Argentine naval forces in the Falklands War

This article describes the composition and actions of the Argentine

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

naval forces in the Falklands War
Falklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...

. For a list of naval forces from the United Kingdom, see British naval forces in the Falklands War

British naval forces in the Falklands War

This is a list of the naval forces from the United Kingdom that took part in the Falklands War. For a list of naval forces from Argentina, see Argentine naval forces in the Falklands War.-Royal Navy:CommandIn Northwood, London:...

Background

The Argentine Navy

Argentine Navy

The Navy of the Argentine Republic or Armada of the Argentine Republic is the navy of Argentina. It is one of the three branches of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic, together with the Army and the Air Force....

(ARA), particularly its commander-in-chief and Junta

National Reorganization Process

The National Reorganization Process was the name used by its leaders for the military government that ruled Argentina from 1976 to 1983. In Argentina it is often known simply as la última junta militar or la última dictadura , because several of them existed throughout its history.The Argentine...

member, Admiral Jorge Anaya

Jorge Anaya

Admiral Jorge Isaac Anaya was a member of the Argentine Navy. He was born in Bahía Blanca, in the province of Buenos Aires...

, was the main architect and supporter of a military solution to resolve the long-standing claim of sovereignty over the islands. His first attempt came in 1976 when he was the Navy Chief's Operations of the recently established Military dictatorship but General Videla

Jorge Rafael Videla

Jorge Rafael Videla Redondo is a former senior commander in the Argentine Army who was the de facto President of Argentina from 1976 to 1981. He came to power in a coup d'état that deposed Isabel Martínez de Perón...

and Admiral Massera were more busy disappearing

Dirty War

The Dirty War was a period of state-sponsored violence in Argentina from 1976 until 1983. Victims of the violence included several thousand left-wing activists, including trade unionists, students, journalists, Marxists, Peronist guerrillas and alleged sympathizers, either proved or suspected...

people at that time. By 1982 the country was already in the midst of a devastating economic crisis and large-scale civil unrest against the repressive government and Anaya, now a member of the ruling Junta, ordered Operation Rosario to be brought forward to 2 April, after a group of Argentina military infiltrated a group of Argentine scrap metal merchants

Scrap Metal

Scrap Metal were a band from Broome, Western Australia who played rock music with elements of country and reggae. The members had Aboriginal, Irish, Filipino, French, Chinese, Scottish, Indonesian and Japanese heritage. The band toured nationally as part of the Bran Nue Dae musical and with...

and raised the Argentine flag at South Georgia 19 March.

General Galtieri, acting president, agreed in his intention to mount a quick, symbolic occupation, followed rapidly by a withdrawal, leaving only a small garrison to support the new military governor and force the UK to begin talks on the long-delayed sovereignty claim. On 2 April an amphibious landing was made at Stanley

Stanley, Falkland Islands

Stanley is the capital and only true cityin the Falkland Islands. It is located on the isle of East Falkland, on a north-facing slope in one of the wettest parts of the islands. At the 2006 census, the city had a population of 2,115...

and on 3 April Argentine marines used helicopters to take over the Georgias. Whilst the military junta was redeploying the assault units back to their home bases they found the British responded with a large-scale mobilisation to organise a naval task force and ground forces to retake the islands by force. The war could not have happened at a worse time for the Argentines; they were expecting new destroyers, frigates and submarines being built in West Germany and their shipment of French Super Etendards and Exocet

Exocet

The Exocet is a French-built anti-ship missile whose various versions can be launched from surface vessels, submarines, helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. Hundreds were fired in combat during the 1980s.-Etymology:...

s were not yet complete, while on the other hand the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

was in middle of great cutbacks that would have eliminated its force of aircraft carriers and amphibious forces in the coming months.

Operation Rosario (2 April)

Vice Admiral Juan Lombardo

Ships that only participated in the initial invasion, 2 April:

Task Group 20

Commander José Sarcona

ARA Comodoro Py - A Gearing class destroyer
Gearing class destroyer
The Gearing class was a group of 98 destroyers built for the US Navy during and shortly after World War II. The Gearing design was a minor modification of the immediately preceding Allen M. Sumner class...

, formerly USS Perkins (DD-877)
USS Perkins (DD-877)
USS Perkins was a in the United States Navy. She was the third Navy ship named for Commodore George H. Perkins USN ....

