History does not know the subjunctive mood - the events that have taken place are firmly imprinted in the memory and give a very specific historical result.
Despite heavy losses, Her Majesty's fleet made its way to the Falkland Islands, returning the distant lands to the jurisdiction of the British crown. The old lion showed the whole world that he still had fangs.
Argentina suffered a deafening defeat, which was the final blow to the government of Leopoldo Galtieri. The intensified crisis and mass dissatisfaction with the outcome of the "small victorious war" led to drastic political transformations within Argentina.
Well, politics is a fickle thing, but national pride is eternal. Despite the loss in the war, the Argentines generously honored their heroes - the pilots of the naval aviation managed to damage a third of the ships of the British squadron! It would seem that a little more and …
Alternative history? Why not.
If you do not indulge in naive dreams of blasters and combat orbital stations, the Falklands War appears as an incomprehensible set of accidents, each of which could completely change the course of hostilities and have a great effect on the results of the conflict.
"Six better fuses and we couldn't have taken the islands."
- Lord Craig, RAF Marshal
It is not surprising that 80% of Argentine bombs and anti-ship missiles did not work in a regular way. The reliability of fuses has always been a sore subject for ammunition developers, and 30 years of storage in a warehouse and an off-design drop trajectory (the Argentines attacked ships from a low-level flight) finally ruined the hope for the effectiveness of missile and bomb strikes.
"Before the conflict, we knew that Argentina gave the world outstanding Formula 1 pilots. Strange, but we did not realize that they also have great combat pilots" - the opinion of one of the British officers
With non-explosive bombs, everything is clear - but what would have happened if Argentine footballers had bothered to lengthen the airport runway in the Falklands, preparing the runway for receiving combat Duggers and Skyhawks? This is exactly what the British feared - in this case, the flight time would be sharply reduced, the intensity and effectiveness of air attacks would increase. The Argentines would not have to overload the planes with fuel and use air tankers (in reality, the Argentine Air Force had only 1 serviceable KS-130 tanker, which greatly limited the frequency of strikes and the number of strike groups).
Port Stanley's original concrete was 4,000 feet (about 1,200 m) long. Argentina had all the technical capabilities and almost a month of free time to carry out construction work, but no action was taken.
Argentine attack aircraft A-4 "Skyhawk"
And what would the disputed islands be called now - Falkland or Malvinas? - get the Argentines on time all 14 Super-Etandars they ordered and 28 Exocet anti-ship missiles?
It was such a batch of weapons: 14 carrier aircraft, 28 anti-ship missiles, spare parts, Atar 8K50 engines and all related equipment for re-equipping the Argentine Navy aviation was ordered in France in 1979. The contract was paid with hard currency - dangerous "toys" cost Argentina $ 160 million.
If the Argentines had put off the war for at least a year, the British would have been able to learn the full power of modern missile weapons.
In reality, it turned out differently - the outbreak of hostilities in the South Atlantic entailed an immediate UN Directive and an international arms embargo on Argentina. By April 1982, the Argentines managed to receive only six Super-Etandar fighter-bombers (one is not operational due to technical problems and lack of spare parts), as well as five AM.39 Exocet air-launched anti-ship missiles.
But even this modest set was enough to cause an epidemic of diarrhea aboard Her Majesty's ships. The air defense capabilities of the British squadron were hardly enough to repel the attacks of the Skyhawk subsonic attack aircraft, and modern missiles posed a particular threat to the British.
Argentines uncover their "wunderwaffe"
Dassault Super-Étendard with AM.39 Exocet suspended under the wing
Five shots - two corpses. The destroyer Sheffield and the ersatz aircraft carrier Atlantic Conveyor are lurking in the waves of the South Atlantic. According to the criterion of "efficiency" of the Argentine Navy pilots, only Gavrila Princip with his revolver surpassed.
It is not difficult to guess how the British Moremans would have danced if 5 times more of these missiles had flown into them. However, oddly enough, the British General Staff also did not sit still and carefully worked out this situation.
Operation Mikado
Realizing the threat posed by the missile-carrying aircraft of the Argentine Navy, the British command seriously considered the possibility of expanding the combat zone and conducting an operation on the island of Tierra del Fuego.
