landing on stone blocks placed under the missing skid, John's foot, meanwhile, could not be saved. After being patched up by surgeons in Japan, it failed to properly heal, and so 6 months later, back in London, John asks for it to be amputated. This was not, however, the end for John Jordan's filming career. Fitted with a prosthetic foot, he was quickly back on set to film the the aerial sequences for both Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Battle of Britain, produced by 007's Cubby Broccoli and Harry Saltzman, respectively. He even returns to complete the areal photography on next Bond epic, OHMSS.

Another James Bond Collectable - The Commemorative Little Nellie Stamp 17 March 2020 

The real life WA-116 was not without its own issues and although nearly all were used for research or demonstration flying by Wallis himself, the crash and the death of a test pilot, flying one of his autogyros at the Farnborough Air Show in 1970, led to Wallis finally withdrawing all his autogyros from use by anyone other than himself. Little Nellie (G-ARZB) is apparently still airworthy and was still being flown by Wallis right up until his death in 2013.

------

The model

Brand: Airfix
Title: James Bond's Autogyro
Number: 04401
Scale: 1:24
Released: 1967 | Rebox 1996)

Panhard AML-90

The Panhard AML-90 (Auto Mitrailleuse Légère, or "Light Machine Gun Car”) is the French built armoured car, designed on a small, lightly armoured, 4×4 chassis, fitted with a DEFA D921 90mm main gun which would not look out of place on a tank! The AML entered service in 1960 at the hight of the Cold War with the intent of fighting a rearguard action while the heavier tanks and armoured fighting vehicles were deployed at the front.  As it was anticipated that Soviet paratroopers would deploy with their own artillery and armour, deep behind Allied lines, the AML’s 90mm gun was added to make it capable of knocking out the heaviest Soviet airborne self propelled guns (ASU-57 and ASU-85) likely to be encountered.

The Panhard AML-90 with a DEFA D921 90mm main gun 

Outside of its Cold War duties, the AML has seen deployment in Angola, Iraq, Chad, and the Lebanese Civil War, and specific to my build, the AML-90 also made a brief appearance in the Falklands War, when 12 were landed at Puerto Argentino / Stanley, as part of Operation Rosario with the Argentine Armoured Cavalry Exploration Squadron 10 & 181.

The sum total of parts with a resin model kit

While the AML-90’s impressive fire power made it exceptionally well-armed in proportion to its weight, unlike its British counterpart, the tracked FV101 Scorpion, it was ill suited to the boggy conditions of the Falkland Islands, and so once the Argentines landed their AMLs at Port Stanley, they could venture no further. Indeed, their only action of the war took place at the Battle of Wireless Ridge, in the final days, when on 13 June, they took up defensive positions in an attempt to halt the Blues & Royals squadrons’ Scimitars and Scorpions advancing into Port Stanley. 

Wireless Ridge was one of seven strategic hills within five miles of Stanley that the British had to take in order to liberate the Island's capital. The success of this offensive and the simultaneous attack on Mount Tumbledown, resulted on 14 June in the fall of Port Stanley, the surrender of the Argentine forces and the return of the Falklands to British sovereignty.

Argentine Panhard and British Scorpion side by side on the modelling mat 

My AML-90 build is a bit of a unique one. I could not source a traditional plastic kit and so had to spread my net wider and into the unchartered area of resin kits. After an extensive search, I came upon the French company, Model-Miniature, specialising in French armoured vehicles in resin form. I must admit, I will not be rushing to make another resin kit but for the AML-90 it ticked the box in providing me a closer look at this Argentine armour and a much needed addition to my Port Stanley diorama, to follow.

-----

The model

Brand: Model Miniature
Title: PANHARD AML-90
Number: MM-R068
Scale: 1:72
Released: | Initial release - new tool

FV101 Scorpion CVR(T)

The FV101 Scorpion CVR(T), Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked), manufactured by Alvis in Coventry, was introduced into service in 1972 and served with the British Army and RAF Regiment until 1994. It saw combat during both the 1982 Falklands War, the Gulf War of 1991, and the Battle for the Fireplace, under the command of my flock headed Action Man when Palitoy released their Action Man Scorpion Tank into the hands of this very excited schoolboy in 1972!

