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Other Thoughts & Details from JG Greenhalgh DFC Nov 81 - Scout Flt deploys to Kenya with ‘H’ Jones and 2 Para to conduct Iinfanry Training. Flew ‘H’ Jones on many occasions incl solo to Masia Mara and around Mt Kenya to KathendiniFeb 82 - Filmed ‘Who Dares Wins’ Ewan Lloyd (Producer) and Lewis Collins at Pinewood Studios2 Apr – Invasion – 658 Sqn stood too during a Dinner Night and by Monday morning 656 Sqn AAC stood-too instead (we had SSII missiles which they did not) and then on 9 Apr we were stood-down – total confusion 11 – 16 Apr – Skiing in Switzerland – stand-down rescinded, back to the UK asp and deploy 18 Apr – Scouts into the 2nd line workshop to have radalts fitted 20 Apr – Introduction to deck drills at RNAS Portland 21 Apr – Embark onto a cross channel car ferry – The Europic Ferry at Southampton and sailed for Ascension Island 25 Apr – Helicopter deck drills from the Europic underway – moving start point navigation etc 2 – 4 May – Freetown Sierra Leone to take on water and fuel 7 May - Ascension Island to join the UK Task Force 10 May – Flew Lt Col Jones from Norland to Fearless while underway at sea for a meeting. The deck was full and the Flight Deck Officer gave me the wave off, but we managed to sneak on between 2 Sea Kings and get half a skid on the deck allowing Jones to embark Fearless. The Flight Deck Officer was furious. Night circuits to HMS Fearless – very dark! 15 May – Gale Force 9 at sea! 16 May – Joined the rest of the British Task Force. Had Russian Bear reconnaissance aircraft fly slowly overhead taking photos of us. 19 May – Fired a live SSII missile at sea to prove systems and boost confidence. 3 missiles and 3 hits. We were surprised at how loud a bang it made as until then we had only ever fired practice missiles. 21 May – Sailed last into San Carlos Water at dawn behind LSL Lancelot – watched the SBS taking out the Argentine position on Fanning Head as we sailed past – surreal ringside seat. Flew off from the ship at 1100Z while still approaching in direct support of 2 Para moving ashore and up Sussex Mts – MGs to the top of the hill as a picket was the first task. Lifted the Regimental aid Post from the bottom to the top. Flew Lt Col Jones over to B Coy for a recce. First 2 x RM Gz lost (Lt Ken Francis and Sgt Evans). Moved 40 SAS soldiers in relays from the top of Sussex Mts to HMS Intrepid – they had beaten up Goose Green as a diversion and then tabbed to the top of the mts. Watched in horror the devastation of HMS Argonaut as it grappled with its bombs and fire. My first casevac was a Para with heat exhaustion – which was amazing because it was cold – put him onto Norland. While working up and down the mountain, we initially stopped for air attacks but it was slowing down our work for no result, so we just continued and observed the Sky Hawks and Mirages flying past. On one occasion we were flying down the mountain when we were selected by a Mirage who looked, by his direction and turn, as if he was going to attack us with guns. We followed the drill, which was to accelerate towards the ground, turning to the inside of his turn causing his to tighten further, spoiling his weapons solution. It worked because he crossed over us with about a 100 foot separation and I could see the pilot so clearly that I almost thought he was going to wave! Forced to sail at 0200 hrs due to the heavy air raids during the day and the threat of more at dawn the next day – we wished we had got ashore – but no heavy lift helicopters available to move the Comd Post which was key. 22 – 25 May – sailed around East of the Falklands 25 May - Exocet attack on Atlantic Conveyor! We knew we were being attacked by air and possibly by submarine 26 May - Sailed back into San Carlos Water before 1st light and started to unload the whole flight pretty dam quick to the foot of the Sussex Mountains. I had decided it could only be safer on shore where you had control of ones own destiny. The sea had clearly demonstrated that it was a cruel and unforgiving place both due to the high winds and the various enemy attacks. Chris Clark – the Capt of Europic Ferry told me after a particularly nasty night that he thought the ship, which had dug the bow so deep into the sea that the bridge was awash, was going to capsize. In San Carlos Water a Royal Navy Seaking took my Land Rover ashore and we transferred the remaining 100 x 50 gallon fuel barrels we had brought from the UK ashore 2 at a time with some help from a Seaking. No other vehicles were taken. Tools, spares and missiles were taken in MFO boxes and each soldier had his bergan – bought from Milletts the day before we sailed. I flew SSgt Ross