Falklands War veterans mark 40th anniversary of RAF raid

Martin Withers said the crew had to wait 24 hours to find out of the raid was successful

Falklands War veterans have gathered in Lincolnshire to remember their part in a special mission.

The event marked the 40th anniversary of an RAF raid on Port Stanley airport by Vulcan bombers.

Operation Black Buck was so complicated that 11 tanker planes were needed for refuelling, and it was all put together in two weeks with an aircraft due for retirement.

Pilot Martin Withers said it was the first such raid he had ever done.

"I'd only ever seen World War Two movies," the retired squadron leader said.

"I'd never done any bombing like this before or been fired at."

The overnight attack which began on 30 April 1982 was the first of seven raids on the airfield which had been held by Argentine forces after their invasion on 2 April.

The bomber crew had to fly 3,700 miles (6,900 km) from RAF Waddington near Lincoln to Ascension Island in the South Atlantic and then another 3,300 miles (6,100 km) to the Falkland Islands.

Tanker aircraft refuelled the Vulcan mid-flight as it made its way to and from the target.

The Vulcan bomber that carried out the first raid is being restored at RAF Waddington

Mr Withers said the crew did not know if the raid had been successful after releasing the bombs.

"We weren't very confident that we had hit the target but we knew we had done a good attack and we were safe and on our way home," he said.

"It wasn't more than 24 hours later that we actually got a film that showed that we had put one big crater in the runway."

The islands were recaptured when Argentine forces surrendered on 14 June.

The Vulcan bomber that carried out the first raid is undergoing restoration at RAF Waddington.