The dogfight between two British Sea Harriers and four Argentine A-4 Skyhawks

The Falklands War in 1982 posed a challenge for the two contending countries, Argentina and the United Kingdom, in the field of aviation.

The daring attack by Argentine A-4 Skyhawk aircraft that sank a British destroyer
The Argentine Air Force bids farewell to its old A-4AR Fightinghawk attack aircraft

Although Argentina had supersonic fighters such as the French Mirage IIIEA and the IAI Dagger (an Israeli derivative of the French Mirage V), Argentina's main combat aircraft in this conflict was the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk attack aircraft, which scored such outstanding victories as the sinking of the British destroyer HMS Coventry. Argentina operated a total of 48 Skyhawks in the Falklands War (26 A-4Bs and 12 A-4Cs from the Air Force and 10 A-4Qs from the Naval Aviation), losing 22 of them (10 A-4Bs and 9 A-4Cs from the Air Force and 3 A-4Qs from the Naval Aviation), 8 of which were shot down by Sea Harriers.

Argentina faced a difficult task in providing air cover for its ground and naval forces in the Falkland Islands. The British colony lies 475 km east of the Argentine coast, and the A-4s had to fly at very low altitudes to avoid detection by British radar. Argentine pilots demonstrated great skill in these flights, piloting their aircraft almost skimming the waves or using the archipelago's valleys to remain undetected. Working against them was the fact that the A-4 was not designed for air combat, although it was capable of defending itself against enemy fighters if necessary, as Colonel Ezra Dotan demonstrated in 1970 by shooting down two Syrian MiG-17s with an A-4.

The British had a much more difficult task than the Argentinians in providing air cover for their forces. The Royal Navy had decommissioned its last CATOBAR-class aircraft carrier, HMS Ark Royal (R09), in 1979, and no longer had supersonic aircraft capable of deploying far from the British coast. The United Kingdom had to send RAF Harrier GR3 V/STOL fighters and Royal Navy Sea Harriers, which were subsonic aircraft, like the Argentinian A-4s, but with better air combat capabilities.

British Sea Harriers demonstrated their aerial combat capabilities on May 1, 1982, the day the Argentine Air Force experienced its baptism of fire. Two Mirage IIIEAs from Fighter Group 8 were shot down by two Sea Harriers from Naval Air Squadron 801, although it should be noted that the British fighters shot down one of the Mirage IIIEAs and damaged the other, which was shot down by Argentine anti-aircraft defenses as it attempted to return to Stanley airfield. The pilot died, and neither his remains nor those of his aircraft were ever recovered.

On June 8, 1982, another aerial engagement took place between two Sea Harriers (XZ499 and ZA177) and four A-4B Skyhawks of the Argentine Air Force's 5th Fighter Group (C-204 Mazo 1, C-226 Mazo 3, C-239 Mazo 2, and C-231 Martillo 3). Each Argentine Skyhawk was armed with three 250 kg Spanish Expal BRP bombs and its 20 mm cannon. They had just successfully attacked a Royal Navy landing craft in Bluff Cove. Despite being outnumbered, the two British fighters managed to shoot down three Skyhawks, killing all three pilots.

El cuarto Skyhawk argentino, el C-231 Martillo 3, pilotado por Héctor Hugo "Pipi" Sánchez que no pudo intervenir en el combate al tener dañados sus cañones por el fuego antiaéreo británico, logró regresar a la base aérea de Río Gallegos, en Argentina, gracias a la ayuda de un avión cisterna KC-130. El canal Yarnhub ha publicado un vídeo recreando a ordenador este combate aéreo:

The fourth Argentine Skyhawk, the C-231 Martillo 3, piloted by Héctor Hugo "Pipi" Sánchez, which was unable to participate in the combat due to damage to its cannons from British anti-aircraft fire, managed to return to the Río Gallegos air base in Argentina thanks to the assistance of a KC-130 tanker aircraft. The Yarnhub YouTube channel has published a computer-generated video recreating this aerial combat:

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Main image: Yarnhub.