and a pile of kit ashore without Gammon to increase payload and elected to jump out with the rotors turning to help remove the SSII missile booms. I removed the top pin while he removed the bottom pin. As I got mine out 1st, the boom rotated and hit him on the head. Even though he was wearing his helmet, he was knocked temporarily unconscious. Picture him and I by ourselves, him unconscious yet the helicopter was still running with its anti-tank boom half off! Fortunately he came round and was fine except he was quite mad at me! So I flew quickly back to the ship. The location was in a gully which gave us view from fire and view. The Sea King couldn’t find it and neither could I in the dark. 27 May - Air attacks on Ajax Bay were coming in at dawn and always from one of two possible directions. Before 1st light we ferried 4 Blowpipe teams out into a saddle where enemy fast air had ingressed before in order to lay an ambush. Inevitably they didn’t come that morning. Flew Brig Julian Thompson from San Carlos to Port San Carlos by the most direct route over the hill. He bollocked me as he said Argentine SF might try to shoot us down! He thought the Argentine SF might be observing the bridgehead. I also casevaced a Marine from Port San Carlos Settlement to Ajax Bay as he had shot himself in the foot while cleaning his weapon. Small arms anti aircraft fire sometimes spilled over into other units – always a cause for complaint. 28 May – 2 Para advanced on Goose Green supported initially by 2 RM Scouts and 2 Gazelles. The 2 Scouts were attacked by two Argentine Pucaras shooting down Dick Nunn and killing him, his crewman was thrown clear during the crash sequence and escaped with the loss of a leg. ( XT629 Scout AH1 3 Commando Bde Air Sqn shot down by an Argentine Pucara one mile SE of Camilla Creek, Falkland Islands killing the pilot and injuring the aircrewman: Webmaster). It was at this point that I was sent forward to Goose Green with Gammon in the CASEVAC role (2 x external stretcher pods left and right) with another Scout flown by Sgt Walker and Johns. Initially via Camilla Creek House to be briefed by David Bonest the RSO and Mike Ryan, OC HQ Coy. The approach was over open terrain, no cover, past the smoking remains of Dick Nunn’s Scout towards Darwin Ridge. The Gorse was all on fire and smoking which helped the navigation somewhat – there was no doubt where the fighting was taking place. I started a series of evacuations of wounded paras back to the Red and Green Life Machine at Ajax Bay. It was impressed upon me by 2 Para that they needed more 7.62 link ammunition urgently so having dropped my casualties at the Refrigeration plant, I landed inside the ammo compound at Ajax Bay and sent my crewman – LCpl Gammon to get the ammo. He was back empty handed, quite quickly, saying that without written authority we couldn’t have any ammo! I called for the ammo Warrant Officer who after being pulled into the Scout through my sliding window for an interview without coffee agreed we could have some ammunition – after all there was a war on! After a series of runs into the RAP on the back of Darwin ridge, I was given a grid by Mr Simpson the RSM of other casualties. To get to the grid I hover taxied up a narrow re-entrant followed by Walker in the 2nd Scout as far and as high up as I dare into the back of B Company position where the fighting was still going on. Nobody seemed interested in directing me to the casualties – they were obviously busy with more important things – like shooting at the enemy, so I landed and sent John Gammon and Johno forward on foot to identify where we should go. When he was about 100 m in front of the aircraft 2 Pucaras attacked from the South and we were sitting ducks. As I already had one casualty in a pod and one in the back and had no way of recalling the intrepid duo, we departed immediately back down the re-entrant and set off towards San Carlos at top speed while conducting turns and looking behind me to see where the Pucaras were. The casualty in the rear seemed most alarmed, but not as alarmed as I was! At Ajax Bay with no crewman it was difficult to get anyone to come and collect the casualties, frantic waving from the window eventually brought out a team who departed with the casualties leaving the pod cover off requiring me to close down to refit it! After refuelling on a ship we returned to where we had left our crewmen, who seemed relieved to see me and after that he was always reticent to get out of the aircraft again when we were forward! Mixed up in a fire fight and was shelled. During the afternoon we also moved forward the 2nd RAP to reinforce the main RAP, which involved lifting bergans and medics. We also moved part of the mortar platoon, which wasn’t as difficult as it had been because they had considerably less ammunition. I casevaced a number of people that I knew. Sgt Smith had been Col Jones Regimental Signaller in Kenya (known as the RSI) and he had incessantly chanted a particular rhyme to our annoyance while in Kenya. So when I picked him up with a gunshot wound to the shoulder I got Gammon to put a headset on him so we could talk – then I retorted back to him his little rhyme ‘mirror, mirror on the wall who is the fairest one of all, it is the RSI without a doubt, thank mirror, roger out!’ This brought a broad smile to his face, which was good given his circumstances! We ran into Darwin ridge just at last light around 2000 hrs and picked up a few casualties from the RAP. Then on the radio, C Company called and said they had casualties on the forward slope and the ground was too broken to carry them back and by the way they were not exactly certain where they were (it was in fact by the diary). I asked if they could hear the Scouts and they said they could not. So I suggested that I would cross the ridge and come down the forward slpoe in the dark. They gave me direction calls to direct me to them . We set off to conduct a version of the Golden Shot with this unknown radio operator giving directions over the radio, come South, turn left, turn right, and then you have gone past us etc. With the proximity to the Argentine positions this was a potential disaster so I conducted a quick ‘ú’ turn and retraced my steps to be met by my Scout Wingman, Walker head to head as he was behind me (I had forgotten – it was my fault) It was close, too close but somehow we both turned right and the blades did not clash! Then almost immediately we crossed a fence and then there was a large group of soldiers and I was uncertain whether these were paras or Argentine. Fortunately they were paras and we landed and picked up the casualties. The aircraft was severely overloaded and refused to fly until we gained translational lift and in so doing we bounced across the heath and bog – thank goodness for skids! 29 May - At about 3:00 am I was roused from a deep sleep by Air Tpr Beets my radio operator (I slept under the command post table for ease of acccess) who handed me the headset and I listened to a debate about who would be able to do more casualty evacuation that night from Goose Green. It transpired that more casualties had been discovered and that a further run was required. I got the command post crew to decode the grid and went to look for another pilot and John Gammon to come with me. Outside the command post it was very dark and icy cold and I worked my way down a line of frozen sleeping bags waking up half the flight in order to locate Gammon and Walker. I jumped into the aircraft but the windscreen was just like your car window on an icy morning – I needed to get the engine working to remove the ice. The other two arrived and we departed with Walker and Gammon on the maps. We even had a radio frequency that worked as 2 Para had changed freq at 2359 hrs which was SOP. The RAP, which was at Boca House, was able to show a green torch as we arrived, the colour of which they confirmed to me on the radio and we landed just short of the light. The casualty, Capt John Young, 2IC B Coy had been hit by a mortar in the stomach and was in a very bad way – he was on a stretcher and so we loaded him into the pod. We departed Northwards towards Sussex Mts in light rain, which is where the trouble began. We entered thick cloud at about 200’above ground level just as the Sussex Mountains were looming. Even though there was no radar I initiated an emergency climb to avoid the mountains but as the aircraft was wet it immediately started to freeze and ice over as we climbed. We held our heading and watched the radar altimeter as we crossed the top of the mountains. I then turned through 180 degrees to the South and watched again for the top of the mountain and once it had passed started an emergency descent as the aircraft was vibrating due to the build up of ice on the blades and aircraft. When we broke cloud we turned North again and descended to ground level using the white landing light. We then proceeded to hover taxi across the mountain, through the cloud but keeping contact with the ground. When we broke cloud on the other side of the North mountain the low level fuel lights came on and frankly I hadn’t a clue which way to go to get to Ajax Bay. The drill in such circumstances is to fly to a known line feature so we turned onto west to look for Falkland Sound. I also called Maj Peter Cameron on the radio and explained our desperate plight. He was outstanding; he