Although weighing in at 8-tonnes, the Scorpion was designed to be amphibious, with flotation screen deployed, to operate in boggy conditions, and to be easily shipped by air, with two Scorpions being able to be carried in a C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. As a light tank, the Scorpion entered service modestly armed, with a 76mm main gun, 7.62mm machine gun and six smoke grenade dischargers in the turret. Fitted with a Jaguar 4.2-litre petrol engine, it had a maximum speed of 50 miles per hour on land and close to 4 mph on water!

Driver in the front, recruited from a set of NATO troops

The kit I managed to procure for this build was actually the original 1975 Airfix kit and thus the very one I could have made as a mini-me to my Action Man's Palitoy version! In spite of its age, small scale and minimal number of parts, it is surprisingly well detailed and of a better fit to many of a much younger age. I fitted a driver in the front, recruited from a set of NATO troops and left the gunner's hatch in the turret open and vacant to fit with a Port Stanley diorama I have planned to share towards the end of this project ... so watch this space.

The source model is the original Airfix kit from in 1975

Two troops (3 and 4) from B Squadron, The Blues and Royals, travelled with 9 CVR(T) vehicles 4 Scorpions, 4 Scimitars (basically a Scorpion with a 30mm gun) and a single Samson (a Scorpion with a vehicle recovery hook in place of its turret) aboard the requisitioned Truck Ferry, M/V Elk, while crews embarked on the SS Canberra. After engaging in range practice on Ascension Island, the Scorpions and accompanying CVR(T)s were loaded aboard HMS Fearless in readiness for the amphibious landing at San Carlos Bay on 21-May.

After the initial landing had taken place the beachhead was first enlarged in preparation for the move on Stanley. During this time the Scorpions and Scimitars provided perimeter security from dug-in positions and with the loss of the Atlantic Conveyor, even assisted the then limited helicopter force as logistics carriers, shuttling stores from one place to another. 

Argentine Panhard and British Scorpion side by side on the modelling mat 

In a terrain which prevented the the 90mm, much larger gunned, Argentine Panhard AML-90 armoured cars from even leaving Port Stanley, the Scorpion was to ably support British ground forces in a number of operations, including 

* 5 Commando in their move along the northern route to attack Two Sisters 11-12 June
* 3 Para in their move to Teal Inlet and the taking of Mount Longdon 11-12 June
* 2 Para in the Battle of Wireless Ridge 13-14 June
* Scots Guards during the Battle of Mount Tumbledown 13–14 June 
 

Two techniques used by the British employing the CVRs proved very successful. The first involved a diversionary attack on the night of 12 June. In the attack, the Scots Guards employed 4 Troop in a reconnaissance role and then a direct fire role in support of the diversionary assault. The impact of the use of the CVRs was instrumental deceiving the enemy. The other technique employed by the CVRs was known as “zapping”: …the CVR crew would engage the Argentine position with a brief burst of 7.62mm machine gun fire provoking a response, which was promptly silenced by either the Scorpion’s 76mm or Simitar’s 30mm main gun, firing HESH (High-explosive squash head rounds). It is said that few Argentines felt able to reply after being zapped!

--------

The model

Brand: Airfix
Title: Scorpion Tank
Number: 01320-4 (Also listed as 02312-6)
Scale: 1:76
Released: 1975 | Initial release - new tool

IAI Nesher FAA Dagger

I had intended to build the Mirage III at this point in my Falklands War scale modelling project but coming across the seemingly interchangeable name of Dagger used in write-ups of this time, I had to investigate further. The Dagger, I discovered, was actually the much more numerous (30:17) Israeli Nesher. The IAI (Israel Aircraft Industries) Nesher was the IAF (Israeli Air Force) version of the French Dassault Mirage 5 multirole fighter. Build from plans acquired from Dassault, before a French arms embargo severed the partnership with IAI to design the Mirage 5, it was fitted with Israeli avionics, a Martin-Baker ejection seat and the Israeli Shafrir heat-seeking missile. Between 1978 and 1980, following the retirement of the Nesher from IAF service, 39 remaining Israeli aircraft were refurbished and exported to the FAA (Argentine Air Force) who then operated it under the new name, Dagger. 

