A story of two isles - The Falklands - part 15 - Summary of support aircraft (1)

in #history7 years ago

Know the support aircraft that were used in the conflict



Argentine T25 Learjet, one of the many that were used for photographic reconnaissance during the war. Image Source

Previous parts of this saga:
Part 1: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles
Part 2: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-part-2
Part 3: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-3
Part 4: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-4-the-rebellion
Part 5: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-5-british-expansionism-before-the-war
Part 6: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-6-battle-of-the-falklands-world-war-1
Part 7: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-7-world-war-2
Part 8: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-8-united-nations-first-claims
Part 9: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-9-a-rogue-flight
Part 10: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-10-a-hijacked-airliner
Part 11: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-11-un-resolutions-more-incidents-and-a-war-brewing
Part 12: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-12-introduction-to-the-falklands-war
Part 13: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-13-circumstances-of-the-war-expanded-or-introduction-reloaded
Part 14: https://steemit.com/history/@wolfenlord/a-story-of-two-isles-the-falklands-part-14-summary-of-the-combat-material-of-the-air-forces-involved

Support aircraft that fulfilled missions in the Falklands war:

Argentina: IA-58 Pucará

The Quechua name of this plane means "Fortress", due to the large number of weapons it can carry. It is a turbofan ground attack aircraft built in Argentina. It is designed to operate on small, and not necessarily prepared, dirt runways, in advanced combat positions. Its tricycle landing gear provides excellent resistance on all types of runways, and can be operated even on dirt tracks and even dirt streets. It is not fast enough to face a jet, but it can give close air support and shoot down enemy helicopters. The Pucara was the most feared plane by British soldiers during the war precisely because it was designed to attack the infantry. In spite of being structurally different, it has several similarities with the German Me-410 of the second war, and it was always rumored that Nazi aircraft designers who hid in Argentina had been responsible at least in part for its creation. After the war, the British analyzed the captured specimens and flew them multiple times to assess the particular way that Latin Americans have to solve design problems. See the picture below of a Pucará repainted with the colors of the RAF soon to be transferred to the tests.
Crew: 2x pilots / Length: 47.57 feet
Height: 17.70 ft / Wingspan: 47 feet
Wing Surface: 30,3 m² / Empty Weight: 8,800 lbs
Maximum Takeoff Weight: 15,000 lbs
Engine: 2x turbofan engines Turbomeca Astazou
                                                                     XVI-G

Maximum Speed: 358 mph
Combat Range: 403 miles
Service Ceiling: 32,000 feet 
Climb Rate: 18 m/s

Armament:
* 4x FN-Browning M2-30 7,62mm
  machine guns with 900 ammo each.
* 2x RSA-804 20 mm cannons with 270
   ammo each.
* Mount Points:
   3x with a capacity of 3,300 lbs to load
   combinations of:
 - Rockets: LAU-61/A containers with
    19 FFAR de 70 mm rockets each.
 - Bombs: FAS/Expal
   BK-BR and/or BRP 125 kg and 250 kg
   general purpose bombs.
* Others:
 - Target illumination pod Tecnoblanc II
   (modified).

*. Quantity of Planes: 31
*. Lost Planes: 14
(Note: Only 3 were lost in the air, the rest
were captured by the british as they advanced
the front line.)


Video: Pucará flying over Port Stanley

Video: Tribute to the Pucará


## Argentina - B.MK. 62 y B.MK. 64 Canberra
The Canberra is a first generation medium jet bomber, manufactured during the 1950s. These same bombers were purchased from the British Aerospace Corporation (BAC) in 1969 and were later used during the Falklands War. They had very limited maneuverability, but just enough range to be able land in the continent after their missions. Those who saw action during the Malvinas war were stationed at the Nas Almirante ZAR base in Trelew, Chubut province, Argentina, and had to fly a long way to the conflict zone, so their bomb load was usually minimal . What is little known is that Britain gave 2 Canberras to Chile, belonging to the squadron No. 39, and these aircraft carried out secret reconnaissance missions in Argentine territory during the Falklands War. One of these was shot down by Argentine Mirage planes in national territory during one of those secret missions, so Chile never said anything about it.
Crew: 3 / Length: 65.50 feet
Height: 15.64 feet / Wingspan: 64 ft
Wing area: 89,19  / Empty weight: 21,650 lbs
Máximum takeoff weight: 55,000 lbs
Engine: 2x Rolls Royce Avon R.A. 7 Mk 109
        turbojets.
Maximum speed: 580 mph at 40,000 feet.
Combat Radius: 870 miles.
Service Ceiling: 48,000 feet.
Rate of climb: 17 m/s.

Armament:
* Guns: 4 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.V cannon
    mounted in rear bomb bay
    (500 rounds/gun), or 2 x 0.30 in (7.62 mm)
    machine gun pods.
* Rockets:
  - 2x 51mm unguided rockets pods or
    2x pods Matra rocket pods with 18 
     SNEB 68mm rockets each.
* Bombs:
  - 7000 lbs of bombs could be mounted in
  all the bomb bays, but because of operative
  range issues(all the airfields from which
  Canberra could operate were in the continent),
  during the Falklands war the times that they
 exceeded the 1000 lbs bomb loadout were rare.
* Others:
 - Although the English plane has the
ability to carry nuclear weapons, the
Argentineans never had any of these
weapons.

*. Quantity of planes: 11 (8 saw action)
*. Lost planes: 2


Canberra Introduction videos:

Flying inside a Canberra:

Interior view of a Canberra in the museum:


England: Wessex HAS. 3

The Wessex operated primarily as an anti submarine and utility helicopter. Around 55 participated in the Falklands war and its main function was to move equipment, fuel, artillery and ammunition. They also moved around the island´s Rapier SAM defense systems.
Crew: 2 / Length: 65.60 feet
Rotor Diameter: 55.77 ft
Height: 15.84 feet
Disc Area: 229m²
Empty weight: 8,300 lbs
Maximum takeoff weight: 13,400 lbs
Engine: 2x de Havilland Gnome H. 1200
             1,350 shp.
Maximum Speed: 132 mph at
    sea level.
Combat Radius: 310 miles with the
  standard fuel.
Service Ceiling: 12,000 feet 
Climb Rate: 8.4 m/s


Video where a Wessex helicopter pilot talks about the war:


In the next episode we will continue to summarize the support aircraft of both countries. Keep reading!

Note: I am aware that the tables of technical characteristics are not well centered, depending on the resolution of the monitor in which the post is seen. Due to the limited control that the markdown offers on the layout of the page, I can not correct that. One suggestion: use the scroll bar on the bottom of each box if you do not see all the info, it is uncomfortable yet effective.

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