The Malvinas Islands are composed of more than 200 islands, with a total area of about 11,900 square kilometers. The British are called the Falkland Islands, and Argentina is called the Malvinas Islands. Due to historical reasons, both countries claim to have sovereignty over the island. In 1982, Britain and Argentina fought a war that lasted several months for the island. In the end, the Afghan army surrendered and the war ended, but the dispute between the two countries over the real power of the Falkland Islands has not been resolved.
In the first stage of the war, Argentina took advantage of its geographical advantages to take advantage of the unpreparedness of the British and regained Falklands by force, forcing Britain to recognize its sovereignty over Arima Island in the face of facts.
In the face of facts, Britain is determined to regain the Falklands at a huge price. First, force the Afghan army to withdraw from the Falkland Islands with strong military pressure. If the Afghan army does not withdraw, it will be forced to land and seize. Tactically, it will take quick and quick decisions and strictly abide by the regulations not to take military actions against Afghanistan's mainland and 12 nautical miles of territorial waters.
Argentine President Galtieri ordered the early implementation of the "Rosario" plan to regain the Falklands. The commander-in-chief of the army was the commander of the 5th Army and Lieutenant General Osvaldo Garcia, commander of the Malvinas Theater. The task force consists of 1 aircraft carrier, 4 destroyers, about 20 other ships, and the 40th task force consisting of 4,000 landing troops.
The reconnaissance team of the Albanian Marine Corps dispatched by the 40th Amphibious Task Force at 0:15 on April 2 landed at Pembroke Point. At 6:30 on April 2, the main force of the Afghan army landed in Longke Bay and then captured the airport and port. At 8:30, the Afghan Army's 7 C-130 transport aircraft brought more than 3,000 support. The total strength of the Afghan army on the island reached 4,000. There were nearly 200 British defenders on the island, and they only fought a general resistance, that is, they surrendered all under the leadership of Governor Rex Hunter. There were no casualties in the British army, and 4 people in the Afghan army were killed. The Albanian appointed Brigadier Mario Benhamin Menendez as the military commander of the Falklands.
On April 3, the Azerbaijani navy sent about 200 landing troops to land in the Port of Glynviken, South Georgia. 22 British defenders resisted and were finally captured by Ason. On April 7, Afghanistan announced the establishment of the "South Atlantic Theater" and appointed General Juan Arce Lombardo, commander of naval operations, as the commander of the theater. At the same time, the 60th Amphibious Formation of the Albanian Army landed on the South Island. After a brief exchange of fire, the South Island was occupied. 23 British defenders surrendered. In this way, the Afghan army occupied the entire Falklands at the cost of 7 casualties and the loss of 2 helicopters.
The news of the Afghan army's recovery of the island spread to the country, and the sentiment was inspiring. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in the "May 25th Square" of the Presidential Palace, singing the national anthem, chanting slogans, and celebrating the victory. More than 10 political parties across the country have unanimously expressed their support for the government's actions. President Galtieri's prestige reached its peak. No one thinks about the government's failure to deal with economic issues anymore.
During the period from the recovery of the Falklands to April 30, the Albanian troops continued to strengthen the defense of Falklands in order to defend against British retaliation. By the end of April, the number of troops on the island increased from 4,000 to 13,000. The deployment is as follows: 4 battalions and support units in the Port of Argentina and Kent Mountains area with a total of about 9,000 people, Darwin Port and Gusgreen a battalion and support units with a total of about 1,700 people, Fanning Cape about 50 people, Fox Bay, Pebble Island A battalion and support team in other places totaled about 2,000 people; in addition, it also expanded the Argentine Port Airport and built airstrips on Gus Green and Pebble Islands; deployed radar stations and air defense forces to build fortifications; transported weapons, ammunition and other items to the island Supplies etc. The headquarters is located in the port of Argentina.
