HMS ARROW IN ACTION

HMS Arrow's 4.5-inch gun boomed. Smoke plumed away from the menacing barrel. Several miles away there was a flash of an explosion on Port Stanley airfield.

It was May 1st and the Type 21 frigate had fired the first British shell at the Falkland Islands. Soon she was to find herself under attack.

Arrow had been on a big exercise in the Med. when she was ordered to sail south for the Falklands. One of her main tasks, apart from escorting the carriers HMS Hermes and HMS Invincible, was to bombard shore targets in support of military operations.

May 1st saw her a few miles off Port Stanley in company with her sister-ship HMS Alacrity, and the County-class destroyer, HMS Glamorgan.

Arrow was the first ship to fire at the Falklands. They had fired their allocated rounds and were withdrawing back out to sea when they saw an Argentinean aircraft shot down by Argentinean guns over Port Stanley. They could see tracer and other anti-aircraft fire hitting the plane and it plummeted like a white ball into the sea. As they continued withdrawing, three Mirages attacked the group of ships. They flew across Glamorgan firing their guns. Arrow replied with their 20mm Oerlikon. One of the planes hit Arrow's superstructure around the funnel with nine cannon shells. There was no serious damage to the ship, but an AB. was hit by shrapnel in the chest

AB Ian Britnell, the first British casualty of the war, was treated onboard Arrow before being airlifted to Hermes. That air attack did nothing to impair Arrow's fighting capability, but it had a dramatic effect on the crew. Everyone worked together before the attack, but it seemed to many that after the attack morale went up. Arrow was battle-hardened.

Arrow went back in close to land for another bombardment that night and after that her bombardments and that of other Task Force ships were at night wherever possible because of the threat of air attacks during daylight.

Three days later, on May 4th, the world was shocked to hear that the Type 42 destroyer, HMS Sheffield, had been hit by an Exocet missile while on radar picket duty with the battle-group.

Arrow, only a few miles from the stricken warship, was ordered to speed to her rescue as flames began to engulf Sheffield. For several hours, Arrow remained secured alongside Sheffield providing fire pumps, hoses, breathing apparatus and other equipment for what was to be a losing battle against the flames.

Fortunately, conditions were calm with a slight swell and little wind. Men in Arrow played hoses on to Sheffield and Arrow's fire man was plugged into Sheffield because the destroyer had lost all power - and thus her fire main.

Food, drink and sweets were passed to Sheffield's men during those long hours of fire-fighting. Two badly burned men were taken aboard the frigate for treatment until they could be airlifted to Hermes.

Arrow took onboard 224 men from Sheffield - her own ship's company was about 180 - and all the survivors were given dry clothing, a hot meal and a bunk or a mattress for the night.

Arrow sustained some structural damage whilst alongside Sheffield when the swell thrust the two hulls together.

Between May 4th and May 21st, which was D-Day for the British landings in the Falklands, Arrow was involved in a number of special operations and in operations to provide gunfire support for military operations ashore. She fired over 1,000 rounds in this important role.

There was disbelief at first aboard Arrow when it was learned that her sister-ship HMS Ardent, had been sunk on May 21st. After a second sister-ship, HMS Antelope, was hit on May 23rd, Arrow was herself ordered into "Bomb Alley".

As Arrow steamed towards "Bomb Alley" the bridge watch-keepers noted a brilliant flash way ahead over the horizon. This they later learned was the massive explosion which spelt the end for the Antelope.

They arrived early on May 24th and were attacked twice during the course of the day. Bombs were dropped by one plane missing the stern by about 20 yards. The ship's company used every available weapon onboard against the attacking aircraft. Arrow remained in bomb alley for 14 days with her ship's company at action stations every day before dawn to well after dusk. At night, she slipped out to bombard shore targets or to escort ships moving in and out of Falkland Sound.

Her shells, fired with great accuracy, supported 2 Para's attack on Goose Green and Darwin. She finally left bomb alley on June 7th and went back to join the carrier group. She continued bombardments until the surrender on June 14th.

Arrow sailed back into Devonport on July 7th and the RAF's crack Red Arrow's roared overhead in tribute to their namesake.

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