A HAMPSHIRE military museum is teaming up with the Somerset-based Navy Wings to deliver a special online event where distinguished Falklands veterans talk about their experience of flying helicopters during the conflict.

Broadcasting live from the Army Flying Museum in Middle Wallop from 7pm on Thursday May 12 viewers will be taken back to 1982 to hear stories from pilots who flew the Westland Wasp and Scout during the Falklands War.

Presenter, and aviation historian, Paul Beaver, said: “Forty years ago, a British task force sailed to the South Atlantic and achieved an extraordinary feat of arms in recapturing South Georgia and the Falkland Islands. There are many tales of courage and ingenuity, from aircraft carriers to Royal Marines.

“Significant in these battles ‘down south’ were small helicopters – the Westland Wasp and the Westland Scout. This is their story.”

The Falkland veterans are Lt Cdr Tony Ellerbeck DSC and Col (Ret’d) John Greenhalgh DFC AAC.

Lt Cdr Ellerbeck was Flight Commander aboard HMS Endurance in the South Atlantic when he suddenly found himself at the sharp end of an escalating conflict.

He witnessed the Argentinians put ashore the first landing party on South Georgia, he dropped Special Forces onto the island in response, and conducted three attacks in one of the Wasps on the Argentine submarine ARA Santa Fe using AS-12 missiles; this was the first time ever a guided missile fired in anger by the Royal Navy.

Col Greenhalgh was posted to 656 Squadron Army Air Corps becoming the Scout Flight anti-tank commander.

During Operation Corporate in the Falkland Islands in 1982, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for casualty evacuation and SS11 armed action operations with the 2nd and 3rd Battalions the Parachute Regiment at Goose Green, Mount Longdon and Wireless Ridge.

The lecture will be followed by an opportunity for the viewers to put their questions to the panel in a live Q&A

To find out more information about how to view this event visit: https://armyflying.com/what-s-on/lockdown-lectures/

The museum’s Online Lecture Programme is an innovative series of interactive historical lectures using sophisticated web stream technology to deliver a mixture of recorded lectures and live panel discussions with an interactive Q&A based on the extraordinary stories of military aviation

They were conceived to reach out to the Museum’s existing audience as well as raise funds for the Museum as part of its COVID survival strategy. Their remarkable success has led to the museum regularly engaging with a new, global audience of 20,000 people.

As part of this programme the museum now successfully collaborates with other organisations and military museums to kick start their own online journey.