After learning that the Falklands was occupied by Argentina, the United Kingdom immediately announced the severance of diplomatic relations with Argentina, and established a wartime cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher as the highest decision-making body, and formulated a political, diplomatic, and economic backed by force. Let's go together and force the Arab side to withdraw its troops. If Argentina does not surrender, it will use force to retake the strategic policy of the Falklands. The Americans are also very actively involved. The Americans wanted to resolve the crisis politically at the beginning. Therefore, the then Secretary of State, General Hei Ge, was sent to mediate, and the attitudes of both impatience and both sides were very firm. On April 3, the British Cabinet made the decision to dispatch a task force to re-occupy the Falklands, and appointed Rear Admiral Sandy Woodward as the commander of the task force. There are more than 40 British mixed fleet ships, carrying about 4,000 ground troops, 20 Harrier aircraft and 45 helicopters of various types. They set sail from Portsmouth and Gibraltar to the South Atlantic on April 5, respectively. On April 7, the United Kingdom announced the implementation of a complete sea and air blockade of 200 nautical miles around the island of Tsushima. On April 12, the British nuclear submarine immediately began to blockade the island.
Britain urgently mobilized large merchant ships to participate in the war in accordance with the wartime mobilization law
During the 13,000-kilometer voyage to Falklands, the British troops completed a series of preparations such as the formulation of combat plans, battle sequence formation, and tactical exercises. In accordance with the decree issued by the Parliament during the war on April 4, 58 civilian ships were recruited. , As the logistical support force of the fleet, at the same time the requisitioned civilian ships are quickly modified as needed. For example, the "Queen Elizabeth II" and "Canberra" passenger ships were converted into troop carriers, and the "Atlantic Transporter" and "Atlantic Causeway" ro-ro ships were converted to aircraft carriers. At this time, the "Uganda" passenger ship was working. Carrying 940 British students on a trip in the Mediterranean, they immediately stopped at the nearest port after receiving a call-up order to let the students disembark, then sailed to Gibraltar, and converted it into a medical ship in just 3 days. From this we can see the ability of the British side to deal with emergencies.
On April 17th, the British War Cabinet proposed the principle of controlling the war in the Falkland Islands and not attacking the mainland of Argentina. And actively launched a diplomatic and political offensive. The United States, NATO and other countries all expressed their support for the United Kingdom and interrupted the arms trade with Argentina. France and Germany in particular had arms sales agreements with Argentina, but they all supported the arms embargo against Argentina. At the same time, various countries also provide the UK with logistical support, communications, satellite intelligence and other conveniences.
On April 26, the second echelon consisting of 23 warships, 20 aircraft, and 2,000 army members set sail from Portland. On May 12, the third echelon consisting of 18 warships and 3,000 troops set sail from Ampton.
The first batch of task forces arrived at Ascension Island in the Mid-Atlantic on April 17. After rest and supplies, they set sail on the 19th and continued to advance towards the South Atlantic. The advance team arrived in the waters near South Georgia on April 24. On April 22, 14 members of the British special air service group, namely SAS, parachuted from a C-130 transport plane in the northern waters of the South Island, then transferred to a submarine to reach about 3 nautical miles from the South Island, and finally swam ashore for reconnaissance and investigation. He understood the forces, equipment, and firepower configuration of the Afghan Army on the South Island, and chose a landing site for the follow-up troops to land, and cleared the minefields on the island. On April 25, SAS team members on the South Island guided the 42nd Marine Assault Battalion to land on the island. The 156 Afghan soldiers only made limited resistance, that is, they surrendered under the leadership of the commander, Colonel Astici. At 6 p.m., the British army occupied the port of Grittviken, the capital of the South Island. In this way, the British army first seized an important forward base on land, so that the British army could calmly transport personnel and various equipment to the island while deploying the troops.
On April 25, three British "Lynx" helicopters found the Alfons submarine "Santa Fe" near South Georgia. They immediately launched missiles and dropped depth charges to sink the "Santa Fe" submarine. British Marines The 42nd Assault Battalion and the "Special Boat Squadron" landed on South Georgia. The main British task force arrived in the waters of the Falklands on April 29 and completed the deployment of 200 nautical miles of sea and air blockade around Tsushima on the 30th. The British Ministry of Defence announced that from 11:00 GMT on April 30, all aircraft and ships entering the restricted area of 200 nautical miles around the Falkland Islands will be attacked. The Afghan army has also entered the highest state of alert, and has begun to implement light control and curfews in the Falklands.
On May 1, 1982, the British army began to attack the Falklands garrison. The British "Vulcan" bombers from Ascension Island and the "Harrier" fighters flying from the aircraft carrier attacked Falklands for the first time.