.
ARA Comodoro Segui - An Allen M. Sumner class destroyer
Allen M. Sumner class destroyer
The Allen M. Sumner class was a group of 58 destroyers built by the United States during World War II. Another twelve ships were completed as destroyer minelayers...

, formerly USS Hank (DD-702)
USS Hank (DD-702)
USS Hank , an Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer, was named for Lieutenant Commander William Hank.Hank was launched 21 May 1944 by the Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Kearny, New Jersey; sponsored by Mrs. William Edwin Hank, widow of Lieutenant Commander Hank; and commissioned on 28 August...

.

Task Group 40

Rear Admiral Jorge Allara

ARA Cabo San Antonio (Q42)
ARA Cabo San Antonio (Q42)
ARA Cabo San Antonio was a tank landing ship in the Argentine Navy, built in Argentina at AFNE, Río Santiago shipyard. She was based on the US Navy's De Soto County-class tank landing ship design....

- Argentine built USS De Soto County-class
USS De Soto County (LST-1171)
USS De Soto County was a built for the United States Navy during the late 1950s. The lead ship of her class of seven, she was named after counties in Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi, the only U.S...

LST
Tank landing ship
Landing Ship, Tank was the military designation for naval vessels created during World War II to support amphibious operations by carrying significant quantities of vehicles, cargo, and landing troops directly onto an unimproved shore....

, an amphibious landing ship.

South Georgia (3 April)

ARA Guerrico (P-32)
ARA Guerrico (P-32)
ARA Guerrico is a Drummond class corvette of the Argentine Navy. She is the first vessel to be named after Rear Admiral Martin Guerrico who fought in the 19th century War of the Triple Alliance....

- A Drummond
Drummond class corvette
The Drummond class are three corvettes designed and built in France basically similar to the D'Estienne d'Orves class . The ships were all commissioned between 1978 and 1982 in the Argentine Navy...

-class (D'Estienne d'Orves class
D'Estienne d'Orves class
The A69 type Avisos are small warships mainly designed for coastal anti-submarine defence, but are also available for high sea escort missions . Built on a simple and robust design, they have an economical and reliable propulsion system which allows them to be used for overseas presence missions...

) corvette. (†1)
ARA Bahia Paraiso Antarctic Survey ship. A polar transport, later deployed as hospital ship
Hospital ship
A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating medical treatment facility or hospital; most are operated by the military forces of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones....

off Stanley. Bahía Paraíso transported Argentine forces from Corbeta Uruguay
Corbeta Uruguay
Corbeta Uruguay was an Argentine military outpost established in November 1976 on the island of Thule, Southern Thule, in the South Sandwich Islands. The base was established by order of the then-military junta governing Argentina as a way to back up its territorial claims on British territory in...

to South Georgia in the events preceding the Falklands War. The Bahía Paraíso sank in Antarctica on 30 January 1989 after running aground near Janus
Janus Island
Janus Island is a rocky island long, lying south of Litchfield Island, off the southwest coast of Anvers Island in the Palmer Archipelago. Janus Island is located at . Janus Island is the southernmost of the islands on the west side of the entrance to Arthur Harbor...

and DeLaca Island
DeLaca Island
DeLaca Island is a small U-shaped island west of Bonaparte Point, off the southwest coast of Anvers Island. DeLaca Island is located at . DeLaca Island is one of two main investigation areas in a United States Antarctic Research Program study of terrestrial arthropods. DeLaca Island was named by...

.

Falklands Theatre of Operations [Teatro de Operaciones Malvinas] (2 April-14 June)

ARA Alférez Sobral
ARA Alferez Sobral (A-9)
ARA Alferez Sobral is an aviso in Argentine Navy service since 1972. She had previously served in the US Navy as .-US Navy service:...

- a Sotoyomo class patrol vessel, formerly USS Salish (ATA-187), damaged by Sea Skua
Sea Skua
The Sea Skua is a British lightweight short-range air-to-surface missile designed for use from helicopters against ships. It is primarily used by the Royal Navy on the Westland Lynx helicopter, although Kuwait uses it in a shore battery and on their Umm Al Maradem fast attack craft.The British...

missiles fired by Westland Lynx HAS.Mk.2/3
Westland Lynx
The Westland Lynx is a British multi-purpose military helicopter designed and built by Westland Helicopters at its factory in Yeovil. Originally intended as a utility craft for both civil and naval usage, military interest led to the development of both battlefield and naval variants...

