Strict maintenance intervals helped 845 keep enough aircraft available for sustained Falklands operations. When Atlantic Conveyor was hit, most of the Chinook force was lost, leaving one surviving Chinook unable to carry the lift burden alone. Commando transport helicopters filled the gap, and anti-submarine Sea Kings also helped because they could carry more than the Wessex. Enemy action and sudden changes in the direction of a campaign disrupt carefully calculated supply plans. Wartime demand therefore exceeds the tidy number of ships, helicopters, or trucks forecast by peacetime simulations.
Notable Point · 31:44-33:23
Atlantic Conveyor exposes the wartime helicopter margin
The loss of helicopter capacity aboard Atlantic Conveyor shows why wartime logistics needs more aircraft than peacetime planning predicts.