PM Model IAI Nesher in the colours of FAA Dagger based at Rio Grande, June 1982

During the 1982 Falklands War, supported on the ground by IAI technicians, Daggers were deployed to the southern naval airbase of Río Grande, Tierra del Fuego, and an airfield in Puerto San Julián. Despite the lack of an aerial refuelling capability and the considerable distance to their targets, which gave them only 5 minutes combat time over the Falklands, the Dagger conducted 153 sorties against both ground and naval targets over the 45 days of combat operations. The primary role of the Dagger and Mirage III was to protect the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk strike force from the patrolling SHAR (British Sea Harriers). This was achieved by deploying at high altitude, drawing the SHAR away from the strike force and then, using their superior speed, out run the pursuers to return to the safety of their base on the Argentine mainland.

Dagger C-432 stationed at San Julián, now on display at the Museo Nacional de Aeronáutica, Argentina

Armed with 2 French 30mm DEFA cannon and British built 500 and 1000 lb bombs, the Dagger was also free, in the absence of any covering SHAR, to engage the British Task Force. Between 1st and 21st May, HMS Arrow, Antrim, Brilliant and Broadsword were all attacked and damaged with cannon fire. On 21 May and 8th June two British ships, HMS Ardent and then HMS Plymouth, received direct hits with bombs, and although damage was sustained, outright destruction was avoided as the bombs failed to explode. This was due to them being dropped too low for their arming mechanisms to have sufficient time in the air to trigger. 

This was not, however, totally risk free for the Daggers. During the 45 days of combat operations and 153 sorties, eleven, a third of the Dagger complement, were to be lost in combat; nine to the SHAR AIM-9L Sidewinder, one to HMS Broadsword's Sea Wolf missile and the other to a Rapier surface to air missile over San Carlos Water. 

PM Model's 1:72 Scale Model Kit of the IAI Nesher in the colours of the FAA Dagger 

My IAI Nesher 1:72 scale model kit, from the lesser known Turkish company PM Model, was probably one of the simplest and least detailed builds I've encountered. Rather than completing it in the IAF colours provided, I used a set of Xtradecal Falklands War decals for the Argentine FAA Dagger C-401 as flown by Lt Jorge Ratti. Using my new found Blu Tack skills in applying camouflage, I had a couple of attempts in producing the various shades of green and brown as used at this time, trying also not to over paint the unusual yellow markings on wing and tail.

Capt Carlos ‘Castor’ Rohde in C-415

The combat 'highlight' for FAA Dagger C-401, was the part it played in the last major air battle of the conflict: the attack on the Royal Navy's Rothesay-class frigate HMS Plymouth, in Falkland Sound and the strike by A4 Skyhawks on the landing ships at Fitzroy Cove, during 8 June 1982. HMS Plymouth had not been the intended target, the original mission being a combined Dagger/ Skyhawk strike to neutralise the British amphibious landings on East Falkland. 

Five Grupo 6 Daggers, lead by Capt Carlos ‘Castor’ Rohde (C-415) with his wingmen, Lt José Gabari Zocco (C-417) and Lt Jorge Ratti (C-401), and Capt Amílcar ‘Mastin’ Cimatti (C-435) and Maj Carlos ‘Napo’ Martínez (C-418) tucked in behind, flew in a five pointed star formation up the western edge of Falkland Sound, in support of 5 Skyhawks. Their target were the LSLs (Landing Ship Logistics) offloading troops and supplies in Fitzroy Cove. 

FAA Dagger C-401 flown by Lt Jorge Ratti against HMS Plymouth

Out of his canopy to the left, Rohde spotted HMS Plymouth alone and exposed in the middle of the waterway. Leaving the LSLs to the Skyhawks, Rohde turned his 5 aircraft formation towards HMS Plymouth and, spreading out to attack in line-astern, the first three Daggers dived in to attack at wave-top height, with the second pair close behind. 

 HMS Plymouth and HMS Avenger in San Carlos Water

Responding to anti-aircraft fire from HMS Plymouth the Daggers opened up with their 30mm cannon as they commenced their bombing run. Releasing their ordinance as they flew fast and low, HMS Plymouth was hit, but there was no explosion. Holed in the hull and smokestack, a helicopter depth-charge was detonated causing fire. Internal flooding from the breaches made by the unexploded bombs forced a six-degree list to the ship as it manoeuvred in search of safety in to San Carlos Water. HMS Avenger, a Type 21 frigate, quickly came to its aid and assisted in extinguishing the fire. 

