Revelations About Falklands War

[Pensador]

That is not incorrect. But there were Argentine branches and individuals that did perform well. The crew of the submarine ARA San Luis, for example, performed admirably and could have devastated the British task force. The problem was that back in the base, the folks responsible for maintaining the German torpedoes used by the San Luis (which were very modern) did not maintain them correctly, so they did not work during combat. But the crew of the sub itself performed as good as ANY submarine crew in the world. They were professionals that knew what they were doing and were able to stalk and terrorize the British task force for several days while completely avoiding any detection. In desperation, the British even deep charged whales, thinking it could be the San Luis. Had their torpedoes worked, they could have completely changed the course of the war.

They never had a prayer it was childs play for the brits I just hope they never try anything so foolish again they might really pay for it in spaids. They cant even stand up to the shadows of their history like real men. They are an example of world class losers and grovel in loservile as they deserve to.

 

[gusgutier]

the biggest question of the war remains as to why the Argentine's didn't use their best troops to take the islands? If they had used their southern regiments they would have been in a far better position to fight and hold.

Being at that time in Compañia de Infanteria de Montaña 201 (Bariloche ), our primary mision was to protect a low altitud trail to Chile from a potential chilean attack. In the second week of May, things change and all our equipment was trasnfered to Rio Gallegos. orders said that we´ll depart to the islands on 6/17/82, but the air suttle was closed weeks before that day. I think the idea was to replace troops from Corrientes and Chaco with southern soldiers.

 

[johnw100]

The majestic VULCAN......


[media][/media]

I remember one flying low over us at an air show when I was a kid. Apart from the size and noise of the plane, I can distinctly remember it smelling like dog food.

 

[semigoodlookin]

Several British sources have said the war was ultimately a close run thing that could have gone either way. Surely that is because of the positioning of the islands and how many troops and equipment made up the task force. As it was an island invasion it could have failed, but if it had couldn't the UK have just sent more troops and continued the war? Surely victory was inevitable, even if the the first invasion to reclaim had failed. So, when I see people say it was close run, I consider that just the invasion not the war, the UK was never losing that war in any scenario I can come up with. Am I wrong?

 

[camberiu]

Had the German SST-4 torpedoes on the ARA San Luis actually worked and/or had the Argentines a dozen Exocet missiles instead of 5, the results of the war could have been dramatically different.

The British supply lines were stretched to the breaking point and the war effort could not be sustained for long. The British had a very small window of time to re-take the islands. Also, the loss of either the Hermes or the Invincible would have ended to Falklands campaign. It could really have gone either way.


One thing that people don't know is that the Royal Navy had trained and prepared to deal with noisy soviet nuclear submarines. But they were woefully unprepared to deal with modern western subs. The ARA San Luis was a German Type 209. That was the latest and most modern German submarine available. Short of the nuclear reactor, it outclassed the British subs in every way. It was much quieter, had a much more advanced sensor suite and the SST-4 torpedo completely outperformed the British Tigerfish torpedo. The Argentine crew that were manning it also knew what they were doing. Therefore, the ARA San Luis was able to evade all British anti-sub pickets with complete and total impunity and get really close to the British task force. Had the torpedoes worked, it would have been a turkey shoot inside the British fleet.

 

[camberiu]

This painting captures a moment of incredible courage and skill displayed by Argentine Naval aviators. Here we have a humble MB 339 jet, flown by Lieutenant Crippa, which is nothing but a glorified light trainer aircraft and never meant for high intensity combat, successfully attacking and damaging the mighty HMS Argonaut. Lt. Crippa was able to approach the heavily armed ship, attack it with its guns, which knocked out the ship's radar, and successfully escape. Throughout the war, the Argentine Navy pilots showed incredible skill, discipline and courage. They were head and shoulders above their air force counterparts.

 

[scotttswan]

Several British sources have said the war was ultimately a close run thing that could have gone either way. Surely that is because of the positioning of the islands and how many troops and equipment made up the task force. As it was an island invasion it could have failed, but if it had couldn't the UK have just sent more troops and continued the war? Surely victory was inevitable, even if the the first invasion to reclaim had failed. So, when I see people say it was close run, I consider that just the invasion not the war, the UK was never losing that war in any scenario I can come up with. Am I wrong?

Uk didn't have any more ships and the public wouldn't have been so happy with thousands of deaths. so no it was a one time operation. If it failed that would have been it.

 

[Hybrid Ambassador]

Just looking at the map, England is far,far away from that island. The proximity to AR is obviously clear, why don't the Brit give it back to the AR with a few condition attached?..

 

[camberiu]

Just looking at the map, England is far,far away from that island. The proximity to AR is obviously clear, why don't the Brit give it back to the AR with a few condition attached?..

1) The war made the Islands a matter of national pride for the UK, despite the fact that it is very expensive to maintain and has little to no strategic value.
2) The current residents have absolutely no desire whatsoever to become Argentines.
3) The moment the Islands are returned to Argentina, they lose any and all political value they might have for the Argentine ruling elites. The Islands are much more valuable politically in the hands of the Brits, since they can be used by the Argentine politicians to rally the masses and distract them from the local problems.
4) The British military industrial complex can use the non-existent Argentine military threat as a way to keep the funding flowing. Just look at the level of hysteria they raised when Argentina was looking to buy 30 year old used fighter jets from Spain.

 

[Hybrid Ambassador]

1) The war made the Islands a matter of national pride for the UK, despite the fact that it is very expensive to maintain and has little to no strategic value.
2) The current residents have absolutely no desire whatsoever to become Argentines.

OK, I dig. But if getting too expensive for Great Britain to operate there and defend its citizens, possible bringing in the Chinos to bankroll in order to excavate,explore for the Petloleo ? And make it a "three ways venture"...