called all the other radio stations and told them to listen for me and amazingly one of the remote flights told me we were to their South and from there we were able to steer to the Red and Green Life Machine. On the final approach we had a very close call with the sea, by nearly landing in it, as we approached to Ajax Bay due to a combination of disorientation, relief at locating the hospital and sheer fatigue. We landed with only fumes in the fuel tank. I elected to stay until first light, have a barrel of fuel pumped into the aircraft and then fly back to the flight for breakfast! In all the casevac took 60 mins of intense night flying but to me it seemed like just 5 mins! The rest of the day was moving other casualties, Argentine casualties and flying Julian Thompson into the centre of Goose Green immediately after the surrender. Met Steve Hughes the 2 Para Medical Officer and exchanged stories. We discovered a large supply of Argentine aviation fuel in bladders and barrels at Goose Green which we immediately started to use as it provided us with greater flexibility. 30 May – HMS Fearless arrived with 5 Bde Advanced party incl OC 656 Sqn. 31 May – Didn’t fly due to Main Gear Box change. 1 Jun – I was tasked to pick up Gen Moore from Fearless and take him to Teal Inlet where 3 Para and the cdos had yomped to. I was told he would be by himself and as I hadn’t been to Teal Inlet before I elected to take full fuel, which was an error because he turned up with 2 pax including soon to be Gen Muddy Waters. There was a 2 star discussion, which I lost so I decided to take off from Fearless into wind and hope that the descent from the side of the ship would be sufficient to compensate for the load! The General might have realised as we departed and descended towards the water that all was not well but God was on our side and the Scout at 102.5% climbed away without an impact into the water! 2 Jun –The balance of my flight arrived bringing me to 6 Scouts and 50 soldiers. Searched for Argentine radars on Mt Osborne and an Forward Air Control raid at 1st light with Harriers while Scots Guards and Welsh Guards came ashore at San Carlos. During the afternoon conducted the raid on Swan Inlet to try a tel call to Fitzroy in order to establish if the Argentines had withdrawn. Brig Wilson, Commander 5 Inf Bde proposed the plan to me and
asked was it possible to achieve. I conducted a map recce, considered the distances and told him it was, but there were considerable risks in the task, which was essentially behind enemy lines. 5 Scouts were teamed up for the attack, 3 carrying paras armed to the teeth and 2 carrying the SSII anti-tank missiles, which would be the only form of fire support, as we were well out of range of our own artillery. Walker, Sharp and Ward-Booth conducted the assault while Kalinski and I
provided the fire support and diversion from the flank. A circuitous route was taken to fly there so that the enemy would be completely surprised. Some of the missiles misfired (1 hit, 1 wire break, 1 rogue and 1 latch release failure) but it didn’t matter as the houses were deserted yet the telephone was in tact. Once the telephone estb that Fitzroy was clear I called bde and passed the codeword Mrs Thatcher the meaning of which was that the coast was clear to Fitzroy. Before
we had even arrived back, Brig Wilson had hijacked ‘BN’ the only remaining Chinook from 18 Sqn RAF and loaded it with 80 odd paras from 2 Para in order to make the 30 mile leap from Goose Green to Fitzroy/Bluff Cove. To make sure the coast was clear I conducted an observation and recce task with Kalinski in another Scout in advance of the Chinook’s arrival just to make sure. My compass gave up so I navigated there on stand-by compass, which was fun. Low on fuel and still based in San Carlos,
once the Chinook was safely in to Fitzroy, we set off home taking the most direct route to save time. Enroute at about 200 feet above ground level and 110 knots with dusk quickly falling we were fired upon by infantry – I still don’t know whether it was theirs or ours or SF – but they were lousy marksman because we went directly overhead but they still missed! Swopped WO2 Sharp for Lt Ward-Booth – who became a squadron LO. 4 Jun - Scout Flight to Goose Green. Casevac of rebro man from above Fritzroy. 5 Jun – Search for Exocet missiles to the SE of Goose Green including on Lively Island – 300 square miles which were supposed to be threathening the move of Fearless around to Bluff Cove! Covering huge areas that we had not seen before. At a high state of alert because we didn’t know if we found them, what sort of local defence they would have. Carried SSII missiles and a rear machine gunner to do the damage. Nothing found. 