helicopters from HMS Glasgow
HMS Glasgow (D88)
HMS Glasgow was a Type 42 destroyer of the Royal Navy. The last of the Batch 1 Type 42 destoyers, Glasgow was commissioned in 1977. The destroyer fought during the Falklands War, and on 12 May 1982 was damaged by bombs from Argentine A-4 Skyhawks. Glasgow operated with the INTERFET peacekeeping...

and HMS Coventry
HMS Coventry (D118)
HMS Coventry was a Type 42 destroyer of the Royal Navy. Laid down by Cammell Laird and Company, Limited, at Birkenhead on 29 January 1973, she was launched on 21 June 1974 and accepted into service on 20 October 1978 at a cost of £37,900,000.She was sunk by Argentine Air Force A-4 Skyhawks on 25...

. (†8)
ARA Comodoro Somellera, a Sotoyomo class patrol vessel, formerly USS Catawba ATA-210. During the war the British claimed to have sunk the Comodoro Somellera with Sea Skua
Sea Skua
The Sea Skua is a British lightweight short-range air-to-surface missile designed for use from helicopters against ships. It is primarily used by the Royal Navy on the Westland Lynx helicopter, although Kuwait uses it in a shore battery and on their Umm Al Maradem fast attack craft.The British...

, this claim was subsequently dropped when the British evaluated wartime claims after the war. The ship continued to serve in the Argentine navy until 1998 when she sank in the port of Ushuaia
Ushuaia
Ushuaia may refer to the following:*Ushuaia, a city in Argentina.**Ushuaia Department, an administrative division**Ushuaia River**Ushuaia International Airport**Colegio Nacional de Ushuaia, National School of Ushuaia....

during a storm following a collision with ARA Subofficial Castillo (A-6) .
ARA Isla de los Estados
ARA Isla de los Estados
The ARA Isla de los Estados was a 3,900-ton Argentine supply ship that was sunk by HMS Alacrity at the small hours of the 11th May 1982, during the Falklands War, in a surface action north of Swan Islands, in Falklands Sound. Alacrity engaged Isla de los Estados with 15 rounds of her 4.5-inch gun...

- A transport ship sunk by HMS Alacrity
HMS Alacrity (F174)
HMS Alacrity was a Type 21 frigate of the Royal Navy. Built by Yarrow Shipbuilders Ltd, Glasgow, Scotland, she was completed with Exocet launchers in "B" position....

in Falkland Sound
Falkland Sound
The Falkland Sound is a sea strait in the Falkland Islands. Running south west - north east, it separates West and East Falkland.-Name:The sound was named by John Strong in 1690 for Viscount Falkland, the name only later being applied to the archipelago and its two largest islands...

. (†22)
ARA Bahía Buen Suceso
ARA Bahía Buen Suceso
ARA Bahía Buen Suceso was a 5,000-ton fleet transport that served in the Argentine Navy from 1950 to 1982. She took part of the Falklands War as a logistics ship tasked with resupplying the Argentine garrisons scattered around the islands...

- A transport ship, she was moved from Stanley to the Falklands Sound on 29 April. During the trip, the ship spotted the schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....

Penelope, property of the FIC, which was taken over by an Argentine Prize crew
Prize crew
Prize crew is a term used to indicate a number of crew members of a ship chosen to take over the operations of a captured ship.In the early days of sailing and up into the American Civil War, capturing enemy ships was quite common...

the following day. While at anchor at Fox Bay
Fox Bay
Fox Bay is the second largest settlement on West Falkland in the Falkland Islands. It is located on a bay of the same name, and is on the south east coast of the island...

, the transport ran aground in a storm and was later damaged by 30 mm ADEN cannon
ADEN cannon
The Royal Small Arms Factory ADEN is a 30 mm revolver cannon used on many military aircraft, particularly those of the British Royal Air Force and Fleet Air Arm...

fire from BAe Sea Harrier FRS.Mk.1s
BAE Sea Harrier
The British Aerospace Sea Harrier is a naval VTOL/STOVL jet fighter, reconnaissance and attack aircraft, a development of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier. It first entered service with the Royal Navy in April 1980 as the Sea Harrier FRS1 and became informally known as the "Shar"...

. The British eventually captured the hull after the war and sunk her in high seas. The Bahía Buen Suceso transported Constantino Davidoff's party to South Georgia precipitating the Falklands War
Falklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...