At the same time, the British used surface ships and naval guns to bomb and shell the military targets on Falkland Islands many times, and the Albanian side dispatched planes to fight back. In the future, the British continued to bomb and shell the Falklands, the main targets were airports, radar stations, warehouses, etc. In order to better gain the initiative on the battlefield, the British cabinet approved the task force to attack the Afghan forces outside the blockade.
Subsequently, the British nuclear submarine "Conqueror" fired 3 MK-8 torpedoes at the cruiser "General Bergno", the flagship of the Albanian Navy, at a distance of 36 nautical miles outside the restricted area of 200 nautical miles on the Falklands. The cruiser sank 45 minutes later. , The Afghan army has 321 killed or missing.
As the ship was sunk, the morale of the Afghan army was greatly damaged, and the main force of the Argentine navy was withdrawn from the waters of the Falkland Islands. Although the Afghan Navy has a fleet consisting of one aircraft carrier, four submarines and two guided-missile destroyers, it has During the war, they were all shrunk on the mainland and did not dare to go to war.
In retaliation for the British sinking of the "General Belgrano" cruiser, the Argentine Air Force sent a legal "Super Banner" fighter-bomber on May 4 to launch two legal AM-39s 40 nautical miles north of the Falklands. The "Flying Fish" air-to-ship missile sank the "Sheffield", which was known as the most advanced class 42 guided-missile destroyer in Britain at the time, killing 20 people and wounding 27 others.
This 3,200-ton, 200-million-dollar warship was sunk by a missile that cost only 300,000 U.S. dollars, which dealt a huge blow to the British army. Since then, the British army has learned lessons and adopted various measures to prevent missile attacks by the Afghan army. The most typical method is to send a "Sea King" helicopter equipped with an early warning radar to conduct early warning over the fleet.
In order to avoid the threat of the Arab air force, the British army dispatched 16 SAS team members to board the submarine and then to the rubber boat to sneak into the Rio Gallegos Air Base on the mainland of Argentina on May 6. Eight of the 14 "Super Banner" fighter-bombers severely damaged the long-range strike capability of the Afghan Army.
The Argentine Air Force kept the British’s nightmare from enduring for a long time. On May 12, the Afghan air force severely damaged two British frigates in the waters near the Port of Genting. These planes all took off from Ajun Airport on Pebul Island. In order to remove this thorn, 50 naval commandos landed on the island by 3 helicopters on the evening of May 14, blowing up 6 Afghan "Pukara" attack aircraft and 4 "T-34" trainers attacking. Aircraft, 1 transport aircraft.
The artillery observation group among the members directed the 114mm main artillery of the destroyer Glamorgan to blast the target on the island. One arsenal and six radar stations on the island were destroyed. The British army returned safely by helicopter in the raging fire, and achieved a complete victory at the cost of lightly wounding 2 people, clearing the obstacles to landing.
The British considered that the Afghan army has 14,000 troops on the Falkland Islands, while the British army can carry out landing operations with at most 1,000 landing troops. How to win with less and more can only win by surprise. For this reason, the Fleet Commander Woodward took great pains and utterly lost his mind.
Because there are a lot of British residents on the Falklands, the British military agents can understand the Afghan army’s defenses under their cover, while they are active and harass them everywhere, except that they have not attacked the Afghan army’s headquarters. The main reason is Just because the British army decoded the code, the command of the Afghan army became an important source of intelligence for the British army.
At the same time, the British army continued to increase its troops in the South Atlantic while blocking, bombing, and shelling the Falklands. By May 20, the British army had basically achieved the goal of blocking the Falkland Islands and weakening the forces of Falkland Islands’ defenders, and had made preparations for landing on Falkland Islands. The British army is determined to land in the port of San Carlos on May 21. The port of San Carlos is about 80 kilometers away from the port of Argentina, most of which is marshland, which is difficult to maneuver. It is about 40 kilometers away from the port of Darwin. There are 40-50 defenders at Fanning Point at the entrance of San Carlos Port. The hydrology and beachhead conditions in the area are conducive to landing, and the landform on the shore facilitates the establishment and consolidation of landing sites, and is conducive to preventing attacks by submarines and Flying Fish missiles.
The third stage of the war: the British landing forces were organized into two echelons. The amphibious assault echelon consists of the 3rd Marine Brigade, the 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the Parachute Regiment, the 29th Artillery Regiment and the "Scorpion" light tank unit, air defense missiles, engineers, logistics and other units, with a total of about 5,000 people. Its mission was to land assaults in the port of San Carlos and its vicinity, and then attacked the ports of Argentina and Darwin respectively.