By itself, this cold and windswept piece of land was of little interest to the British. The only significant object is the Rio Grande airbase, the closest Argentine aviation base to the Falklands. It was from here that the Daggers and Skyhawks rose into battle, the formidable Super-Etandars were based here and a set of anti-ship missiles was kept.
In the early 1980s, Her Majesty's fleet had not yet received the Tomahawk SLCM. At that time, the British did not have long-range naval artillery, or operational-tactical missile systems, or any other remote means suitable for striking an Argentine air base. “Point” bombing strikes using Vulcan bombers were deemed unnecessarily risky and ineffective.
The only option remained was to carry out a manual attack using the SAS (Special Air Service) special forces. The plan of the operation, codenamed "Mikado", was as follows:
A pair of C-130 Hercules transports with a special forces expeditionary group of 50-55 people, with weapons, explosives, provisions and all the necessary equipment, rise from the airbase on Ascension Island (equatorial Atlantic) and head south.
Transport vehicles will need 3-4 refueling to get to Tierra del Fuego, then, successfully disguising themselves as Argentine C-130s (similar machines were used by the Argentine Air Force for daily delivery of goods to the Falklands), "Hercules" brazenly follow in the direction of AB Rio Grande.
Taking advantage of the general confusion, the transport workers land on the runway of the airbase: from the belly of the "Trojan horses" a stream of people and cargo gushes. Next, a real Hollywood blockbuster in the Rambo style begins: shoot, blast, kill - the primary tasks of SAS were to destroy all the "Super-Etandars" and locate anti-ship missile storage sites with their subsequent disposal. If possible, the flight technical personnel of the air base should have been shot and the maximum damage inflicted in the shortest possible time.
Damn it, this is war! Or did the Argentines seriously hoped that it would be possible to shoot at Her Majesty's ships just like that, without consequences ?!
After the perpetrated pogrom, the special forces, picking up the wounded and, if possible, taking possession of ground vehicles, had to fight their way towards the border with Chile (march 50 kilometers across a deserted area).
As for the Hercules planes themselves: if they remained intact after the landing, the engines should have been immediately put into takeoff mode, and they should have gone west, almost touching the hilltops with their wings, to the Chilean airbase Punta Arenas. If the transport workers were damaged by fire from the ground, the pilots should have blown up the faulty equipment and evacuated along with the main special forces group.
Despite its seeming adventurism and insanity, the British plan as a whole looked quite realistic. Special forces, a transport aircraft, air refueling, and a brazen landing at an enemy airfield are classics of modern warfare.
The first phase of the operation raises no questions: the British "Hercules, Nimrods" and "Volcanoes" flew dozens of times along the route of Fr. Ascension - Falklands, with numerous refuelings en route.
There are much more doubts about the safe landing and pogrom at the airfield by the forces of 55 SAS fighters. As it turned out after the war, the British had a very vague idea of the Rio Grande airbase, its security systems and the location of its infrastructure. It is no coincidence that the Daily Telegraph would later call the mission "suicide", and the British General Staff, after considering all possible scenarios, decided to act according to a different scenario.
According to the updated action plan, Operation Mikado was to be carried out by the SBS (Special Boat Service) naval special forces, since the Rio Grande was located on the coast itself.
Having landed under cover of darkness from the submarine HMS Onyx, the special forces without unnecessary noise and fuss removed the sentries and penetrated the territory of the air base. And then … the Hollywood blockbuster began: colorful fireworks of explosions and shooting until you were blue in the face.
Having defeated the base, the special forces, picking up the wounded, set off towards the Chilean border.
Now that's another matter! The plan sounds completely realistic and effective.
The runway of the Rio Grande airbase is located near the water, as a result, British submarines watched Argentine planes taking off throughout the war, promptly warning the squadron of air threats. The diesel-electric boat HMS Onyx was only engaged in landing SBS groups on the Falklands coast - it was not difficult for her to land a similar group on Tierra del Fuego. There is also no doubt about the combat training of SBS fighters.
The only snag is evacuation. The attentive reader must have noticed the regular mention of Chile. It would seem: why should a neutral state intervene in the conflict between "two bald men over a comb"? Will the Chilean authorities extradite the British "war criminals" at the request of Argentina?
