I take it that that particular Pod was used in the Falklands where sufficient Early Warning of an Exocet attack was given? I’ve seen a couple of books mention Helicopters towing Active Radar Decoys but none ever state the carrying aircraft.
The EW system initially deployed on Lynx in the Falklands in May '82 was called “Hampton Mayfair” where they basically stuffed some active jamming equipment from a Canberra in to a Lynx and had the antenna strapped on to the side of the helicopter.
Images: Hampton Mayfair
Yellow Veil was a more sophisticated decoy system that to be honest I don’t think was in service until the mid-80s, but the US National Electronics Museum infoboard there says it was used during the conflict.
If it wasn’t around, towed/slung radar reflector decoys might have been a solution.
Initial version of the Yellow Veil pod looks like this with smaller spike antennas
Image: Yellow Veil 1
https://live.staticflickr.com/878/41239119281_c391a673bf_6k.jpg
and the previous photo was Yellow Veil 2 that had a payload for countering Silkworms in the Gulf
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Another case of where ‘Nah, she’ll be right’ paid off.
(If it works, it works.)
Found a quote of a quote in the book The Royal Navy Lynx: An Operational History by Larry Jeram-Croft
The following is an article that appeared in the navy’s Flight Deck magazine, written by Lieutenant Commander Legg, the then commanding officer of 829 Squadron:
‘In 1986, attacks on merchant shipping in the Arabian Gulf increased as the Iran-Iraq war escalated and many ships fell victim to their air launched M39 Exocet, as well as Chinese made Silkworm missiles fired by Iran from the Faw Peninsula. During the Falklands War the Hampton Mayfair anti-Exocet jamming equipment was fitted to the Lynx and briefly deployed, but for Armilla it was decided to introduce a much improved, properly funded and trialled system to protect UK shipping in the Gulf. The Yellow Veil jamming pod was procured and is now a standard fit on all Lynx in theatre. The system is reliable and not only can it be used to protect shipping, but can be used against a wide range of radars and missiles in all spheres of anti-surface warfare.’
So 1986 for Yellow Veil
Book also includes a picture of a more refined, post-Falklands version of the Hampton Mayfair system. Before Yellow Veil replaced it
Nice, so it is a multipurpose jammer. Didn’t think there would be a limit to just shipborn threats and ASMs.
Came across a decent image of the Blue Eric pod
Repurposed gun pod with a large semicircular antenna where the shell ejection port was. Note the radiation hazard warning sticker
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Very nice, and totally noncredible.
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