In response to HMS Plymouth’s initial air raid warning, HMS Exeter vectored 801 NAS’s SHAR cover over the LSLs in Fitzroy towards San Carlos Strait. While the SHARs were in a futile hot pursuit of the five fleeing Daggers, the Skyhawks launched their attack on the two now undefended LSLs, Sir Galahad and Sir Tristram, in Fitzroy Cove. Sir Galahad was hit by two or three bombs and set alight. Sir Tristram was hit by a 500 lb bomb which penetrated the deck, but failed to explode immediately. The crew were able to be evacuated before the bomb later exploded and Sir Tristram was left abandoned.

HMS Plymouth, meanwhile, was patched up and returned to shore bombardment duties on 14 June, in time to see the Argentine forces in the Falklands finally surrender.

------

The model 

Brand:       PM Model
Title:          IAI Nesher
Number:    PM-222
Scale:        1:72
Released:  2019 | Rebox (Changed decals)

FMA IA 58 Pucará

This week’s Falklands War build is the Airfix 1:76 scale model of the FMA IA 58 Pucará (or the Fortress). 

The Pucará was the Argentine’s ground-attack and counter-insurgency (COIN) aircraft manufactured by the Fábrica Militar de Aviones. It entered service in May 1975 with the Argentine Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Argentina, FAA) and had its operational debut late in 1975 when a number of Pucará carried out counter-insurgency strikes as part of Operativo Independencia, the first large-scale military operation of the Dirty War against the People's Revolutionary Army (ERP), a guerrilla group which tried to create a Vietnam-style war in the northwestern province. 

With its twin-turboprops, the Pucará was designed to operate from short, rough airstrips, making ione of the few Argentine aircraft capable of flying from the small airfields in the Falklands, the runway at Port Stanley Airport being too short for the navy's Super Étendard and FAA Skyhawks and Mirages to be deployed, especially after being bombed by Vulcan 607! 

During April 1982, 12 Pucará were shipped to the Falklands for use in a reconnaissance and light-attack role, operating from Port Stanley airport and the two small grass improvised airfields at Goose Green and Pebble Island. 

FMA IA 58 Pucará A-522

The Pucará's fixed armament was comparable with aircraft of the WWII era, and directly comparable with the cannon and machine gun arrangement on the Messerschmitt Bf 110. It consisted of two Hispano 804 20 mm cannons mounted under the cockpit with 270 rounds each and four 7.62 mm Browning FN machine guns mounted on the sides of the fuselage with 900 rounds each. 

Although these aircraft had little success against British ground forces, it was a real threat to the British helicopters. In Harry Benson's excellent book Scram!, about life as a helicopter pilot during Falklands War, one gets a first hand account of what it was like to have to 'scram!' at the first sign of a Pucará attack aircraft.  This threat was to be realised when, on 28th May, a Pucará shot down and killed the pilot of the Scout helicopter, Lieutenant Richard James Nunn, en route to recover the wounded Commanding Officer 2 PARA, Lieutenant-Colonel Herbert 'H' Jones VC,  during the battle for Goose Green. This was to be the only British air to air combat loss to the Argentines during the conflict.

My scale model is of Pucará A-522 which was delivered to the Argentinean Air Force Grupo 3 de Ataque (3GA) at Port Stanley airfield on or around 15th May 1982, as a replacement for aircraft lost earlier in the conflict. On the surrender of the Argentine forces, A-522 was found at Port Stanley airport in a relatively undamaged state. It was airlifted by Chinook onto the Contender Bezant in Port William and brought to the Fleet Air Arm Museum, Yeovilton, Somerset. It can now be seen on display at the North East Land, Sea & Air Museums (NELSAM), Sunderland, Tyne & Wear. 

Update: I've not managed to get to Tyne & Wear to see A-522, however, in April 2023 I did get across to the Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum where they have Pucará A-528 on display and looking rather good in its unusual camouflage some 40 years later!

Pucará A-528 on display at the Norfolk & Suffolk Aviation Museum April 2023

Pucará A-528, also with 3GA, was flown to Stanley Airport in the first week of April 1982, then to Goose Green on 29 April and then for some reason back to Stanley a week or so later, where it was found on the Argentine surrender in June. Although, post 14 June, it was found to be still standing on its undercarriage it had broken propeller blades, nose damage and shrapnel cuts below the cockpit area.

