Falklands v2.0

Order of Battle (OOB)Argentina

Great Britain

Argentina

• Argentine Air Force• Argentina Navy• Argentine Naval Air Forces (COAN)• Argentine Army

Note: Only those forces likely to be relevant are included.

Argentine Air Force OOB

• Only slightly modernized from 1982• Biggest improvement is replacement of legacy

A-4B/C with A-4AR FightingHawks• Little or no PGM stores• Primarily oriented to a ground support role for

the Army, with limited continental air defense role

• Little or no anti-shipping capability

Primary Aircraft• Dassault Mirage III– 50 year old design– Optimized for strike role– Limited air-to-air capability– No BVR missile capability

Primary Aircraft• Dassault Mirage 5– Virtually Identical to Mirage III– Only a few on hand– Some are Israeli assembled “Nesher”

Primary Aircraft• McDD/LMT A-4AR FightingHawk– Surplus USMC A-4M modernized– Essentially early F-16A avionics installed– Optimized for strike role– Much more capable then earlier Skyhawks

Primary Aircraft• Lockheed C-130– Only 2 configured as tankers

Argentine Navy OOB

• Greatly Modernized since 1982• Oriented toward sea control mission (fisheries

and territorial rights)• Poor maintenance, few spares, little funding• Impressive platforms, but very dubious

capability

Primary Ships• Amphibious Shipping• Destroyers• Corvettes• Submarines

Amphibious Shipping• 1 Small Assault Transport –converted • 1 Type 42 Destroyer- converted command ship– Still retains significant combat capability– Carries 1 reinforced infantry company– Sister ship sank pierside recently

With the retirement of the De Soto class LST, Argentina has less assault capability

Destroyers• 4 Almirante Brown Class– MEKO 360 – Most other users classify as Frigates– Only Point Defense Surface to Air Missile– Ordnance is out of date– Thirty years old

Corvettes• 6 Espora Class– General Purpose Patrol Vessels

• 3 Drummond Class– Older ships

Submarines• 2 Santa Cruz Class– Large ocean going boats

• 1 Type 209– Coastal/shallow water design

All three are German built diesel electric subsVirtually no at-sea/submerged time in the last year, meaning unlikely to be combat ready

Argentine Naval Air(COAN)

• 11 Super Etendard strike aircraft• 4 Ex-US P-3B Orion MPA*• 3 S-2T Turbo-Tracker MPA

*Lack of effective Maritime Patrol was a major handicap for Argentina in 1982- If you can’t find the enemy, you can’t kill him.

Argentine Army OOB

• Roughly a three division force• Reasonably well equipped by South American

standards• Not organized along expeditionary lines• Divisions are both geographical and tactical

units

Argentine Marines OOB

• Roughly brigade sized combined arms force• One infantry battalion assigned to FMF• Two more available• Only expeditionary force in Argentine OOB• Lacks assault shipping

General ImpressionsArgentina

Argentine forces are reasonably well equipped by South American standards. But economic issues mean funds for training, operations and maintenance are extremely limited. The Navy force structure is well suited for maintaining sovereignty of Argentine seas, but ill suited for surface action against a well equipped foe. The Argentine Air Force main strike asset, the A-4AR is a significant improvement over previous models. A lack of precision guided weapons means this improvement is largely wasted, however. A lack of assault shipping means any significant Argentina would be hard pressed simply to seize the Falklands, let alone hold them.

Great Britain

• Current Falklands Defenses• Royal Navy• Royal Air Force• British Army and Royal Marines• Falklands Islands Defense Force

Current Falklands Defenses

• After the 1982 War, Great Britain made significant infrastructure improvements to the islands

• Port Stanley airport replaced by RAF Mount Pleasant

• Mare Harbor services defenses of the islands

RAF Mount Pleasant

• Runway suitable for all military aircraft• Four Typhoon fighters• 1 VC-10 Tanker• 1 C-130 airlift• 2 Sea King SAR/Operational Support• Radar, anti-aircraft, command and control• Mare Harbor supports logistics and serves as

safe harbor for Royal Navy

Royal Navy

• Has maintained a destroyer or frigate on station since 1982

• OPV on station• Occasional deployments by RN submarines to

region• Drawdowns in RN strength mean very limited

surge capability

Royal Air Force

• Can rapidly reinforce RAF Mt. Pleasant with additional Typhoons for air defense or Tornado GR4 for offensive airpower

• Far more effective airpower than 30 years ago• Offensive and Defensive capabilities far

surpass Argentine airpower, but numbers are limited

British Army/Royal Marines

• Reinforced Rifle Company Garrison• Rapier Missile Detachment for Air Defense• Prepositioned Logistics• Reinforcing garrison with light infantry is easy• Reinforcing garrison with heavy forces very

challenging due to lack of shipping and distance

Falklands Island Defense Force

• Local militia• Almost certainly better trained than 1982, but

not likely to be employed as front line troops• Best suited for internal security operations,

such as guarding facilities, freeing the Army garrison for operations

General ImpressionsGreat Britain

Great Britain’s forces in the South Atlantic are both far more numerous and better equipped than their counterparts from thirty years ago. The linchpin of the Falklands defense is RAF Mt. Pleasant. As long as Great Britain can keep the airfield operational, they can maintain air superiority over the islands, and deter or defeat any Argentine expedition against them. Should Argentina manage to suppress RAF Mt. Pleasant, Great Britain would be very hard pressed to reinforce or resupply the garrison. With the retirement of the RAF/RN Harrier force, no sea based air superiority is possible. Great Britain would be forced to use other levers of seapower to restore control over the islands.