The first tile of 12,000 was laid by MLA Barry Elsby on February 24. 

The pool was closed in November 2019 after deterioration was found in the lining and bonding with the tiles underneath and further hazards were identified in January 2020. A contract for the work was awarded the following June and the pool is expected to be reopened in May this year.

Falklands Radio spoke to members of the team involved in the work.

On Sunday, 31 January, a 16-member crew led by Flight Captain Rolf Uzat departed Germany on the longest nonstop flight in the history of Lufthansa.

The flight time from Hamburg to the Mount Pleasant military base on the Falkland Islands took exactly 15:26 hours for the 13,700-kilometre route.

There were 92 passengers on board the charter flight LH2574, half were scientists and the other half the ship crew for the upcoming expedition on the Polarstern research vessel.

Falklands Radio spoke to Lufthansa Fleet Captain Thomas Jahn and Pilot Rolf Uzat about the unique challenges of the flight.

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on January 4, 2021.

Photograph courtesy of Lufthansa Group.

What's the difference between a rapier and a rocket launcher?

LISTEN as British Forces South Atlantic held a Capability Demonstration on January 16, 2021. 

The day, held on Onion Range, included a fire-power demonstration by the Roulement Infantry Company (RIC) with participation from the Resident Rapier Battery (RRB), Explosive Ordinance Disposal (EOD) and 1435 Flight (Typhoon). The Grenadier Guards also gave a presentation on their history and formation.

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on January 22, 2021.

How did a Connecticut quilt almost 300 years old end up in the Falkland Islands?

Two heirloom quilts passed down for generations occupied a special place at a recent quilt exhibition. Listen to the guardian of these items as she describes their history and the story of those who made them. 

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on January 8, 2020.

The Falkland Islands was declared land mine free on November 14, 2020.

The celebration at Yorke Bay, a beach closed off by barbed wire fencing, saw the community 'reclaim the beach' after 38 years. It was the last minefield cleared in the Falklands. The Falklands Radio team was there and Traighana Smith spoke to revellers and those responsible for the clearing project.

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on November 16, 2020. 

Around 30,000 land mines laid by Argentine forces in 1982 have been cleared from the Falkland Islands. 

On October 14th and 15th, planned demolitions of some of the last of these explosives took place near Yorke Bay. This area contained the last minefield in the Falklands. Six detonations took place each day and journalist Traighana Smith joined the Safeland Global team who run the project.

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on October 19, 2020.

Join News Editor Gavin Short as he boards HMS Forth for a guided tour of the vessel.

The Royal Navy patrol ship, HMS Forth, is the permanent guardship for the Falkland Islands and the public were given the chance to step aboard when she made her maiden voyage to Stanley on August 1st, 2020. 

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on September 24, 2020.

Photo courtesy of MOD: HMS Forth in South Georgia

How many times have you been asked your weight when checking-in at an airport?

It's something you will be asked before flying on an Island Airways plane! In part two of this conversation with Angela LeFevre-Welke she talks about flying ferrets and all the curiosities that come with running a private air service. She also explains how the business adapted to the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic presented. 

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on July 10, 2020

Photograph courtesy of Island Airways: The Island Airways fleet

What are the similarities between an American island-hopping air service and a Falklands one?

Island-hopping services are unique, transporting livestock, people, and supplies to remote locations. The challenges of the business are well-known by those of Island Airways in Lake Michigan. The business has been providing aviation services to Charlevoix and Beaver Island for more than 70 years. Their fleet made up of Britten Norman Islanders, Piper Apache and Piper Aztec aircraft can transport up to nine people at a time and freight anything from TV sets to lambs. Angela LeFevre-Welke explains what life is like providing this essential service.

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on July 3, 2020

Photograph courtesy of Island Airways: Paul Welke and Angela LeFevre-Welke from Island Airways based on Beaver Island in Lake Michigan USA

Who are the people that clear land mines?

Groups of highly-trained 'deminers' have been travelling between Zimbabwe and the Falkland Islands to clear minefields for over 11 years.

Over 20,000 land mines were laid by Argentine forces in 1982, and in 2020 the Falkland Islands will be landmine free for the first time in 38 years. Due to the global pandemic, most of the men involved have left the Islands before the completion of the project. 

Falklands Radio attended a goodbye reception on June 19 and spoke to those who were departing.

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on June 25, 2020

A Nightingale-style hospital was built in the Falkland Islands in June.

Over three days a 36-bed ward was assembled, tested, and dismantled in Stanley Leisure Centre. The exercise was a collaboration between the King Edward Memorial Hospital and British Forces South Atlantic. The exercise practised how, and where, health authorities would manage if there was a COVID-19 outbreak in the Falklands. The temporary facility was assembled in under six hours. Those involved, including the Chief Medical Officer, Dr Rebecca Edwards, spoke about the logistics behind such an operation.

Stanley Nightingale exercise ran over June 17, 18 and 19. This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on June 22, 2020.

Award-winning author, Jennifer Kingsley, shares her experience of documenting life in the Falkland Islands.

The Canadian naturalist has spent years visiting arctic communities and learning about their cultures. During her first trip to the Falklands, she spent time with the men removing landmines from the 1982 conflict and visited farmers working in the camp. 

Jenny is the author of Paddlenorth: Adventure, Resilience, and Renewal in the Arctic Wild, which won the top prize for literary non-fiction at the National Outdoor Book Awards in 2015. Her work as a broadcast journalist has been played around the world and recognized by the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University.

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on November 8, 2019

Photograph: Eric Guth

Falkland Islander, Sonia, is a junior doctor working in England. 

She speaks about her training and preparations for the COVID-19 pandemic to hit her hospital.

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on May 8, 2020

Falkland Islander, Bethan Halliday, is working on the front line in an English hospital.

The NHS nurse talks about how she has been affected by working in a busy teaching hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

 This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on April 20, 2020

How are families in Stanley coping with home-schooling?

Two families with young children speak about how they have adapted their daily routines to fit around teaching their children whilst working from home.

This programme was broadcast on Falklands Radio on April 16, 2020

The Falkland Islands Broadband Press Conference

Held on 2nd October 2019

New Packages Starting in December 2019