The Falkland Islands Defence Force

An article by Russell Phillips

In 1854, during the Crimean War, a volunteer unit was

formed in the Falkland Islands to guard against Russian
invasion. This unit was commonly known as the Stanley
Volunteers, but had no official title. In 1891 a Chilean
steamer, with 200 armed men aboard, called at Port
William for repairs. The presence of so many armed
men was considered to be a threat to the islands, and so
the governor, Sir Roger Goldsworthy, formed the
Falkland Islands Volunteers, with an initial strength of
37 men, to provide the islands with an indigenous
defence force. The men of the unit were sworn in at a
ceremony at Government House in June 1892.

During the First World War, the islands were placed on

a war footing, and the Volunteers were stationed in
outposts around Stanley, the capital. It was one of these
outposts that first spotted the smoke of the German East
Asia Squadron as it headed for the Falklands. The By Chaypearson, via Wikimedia
outpost provided information on the movement of the Commons (CC-BY-SA)
German ships before and after the subsequent Battle of
the Falkland Islands. The Volunteers were stood down
in 1919, and later the same year, the name of the force was changed to the Falkland Islands Defence
Force (FIDF).

During the Second World War, the FIDF was stationed in outposts throughout the islands. In 1942,
they were joined by a battalion of the 11th West Yorkshire Regiment, stationed in Stanley. The
islands saw no action during the war, although Port Stanley was an important staging post for the
Royal Navy (A badly damaged HMS Exeter repaired to Port Stanley after the Battle of the River
Plate).

A Royal Marine presence was established in the islands in 1952. Following this, the FIDF adopted
Royal Marine drill, trained with the Marines, and adopted a dress uniform similar to that of the
Marines.

In 1966, 20 armed El Condor nationalists (Argentinian revolutionaries) hijacked a DC-4 aircraft

and forced the pilot to land on Stanley Racecourse. After landing, four islanders were taken hostage
and the Argentine flag was run up, before the FIDF and Royal Marines contained the aircraft and
hijackers. After being deprived of food, water, sleep and food, the hijackers surrendered, with no
loss of life. The British authorities returned the hijackers to Argentina. The FIDF was kept on
heightened alert, with a section on permanent standby, until February 1967. In November 1968 a
light aircraft from Argentina landed on Eliza Cove Road, and the FIDF was deployed once again to
contain the aircraft. In this case, however, the passengers were unarmed Argentine journalists.

When Argentina invaded the islands on 1st April 1982, the FIDF was mobilised along with the
Royal Marine detachment on the islands. On the following morning, the governor of the islands
ordered the surrender of the FIDF and Royal Marines. The Argentines declared the FIDF an illegal
organisation and arrested several members, holding them under house arrest in Fox Bay until the
Argentine surrender. The FIDF was reformed in 1983.

FIDF flag and Governor's command baton, by By DagosNavy, via Wikimedia Commons (CC-BY)

The FIDF currently has sniper/recce, machine gun; close combat, amphibious and logistic support
units. In peacetime, it provides mountain rescue and search-and-rescue teams to the civilian
government. Equipment includes Steyr AUG assault rifles, GPMGs, 0.50" HMGs, Land Rovers,
quad bikes and rigid raiders. In addition, it has excellent support and night-vision equipment and a
communications system that includes GPS navigation and in-field e-mail. The FIDF employs a
Royal Marine Warrant Officer Class 2 as a permanent staff instructor.
About Russell Phillips
Russell Phillips writes books and articles about military technology and
history. Born and brought up in a mining village in South Yorkshire, he
has lived and worked in South Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Cumbria and
Staffordshire. He currently lives in Stoke-on-Trent with his wife and
two children.
Russell’s articles have been published in Miniature Wargames,
Wargames Illustrated, The Wargames Website, and the Society of
Twentieth Century Wargamers‘ Journal. He has been interviewed on
BBC Radio Stoke, The WW2 Podcast, The Voice of Russia, and Cold
War Conversations.

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2.Combat Engineering Equipment of the Warsaw Pact

3.Artillery of the Warsaw Pact

Ebook box set: Weapons and Equipment of the Warsaw Pact: Volume 1

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Licence
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