They won't give it out. And that's why:
Chilean trace
Despite the horror stories in the style of "The globe is 71% covered with water", the land is distributed over the surface of the planet in uniform spots - every time there is a piece of land nearby, suitable for peace and war. And then, in 1982, Great Britain found an ally even at the very end of the Earth. Republic of Chile.
To say that relations between Chile and Argentina were strained is to say nothing. The aggravated territorial dispute over the Beagle Strait put both states on the brink of war. It is no coincidence that during the days of the Falklands conflict, half of the Argentine armed forces were stationed on the Argentine-Chilean border.
In such conditions, the Chileans were guided by a simple rule: "the enemy of my enemy is a friend." Assessing the situation, Pinochet proposed to Great Britain to place combat aircraft in Chile, in convenient proximity to the borders of Argentina and the Falkland Islands. Britain prudently rejected the proposal, stressing that "minimal military success can be offset by major political complications."
However, the military cooperation between Great Britain and Chile during the Falklands War is not in question. The British used Chilean hospitality cautiously, trying not to stir up tension around this whole slippery situation.
The aircraft had to be placed outside the continental part of Chile - on the island of San Felix, 3000 km from Tierra del Fuego. From here operated the Nimrod R1 ELINT radio-technical reconnaissance aircraft, which monitored and intercepted Argentine radio communications in the zone of military conflict.
Another interesting story is related to the actions of the reconnaissance "Canberra" from the 39th squadron of the RAF. According to official data, several cars of this unit were sent to Chile, but then, for political reasons, the order was canceled, and the planes were stuck for some time in Belize (a state in Central America).
The unofficial generally accepted version is as follows: "Canberras" urgently received the paintwork and insignia of the Chilean Air Force and relocated to the Agua Fresca airbase (Punta Arenas). This is the only intelligible explanation for the fact that in the spring of 1982, several aircraft of this type suddenly appeared in the Chilean Air Force.
English Electric Canberra PR9 with Fuerza Aerea De Chile insignia (Chilean Air Force)
Chilean "Canberras" regularly flew in the direction of the Falklands to conduct photographic reconnaissance and monitor the situation in the ocean. The Chileans explained these episodes as "approbation of new aircraft and training of Chilean Air Force pilots under the guidance of British pilots." Who really sat in the scouts' cabins, and what the Canberras were doing … as they say, comments are superfluous.
It was thanks to the Canberra from Agua Fresco that daily fresh photographs of the situation on the occupied islands were placed on the table of the British command: the deployment and size of enemy forces, the results of bombing strikes, the location of fortifications and other important objects (radar stations, warehouses, anti-aircraft batteries). Perhaps it was precisely to conceal the fact of reconnaissance flights from the territory of Chile that a “duck” was launched in the media about receiving intelligence data from American satellites (although, for sure, this was not done without it. True, not to the extent that the press described it).
Curiously, after the war, two old British Canberras were actually donated to the Chilean Air Force - in recognition of their cooperation.
But the most interesting case related to the Chilean-British cooperation occurred on the night of May 17-18, 1982:
A Sea King helicopter (b / n ZA290) from 846 Squadron secretly entered Argentine airspace and attempted to land a special forces group near the Rio Grande airbase for reconnaissance as part of the planned Operation Mikado.
The pinwheel was discovered and fired upon from the ground - the damaged Sea King barely made it to Chilean territory, making a hard landing on a beach 11 miles from Punto Arenas. The crew was transferred to the British Embassy in Santiago. The Chilean authorities, as best they could, tried to hide the incident by burying the wreckage deeper in the sand, alas, the story became widely known and now local old-timers take tourists to see the wreck of a British helicopter.
Epilogue
Despite the unambiguous end result, each of the parties that took part in the Falklands War had its own "Plan B": many proposed ways and solutions to neutralize the enemy. The British, frankly, were lucky that Argentina was not too well prepared for the war, at the same time, even the presence of a superweapon in the person of a couple of dozen "Exocets" could not guarantee the Argentines victory - the Britons knew how to solve the problem and were seriously preparing for such a development events. A good lesson for future generations of the military.
The frightening and mystical operation "Mikado" never took place in reality. While British special forces prepared for the raid on the Rio Grande airbase, the Argentines used up their modest stock of missiles, and the need for the raid was no longer necessary.