.
ARA Bahía Paraíso

South Atlantic Theatre of Operations [Teatro de Operaciones del Atlántico Sur] (15 April-14 Jun)

Direct control from Bahía Blanca

Bahía Blanca

Bahía Blanca is a city located in the south-west of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, by the Atlantic Ocean, and seat of government of Bahía Blanca Partido. It has a population of 274,509 inhabitants according to the...

, Buenos Aires Province

Buenos Aires Province

The Province of Buenos Aires is the largest and most populous province of Argentina. It takes the name from the city of Buenos Aires, which used to be the provincial capital until it was federalized in 1880...

Vice Admiral

Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...

Juan Lombardo

Task Group 79.1

Rear Admiral

Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...

Jorge Allara

ARA Veinticinco de Mayo
ARA Veinticinco de Mayo (V-2)
The ARA Veinticinco de Mayo was an aircraft carrier in the Argentine Navy from 1969 to 1997. The English translation of the name is the Twenty-fifth of May, which is the date of Argentina's May Revolution in 1810....

- A Colossus class aircraft carrier
Colossus class aircraft carrier
The 1942 Design Light Fleet Carrier, commonly referred to as the British Light Fleet Carrier, was a light aircraft carrier design created by the Royal Navy during World War II, and used by eight naval forces between 1944 and 2001...

, formerly HMS Venerable
HMS Venerable (R63)
HMS Venerable was a Colossus-class aircraft carrier of the Royal Navy. She served for only the last few months of World War II, and in 1948 she was sold to the Netherlands and renamed HNLMS Karel Doorman and taking part in the military clash in 1962 in Western New Guinea...

. Threat of submarine attack kept the ship confined to port after 3 May.
ARA Hércules - A Type 42 destroyer
Type 42 destroyer
The Type 42 or Sheffield class, are guided missile destroyers used by the British Royal Navy and the Argentine Navy. The first ship of the class was ordered in 1968 and launched in 1971, and today three ships remain active in the Royal Navy and one in the Argentinian Navy...

.
ARA Santísima Trinidad - A Type 42 destroyer
Type 42 destroyer
The Type 42 or Sheffield class, are guided missile destroyers used by the British Royal Navy and the Argentine Navy. The first ship of the class was ordered in 1968 and launched in 1971, and today three ships remain active in the Royal Navy and one in the Argentinian Navy...

.
ARA Punta Médanos - A fleet tanker.

Task Group 79.3

Captain

Captain (naval)

Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....

Héctor Bonzo

ARA General Belgrano
ARA General Belgrano
The ARA General Belgrano was an Argentine Navy light cruiser in service from 1951 until 1982. Formerly the , she saw action in the Pacific theater of World War II before being sold to Argentina. After almost 31 years of service, she was sunk during the Falklands War by the Royal Navy submarine ...

- A Brooklyn class cruiser
Brooklyn class cruiser
The Brooklyn-class cruisers were seven light cruisers of the United States Navy which served during World War II. Armed with 5 triple turrets mounting 6-inch guns, they and their near sisters of the St. Louis class mounted more heavy-caliber guns than any other US cruisers...

, formerly USS Phoenix (CL-46)
USS Phoenix (CL-46)
USS Phoenix , a Brooklyn-class light cruiser, was the third Phoenix of the United States Navy. After World War II the ship was transferred to Argentina in 1951 and was ultimately renamed the General Belgrano. General Belgrano was sunk during the Falklands War in 1982 by the British nuclear-powered...

sunk by Mk.8 torpedoes fired by HMS Conqueror
HMS Conqueror (S48)
HMS Conqueror was a nuclear-powered fleet submarine that served in the Royal Navy from 1971 to 1990. She was built by Cammell Laird in Birkenhead...

. (†323)
ARA Hipólito Bouchard - An Allen M. Sumner class destroyer
Allen M. Sumner class destroyer
The Allen M. Sumner class was a group of 58 destroyers built by the United States during World War II. Another twelve ships were completed as destroyer minelayers...

formerly USS Borie (DD-704)
USS Borie (DD-704)
The USS Borie , an , was the 2nd ship of the United States Navy to be named for Adolph E. Borie, Secretary of the Navy under President Ulysses S. Grant.-Construction:...

.
ARA Piedrabuena - A Allen M. Sumner class destroyer
Allen M. Sumner class destroyer
The Allen M. Sumner class was a group of 58 destroyers built by the United States during World War II. Another twelve ships were completed as destroyer minelayers...

, formerly USS Collett (DD-730)
USS Collett (DD-730)
USS Collett was a World War II-era Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer in the service of the U.S. Navy, named after Lieutenant Commander John A. Collett , a Naval Aviator and commanding officer of Torpedo Squadron TEN, who was killed during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands in October 1942...

