RAF Mount Pleasant | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Near Stanley, East Falkland in the Falkland Islands | |||||||||
 Aerial view of RAF Mount Pleasant | |||||||||
 Defend the Right | |||||||||
  RAF Mount Pleasant Location in Falkland Islands | |||||||||
| Coordinates | 51°49′22″S 058°26′50″W / 51.82278°S 58.44722°W | ||||||||
| Type | Permanent Joint Operating Base | ||||||||
| Site information | |||||||||
| Owner | Ministry of Defence | ||||||||
| Operator | Royal Air Force | ||||||||
| Controlled by | British Forces South Atlantic Islands | ||||||||
| Condition | Operational | ||||||||
| Website | Official website | ||||||||
| Site history | |||||||||
| Built | 1985 | ||||||||
| In use | 1985 – present | ||||||||
| Garrison information | |||||||||
| Occupants | |||||||||
| Airfield information | |||||||||
| Identifiers | IATA: MPN, ICAO: EGYP, WMO: 88889 | ||||||||
| Elevation | 71.1 metres (233 ft) AMSL | ||||||||
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| Source: UK Military Aeronautical Information Publication – Mount Pleasant (EGYP)[1] | |||||||||
RAF Mount Pleasant (IATA: MPN, ICAO: EGYP) (also known as Mount Pleasant Airport, Mount Pleasant Complex or MPA)[2] is a Royal Air Force station in the British Overseas Territory of the Falkland Islands. The airfield goes by the motto of "Defend the right"[3] (while the motto of the islands is "Desire the right") and is part of the British Forces South Atlantic Islands (BFSAI). Home to between 1,000 and 2,000 British military personnel, it is about 33 miles (53 km) southwest of Stanley,[4] the capital of the Falklands, on the island of East Falkland. The world's longest corridor, 2,600 feet (800 m) long, links the barracks, messes, and recreational and welfare areas of the station, and was nicknamed the "Death Star Corridor" by personnel due to its drab and foreboding ambience, before it was re-designed, re-painted, and re-named "Millennium Corridor".[5]
Mount Pleasant was opened by Prince Andrew on 12 May 1985, becoming fully operational the following year. The station was constructed as part of British efforts to strengthen the defence of the Falkland Islands following the Falklands War. It remains the newest purpose-built RAF station and replaced previous RAF facilities at Port Stanley Airport.
- ^ "UK Military Aeronautical Information Publication – Mount Pleasant (EGYP)" (PDF). No.1 Aeronautical Information Documents Unit. Royal Air Force. 7 October 2020. Retrieved 20 February 2022.
- ^ "Falkland Islands Information Portal". Archived from the original on 19 June 2006.
- ^ "Photo of an RAF Mount Pleasant plaque".
- ^ "Mount Pleasant Aerodrome Manual" (PDF). www.gov.uk. Ministry of Defence. June 2015. p. 19. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 January 2017. Retrieved 13 January 2017.
- ^ "Brigadier David Nicholls". Telegraph.co.uk. 22 July 2006. Archived from the original on 25 December 2017. Retrieved 3 April 2018.