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91hours before the first aircraft landed at Marham to load equipment andpersonnel.9In short, the responsiveness and effectiveness of the supply andmovements organisation cannot be over emphasised, embracing as it didthe largest sustained operation since the Berlin Airlift.FuelThe provision of adequate aviation fuel supplies was probably thebiggest supply challenge of the Falklands Campaign, threatening at onestage to severely curtail operations. It was clear by 11 Apr that anyexpansion in operational options beyond air transport and maritimereconnaissance would rapidly exhaust fuel stocks on Ascension Island.With the arrival of the Victor tankers, the fuel supply situation becamecritical. The immediate problem was resolved by agreement on access toUSAF stocks, including reserves, and the arrival of a replenishmenttanker on 24 Apr. Even so, it was only with the completion of a 3%u00bd milepipeline from the reception tanks to the airfield on 10 May that theavailability of aviation fuel ceased to be a major concern.OPERATIONSDeploymentAscension Island remained the main focus for RAF logistic activitythroughout the campaign. Beyond the early specialist teams, smallground parties were deployed throughout April to support Hercules,Nimrod, Vulcan and Victor operations, although the latter would grow tosome 150 strong as increasing numbers of Victor tankers arrived. In fact,manpower numbers were strictly controlled with the result that at times itproved difficult to persuade the authorities of the need for additionalskills and expertise. However, in view of the problems faced atWideawake in finding adequate space for aircraft parking and the limiteddomestic and technical accommodation, it is perhaps not too difficult tounderstand the need for economy.By comparison, No 1 Sqn%u2019s ground party, which left Wittering on 1May, comprised just forty tradesmen. Of these, only eighteen and anengineering officer would join the six Harrier GR3s on the AtlanticConveyor, together with a small ground party from No 18 Sqnaccompanying their four Chinooks, the aircraft being specially protectedagainst the maritime environment for the journey south.10Once embarked on HMS Hermes, shipboard duties, and the need to