Hello everyone, this is Showtime112! If you
know anything about the 1982 conflict between Argentina and the UK, you must have heard about
two successful Argentine aircraft attacks in which French-built Exocet missiles sank the British
destroyer Sheffield, and the supply ship Atlantic Conveyor. But but there was one more Exocet attack
by Argentine aircraft before the end of the War. It might not be as famous as the first two but
it certainly makes up for it in controversy. In late 1970s, Argentine Navy was looking for a
new attack aircraft which could operate from its single aircraft carrier and the type
they selected was French Super Etendard. The contract for delivery of 14 of these aircraft
was signed in September of 1979. Although it was based on an older model dating back to late
1950s with which it shared external appearance, the Super Etendard was a brand-new type. It was only introduced to service in the French Navy in June 1978. Along with the aircraft, Argentina
also ordered ten AM39 Exocet anti-ship missiles. This weapon with a range up
to 70 km was very effective against small to medium-sized ships and it
was first used used in Iran-Iraq War. When the conflict with the UK began, only five
Super Etendards and five Exocet missiles had been delivered. One of the aircraft was used as
a source of spare parts. Four of the missiles were launched in attacks on Sheffield and
Atlantic Conveyor, and by late May 1982 Argentina only had one missile left. Two of the
Super Etendards remained in Rio Grande airbase to perform the final attack, the primary targets
being British aircraft carriers. But at the same time, the Argentine Air Force had their own plans
to attack British carriers with their A-4 Skyhawks. Both services depended on each other for such
a mission. Navy Etendards needed Air Force's KC-130 tankers, and Air Force Skyhawks needed
guidance as they lacked navigation systems for such long operations over water. Etendards had a
relatively precise inertial navigation system and they could guide the Skyhawks to vicinity of
the British Fleet, launch their remaining Exocet missile and turn back, while Skyhawks could
continue behind it and attack with their bombs, as a single Exocet was not powerful
enough to necessarily take a carrier out of action. The decision was eventually made to
launch such a mission and it was executed on May the 30th 1982. Four A-4C Skyhawks
arrived to Rio Grande from San Julian to join two Super Etendards which were flown by capitan
de corbetta Alejandro Francisco, and teniente de navio Luis Collavino. The lead aircraft would carry one Exocet missile balanced with a fuel tank under the other wing, while the second aircraft would
provide electronic support. The latter would also be loaded with a full complement of cannon
ammunition and in an emergency, it could defend the leader from a Sea Harrier attack. Four A-4C
Skyhawks from the 4 Fighter Group were flown by 1Tte Jose Vazquez, 1Tte Omar Castillo,
1Tte Ernesto Ureta and alferez Gerardo Isaac. They carried three parachute-retarded bombs each
and ammunition for their cannons. Finally, two KC-130 tankers taking off from Rio Gallegos were
to accompany the six aircraft and provide air refueling. General location of the British
carrier group was estimated to be about 85 nautical miles from Port Stanley. One of
the sources for this was the Argentine radar located there, but it seems like
so-called 'external sources' had a very important role in providing intelligence
to Argentinians. This was a euphemism for Soviet satellite data which the Soviets were
apparently happy to to provide through their military attache in Buenos Aires. The strike
group started taking off from Rio Grande at 12:30. In order to achieve a surprise,
they were to approach their target from the south which required a rather long
flight. The aircraft first flew southeast at 21,000 ft. They refueled for the first time at
1:30 p.m. roughly south of Port Stanley. Then, they continued northeast and refueled
one more time at about 2: p.m. After that, the KC-130s turned back and six strike
aircraft continued north dropping down to 100 ft At 55 miles from the estimated position of
the carrier group, two Super Etendards climbed to 2500 ft and turned on their
radars. They detected one large contact and a medium one to its right. The
large contact was almost certainly an aircraft carrier. The two Super
Etendards then dropped down to 300 ft But the British fleet was immediately alerted.