6 Jun – SSgt Griffin shot down by a Sea Dart from HMS Cardiff a Type 42 who was attempting to stop Argentine Hercules flying into Stanley – Griffin was trying to take the OC of the Signal Sqn and his Yeoman to the bde rebro on Mt Pleasant Peak, which provided comms to 2 Para in Fitzroy. The rebro was not responding so at about 0300 hrs they departed, never to return. At first light we conducted a search using all the aircraft and eventually found the wreckage below Mt Pleasant Peak. All were dead. Went to Ajax Bay to collect body bags and while Gammon was inside the hospital, RSM Simpson climbed into the Scout for a chat about who had died and been injured during the battle for Goose Green. Picture us sitting in a Scout on the ground at Ajax Bay, with me at the controls and the blades going round and both me and the RSM in tears; it was awful; we agreed it was also just not fair. Gammon returned with the body bags, we sorted ourselves out and got on with our work.. Scots Guards moved to Bluff Cove on HMS Fearless. 7 Jun – Working with 7GR in Lafonia looking for runaway Argentines, LVTP7 amphibious personnel carriers. One team of 2 Scouts and a Gazelle located some Argentines at Egg Harbour House. Cpl Johns fired an SSII missile into the area, which hit and suddenly 10 enemy Infantry came out of a house in the Settlement into dead ground and attempted to surrender to the helicopters. John Gammon got out with the Gurkhas and ran forward to take the surrender, but the top button on his combat trousers broke and his trousers descended to his knees leaving him with his gun in one hand and his trousers in the other – somewhat humiliated and has never been allowed to forget it! 8 Jun – Kalinski crashed into MacPhee Pond while avoiding Argentine aircraft that had attacked the Galahad. Aircraft remained upright but the water was inside the aircraft. I went to pick him up even though my Scout was only cleared for 30 mins flight between oil checks, which always required the addition of at least a gallon of engine oil. I located the rather wet and bedraggled team on the lakeshore and so I closed down to estb what had happened. While I was being briefed, a Sky Hawk flew over us very low and it was being followed by another so we cocked our weapons and prepared to fire at the 2nd as it bore down upon us, when one of the aircrewman, who was more able at aircraft recognition than the pilots shouted Harrier!! So we desisted! 9 Jun – Scout Flight to Fitzroy. Conducted night search of Fitzroy shoreline because the OPs were reporting people flashing lights. These turned out to be the beacons on the life rafts that had been used to get ashore. 10 Jun – Move our own fuel to Fitzroy – 2 drums at time refuelling only at Goose Green so that the stocks would build at Fitzroy. Wire strikes were common, even though there were few wires in the Falklands. WO2 Sharp departed in daylight for a short task and returned after dark and was really quite angry! When he walked round the aircraft after he had landed, he found one hundreds of yards of telephone wire wrapped around the helicopter
tail-rotor. Almost immediately we received a complaint from the R Signals that someone had destroyed their new tel link, which they had only just put up 60 mins before - stringing the wire across the gaps between buildings! WO2 Sharp went to speak to them and to give them back their wire! One of the Scouts wouldn’t start after dark and it was assessed that it needed a new torch ignitor. There was of course no spares but SSgt Ross, my amazing engineering officer said there would be one
on Kalinski's ‘Scout in MacPhee Pond. Lets go and get it then, but a lack of tools would have precluded progress until the farmer who we were living with lent us a pair of pliers. We departed in a Scout with SSgt Ross in the back with his pliers locating the Scout in the dark in the lake. Hovered over it, dropping Ross on to the roof. Unfortunately Kalinski had not applied the rotor brake when he had eggressed. Under the downwash of my Scout the blades started to sail round