.
ARA Punta Delgada - A fleet tanker.

Task Group 79.4

Captain

Captain (naval)

Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....

Juan Calmon

ARA Drummond
ARA Drummond (P-31)
ARA Drummond is the lead ship of the Drummond class of three corvettes of the Argentine Navy. She is the second vessel to be named after Navy Sgt Francisco Drummond.-Service history:...

- A Drummond
Drummond class corvette
The Drummond class are three corvettes designed and built in France basically similar to the D'Estienne d'Orves class . The ships were all commissioned between 1978 and 1982 in the Argentine Navy...

-class (D'Estienne d'Orves class
D'Estienne d'Orves class
The A69 type Avisos are small warships mainly designed for coastal anti-submarine defence, but are also available for high sea escort missions . Built on a simple and robust design, they have an economical and reliable propulsion system which allows them to be used for overseas presence missions...

) corvette.
ARA Guerrico
ARA Guerrico (P-32)
ARA Guerrico is a Drummond class corvette of the Argentine Navy. She is the first vessel to be named after Rear Admiral Martin Guerrico who fought in the 19th century War of the Triple Alliance....

- A Drummond
Drummond class corvette
The Drummond class are three corvettes designed and built in France basically similar to the D'Estienne d'Orves class . The ships were all commissioned between 1978 and 1982 in the Argentine Navy...

-class (D'Estienne d'Orves class
D'Estienne d'Orves class
The A69 type Avisos are small warships mainly designed for coastal anti-submarine defence, but are also available for high sea escort missions . Built on a simple and robust design, they have an economical and reliable propulsion system which allows them to be used for overseas presence missions...

) corvette.
ARA Granville - A Drummond
Drummond class corvette
The Drummond class are three corvettes designed and built in France basically similar to the D'Estienne d'Orves class . The ships were all commissioned between 1978 and 1982 in the Argentine Navy...

-class (D'Estienne d'Orves class
D'Estienne d'Orves class
The A69 type Avisos are small warships mainly designed for coastal anti-submarine defence, but are also available for high sea escort missions . Built on a simple and robust design, they have an economical and reliable propulsion system which allows them to be used for overseas presence missions...

) corvette.

Submarine force

ARA San Luis
ARA San Luis
The ARA San Luis is a Type 209 diesel-powered submarine of the Argentine Navy. Built in Germany, San Luis has a displacement of 1,285 tonnes and was introduced to the ARA in 1978. She was struck in 1997 after an incomplete overhaul.- History :...

- A Type 209 submarine
Type 209 submarine
The Type 209 is a class of diesel-electric attack submarine developed exclusively for export in the late 1960s by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft of Germany...

.
ARA Santa Fe - A Balao class
Balao class submarine
The Balao class was a successful design of United States Navy submarine used during World War II, and with 122 units built, the largest class of submarines in the United States Navy. An improvement on the earlier Gato class, the boats had slight internal differences...

, GUPPY
Greater Underwater Propulsion Power Program
The Greater Underwater Propulsion Power Program was initiated by the United States Navy after World War II to improve the submerged speed, maneuverability, and endurance of its submarines....

program submarine, formerly USS Catfish (SS-339). It was disabled by Aerospatiale AS.12
Aerospatiale SS.12/AS.12
The SS.12 and AS.12 are two variants of the same missile: SS for surface-to-surface and AS for air-to-surface. It was designed in 1955-1957 by Nord Aviation, later Aérospatiale...

ASM (Air-to-Surface Missiles)
Air-to-surface missile
An air-to-surface missile is a missile designed to be launched from military aircraft and strike ground targets on land, at sea, or both...

fired from Westland Wasp HAS.Mk.1
Westland Wasp
The Westland Wasp was a British small first-generation, gas-turbine powered, shipboard anti-submarine helicopter. Produced by Westland Helicopters, it came from the same P.531 programme as the British Army Westland Scout, and was based on the earlier piston-engined Saunders-Roe Skeeter...

helicopters from HMS Plymouth
HMS Plymouth (F126)
HMS Plymouth is a Rothesay class frigate, which served in the United Kingdom Royal Navy from 1959 to 1988. She was named after the English city of Plymouth...

and HMS Endurance
HMS Endurance
Two Royal Navy ships have been called HMS Endurance after Sir Ernest Shackleton's Endurance, the ship crushed in the ice of the Weddell Sea during his 1914-1915 Antarctic expedition...