A Lynx helicopter from HMS Andromeda picked the radar signal with its Orange Crop ESM equipment
and there was no doubt it was a Super Etendard's radar. HMS Exeter also detected the Argentine
radars to the south of the formation and this was soon confirmed by more ships.
Another Exocet attack was imminent and chaff launch was ordered. One minute later, Exeter and Invincible
detected three contacts 29 nautical miles to the south. Alejandro Francisco, the Etendard
flight leader remembers that they climbed for the second time at about 40 miles to
the target. His wingman Collavino communicated that his radar picture was the same as his
leaders. Both planes then descended again. Francisco broke the radio silence and informed
Collavino that he was locking the biggest contact and launching the missile. He also informed the
Skyhawks that the target was 20 miles ahead of them. He then launched his Exocet. The two Etendards turned away and escaped at maximum speed. The only thing they
now had to be afraid of were Sea Harriers. The four Skyhawks accelerated and followed
the missile which quickly disappeared on the horizon. But from that moment on,
the interpretation of the events differ very significantly between the two sides.
According to Argentina, the Skyhawks attacked HMS Invincible. The Skyhawks were flying
roughly in a line abreast formation. Castillo was on the extreme left,
then Vazquez, Ureta and finally Isaac. Alferez Isaac remembers spotting a silhouette of
a large ship appearing in front of them. The asymmetrical appearance indicated this
was an aircraft carrier as most other ships are symmetrical along their length.
Isaac remembers being target fixated for a while and then suddenly seeing
smoke coming out of the sides of the ship. He then heard a loud explosion to his left. One of the Skyhawks was hit by a surface to
air missile. A few moments later, Isaac heard another explosion. Once again, he saw
a Skyhawk crashing into the water. Vazquez and Castillo were both shot down
and killed by Sea Dart missiles launched by HMS Exeter. But Ureta and Isaac continued towards
the carrier. Both pilots claim having hit the Invincible. Ureta reported releasing his bombs and
then flying over the the Invincible and seeing the impact. Alfez Isaac describes releasing
his bombs from extremely low level at a carrier completely covered in smoke and
escaping to the right as he couldn't fly over it. The smoke that both pilots saw before
attacking the carrier is attributed to the Exocet missile which must have hit it. Although it
was cloudy, the visibility was relatively good and the sea was calm. According to Argentina
the HMS Invincible was pulled out of combat operations and the reduction in Harrier combat air
patrols and the late home arrival of the carrier are evidence to support it. The British version
is very different. The ship that the two Skyhawk pilots saw was not Invincible but rather HMS
Avenger, a frigate located south of the main force. The Exocet missile didn't hit any of
the ships, it was probably decoyed by chaff and it exploded harmlessly over the water. HMS
Avenger claimed having it shot down with its gun at the range of 8 miles, but many sources
dismiss it and chaff seems a more logical explanation. The smoke seen by the two Skyhawk
Pilots is explained by funnel smoke resulting from the ship's hard maneuvering, added
by chaff and gunsmoke, and possibly Sam launches. The Skyhawk pilots saw the
frigate's helicopter landing pad and it seemed like the carrier's deck. British
sources say that the weather at the time was quite bad which might explain the
confusion. Finally all the bombs with which the surviving A-4s attacked HMS
Avenger narrowly missed and no ship was damaged. I'm sure that many people will say that there
is no doubt about which version is true. But it reminds me very much of that famous story of
an Indian MiG-21 shooting down a Pakistani F-16. Both sides present some convincing arguments and
it's hard to completely dismiss any version. Why would the British not admit that one of their
carriers was damaged? They admitted plenty of other losses and they successfully regained the
control over the Islands. Is it believable that Argentine pilots could confuse a frigate with
an aircraft carrier, albeit a rather small one. Could they be lying to make themselves
look like heroes? It's possible that we will never have the definite answer. Let us know
what you think in the comments but please, keep it polite. Press the like button if you
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