Assault ships, landing vessels and warships were now about to move into San Carlos Water – well within range of the Mirage, Super Étendard and Skyhawk fighter aircraft. Commanders knew their warships were exposed to attack, but Admiral Sandy Woodward faced a difficult dilemma if he waited until the Harrier force had won the air battle, which could take several months, the South Atlantic winter would start to bite. Bad weather would impact the land force, limit the ability of helicopters to fly and delay the vital logistics chain. The mission was to retake the Falklands and Admiral Woodward opted to thrust forward with the assets at his disposal.
Commodore Michael Clapp, the naval commander of the fleet’s amphibious operations, and Brigadier Thompson who commanded 3 Commando Brigade, had meticulously planned the assault. The two worked together and had selected San Carlos for the landings. Thompson and his team had identified units, roles and capabilities. It was Clapp’s job to get the troops and their equipment ashore in good order, then Thompson would take over on land and execute the plan to march his troops to Stanley and eject the Argentines. The assault plan was codenamed Operation Sutton and involved putting 4,500 troops ashore, as well as hundreds of items of equipment. This included artillery guns, light armoured reconnaissance and all-terrain vehicles, a field hospital and establishing a logistics base for rations, water and ammunition. The task force would land troops at green, red and blue beaches across San Carlos Water – all of which needed to be ferried ashore by landing craft or flown in by helicopter. The Harrier would provide combat air patrols throughout the landings to
