A Military Operations news article
13 Oct 11
29 years since the Falklands conflict, and 8,000 miles (13,000km) from the UK, the Falklands Garrison is still very much a going concern, providing protection and reassurance for the Islands. Report by Nigel Sargeant.
Private Richard Budd, A Company, 2nd Battalion The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment, out on patrol [Picture: Sergeant Steve Hughes RLC, Crown Copyright/MOD 2011]
Remote and rugged, and classed as a self-governing British Overseas Territory, the Falkland Islands are two-thirds the size of Wales and with similar terrain, comprising East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands.
A fragile and beautiful, if rugged, place, off South America, and similar to north Scotland, the Islands farm 700,000 sheep, with the sale of fishing licences generating extra income.
In line with government policy, British forces remain in the Falklands following the 1982 campaign to help guarantee the Islands' safety and to support the population's wish that the Islands remain UK sovereign territory.
The 1,200-strong British Forces Garrison, which makes up British Forces South Atlantic Islands, or BFSAI, is based at Mount Pleasant Complex, some 35 miles (56km) from the capital, Stanley.
BFSAI's mission is to deter any military action against the South Atlantic Overseas Territories, spread across several thousand square miles of the South Atlantic and comprising the Falklands, Ascension Island - the tropical stopover off West Africa - South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
Much more here. Be sure to check out the pictures here, too.
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