The Falklands War Timeline 1982

General Jorge Rafael Videla became President of Argentina. Videla was head of the military that removed Isabel Martinez Peron, second wife of Juan Peron, from the position.

The Falkland Islanders voted in a referendum to remain a part of the British Isles.

General Roberto Eduardo Viola took over as Military Dictator of Argentina.

Carlos Alberto Lacoste became interim President of Argentina after Viola was removed in a coup d’etat.

General Leopoldo Galtieri became President of Argentina.

There was continuing unrest in Argentina by the people who were facing economic hardship. Galtieri and the government were the focus of the unrest.

In an attempt to divert public criticism of the government, Galtieri began planning an invasion and military takeover of the Falkland Islands. A report published by John Nott, British Defence Secretary, indicated that HMS Endurance should be withdrawn from Port Stanley. The Argentine government took this an indication that Britain would not challenge any invasion of the Falklands.

A party of Argentine scrap metal merchants, infiltrated by Marines, hoisted the Argentine flag at Leith on South Georgia Island. The British saw this as an act of provocation and protested to the Argentine government in Buenos Aires.

HMS Endurance had sailed to South Georgia from Port Stanley. A number of marines were put ashore at Grytviken.

More Argentine troops arrived on South Georgia.

General Galtieri brought forward his plans and ordered Argentine forces to invade the Falkland Islands on 2nd April. The mission was code named Operation Rosario.

HMS Splendid and HMS Spartan, two submarines, were ordered to sail to South.

The British government received intelligence reports that Argentine forces were going to invade the Falkland Islands.

Sir Rex Hunt, Governor of the Falkland Islands was notified by the British government that the Argentinian army may invade the island at dawn on the following day.

Operation Rosario
The Argentine ship ARA Santisima Trinidad landed a group of special forces south of Stanley.

The main Argentine force was landed from the ARA Cabo San Antonio on the beach near the Falklands airport and took control of the airport.

The Argentine vessel Santisima Trinidad landed a force at Mullet Creek. Their mission was to take Moody Brook barracks and capture Government House.

The Falkland Islands Defence Force were ordered to surrender rather than attempt to fight.

The Argentine assault on Government House began.

Troops and amphibious armoured vehicles were landed at Yorke Bay. They then began moving towards Stanley. Along the way they were attacked by marines using anti-tank rockets and machine guns. Afterwards the marines fell back to Government House.

Government House surrendered to the Argentinians.

Governor Rex Hunt and the British marines stationed on the island were deported.

London was informed that the Falkland Islands were under the control of Argentina.

The Islanders were given rules that they should follow. These included a curfew and rules about what they could and could not do.

In Britain, an emergency cabinet meeting decided to send a task force to recover the Islands. This date is generally accepted as the beginning of the Falklands War.

The UK government voted unanimously to send a force to the Falkland Islands.

After objections to the Argentine invasion from the British government, the United Nations passed resolution 502 demanding an immediate withdrawal of Argentine forces from the Falkland Islands and called for both sides to find a diplomatic solution.

The nuclear submarine Conqueror left France for the South Atlantic.

The British marines who had tried to defend the Falklands landed at Brize Norton airport in the United Kingdom.

Aircraft carriers Hermes and Invincible set sail from Portsmouth at the head of the British Task Force. Around 100 ships sailed carrying forces of 27,000.

The British government set up a War Cabinet to deal with events in the South Atlantic.

The SS Canberra, an ocean liner that had returned to Southampton, was requisitioned by the British government and dispatched south.

The British established an air base on Ascension Island.

The nuclear submarine Conqueror reached South Georgia.

British SAS troops attempted to land on South Georgia but were unsuccessful due to bad weather. The fog was so bad that two helicopters crashed.

British SAS troops regrouped and launched an assault on South Georgia.

The Argentine submarine ARA Santa Fe was attacked and badly damaged by the British.

The British landed troops on South Georgia and after a short bombardment by the Antrim and the Plymouth, the Argentinians surrendered.

A number of Falkland Islanders considered to be troublemakers were arrested at gunpoint and placed under house arrest.

The British government declared a 200 mile exclusion zone around the islands. The United States decided to back Britain and imposed economic sanctions on Argentina.

Argentina rejected all attempts by the United Nations at mediation.

The British bombed the airport runway at Stanley. Although the runway remained intact, the raid made the Argentinians reluctant to keep fast jets at the airfield.

The Argentinians believed a British invasion of the Falklands was imminent and launched an air attack on British ships. They attacked a number of British ships before returning to the mainland. Two Argentine aircraft were shot down by the British.

The British submarine Conqueror torpedoed and sank the Argentine ship General Belgrano. 323 of the ship’s crew were killed.

British forces badly damaged an Argentine gunboat ARA Alferez Sobral.

The British destroyer HMS Sheffield was struck by an Argentine exocet missile. The ship was abandoned and sank 6 days later.

A British Sea Harrier was shot down by the Argentinians.

The residents of Goose Green were ordered into the Community Hall where they were held until the end of the war. The 115 men, women and children had to share the two toilets and washbasins and sleep on the floor.

The Ocean liner Queen Elizabeth II was requisitioned and sent south.

The SAS made a raid on Pebble Island in the Falklands and destroyed 11 Argentine aircraft.

A British helicopter was brought down by a bird strike killing 21 men.

The Prime Minister of New Zealand placed the HMNZS Canterbury at the disposal of the British government.

The British Amphibious Task Group landed around 4,000 men on beaches around San Carlos. HMS Ardent was sunk and HMS Argonaut and HMS Antrim were hit. 15 Argentine aircraft were shot down.

The British Amphibious Task Group had secured the beachhead and established a base from which to control the retaking of the Falklands.

The Argentinians began nightly bombing raids on British military positions on the Falklands.

The British ship HMS Antelope was sunk.

The British ship HMS Coventry was sunk.

The British ship MV Atlantic Conveyor, which was carrying vital supplies and a number of helicopters, was sunk.

42 Commando determined to move to Mount Kent. The Argentinians planned to isolate the force on Mount Kent.

Battle of Goose Green
The men of 2 Para attacked Argentine held Darwin and Goose Green.

Battle of Goose Green
The Argentinians surrendered to the British.

The Argentine navy attempted to sink HMS Invincible but were unsuccessful.

The British Marines defeated an Argentine Special Force at Top Malo House. They also took Mount Challenger.

5,000 British troops of the 5th Infantry Brigade arrived on the Falkland Islands. Plans began being made for an assault on Stanley.

A British advance party moved to Swan Inlet house. More troops were sent to Fitzroy in Port Pleasant and Bluff Cove.

The British ships RFA Sir Galahad and RFA Sir Tristram were destroyed. 56 men lost their lives and many suffered burns and serious injuries.

British forces launched a series of night attacks on the high ground surrounding Stanley. They secured Mount Harriet, Two Sisters Ridge and Mount Longdon.

The British took Wireless Ridge and Mount Tumbledown severely weakening Argentine defences around Stanley.

A ceasefire was declared and General Mario Menendez surrendered to British General Jeremy Moore and around 10,000 Argentinians lay down their weapons.

The British formally declared the Falklands War at an end. In Argentina, General Galtieri resigned as President.

The British took the South Sandwich Islands from the Argentinians.

British troops returned to the United Kingdom.

The British Falklands War Cabinet was disbanded.