It was airlifted on 6 September 1982 by Chinook to the ship Contender Bezant and arrived back in Southampton on 23 September. From here it was to be displayed at several exhibitions including the Boat Show and the Cosford RAF Museum before being transferred to the Army Museum at Middle Wallop in 1985. When it arrived at the Norfolk & Suffolk Aviation Museum I do not know, but it is certainly there in 2023. Interestingly there is now visible damage to the port engine as it sags forward. The volunteer on duty suggested the aircraft had been dropped either in its loading or unloading from the Contender Bezant back in 1982, though I can fond no further reference to this.

Unnumbered sprue & unintelligible plans made for an interesting build!

With unnumbered sprue, unintelligible plans, poor moulding and misprinted decals, this kit it was so far from what one expects from Airfix that it's hard to believe they would put their name to it. Looking further into its history, I believe Airfix may have acquired it from Special Hobby Models, as their 2003 kit and instructions look identical, albeit it Special Hobby Models' decals look better! 

The colour scheme of the Pucará is noticeably different to the camouflage we are more familiar seeing on European aircraft, and I had to dig through the sea greys, earth browns and dark greens, to the bottom of my paint box, to find something which would come close to the pale green and yellow sand used on the original aircraft. I also attempted, for the first time, to use Blu Tack (the white kind as it contains, apparently, less oil) to mask out the required camouflage pattern. I first applied the sky blue to the underside, masked this with tape and then covered the upper surface with the pale green. In my excitement, I forgot to add the pre shading of darker primer, so will have to make a note to self not to get so carried away next time! 

My first attempt at using Blu Tack masking 

Once the green had been given a chance to dry, I moulded the Blu Tack over the areas which were to remain green and then sprayed over the gaps with the sand colour. After another drying period, and feeling like a plastic surgeon about to remove the bandages from his patient, it was time to remove the Blu Tack. I was quite happy with the final result, although disappointed to have lost the shading through my omission to even apply it before the green!

Blu Tack removed

Ignoring past experience and my better judgement, I did attempt a bit of weathering using some Humbrol weathering oils with mixed results and found, in my spares box, a set of Argentine FAA decals to replace the awful Airfix versions. The varnish layers were applied using Johnsons Floor Shine which has, amazingly, become my goto source of gloss varnish.

Weathering and after market decals added

My final comment on the kit, is that one of the key building instructions was to place an 8g weight in the nose to ensure it sat correctly on its front wheel when completed. This is not an unusual requirement but having weighed out the ballast it became very clear that there was absolutely no space to place any weights in the nose! I had to, therefore, reluctantly ignore this instruction, knowing full well that this would mean I’d never be able to easily display it. Indeed, to take the picture of the aircraft outside the hanger, above, I had to superglue its front wheel to the runway! 

------

The Model

Brand: Airfix
Title: F.M.A. IA 58A Pucara
Number: A03068
Scale: 1:72
Released: 2008 | Rebox (Updated/New parts)

Dassault-Breguet Super Étendard

My Falklands War scale modelling project , which, be warned, is likely to last as long as the 1982 campaign itself, now focuses on the military inventory of the Argentines. 

This week’s build, is of the aircraft which carried the infamous anti-ship Exocet missile, the Dassault-Breguet Super Étendard.

In 1979, the Argentine Navy placed an order to buy fourteen of France's new carrier-borne strike fighter aircraft, the Dassault-Breguet Super Étendard (French for battle flag). Between August and November 1981, Argentina took delivery of the first five aircraft, each supplied with a single anti-ship sea-skimming Exocet missile. 

In December, General Leopoldo Galtieri, with the support of Admiral Jorge Anaya, head of the Argentine Navy, seized the Presidency of Argentina. Just four months later, on 2 April, the now President Galtieri ordered the invasion the Falkland Islands. Galtieri's seemingly hasty action was driven, both by an urgent need to improve his downward spiralling popularity at home and in 'payment' to Admiral Anaya, for his earlier support in his presidential coup; the invasion proposal being one put forward by Anaya. Galtieri's expectation was that the anti colonial opinion of the international community would be behind him, and as an ally in their El Salvador operations, the United States would be firmly on his side. He also believed that the British would be powerless to intervene particularly in the face of the upcoming winter. On 5 April, however, the British government dispatched its largest naval task force since the Second World War with the order to retake the islands.

