8 June 2022
RMT Press Office:
RMT remembers attacks on the Sir Galahad and Sir Tristram in Falklands War
Merchant Seafarer Union RMT today remembered the seven Royal Fleet Auxiliary crew who lost their lives in the attacks on the Sir Galahad and Sir Tristram on 8 June 1982 during the Falklands War.
RMT General Secretary, Mick Lynch said: “RMT pay tribute to the memory of the RFA crew who lost their lives on this day 40 years ago when the RFA ships Sir Galahad and the Sir Tristram were attacked in Bluff Cove on the Falkland Islands.
"This is a sobering reminder to the government and the maritime industry of the importance of the RFA’s hard working merchant seafarer crews in maintaining our islands’ maritime security in an era of increasing political instability.”
END
Notes to Editors
- The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) vessels Sir Tristram and Sir Galahad were bombed by the Argentine air force on 8 June 1982, killing seven RFA crew and fifty-five members of the Welsh Guards. In total, fifteen merchant seafarers lost their lives during the Falklands War.
- The RFA was created in 1905 and remains crewed by merchant navy seafarers. Today, the RFA’s nine operational vessels continue to re-supply, re-fuel, re-arm and provide hospital facilities to the Royal Navy, as well as providing relief from natural disasters around the world.
- The Ministry of Defence recently confirmed in a Written Answer to Emma Lewell-Buck MP that the RFA would remain crewed by merchant seafarers for another ten years, at least.
- There is a serious shortage of UK merchant seafarers across the shipping industry, with only 15% of seafarer jobs in the UK shipping industry held by UK residents, according to the Government’s latest figures.
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