MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Falklands, 40th anniversary of Mount Pleasant Complex and its air, sea and land military facilities

Mount Pleasant Complex also facilitates civilian flights arriving at the Falkland Islands

Mount Pleasant Complex is marking its 40th year as an Royal Air Force fighter and transport presence in the Falkland Islands. Some fitty three kilometers southwest of the capital, Stanley, MPC was officially opened on 12 May 1985 by Prince Andrew, and became fully operational the following year, May 1986, making it the newest permanent air base for the RAF.

 In a post on X, the Falkland Islands Government Office in London said: “Mount Pleasant Complex is central to the safety and security of our Islands and we're hugely grateful to all who have served there.”

The RAF's 1435 Flight, which operates four Typhoon FGR4 fighter jets, as well as No. 1312 Flight, with a Voyager tanker and an Atlas A400M, are currently based at RAF Mount Pleasant. Accompanying RAF personnel on the ground have a range of roles, from radar operators to weapons technicians, in support of the Typhoons.

Mount Pleasant Complex (MPC) also facilitates civilian flights from the internationally certified airfield, mainly the air bridge with Brize Norton in England and a Saturday weekly commercial schedule with Chile and on occasions, Argentina allowing the crossing of its air space, some chartered and/or emergency flights.

The UK has maintained an active military presence in the Falkland Islands since the war between Argentina and Britain, which lasted from 2 April to 14 June 1982 and claimed 255 British lives, 649 Argentines and three civilian Falkland Islanders.

UK has invested heavily in the Islands' defenses, including the construction, from scratch, of RAF Mount Pleasant. However it must be added that the Falklands archipelago is a formidable training ground for military exercises involving the three British services. The austere terrain and challenging climate provide unique training opportunities for soldiers. Not to mention the support from the locals.

The British Army provides a constant garrison with a roulement infantry company on the Falkland Islands to support the Royal Navy’s Falklands Patrol, HMS Forth, and Air Force with air defense and infantry specialists. The garrison also includes an engineer squadron, a signals unit, a logistics group, and supporting services.

A few miles from MPC is Mare Harbor, or East Cove port, on Choiseul Sound, which is used as a port facility and depot for MPC supplies. Its deep-water facilities make her ideal for the Falklands Patrol HMS Forth and other Royal Navy ships patrolling the South Atlantic and Antarctica.

Mare Harbor has several berths including a roll-on/roll-off jetty, used by the Ministry of Defense’s supply vessels which call about once every six to eight weeks. The main jetty is used to berth a multipurpose barge and two harbor tugs from the Netherlands Marine Service.

Some history

Following the end of the war in June 1982, and to deter further Argentine aggression or invasion attempts, the British Government considered it necessary to enhance the military presence in the Falklands. However, the temporary military airfield at RAF Stanley was restricted by the length and strength of its runway.

Therefore, in June 1983, the British Government announced that a new military airfield would be constructed at Mount Pleasant, the option being considered to be more cost effective and straightforward than upgrading RAF Stanley. It would also allow RAF Stanley to remain operational whilst the new airfield was constructed.

The Ministry of Defense reached a voluntary agreement to purchase 8,300 acres (3,400 ha) of farmland for £55,000, with severance compensation assessed at £100,000. To allow existing agricultural operations to continue, Mount Pleasant House and other farm facilities were relocated at a cost of £83,877.

The airfield at Mount Pleasant was constructed by a consortium of British civil engineering and construction firms Mowlem, John Laing Group and Amey plc.. At the construction stage the airfield was called the Falkland Island Strategic Airfield or FISA and was designed to accommodate military as well as civil wide/body aircraft, enabling efficiencies in the running costs and time taken to support the Falklands garrison. The construction and shipping of materials to the Falklands was expected to cost approximately £190 million.

Additional costs included the provision of a road between Stanley and Mount Pleasant and the installation of communication and navigation aids, bringing the overall cost to approximately £215m. Construction began in austral spring 1983 and the new runway was expected to be available for use by April 1985, with the wider airfield complete by February 1986.

Finally it must be underlined that the international political landscape has changed since the 1982 war organized by the military Junta, and Argentina is now a democracy, committed to the peaceful resolution of issues over the Islands, but said this, it has never ceased to claim sovereignty over the Malvinas Islands, also mandated in the Argentine constitution, and always demanded in extreme nationalist and radical circles.