(Scuttled by British after capture) (†1)

Others

ARA Almirante Irízar
ARA Almirante Irízar (Q-5)
The ARA Almirante Irízar is a large icebreaker of the Argentine Navy. The ship is currently out of service since 2007, when a fire broke out in the auxiliary generator compartment...

- An icebreaker
Icebreaker
An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller vessels .For a ship to be considered an icebreaker, it requires three traits most...

, acting as hospital ship.
ARA Francisco de Gurruchaga - A patrol ship, formerly USS Luiseno ATF 156.

Argentine Coast Guard

Stationed at the Falklands Islands.

Islas Malvinas GC82 - A Z-28 type naval patrol craft, damaged by a Westland Lynx HAS.Mk.2/3
Westland Lynx
The Westland Lynx is a British multi-purpose military helicopter designed and built by Westland Helicopters at its factory in Yeovil. Originally intended as a utility craft for both civil and naval usage, military interest led to the development of both battlefield and naval variants...

helicopter from HMS Alacrity
HMS Alacrity (F174)
HMS Alacrity was a Type 21 frigate of the Royal Navy. Built by Yarrow Shipbuilders Ltd, Glasgow, Scotland, she was completed with Exocet launchers in "B" position....

on 1 May 1982 near Kidney Island
Kidney Island
Kidney Island The island is at the east end of Berkeley Sound near Kidney Cove, and is separated from Port William by Menguera Point.During the Falklands War, on 1 May 1982, Islas Malvinas GC82, an Argentine Z-28 type naval patrol boat was damaged near the island by a Westland Lynx HAS.Mk.2/3...

. She was captured at Stanley by the British on 14 June 1982 and renamed HMS Tiger Bay
HMS Tiger Bay
HMS Tiger Bay is a former Argentine Z-28 patrol boat that was captured by the British and brought into service with the Royal Navy at the end of the Falklands War on 14 June when she had suffered engine failure which reduced her top speed by 50%...

.
Río Iguazú GC83 - A Z-28 type naval patrol craft, damaged by BAe Sea Harrier FRS.Mk.1s
BAE Sea Harrier
The British Aerospace Sea Harrier is a naval VTOL/STOVL jet fighter, reconnaissance and attack aircraft, a development of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier. It first entered service with the Royal Navy in April 1980 as the Sea Harrier FRS1 and became informally known as the "Shar"...

on 22 May in Choiseul Sound
Choiseul Sound
Choiseul Sound is a stretch of sea in the Falkland Islands. It runs parallel to Eagle Passage and is between Lafonia and the north of East Falkland. Lively Island is in its mouth....

while steaming towards Goose Green with two 105 mm guns aboard, beached in Button Bay. The guns were taken off by Argentine helicopter, though one was damaged, and were used in the defence of Darwin
Darwin, Falkland Islands
Darwin is a settlement in Lafonia on East Falkland, lying on Choiseul Sound, on the east side of the island's central isthmus, north of Goose Green...

. Later captured by British Forces, but attacked by a Westland Lynx HAS.Mk.2/3
Westland Lynx
The Westland Lynx is a British multi-purpose military helicopter designed and built by Westland Helicopters at its factory in Yeovil. Originally intended as a utility craft for both civil and naval usage, military interest led to the development of both battlefield and naval variants...

(XZ691) from HMS Penelope
HMS Penelope (F127)
HMS Penelope was a of the Royal Navy. Like other ships of the class, Penelope was named after a figure of mythology. HMS Penelope was launched on 17 August 1962 and commissioned on 31 October 1963...

firing a Sea Skua
Sea Skua
The Sea Skua is a British lightweight short-range air-to-surface missile designed for use from helicopters against ships. It is primarily used by the Royal Navy on the Westland Lynx helicopter, although Kuwait uses it in a shore battery and on their Umm Al Maradem fast attack craft.The British...

on 13 June 1982. The wreck was towed to Goose Green
Goose Green
Goose Green is a settlement in Lafonia on East Falkland in the Falkland Islands. It lies on Choiseul Sound, on the east side of the island's central isthmus, south-southwest of Darwin. With a population of about 70, it is the second largest settlement of the Falkland Islands.Goose Green has a shop...

after the conflict. (†1)