The follow-up echelon is composed of the 5th infantry brigade and support detachment, with a total of about 4,000 people. Its task is to wait for the opportunity to land in the original landing area or in the new landing area after the assault echelon landed and develop the attack in depth, and jointly capture with the assault echelon. Horse island.
At 3 o'clock in the morning on May 21, the SAS assault team landed at Fanning Point as the first echelon. With the assistance of the reconnaissance team that landed earlier, they wiped out about 50 guards of the Afghan army. At 3:30, the British began preparations for naval gun fire. At 3:40, two British amphibious assault ships and four landing ships carried out multi-point three-dimensional landings in San Carlos, and they landed smoothly without resistance. The British army seized the weakness of the Afghan army's poor night combat capability and raced against time to grab personnel and materials. In 4 hours, 2,500 people went ashore and 32,000 tons of materials were transported. And build fortifications, organize defenses, and prepare to meet the counterattacks of the Afghan army. Beginning at 10 o'clock in the morning, the Albanian side dispatched several batches of aircraft, totaling more than 70 sorties, mainly carrying out air strikes against British ships, bombing the Shen-British frigate "Enthusiastic", and severely injuring and injuring 4 British ships. But the Albanian side also lost 14 planes.
The Afghan pilots have received rigorous training by instructors from the United States, France, and Israel. They have high technology, fierce style, and strong combat effectiveness. Facing the British air defense system composed of antiaircraft artillery, missiles, and "Harrier" fighters, they are not afraid of sacrifices, and often use low-altitude penetration to increase the hit rate when attacking. However, the British army eventually withstood the counterattack of the Afghan army and controlled a 20 square kilometer beachhead position. It also paved a steel airstrip for the "harrier" and helicopters to take off and land, further consolidating the landing beachhead. On May 22, the Afghan army was inexplicably halted and gave the British army a respite. The British army took the opportunity to replenish supplies, adjust the deployment, and deployed a "blowpipe" portable air defense missile company, dedicated to countering the low-altitude power of the Afghan army. It has perfected the air defense firepower distribution system. After the war, many veterans mentioned this day as a miracle day. They said, "If the Afghan army continues to attack, the British landing is likely to collapse, but thank God, there is a day to readjust."
On the second day, the Afghan Army dispatched nearly a hundred sorties of aircraft and continued to launch fierce air strikes, sinking the British frigate "Small Antelope".
On May 25th is Argentina’s National Day, the Afghan Air Force launched an all-out attack and dispatched about 200 sorties throughout the day to obtain the sinking of the "Coventry" destroyer, the "Atlantic Carrier" ro-ro ship, and damage to a destroyer. , The brilliant record of a frigate.
The great fortune of the British army's misfortune was that the 16 Harrier fighters and one American-made Chinook heavy helicopter carried by the Atlantic Carrier flew to the shore airport before being sunk.
For three days, the Afghan Air Force fought bravely and dealt a heavy blow to the British army. However, the performance of the aircraft was not as good as that of the British army, and the navy and army did not receive strong support. Thirdly, because Argentina had no war for more than 100 years, its combat readiness was poor. The bombs dropped by the low-altitude attack were all set to be dropped from high altitude, so 40% of the bombs did not explode, so it was impossible to prevent the landing of the British army.
The Argentine Air Force lost 31 aircraft on May 25. On the 24th and 25th, the Argentine troops stationed in Darwin also sent a small force to carry out reconnaissance and harassment activities against the British forces in the San Carlos Port area, but they were repelled by British artillery fire.
Since the ground forces of the Afghan army did not conduct anti-landing operations, and the aviation counterattack mainly attacked British ships, this enabled the British army to successfully land and consolidate the landing field, and completed the preparation for land offensive. In three days, the number of British troops ashore has reached 5,000, the beachhead has expanded to 150 square kilometers, a supply base and a communication hub have been established, and an aluminum alloy runway has been added to the steel airstrip.
