Commander Nigel (Sharkey) Ward, the commander of 801 NAS, who flew a Sea Harrier to protect Black Buck One from fighter attack, was highly critical of Operation Black Buck. At the time, he estimated that for the same quantity of fuel expended by Black Buck One to drop 21 bombs, which he estimated at at a cost of £3.3 million, the Sea Harriers of the carrier force could have carried out 785 sorties that would have delivered 2,357 bombs. Ward dismissed as RAF propaganda the claim that the raids led to fear of attacks on the mainland: He further alleged that "orchestrated attempts" were made by "the RAF propaganda machine" after the conflict to exaggerate the effectiveness of the RAF and overshadow the role of the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm in the public consciousness.