The world's most famous ship, Queen Elizabeth 2, will host 100 Southampton veterans at a special lunch on June 10th to commemorate the 25th Anniversary of the Falklands Campaign, when
QE2 was called up to serve her country as a troopship.
The QE2 was almost unrecognisable following the nine-day conversion to troopship when the public lounges were turned into dormitories, fuel pipes were taken through the ship down to the engine room so she could be refueled at sea; helipads were constructed fore and aft, and the carpets were covered with 2,000 sheets of hardboard.
Over 650 crewmembers volunteered for the voyage to look after the 3,000 members of the Fifth Infantry Brigade which the ship transported to South Georgia.
During the voyage south, in order to avoid detection the ship was blacked out and the radar switched off and Captain Jackson and his fellow officers on the bridge were plunged into a navigational nightmare as they steamed on without modern aids, through an icefield in the dark.
Her tumultuous welcome home with the warship survivors on June 11, 1982 was a national event and HM The Queen Mother welcomed QE2 home from the decks of the Royal Yacht Britannia.
Her return to Southampton was followed by a nine-week period of refitting and restoring the liner for her return to regular passenger service.
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