Hugh Balfour

Rear-Admiral Hugh Maxwell Balfour (29 April 1933 – 29 June 1999) was a senior Royal Navy officer.

Education
Hugh Balfour was born in Malta and educated at Ardvreck School, Crieff and Kelly College, Tavistock.

Navy
Balfour joined the Royal Navy in 1951 and qualified as a signal officer in 1959. He served on HMS Rothesay (F107) from 1960-1962 before gaining his first command in 1963 as a lieutenant on the Ton-class minesweeper, HMS Sheraton.

Between 1965-1967 he served as staff officer operations and senior communications officer to the senior naval officer West Indies (Snowi). He then went on to command HMS Whitby (F36), and took part in the Beira Patrol off the coast of Mozambique.

Balfour's next appointment was as commander (communications) at HMS Dryad, the Royal Navy Tactical School. He then became commander of HMY Britannia from 1972-1974. In 1974 he was appointed Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order.

In 1976 he was appointed captain of HMS Phoebe (F42) and in 1977 he commanded Operation Journeyman, a small task force of ships that succeeded in deterring the Argentines from invading the Falkland Islands.

On his return to the United Kingdom (UK) he became deputy director of command, control and communications. He then served as chief signals officer from 1979 to 1981.

Balfour was serving as captain of HMS Exeter (D89) when the Argentines invaded the Falkland Islands on 2 April 1982. The ship was on duty in the Caribbean, acting as a guardship for British troops protecting Belize from Guatemalen territorial claims. Whilst waiting for orders he prepared his ship for battle with a series of exercises.

Following the loss of HMS Sheffield (D80), Balfour received orders to sail for the Falkland Islands on 5 May. On the way, Exeter had a secret meeting with the tanker British Esk. Balfour had a tactical briefing from Sam Salt, the captain of HMS Sheffield, who was returning with his surviving crew to Britain.

Exeter reached the task force on 22 May, two days after the amphibious assault to retake the Islands had started. Her main role was to protect the task force and provide early warning of incoming aircraft and missiles using the Type 1022 radar. During the conflict, Exeter shot down three Argentine aircraft (two A-4C Skyhawks on 30 May, and a Learjet 35A on 7 June; all with Sea Dart missiles).

From 1983-1985 Balfour was director of the Maritime Tactical School and promoted to Rear-Admiral. Between 1985-1990 he was commander of the Royal Navy of Oman and awarded the Order of Oman on his retirement. In 1990 he was also appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath.

On his retirement from the Royal Navy he became a communications consultant.