The Falklands had only three airfields. The longest and only paved runway was at the capital, Stanley, and even that was too short to support fast jets (although an arrestor gear was fitted in April to support Skyhawks). The Argentines had no option therefore, but to launch their Super Étendard from the mainland, severely hampering their efforts at forward staging, combat air patrols, and close air support over the islands.

Lt Mayora and Cpt Bedacarratz exchange notes after sinking HMS Sheffield

Four Super Étendards of the Second naval fighters strike squadron (2da Escuadrilla Aeronaval de Caza y Ataque EA32), armed with their Exocet anti-ship missiles, were stationed at the Río Grande, Tierra del Fuego naval air base. The threat posed to the British Task Force as it lay off the shores of The Falkland Islands led to the planning of the Mikado and Black Buck Operations. Operation Mikado was the proposed covert mission, led by a Sea King helicopter carrying SAS troops, to destroy the Super Étendards, and Operation Black Buck, was the long range Vulcan bombing mission against Port Stanley's paved runway; the objective being to make it unsafe, even if extended, for fast jets to land there.

Badge of the Second naval fighters strike squadron, 
nicknamed La Lora (female parrot)

The Super Étendards' first attempt to attack the British Task Force with was made on 2 May 1982, but this had to be abandoned due to in-flight-refuelling problems. A couple of day's later, on 4th May, the second attempt resulted in two Super Étendards, flown by Lt Mayora in 3-A-203 and Cpt Bedacarratz in 3-A-202. Mayora and Bedacarratz both released their missiles from about 12 miles out, then banked sharply for home. One missile fell harmlessly into the sea but the other hit the British destroyer, HMS Sheffield, amidships. Although the warhead failed to explode, the impact and resulting fire inflicted mortal damage on the ship and twenty of her crew. 

The infamous anti-ship sea-skimming Exocet missile 

On 25 May, the Argentines launched another attack. 3-A-203 was again one of the aircraft, this time flown by Cpt Curilovic, and Lt Barraza was flying 3-A-204. The primary targets for this mission were the two British aircraft carriers, HMS Hermes and HMS Invincible. Forty miles northwest of the lead carrier, HMS Hermes, the Super Étendards popped up and swept the ships with their radar. Picking the first target they saw, 20 miles from the ships, Curilovic and Barraza launched their missiles, then veered away, outrunning the Sea Harrier which was providing combat air patrol (CAP). The ships launched chaff and turned to bring their anti missile weaponry to bear on the Exocets. One of the missiles fell into the sea, the chaff having confused its targeting systems. The other flew past the carriers until its small internal radar found the Atlantic Conveyor. The missile drove well into its hull before exploding, igniting tons of fuel. Abandoned and left to burn, the transport ship sank several days later, taking with her the helicopters and other supplies that had been intended for the ground war just beginning.

Cpt Curilovic and Lt Barraza prepare for their mission against the British aircraft carriers

On May 30, two Super Étendards, flown by Cpt Francisco and Lt Collavino (3-A-202 & 3-A-205), Collavino carrying Argentina's last remaining Exocet, were joined by four Air Force A-4C Skyhawks of Grupo IV for an attack on carrier HMS Invincible. Two of the Skyhawks were shot down by Sea Dart missiles from HMS Exeter during their final approach, and while they were following the wake of the Exocet missile. 

With the European Economic Community, and thus France, having placed an embargo on fulfilling the Argentine order for their remaining nine Exocet missiles, Argentina looked to other markets to acquire the weapon, but it was fortunate for the British, that their search was in vein and the Super Étendards were to take no further part in the war, fortunate for the British, that only five AM.39 Excites had been delivered to Argentina.

Once the conflict was over, the rest of the Super Étendards shipment was delivered, however, Super Etendard 3-A-203 was lost in a fatal crash on 29 May 1996 while attempting to land on Punta Indio airstrip, in Northern Argentina.

This model of the Super Étendards is the 1984 Heller kit reboxed and distributed by Airfix in 1990. Now being a somewhat rare kit to acquire, I ironically purchased it second hand in September 2021 from Oxfam's online store for £20.00! Hannants after market Argentinian decals were then used to complete the build as aircraft 0753 which in March 1982 was with 2 Escadrille as '3-A-203'. Deployed to Rio Grande from Espora between 19-20 April 1982, it was used on the missions of 4 May and 25 May 1982 and subsequently marked with silhouettes to show the losses of HMS Sheffield and Atlantic Conveyor.

