In the early 1990s, the Falkland Islands Defense Force (FIDF) decided to arm itself with the Steyr AUG from Steyr Mannlicher – three decades later, it is now being converted to the L85A2 from Heckler & Koch.
The British Overseas Territories scattered around the globe are not part of the United Kingdom under constitutional law, but are closely connected. Although foreign relations and defence are handled by the British mother country, many of the British Overseas Territories maintain their own defence forces, which are closely based on the British model in terms of organization, but often differ in terms of details. The British Overseas Territories themselves are responsible for domestic policy and budget law. For example, the Royal Bermuda Regiment was equipped with the Ruger Mini-14GB/20 from 1983 until early 2016, which was not a standard weapon in the British armed forces.
The Falkland Islands Defence Force (FIDF) was founded in June 1892 on the basis of various short-lived predecessor organizations under the name “Falkland Islands Volunteers” by the then Governor Sir Roger Tuckfield Goldsworthy, after a steamer loaded with armed men from the Chilean civil war parties arrived in the port of Port Stanley. The Falkland Islands Volunteers were also mobilized during the First World War, manning a number of smaller military posts on the islands. 36 men volunteered to join the British forces, ten of whom lost their lives. In 1919, the Falkland Islands Volunteers were renamed the Falkland Islands Defense Force (FIDF). During the Second World War, the FIDF again manned military installations on the islands and 150 enlisted in the British forces, 26 of whom fell. After the end of the war, the FIDF took over the drill and uniform of the Royal Marines, a detachment of which was stationed in the Falkland Islands. On September 28, 1966, a group of Argentine extremists landed a hijacked plane at Port Stanley and took some islanders hostage: the Falklanders had assumed the plane was in air distress and had rushed to help, only to be captured by the terrorists. The Royal Marines and the FIDF sealed off the scene and the matter was brought to a bloodless conclusion. On April 1, 1982, the FIDF was mobilized (far too late) to repel the impending Argentine invasion. Many members of the force were scattered on remote farms and so only 32 men could be mustered at Port Stanley, where they immediately formed a defensive position with the Marines. The Argentines confiscated all the equipment of the Falkland Islands Defense Force and declared it disbanded. Some of their personnel were interned in Fox Bay until this location on the western part of the archipelago was liberated by Royal Marines from 40 Commando on June 15, 1982.
Terry Peck, a former member of the FIDF and one of the 1966 hostages, had provided valuable assistance to the British forces as a scout during the recapture of the islands. He fought with the3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment, in the Battle of Mount Longdon. The FIDF was re-formed in 1983 and is now a light infantry company. Its members are residents of the Falkland Islands and their training lasts twelve weeks. After that, service consists of one day of duty per week, plus various additional weekends. 100 men belong to the Primary Reserve Personnel, another 100 to the Secondary Reserve Personnel. A Warrant Officer Class 2 of the Royal Marines serves as a Permanent Staff Instructor (PSI). The commanding officer since 2018 is Major Justin McPhee, who was the first FIDF officer to complete the Intermediate Command & Staff Course (Land Reserves) at the Defense Academy of the United Kingdom in 2019. The FIDF is an important part of the defense of the archipelago, to which the British Army (alongside the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy) currently contributes: an infantry company, an engineer company, a telecommunications platoon and supporting sub-units in the field of logistics and administration. The costs for the FIDF of 400,000 pounds (around 460,000 euros) per year are borne by the Falkland Islands administration. In addition to typical British army weapons such as the GPMG (FN MAG) or the L129A1 Sharpshooter Rifle, the FIDF also uses weapons from Austrian arms manufacturers – the Steyr M9 pistol and the Steyr AUG from manufacturer Steyr Mannlicher.
Pete Bloom, former color sergeant of the Royal Marines, wrote in an article in the magazine “Handgunner” that the FIDF conducted a comparison test between the Steyr AUG and the SA-80 in 1991, when the old L1A1-SLR in .308 was due for replacement. Two test weapons were available in each case. The SA-80s were on loan from the British Ministry of Defense. The rifle had been in service with the British armed forces since October 1985 as the “L85A1”. The clear winner of the test was the Steyr AUG, because the SA-80 produced four times as many jams as the AUG. What’s more, the SA-80s on offer were extremely expensive at 1,000 pounds each (without accessories, around 1,150 euros). As an additional “decision-making aid”, the British Ministry of Defense announced that the FIDF would have to wait until the entire British army was equipped with the new weapon before purchasing the SA-80. In 2000, Heckler & Koch began to rework the L85A1 for the British armed forces (cost: around 400 pounds = 460 euros per weapon). The worst defects of the basic version were eliminated and the L85A2 rifle is significantly better than the L85A1. In 2018/19, the FIDF also began converting from the Steyr AUG to the L85A2.