Blockade Runners

Formosa - A 12,762 ton cargo ship, attacked by Argentine Douglas A-4 Skyhawks of Grupo 5 by mistake. She was hit by an unexploded 1,000 lb bomb and straffed while bounded for Rio Gallegos. Survived the conflict.
Mar del Norte - A cargo ship from La Naviera company. Survived the conflict.
Lago Argentino - An ELMA
Empresa Líneas Marítimas Argentinas
Empresa Líneas Marítimas Argentinas was an Argentine cargo shipping line formed in 1960.-History:It was dismantled during the 1990s as part of president Carlos Menem's 1990s state reform laws...

cargo ship. Survived the conflict.
Río Cincel - An ELMA cargo ship. Survived the conflict.
Puerto Rosales - A commercial tanker from YPF
Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales
Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales is an Argentine oil company.Founded in 1922 under President Hipólito Yrigoyen's administration, it was privatized in 1993 by Carlos Menem, and bought by the Spanish firm Repsol; the resulting merger in 1999 produced Repsol YPF...

. Survived the conflict.
Río Carcarañá - An ELMA cargo ship, 8,500 tons, damaged by Sea Harriers in Port King. Subsequently attacked by both sides, until finally sunk by Sea Skua
Sea Skua
The Sea Skua is a British lightweight short-range air-to-surface missile designed for use from helicopters against ships. It is primarily used by the Royal Navy on the Westland Lynx helicopter, although Kuwait uses it in a shore battery and on their Umm Al Maradem fast attack craft.The British...

missiles fired from a Westland Lynx
Westland Lynx
The Westland Lynx is a British multi-purpose military helicopter designed and built by Westland Helicopters at its factory in Yeovil. Originally intended as a utility craft for both civil and naval usage, military interest led to the development of both battlefield and naval variants...

helicopter on 23 May 1982.
Yehuin - A requisitioned oil tender, 494 tons, from Geomater company. Captured 15 June 1982 and renamed Falkland Sound. Sold to a British owner from London in 1991, then transferred to several Panamanian companies. Returned to Argentine control as Audax II when bought by Cintra company in 2008, but still under Panamanian register.

Spy trawlers

Narwal: Owned by Compañía Sudamericana de Pesca y Exportación from Bahía Blanca
Bahía Blanca
Bahía Blanca is a city located in the south-west of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, by the Atlantic Ocean, and seat of government of Bahía Blanca Partido. It has a population of 274,509 inhabitants according to the...

. A 1,300 ton stern fishing freezer trawler. On patrol northwest of the exclusion zone since 26 April. Under the command of Lt. Cdr. Juan Carlos González Llanos. The civilian skipper was Captain Nestor Leonardo Fabiano. She made a number of visual contacts with British aircraft and warships, including a submarine, according to the Argentine version. Damaged by an unexploded 1,000 lb. bomb
General-purpose bomb
A general-purpose bomb is an air-dropped bomb intended as a compromise between blast damage, penetration, and fragmentation in explosive effect.-Characteristics:...

and 30 mm ADEN cannon
ADEN cannon
The Royal Small Arms Factory ADEN is a 30 mm revolver cannon used on many military aircraft, particularly those of the British Royal Air Force and Fleet Air Arm...

fire from two BAe Sea Harrier FRS.Mk.1s
BAE Sea Harrier
The British Aerospace Sea Harrier is a naval VTOL/STOVL jet fighter, reconnaissance and attack aircraft, a development of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier. It first entered service with the Royal Navy in April 1980 as the Sea Harrier FRS1 and became informally known as the "Shar"...

of 800 Naval Air Squadron, HMS Hermes
HMS Hermes (R12)
HMS Hermes was a Centaur-class British aircraft carrier, the last of the postwar conventional aircraft carriers commissioned into the Royal Navy.-Construction and modifications:...

. A member of the crew, sailor Omar Alberto Rupp
Omar Alberto Rupp
Omar Alberto Rupp was the only Argentine killed by the sinking of Narwal, former Argentine fishing ship during Falklands War.Omar Rupp was born in Bahía Blanca, Argentina and he was of Volga German descent. The large trawler Narwal was just a fishing ship, but in Mar del Plata, mariners were asked...

, was killed. She was later captured by Royal Marines
Royal Marines
The Corps of Her Majesty's Royal Marines, commonly just referred to as the Royal Marines , are the marine corps and amphibious infantry of the United Kingdom and, along with the Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary, form the Naval Service...

on May 9, 1982. She eventually sank in a storm at 52°45′S 58°02′W on 10 May 1982.(†1)
María Alejandra: Owned by Inda hnos. from Mar del Plata
Mar del Plata
Mar del Plata is an Argentine city located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, south of Buenos Aires. Mar del Plata is the second largest city of Buenos Aires Province. The name "Mar del Plata" had apparently the sense of "sea of the Río de la Plata region" or "adjoining sea to the Río de la Plata"...

