ASW Action! #Falklands #Malvinas 1982
On 5 May, 1982, at 0705, S-2E Tracker 2-AS-23 was catapulted from @Armada_Arg aircraft carrier ARA 25 de Mayo, while it was sailing off Faro Punta Lobos, Chubut, with the mission to locate ARA Alferez Sobral, which had been damaged.
Taking a SSE course, they adopted a surface search pattern, and 38 minutes later, flying at 2,000m with clear skies, calm sea and wind, the AN/APS-88A radar operator detected a small contact, 10 miles away "Sinker!" Aircrat commander saw also the object and its wake.
Considering that FT79 had ordered to attack POSSUB contacts, aircraft commander (Lt Carlos Cal) ordered the launch of a Mk44 torpedo and a passive sonobuoy. However, no explosion could be observed, and orpedo run could not be tracked because the aircraft lacked the sono receiver.
At 0805, and after Lt Cal reported the attack, Sea King #helicopter 2-H-231 (Lt Osvaldo Iglesias) took off from the carrier, and at 0847 2-H-232 (Lt Barro, Sqn CO) took off. A minute later Tracker 2-AS-24 (in full ASW config, pilot Lt Fortini) was catapulted.
All aircraft set course for the datum, and when they reached it 2-H-231 began an ASW search with the ASQ-13A sonar. The other helicopter having problems with it. At 0910, 231 obtained a contact on sonar and updated the datum. In the meantime, the Tracker drops 3 Jezebel buoys.
At 1006 the helicopter updated the contact and the Observer (Lt García) proceeds to guide the Tracker to carry out a torpedo attack, finally launching a Mk44 . The torpedo entered the water and, shortly after, the torpedo doubled its "ping" (sonar has locked on to its target!)
However, after the torpedo run was completed, no explosion was observed, although the abrupt change in underwater conditions was noted, as reverberations, cavitations and hydrophonic rumblings ceased to be heard on all listening sensors. Contact had been lost.
Although the search for this contact continued, it could not be found again. Time to return home.
What was the contact about? Was it a submarine? Some answers (not all, really) in @Helionbooks "A Carrier at Risk". Open to discuss hypotheses in this thread!
#Falklands #Malvinas #submarine #ASW #Torpedo https://t.co/dAvNF0P0irhelion.co.uk/military-histo…
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