Sea Harrier Over the Falklands (Cassell Military Paperbacks) [Paperback]

Sharkey Ward (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 7, 2000 | Series: Cassell Military Paperbacks

Sharkey Ward commanded 801 Naval Air Squadron, HMS Invincible, was senior Sea Harrier adviser to the Command, flew over sixty missions and was awarded DSC. Yet had he followed all his instructions to the letter, Britain might well have lost the Falklands War. HIs dramatic first-hand story of the air war in the South Atlantic is also an extraordinary, outspoken account of inter-Service rivalries, bureaucratic interference, and dangerous ignorance of the realities of air combat among many senior commanders. As Sharkey Ward reveals, the 801 pilots were fighting not just the enemy, exhaustion, and the hostile weather, but also the prejudice and ignorance of their own side.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"the definitive account of the battle above the South Atlantic islands" Navy News

About the Author

Nigel David Ward was born in Canada of 'RAF' parents in 1943 and joined the Britannia Royal Naval College, Dartmouth, as an Officer Cadet in 1962. After Basic Flying Training he completed his Fleet Air Arm training on Hunters and Sea Vixens before joining 892 Naval Air Squadron in 1969, where he flew the F-4K Phantom from the deck of the HMS Ark Royal. A qualified Air Warfare Instructor, he worked at the Ministry of Defence and in 1981 took command of 801 Naval Air Squadron in HMS Invincible. Commander Ward holds the Air Force Cross for services to maritime VSTOL aviation and was decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross in the Falklands Honours List.

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Sterling*+ Publishing Company (December 7, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0304355429
• ISBN-13: 978-0304355426
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 1 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,124,133 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brave and honest men are useful in war but ¨useless¨ in peace, March 12, 2006

By 

Dimitrios (Greece) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sea Harrier Over the Falklands (Cassell Military Paperbacks) (Paperback)

Lt Com. Ward has written a fascinating and honest memoir about his participation in the Falklands War of 1982 and he reveals many interesting details of the action there. He was the CO of 801 NAS, equipped with Sea Harriers and based on the brand new carrier "Invincible". Half the book is decoted to the prewar months, when Ward and his pilots were preparing for combat in a most professional way, absolutely dedicated to their duty and doing their utmost for proficiency in the air. Despite some teething problems of the Sea Harrier, they expertly managed to take the most out of the Blue Fox radar, they practised night missions and strikes and they explored the innermost secrets of the close air combat. As a result, 801 NAS was a tremendous outfit in 1982, having beat US Aggressors 27-10 and F-15s 7-1! Ward does not imply that there was no anxious moments during the actual campaign and in many cases praises the Argentine pilots for their curage and flying skill which was really breath taking! Superior tactics and weapons (i.e. AIM-9L all-aspect missiles) won the day for the British but there are also some bitter battles to be won against the bureaucracy and the Navy people who didn't know or didn't care to learn about the Sea Harrier operational abilities and liabilities. Ward faced opposition many times and he even clashed head-on with his immediate superior but he preserved his integrity and proved that wars are won by a different kind of people than those who teem the corridors of peace-time military hierarchy. His visit to the Falklands after their liberation produced some very interesting notes and the insulting behavior of the RAF against this war hero with three air-to-air "kills" is extremely frustrating. The book has some nice black and white photographs in two sections, three diagrams of particular air engagements (Sea Harriers against Mirage III and Pucaras on 1 May 1982 and against Daggers on 23 May) and an appendice of air combat fundamentals for the layman. Highly recommended!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating view of the Falklands War from the sharp end, April 28, 2005

By 

Carl R. Mousley (South Africa) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sea Harrier Over the Falklands (Cassell Military Paperbacks) (Paperback)

Commander Ward led the Royal Navy's 801 Sea Harrier squadron against the Argentinean Air Force during the 1982 Falklands War.
Apart from his vivid writing and fascinating descriptions of combat, his in-depth involvement in the development of the Sea Harrier as a weapons platform (he was director of the program) lend the book even more credibility and interest.
Extraordinary too are the facts about the contrasting abilities of the two Sea Harrier squadrons involved. 800 squadron, embarked in the flagship, were far less capable at air combat due to their inability to make the most of the Sea Harrier's avionics package.
The force commander too, seems to have been less than understanding of the capabilities of the aircraft.
Finally Commander Ward comments with great candour on the politics of the Royal Navy and Airforce and the reluctance with which the success of the Sea Harrier was accepted.
Altogether an intriguing book on all levels - the detailed descriptions of combat; the development of the Sea Harrier; the idiocy of Whitehall bureaucracy.
I thoroughly recommend this book to anyone interested in the Falklands conflict or indeed in modern air combat.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars You will learn a lot about modern naval air warfare, November 3, 2002

By 

Alexandre "Nautilus" (Switzerland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sea Harrier Over the Falklands (Cassell Military Paperbacks) (Paperback)

Sharkey immerges the reader in the world of sea harrier before and during the Falklands war. The book is well written, being both precise and exciting. It depicts with maestria the tactics and technics of naval air warfair as seen from the deck and from the cockpit. It also describes all the hassle of interservice rivalries (mainly between the navy and fleet air arm, and RAF and Navy).

Sharkey's tactical points of view are convincingly explained and supported by real cases. However it seems definitely one-sided (Sharkey himself admit it) and I guess I should read another Falklands war story as seen from the Navy or the RAF (although it seems they were not really present on the battlefield) point of view.

In summary, this a good book in which you will learn a lot about modern air warfare and carrier-based operations.