The well-established British landing forces attacked the Albanian army on May 27, and the troops advanced towards Port Stanley in two ways. The South Road is led by the 2nd Paratrooper Battalion and the 45th Marine Battalion is the backstop. Attacks from the south via Darwin Harbor, Gusgreen, Fitzroy Bay and Bluff Bay along the Southeast Highway. The North Road is led by 60 SAS team members. The 3rd Paratrooper Battalion and the 4th Marine Battalion followed up, along Douglas, Teal Bay, and went straight to Stanley. Because the Afghan army is conservative in combat thinking and does not think aggressively, the progress of the British army is very smooth. The 2nd Battalion of the British Parachute Regiment and its support detachment, mostly on foot, by helicopter, jeeps and "scorpion" tanks, marched towards Darwin Port, and some by motorboats marched towards Darwin Port by water.
On May 28, the British army launched an offensive on Dal Harbour. The Albanian army fought stubbornly and killed Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Jones, the commander of the 2nd Battalion of the British Paratroopers. British troops captured Darwin Port on the 29th, and Gusgreen's defenders surrendered. In the battle to capture Darwin Port and Gusgreen, the British killed 17 people, injured 250 Afghan troops, captured 1,400 Afghan troops, and seized large quantities of ammunition and other military supplies. Later, the attack was developed towards the port of Argentina. Since the start of the British army's land offensive, Azerbaijan has sent out aviation troops to attack British ships and the British forces in San Carlos Port, Darwin Port, Kent Hill and other places on many occasions. On May 30, Azerbaijan used the "Flying Fish" missile to attack the "Invincible" aircraft carrier, but was interfered with by the British laser dazzling device and missed.
On June 8, an air raid on the Fitzroy 5th Infantry Brigade landed on land, killing and wounding more than 180 British soldiers, sunk the British landing ship "Sir Galahad", and severely damaged one British frigate and one landing ship. But that night, 3,000 British troops transported by the "Queen Elizabeth II" passenger ship landed on the island. Further strengthened the offensive force of the British army.
On May 31, the British Army on the North Road arrived at Kent Hill, deployed on the spot, and waited for the British Army on the South Road. On June 1, the British Army on the South Road also arrived at Kent Hill and joined the British Army on the North Road. At this time, the Azerbaijani army adopted the abandonment of the periphery and concentrated the main force to stick to the policy of Port Stanley. After the British army captured Kent Hill and Chagelin Hill and completed the siege of Port Stanley, they were not eager to attack. Instead, they adjusted their deployment, supplemented supplies, dispatched SAS and SBA members to move around, conducted battlefield reconnaissance, and quickly found out the Afghan army. Take Kent Mountain and Chajelin Mountain as the first line of defense, take Hareton Mountain and Langdon Mountain as the second line of defense, and take Wireless Ridge, Yucang Mountain, Mount William, and Gongbing Mountain as the main defensive positions, namely Galtieri. In the defense line, a large number of mines and obstacles were laid between the three defense lines, and only one secret passage protected by artillery fire was reserved for communication.
On June 8, the Afghan army dispatched a large number of aircraft to attack the British army at the beach of Shiraff Bay, sinking one landing ship, wounding one frigate and one landing ship. The Afghan army lost 11 aircraft. But at this time, the Afghan Air Force was no longer able to prevent the landing of the British army.
At this time, the British force on the island has been greatly enhanced, with a total of 8,000 ground troops, 30 heavy artillery pieces, and 20 tanks. On June 11, after three days of preparations, the British army used Vulcan bombers and Harrier fighters and artillery to conduct intensive bombing. At the same time, destroyers and frigates used naval gun fire to support the ground forces to the second place of the Albanian army. The line of defense stormed, and the 45th Marine Battalion captured Mount Harriet and Mount Longton, broke through the second line of defense, and controlled all the commanding heights outside Stanley. The only counterattack of the Afghan army was to use the shore-based AM-39 Flying Fish missile to damage the destroyer Glamorgan.
After adjusting the deployment and replenishing ammunition and other military supplies, the British army launched a general offensive on the Port of Argentina on June 11. On November 23, British aircraft, naval artillery and artillery carried out fierce bombardment and artillery bombardment on the Afghan army’s positions. Then ground forces launched an offensive. Before dawn on the 12th, they captured the Two Sisters Mountain, Harriet Mountain and Lange, 15 kilometers away from the port of Argentina Dunshan.