requiring Ross to jump up and down on the roof every time a blade passed – which was frequent. I departed to the shore to allow Ross some peace and 5 mins later, after the flash of a torch (the pre-arranged come and get me signal) I picked him up again with the torch ignitor – hurrah! 12 Jun – daylight casevac from 3 Para on Mt Longdon, mostly artillery casualties. Then Kalinski was leading as we flew into 3 Cdo Bdes HQ pick-up-point to drop off some passengers. I was trailing by about half a mile. To my right I suddenly saw 7 Skyhawks approaching low from the West, obviously intending to attack the Bde HQ, which was further to the East. The first thing they saw was Kalinski in his Scout, so they attacked him. Several 1,000 pound bombs dropped on either side of his aircraft and there were several loud explosions. The aircraft departed, Kalinski closed down and a quick inspection revealed shrapnel holes all down the side of the Scout’s tail boom, but miraculously no one was hurt. For Kalinski it was his 2nd great escape in just 4 days. 2 minutes later one of the Skyhawks reappeared and flew directly over 3 Cdo Bde HQ in order to take photos but he also took the opportunity to drop his under wing fuel tanks, which skidded harmlessly across the bog! 13 Jun – Flew the new CO of 2 Para, David Chaundler and the Coy Comds onto the back of Mt Longdon from the back of Wireless Ridge to allow them to conduct a daylight recce of Wireless Ridge ready for the night attack. Arrived amid a heavy shelling which caused numerous casualties. Capt Mike Von Bertelle, the doctor, ran across to the aircraft to plead that we wait and take the casualties to Fitzroy. Unbelievably when he saw it was me (we had shared a cabin on the way down) he was so pleased he kissed me through the window. I think he was relieved, as there is only so much a doctor can provide for a casualty out one’s bergan. Then night casevac from 2 Para on Wireless Ridge back to Fitzroy. Hover taxying forward in total darkness, with no lights except for the continuous tracer fire arcing over the top of us from the GPMG gun in the sustained fire role. Several return journeys in the dark with very poor visibility. Returning to Wireless Ridge about 2 hrs before dawn with Kalinski leading it just became impossible so we elected to stop on the mountainside and await first light. We didn’t really know where we were, where the enemy was or anything for that matter. But being British we decided to make a brew and keep our fingers crossed! As it became grey we lifted and returned to 2 Para on Wireless Ridge who were still consolidating. So we continued to take ammunition forward to the company positions and then…. 14 Jun – Dawn attack using SSII missiles onto Argentine Pack Howitzer battery, which was dug in just West of the Stanley Race Course. Chris Keeble was frustrated that the Milan anti-tank missile, which had a range of 1950 meters, would not reach across the water to where the Argentine Battery was firing at the Scots Guard who had not yet taken Tumbledown. Keeble asked if it could be done but as we were not fitted for missiles we had to return to Estancia House where we were refuelled, fitted with launchers and then missiles without closing the aircraft down – a first for Scout. We could sense that victory was just around the corner. An ‘O’ group was held with 2 Royal Marine Scouts in front of my helicopter which saved extensive radio orders and I departed while the other 2 got fitted and ready. I was back with 2 Para within 20 mins and conducted a detailed recce and located the target and a suitable firing position and fired 2 missiles and then returned to the pre-arranged RV in order to guide in the other 2 Scouts. We fired a total of 10 missiles at a range of 3,000 metres taking out the guns, bunkers and the command post (1 latch release and 9 hits). After the first missile hit, you could see the troops running away from the guns in the direction of Stanley. Unfortunately we had been spotted and we were precisely targeted by enemy mortar fire, one round landing directly in front of my aircraft. 2 Para, who were digging in around our firing position, were not amused. As Lt Vince Shaunessy departed from the firing position he still had a missile on the rails, which would not leave. He kept diving the aircraft in the hope that the missile would fall off! 2 Para later lamented about how they had thought that he had been hit and that he was fighting to regain control of his Scout! Then we moved the Mortar Platoon forward to give them better coverage of the 2 Para area and the deed was done as Gen Menendez and his troops surrended at 1630 ZULU! In the afternoon moved back to Fitzroy. 24 Jun – 2 Para Memorial Service on Darwin Ridge with David Cooper and then 2 Para embarked onto Norland and Europic Ferry and sailed home. 3 Jul – Moved into Stanley to live on Moody Street. 17 Jul – Europic arrives in the UK to rapturous applause. 1 Aug – Flew home via Rio De Janeiro in Brazil in an RAF Hercules which became very sick (3 engines, a massive fuel leak and 4 burst tyres and a small fire). Were hosted impeccably by Brazil which served as R&R for us! 6 Aug – Arrive at Brize Norton via Dakar in Senegal on a VC10. There after went on leave and got married! updated 11th May 2011
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