. On patrol northwest of the exclusion zone from 26 April to 4 May. She assisted the disabled ARA Alférez Sobral to reach Puerto Deseado
Puerto Deseado
Puerto Deseado, originally called Port Desire, is a city of about 15,000 inhabitants and a fishing port in Patagonia in Santa Cruz Province of Argentina, on the estuary of the Deseado River....

.
Constanza: Owned by Arpemar from Mar del Plata. On patrol northwest of the exclusion zone from 26 April to 4 May.
Invierno: Owned by Arpemar from Mar del Plata. On patrol northwest of the exclusión zone from 5 May to 9 May.
Capitán Canepa: Based at Mar del Plata. From the government agency SEIM.
María Luisa: Based at Mar del Plata. Spotted a British warship at 40°00′S 33°40′W on 26 April, shortly after being overflown by a fighter jet. This revealed to the Argentine intelligence the path of the British battle group. On 30 April she returned to Mar del Plata due to mechanical problems.
Usurbil: Based at Buenos Aires. Under the command of Lt. Cdr. Fernando Pedro Amorena. The civilian skipper was Captain Adolfo Antonio Arbelo from Mar del Plata. Fifty per cent of her crew was Spanish. She made radar contact with six ships sailing in convoy on 8 May. Warned off by a warship and a helicopter, she returned to Buenos Aires.
Mar Azul: Based at Mar del Plata. She tracked the convoy by radar along with Usurbil, but was ordered to return to Mar del Plata on 9 May before making visual contact.
Río de la Plata II: An ELMA cargo vessel of 10,409 tons. Spotted by British off Ascension Island
Ascension Island
Ascension Island is an isolated volcanic island in the equatorial waters of the South Atlantic Ocean, around from the coast of Africa and from the coast of South America, which is roughly midway between the horn of South America and Africa...

and warned off on 24 April 1982. The most successful Argentine spy ship; she collected valuable intelligence about the type of warships, logistic craft and merchantmen deployed by the British to the south.

Falkland Islands Company ships seized by the Argentine Navy

ARA Forrest - armed coaster: She fought off the Lynx helicopter that put the patrol craft Islas Malvinas
HMS Tiger Bay
HMS Tiger Bay is a former Argentine Z-28 patrol boat that was captured by the British and brought into service with the Royal Navy at the end of the Falklands War on 14 June when she had suffered engine failure which reduced her top speed by 50%...

out of action near Kidney Island on 1 May. The aircraft came back to HMS Alacrity with serious damage from small arms fire. The ship rescued two survivors of the crew of ARA Isla de los Estados, sunk by Alacrity on 10 May. She towed ARA Monsunen to Darwin later in the war, after this ship faced the attack of two British frigates and a helicopter. She uploaded ARA Monsunen's cargo and completed the supply mission to Stanley on 25 May. The ship was involved in harbour duties until the end of the war.
ARA Monsunen - armed coaster: She survived the attack of two British frigates and a helicopter, successfully avoiding them by running aground at Seal Cove. Her supply mission was eventually carried out by ARA Forrest, which towed her to Darwin. Recovered by British forces on 29 may, after the battle of Goose Green
Battle of Goose Green
The Battle of Goose Green was an engagement of the Falklands War between British and Argentine forces. Goose Green and its neighbour Darwin are settlements on East Falkland in the Falkland Islands. They lie on Choiseul Sound on the east side of the island's central isthmus...

.
ARA Penelope - schooner: Spotted by ARA Bahía Buen Suceso at Speedwell Island
Speedwell Island
Speedwell Island is one of the Falkland Islands, lying in the Falkland Sound, southwest of Lafonia, East Falkland....

and seized by an Argentine crew on 7 May. She accomplished a logistic mission from Fox Bay to Stanley. While uploading her cargo, the schooner endured a naval bombardment by HMS Plymouth
HMS Plymouth (F126)
HMS Plymouth is a Rothesay class frigate, which served in the United Kingdom Royal Navy from 1959 to 1988. She was named after the English city of Plymouth...

on Fox Bay's fuel depots during the first hours of 26 May. She eventually reached Stanley on 2 June.

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