THE SURVIVOR

SIMON Weston was on board the Sir Galahad when it was bombed by Argentine jets. He suffered 46 per cent burns and his scarred face, for many, is a symbol of the conflict. WHEN the RFA Sir Galahad was hit, the Argentine bombs that killed 48 of my comrades changed my life in a flash.

They lost their lives on the same horrific June day that left me with 46 per cent burns, scarring me physically and mentally for ever.

But these friends, they paid a much higher price.

I was the closest survivor to one of the 500lb bombs when it went off, about 10 to 12ft in front of me. I was just lucky. I was on the roadway that led to the back of the ship.

I was walking up to pull my friend off the top of boxes.

He was sleeping and I thought it would be funny to watch him wake up as he was falling through the air. It was just a prank. I saw the bomb coming through. It detonated, a fireball happened first, the fuel ignited, then the bomb exploded. It was just all hell and carnage. Somehow I managed to get out.

Three lads in front of me took the blast. I witnessed an awful lot of horrible things

I survived and I was very lucky — there were 48 people who didn’t.