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Jeff Tall
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Service in the Falklands War
Service in the Falklands War
The Falklands War broke out on 2 April 1982 when Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands. Britain responded by launching a naval task force to retake the islands by amphibious assault.
Admiral Sir John Fieldhouse commanded the overall naval force. There were various subordinate task groups, including a Submarine Group controlling three to four submarines under the Flag Officer of Submarines.
Tall acted as a Submarine Staff Officer in the Falklands Task Force, liasing with Northwood military headquarters back in London. He served as a deputy to the submarine force commander, Captain Andy Buchanan.
Buchanan directed submarine operations throughout the war along with Rear Admiral Sandy Woodward, who was the newly appointed Rear Admiral and Flag Officer First Flotilla.
Medals of Commander Jeff Tall including OBE and South Atlantic Medal. (RNSM)
The aircraft carrier, HMS Hermes, was the team's base. The journey to the South Atlantic allowed time to establish communication channels for Hermes as the command and control ship.
The midway stopping off point for naval vessels travelling to the Falklands was Ascension Island. Tall felt that by the time Hermes had reached here they had a good idea of what they could achieve.
Tall was located in the Planning Office onboard Hermes throughout the conflict. He initially slept in a cabin on the fifth deck but lost this once Hermes sailed as it was necessary to bring personnel above the carrier's waterline. He remembers that thereafter he was 'always looking for a bed'.
Tall had responsibility for merchant traffic. He also wrote the 0800 signal to the Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, back in London. The signal was a summary of Admiral Woodward's day.
During the War a 200 mile Maritime Exclusion Zone came into operation around the Falkland Islands on 12 April. This changed to a Total Exclusion Zone on 30 April and the British threatened to sink any Argentine vessels found within the zone without warning.
British submarines were the first warships to reach the islands and began to enforce the Exclusion Zone. The submarines protected the Navy's surface fleet and also aided clandestine operations by landing special forces on the islands.
HMS Conqueror on its return from the Falklands, 2 May 1982. (RNSM)
The Falklands conflict was quite separate from the Cold War and a return to the old fashioned battle tactics of the earlier World Wars. America therefore pushed for the resolution of the conflict as soon as possible in order to have the British forces refocused on the Soviet threat.