----------

The model

Brand: Airfix

Title: Super Etendard
Number: 03060
Scale: 1:72
Released: 1990 | Rebox (Changed box only)

Westland Wessex HU.5 & HAS.3 - Operation Paraquet

I'm ending my current helicopter builds with a flurry of Westland Wessex Junglie and Pinger whirly birds. Last month, I posted how the rarity of the Wessex, in scale modelling form, had resulted in a very unsatisfactory build. Then, just a few weeks later, like busses, two turn up together in exactly the configuration I was originally looking for; such better quality ones too! My approach to constructing this pair was exactly the same as with my earlier Junglie and Pinger Sea King duo, but with so many lessons learned from that experience, I think enjoyed these more and must say that the Pledge Floor Gloss worked so much better than Vallejo's gloss varnish!

As it's been a good few weeks since my first Wessex build, here's a reminder of the helicopter's pedigree. It was the Westland Wessex that replaced the Westland Whirlwind, first being used by the Royal Navy, in the form of the anti-submarine Wessex HAS.1, in 1961. The HAS.3 was brought onto service in 1961, with improved avionics and radar equipment; the sound of which gave the anti-submarine force the nickname of Pingers. 

1964, saw the Wessex HAS.1, operating from bases in Sarawak and Sabah, assisting Army and Marine detachments fighting guerrilla forces in Malaysia. Having removed much of the anti-submarine equipment to lighten the aircraft, during the subsequent campaign in Borneo, the Wessex was typically operated as a transport helicopter, capable of ferrying up to 16 troops or a 4,000-pound payload of supplies directly to the front lines. It is from these operations the Commando Helicopter Force gets its nickname of the Junglies and the commando assault variant, the Wessex HU5, was developed.

Italeri, Wessex HAS.3, as Humphrey

Matchbox, Wessex HU.5, as Yankee Alpha

In 1982, around 55 Westland Wessex HU.5 and 2 HAS.3 participated in the Falklands War, and it is 3 Wessex helicopters from this conflict that my scale models have been based on. 

The models and their intended Falklands War identities are:

• Ark Models' Wessex HAS.1 as the HU.5 Yankee Foxtrot flown by Lt Mike Tidd
• Matchbox's Wessex HU.5, as Yankee Alpha flown by Lt Ian Georgeson
• Italeri's Wessex HAS.3, as Humphrey flown by Lt Cdr Ian Stanley

These 3 helicopters were key players in the opening days of Operation Paraquet, the code name for the attempt to recover South Georgia from Argentine military control using SAS elite troops, one of the first British acts of the War.

I recount below, much of their story discovered in the pages of Harry Benson's excellent book Scram! This is thrilling first-hand account of what it was like to be a helicopter pilot during Falklands War; from dodging Pucara attack aircraft, to landing special forces behind enemy lines, as told from the seat of his Westland Wessex. 

Operation Paraquet was an SAS planned mission to take control of South Georgia by the most unlikely and unexpected route. Inserted by two Royal Navy commando Wessex helicopters, of 845 Squadron, onto the Fortuna Glacier, the largest tidewater glacier on South Georgia, the plan was for these troops to march across the mountains and take the unknown Argentine force at the Leith whaling station by surprise.

Against the strong advice of a scientist, from the British Antarctic Survey team, who had only recently been extracted from the island himself, 22 mountain troops of D Squadron SAS were landed on the glacier. Overnight, on 21/22 April 1982, and as the Antarctic expert warned, the weather was to "defy human reason". A violent storm, the wind gusting to 100 knots and producing squalls of driving snow, stopped the SAS in their tracks. With frostbite and exposure a real concern, the SAS troop commander, Captain John Hamilton, radioed for the helicopters to return and rescue them.

Lieutenant Commander Ian Stanley in Humphrey, the single engined Wessex 3, but the only Wessex equipped with radar, acted as pathfinder for the 2, radar-less twin-engine, troop-carrying, Wessex 5s. Stanley guided Lieutenant Mike Tidd in Yankee Foxtrot and Lieutenant Ian Georgeson, flying the second Wessex 5, Yankee Alpha, in a close formation up to the top of the glacier.