On the evening of the 13th, the British army launched another offensive. By noon on the 14th, they had captured Wireless Ridge, Yushan Mountain, and Mount William. They entered a place about 4 kilometers away from the city. The Afghan army abandoned its position and dropped a large number of heavy weapons and retreated to the city. Area.
When the British troops chased to the edge of the downtown area of the Port of Argentina, a white flag was hung over the Port of Argentina. In the afternoon, the field commanders of the two sides met and reached an informal ceasefire agreement. The Albanian army stopped resisting at 21 o'clock.
Britain announced to the world that the Falklands Army surrendered at 21 o'clock on the 14th. The Falklands War ended with the victory of the British Army. The failure of the Falkland Islands led to the intensification of internal conflicts in Argentina. President Galtieri and the commanders of the Navy and Air Force were forced to resign. The civilian government took office the following year after the general election. The main military leaders who started the war are sent to a military court for trial.
In this war, the Afghan army killed more than 1,000 people, injured about 1,300 people, hundreds of people were missing, and more than 11,800 people were captured; 11 ships and 117 aircraft were lost, costing more than 1 billion US dollars, and indirect losses of more than 2 billion US dollars.
The British army killed 255, injured 777, and captured more than 210 people. It lost 16 ships and 34 aircraft, costing more than US$1.2 billion. The revelation brought by the sinking of "Sheffield" In this battle, the outstanding performance of the Argentine pilots was impressive. For example, in the process of approaching the "Sheffield", the Afghan pilots cleverly used the influence of the curvature of the earth on the shipborne radar to successfully fly the British fleet with ultra-low altitude reconnaissance and detection, and deceived the U.S.-Soviet reconnaissance and detection satellites. Carrier-based aircraft attacking aircraft carriers was a basic tactic often used by the US and Japanese fleets during the bloody battles in the Pacific, sea and air during World War II. The characteristic of this tactic is: when attacking the opponent’s aircraft carrier, the attacking fleet usually adopts multiple batches, multiple waves, multiple directions, multiple angles, and multiple styles to carry out "decisive" attacks, and strive to sink the takeoff and landing platform of the opponent’s carrier fleet. , So as to obtain a "decisive" victory in the naval battle. However, in the Falklands War that broke out in 1982, the development of this attack tactics had new developments, and it had a major impact on the future tactics of carrier-based aircraft attacking aircraft carriers.
The "Super Banner" is a single-seat, single-engine light attack aircraft purchased by Argentina from France, each worth about 10 million U.S. dollars. After modification, it can carry one Flying Fish missile. "Sheffield", known as "the pride of the British fleet." It is the first naval weapon of the Royal British Navy to achieve centralized control of power and weapon systems, and is one of the main battleships.
The waters south of the Malvinas Islands in the Atlantic Ocean on May 4, 1982. After the Argentine Air Force's reconnaissance and intelligence system received the target instruction data from the British guided-missile destroyer "Sheffield", three "Super Banner" attack aircraft, guided by the P-2 "Neptune" patrol aircraft, began to approach the target. In the British military's long-range radar warning zone, the two "Super Banners" in the fleet turned off their airborne radars, their flying altitude dropped to 40-50 meters, and they approached the target at a speed of 900 kilometers per hour. The remaining one took a feign action, quickly climbed up, accurately positioned the "Sheffield" heading, distance, speed and other parameters, and sent the data to the following two ultra-low-altitude attack crews in time.
The target was getting closer and closer. At 46 kilometers, the attack crew suddenly jumped to 150 meters and activated the airborne radar. After the radar locked the target, two "flying fish" anti-ship missiles hit the target directly. At this time, the airborne warning system of the "Super Military Banner" beeps, and the fighter has been locked by radar. Following this, the three "super banners" quickly turned and dropped sharply, exiting the battlefield at high speed and returning home.