Although dressed in white Arctic clothing, after exposure to a night of sub-zero temperatures, gale force winds and driving snow, the SAS troops were already in varying stages of hypothermia. Yankee Foxtrot, with Tidd at the controls and with half the frozen soldiers safely loaded, was the first to pull up into the icy but clear sky, when, without warning, it was enveloped in a tidal wave of a snow shower. In an attempt to return to the landing zone, the tail and left wheel of the Wessex hit the snow at about thirty knots, bringing the aircraft crashing down on its left side and sliding it onwards for fifty yards. The left side of the cockpit filled up with debris and snow as the windows imploded. Tidd slid open the cockpit window and clambered up onto the side of the aircraft to help open the rear cabin door.

Tidd slid open the flimsy cockpit window and clambered up onto the side of the aircraft

The snow shower passed as suddenly as it had appeared and visibility improved once more. Out on the snow, the soldiers were divided between the two remaining helicopters. With ten people now crammed into the Wessex 3 and fourteen in the Wessex 5, the depleted formation rose to the hover once again. As Stanley navigated over the ridge of the glacier with the use of Humphrey's Wessex 3 radar, Georgeson in Yankee Alpha followed a few rotor lengths behind. Then, another ferocious snowstorm hit the formation just at the wrong moment, barely ten seconds after launch. As Humphrey dropped down over the ridge-line of the steeply descending glacier, Georgeson lost sight of it in the now near blizzard conditions. Yankee Alpha's starboard wheel caught in a hidden and small ice crevasse and the aircraft toppled over onto its side. While it was amazing that no one was severely injured, Yankee Alpha was not so lucky, the second and last troop carrying Wessex was out of action.

Out on the snow, the soldiers were divided between the two remaining helicopters

With no radio contact, an overloaded helicopter and appalling weather conditions, there was nothing Stanley could do but to return to HMS Antrim, the County-class destroyer from which they had launched two hours earlier. After Humphrey received a thorough safety check by the engineers, Stanley decided to have another go at rescuing the survivors. As if taking to the air in arctic conditions which would ground any peace time flight, with only one engine to support them, was not bad enough, Stanley also had the added problem of how to fit fourteen large passengers into Humphrey's tiny cabin, already full of radar equipment! During the earlier rescue flight, Humphrey's rear cabin had been cramped with just two crew and six passengers and would now have to find room for an additional eight! Even if they could somehow cram everyone in, the Wessex would be dangerously overloaded way beyond the design limits of the rotor gearbox and the capacity of the single engine. 

Stanley and Humphrey have another go at rescuing the survivors

Stanley radioed ahead for the ship to get onto a heading that gave maximum wind, and thus maximum lift, over the deck. His final approach was judged to perfection. The helicopter descended straight towards the deck unable to maintain the usual careful hover due to its excessive weight. The air speed indicator showed around sixty knots at the moment they touched down. A controlled crash would have been good enough. Instead it was as close to as smooth a landing as you could get! Against the odds, Humphrey had brought all helicopter crews and SAS troops safely home.

Ending the day with one failed mission by the SAS and two crashed helicopters, this near disaster on Fortuna Glacier was a worrying start to Britain’s campaign to reclaim South Georgia and the Falkland Islands. But for the astonishing skill of Lt Cdr Ian Stanley and his Wessex 3 crew, it could have been so much worse. 

Julian Thompson, Commander 3rd Commando Brigade in 1982, has an insightful and somewhat amusing thought in his forward to Scram! ... What the SAS thought they were doing up there is another matter, and my opinions on the matter are best left unsaid! 

Imperial War Museum’s copy of an original photo taken from Humphrey

On 25th April, with a sense of reality restored, a more traditional helicopter assault by Special Forces and Royal Marines, with two Royal Navy vessels (Antrim and Plymouth) conducting a naval bombardment, brought a successful conclusion to Operation Paraquet with the surrender of the island's two Argentine garrisons. And this was just the start .... !

--------------

The Models

 Brand:      Italeri

 Title:        Wessex HAS.3
 Number:  1258
 Scale:       1:72
 Released: 2007 | Rebox (Updated/New parts)

 Brand:      Matchbox

 Title:        Westland Wessex HU.5/HAS.31
 Number:   PK-133
 Scale:       1:72
 Released: 1987 | Initial release - new tool

  Brand: Ark Models

 Title: Westland Wessex HAS Mk.1/31 Anti-submarine helicopter

 Number: 72032
 Scale:      1:72
 Released:2009 (Originally 1963 Frog)