The British aircraft carrier was attacked in the British-Arab naval battle, but the battle continued. A few seconds after the "Flying Fish" missile was launched, it quickly dropped to an altitude of 15 meters and transferred to the cruise flight section. At a distance of 12 to 15 kilometers from "Sheffield", the missile entered the search moment, and the active radar on the missile began to search and quickly captured the target. At this time, the missile quickly dropped to the height of the wave tip of 2 to 3 meters for sea-skimming maneuvering. Due to the poor electromagnetic compatibility between the "Sheffield" shipboard radar warning system and the shipboard satellite communication system, it was not discovered by the crew until the "Flying Fish" missile reached a visual range of 5 kilometers from the "Sheffield". The captain hurriedly called "attention to avoid" and quickly activated the Phalanx defense system to shoot at the incoming missiles, but unfortunately, the system could not be activated due to a computer failure. In this case, everything is too late. The missile penetrated the ship's side, and after a few seconds of silence, the warhead blasted into the ship's body and burst into flames. Suddenly, the "Sheffield" was filled with smoke and the flames skyrocketed. This modern warship, which cost as much as 150 million US dollars and participated in actual combat for the first time, soon sank on the bottom of the South Atlantic Ocean.
As far as the firepower system is concerned, the "Super Banner" type carries 2 "Magic" air-to-air missiles, 1 "Flying Fish" air-to-ship missile and 2 30mm cannons. The "Sheffield" is equipped with 22 "Sea Javelin" anti-aircraft missiles, one 115mm dual-purpose artillery, two 20mm machine guns, and one "Lynx" helicopter. From the comparison of data, the comprehensive firepower index of the "Sheffield" is at least 20 times that of the "Super Banner" aircraft. According to the most popular "game theory" thinking in the West, the "Super Banner" style is definitely not an opponent of the "Sheffield". But what is interesting is that "Sheffield" has a fatal weakness. Of course, this weakness is based on the entire weakness of the British fleet. The expeditionary British fleet does not have airborne early warning aircraft. The most terrible thing is that the "Sheffield" lacks low-altitude carrier. Early warning systems and defensive weapons against ultra-low-altitude surprise attacks. The "Sea Javelin" missile can effectively deal with enemy aircraft at mid-to-high altitude, but it can't do anything about skimming targets below 15 meters, while the flying height of the Flying Fish missile is only 2 to 3 meters. Such a weakness makes it difficult for the "Sheffield" warship to find the "Flying Fish" missile, and even if it is found, it will not be able to effectively intercept it. From the perspective of this battle, the British "Sheffield" is at a disadvantage among the various combat systems under the large system.
In addition, the outstanding performance of the Argentine pilots in this battle was impressive. For example, in the process of approaching the "Sheffield", the Afghan pilots cleverly used the influence of the curvature of the earth on the shipborne radar to successfully fly the British fleet with ultra-low altitude reconnaissance and detection, and deceived the U.S.-Soviet reconnaissance and detection satellites. The performance of the British warship radar operator who determined the fate of the "Sheffield" was very mediocre. When the "Super Ensign" suddenly rose to measure the target position, the radar operator of the "Plymouth" guided missile frigate detected the aircraft and notified the "Sheffield", but it did not arouse the system operator's sufficient alertness. Eventually, Caused the tragedy to happen. In addition, the judgment ability and command quality of the captain of the ship were all the reasons that led to the sinking of the warship.
Numerous examples in modern times and modern times have proved that in the development of weapons, the realization of the localization of equipment is essential. Argentina’s “Super Banner” attack aircraft and “Flying Fish” missiles were purchased from France, a Western ally of the United Kingdom.
After the Falklands War began, France imposed an arms embargo on Afghanistan in order to show its support for Britain. Before the war, the Afghan Army only received 14 "Super Army Flag" aircraft and 9 "Flying Fish" missiles, and the aircraft and missiles were not matched. Moreover, the Americans also made use of their hands and feet. For example, the American bombs accurately dropped by the AAF attack aircraft could not explode on the British ship deck. This greatly reduced the strike effect of the AAF. Afterwards, the British admitted that if all the bombs explode, The British fleet will lose most of it.
For example, in the battle on June 8th, five Afghan "Phantom" fighters attacked another British main battleship, the "Plymouth" frigate. Four bombs hit the ship, but none of them exploded. In terms of specific battles, most of Argentina's weapons and equipment rely on imports, making the Afghan army very passive in the battle. This enlightens us that the development of weapons and equipment must take the path of localization to the maximum. This is because the purchase of arms from foreign countries will not only be limited in quantity, but also may be embargoed by the weapon producing country during war; on the other hand, it is difficult to guarantee the quality of purchased weapons, and it will inevitably be at a critical moment. Can't play its due role. Therefore, the development of equipment must adhere to the path of localization that focuses on self-development and self-contained series. This is very important in future operations to defend the territorial integrity of the motherland.