ARA San Luis (S-32)
Type 209 submarine ARA San Luis (S-32) at Domecq Garcia Shipyard, 2004
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History | |
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Argentina | |
Name | San Luis |
Builder | Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft, Germany |
Completed | 3 April 1973 |
Commissioned | 24 May 1974 |
Out of service | 23 April 1997 |
Identification | S32 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Type 209 submarine |
Displacement |
|
Length | 55.91 m (183.4 ft) |
Beam | 6.2 m (20 ft) |
Draught | 5.5 m (18 ft) |
Propulsion | Diesel-electric, 4 diesels, 1 shaft |
Speed |
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Range |
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Endurance | 50 days |
Crew | 31 |
Sensors and processing systems |
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Armament |
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ARA San Luis (S-32) was a Type 209 diesel-powered submarine of the Argentine Navy. Built in Germany, San Luis has a displacement of 1,285 tonnes (1,265 long tons; 1,416 short tons) and was commissioned in 1974. The submarine operated against the Royal Navy during the Falklands War without any noticeable success, but survived a number of anti-submarine sweeps carried out by British frigates. San Luis was struck in 1997 after an incomplete overhaul; as of 2020, its hull remained stored at Domecq Garcia Shipyard (Tandanor).[1]
Design
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History
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Falklands War
San Luis served in the Falklands War (
San Luis was a major concern for the British as she presented a serious danger
San Luis reported two attacks on Royal Navy ships during the war. On 1 May, the
San Luis attacked again on the night of 10 May. The frigate Alacrity had made passage up Falkland Sound, sinking an Argentine merchant navy ship on the way. As Alacrity left the channel before dawn, sister ship Arrow was waiting to accompany her back to the Task Force. San Luis detected the two ships and fired two SST-4 torpedoes, one of which did not leave its tube; the other was apparently defeated by Arrow's anti-torpedo measures.[14] It seems that the torpedo hit Arrow's towed decoy. In the subsequent counter-attack, San Luis survived a 25-hour chase, which included the use of depth-charges.[15] There were several problems with torpedoes and torpedo systems; in particular it appears that the torpedoes were not prepared properly, and did not arm themselves after firing, so would not explode even if they did hit a target. It has been suggested that previous apparent misses could have been due to torpedoes which struck home but did not explode.[14] After the Falklands War ended, German and Dutch engineers were sent to Argentina to discover what went wrong with their torpedoes. The problem was found to be that one of the Argentine Navy technicians who were in charge of periodic maintenance of the torpedoes had inadvertently reversed the polarity of power cables between the torpedoes and the submarine. This meant that when the torpedoes' gyros were spun up, they ran "backwards" and thus tumbled on launch, preventing the weapons from taking up their proper heading.[16][17]
The mere presence of San Luis was a severe nuisance to the Task Force. The threat posed by the Argentine submarine forced the Royal Navy to suspend the rescue efforts of two Sea King helicopters who ditched at sea on 12 May and 18 May 1982 respectively, while conducting anti-submarine operations. Both aircraft were eventually scuttled by naval gunfire.[18][19]
San Luis returned to
Post-war
After a failed overhaul, San Luis was decommissioned in 1997. Its hull remains stored at Tandanor shipyard, in Buenos Aires.[1]
See also
References
- ^ a b José Javier Díaz (October 2, 2020). "Submarinos para la Armada Argentina". Pucará Defensa (in Spanish).
- ^ Lessons of the Falklands. Department of the Navy (Report). DTIC. February 1983. ADA133333. Archived from the original on June 22, 2015. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
- ^ Lt Cdr S R Harper. Submarine Operations during the Falklands War. USN War College (RI) 1994 Paper, p21-2
- ^ Harper. Sub Operations during Falklands War. (1994) p (ii) & N.Freidman. The Falklands War in Retrospect. Hard lessons from a small war. Defense. Summer 2012
- ^ S.R. Harper (1994)p 21-2 and N. Freidman. Falklands in Retrospect (2012 &15)
- ^ M.Middlelton. Operation Corporate. The Story of the Falklands War 1982. Viking. London (1985) p130
- ^ Admiral S Woodward. One Hundred Days. The Memoirs of a Falklands Battlegroup Commander, 3rd ed. Harper. London(2012) p 22
- ^ N. Freidman. The Falklands War in Retrospect. Hard Lessons from a Short War. 2 April-2015. Defence Media Network, p 4
- ^ Freidman. The Falklands War in Retrospect (2015) p 3-4
- ^ J. Lehman. The Falklands War. Reflections on a Special Relationship in, USN Institute. Naval History Magazine.Oct 2012,v 26, no 5
- ^ Lehman. Falklands War. USNI. Naval History Magazine. Oct 2012
- ^ Lehman.Naval History Magazine. Oct 2012
- ^ Lehman. Naval History Magazine. Oct 2012
- ^ a b Harper, Lt Cdr Steven R. U.S. Navy (17 June 1994), Submarine Operations during the Falklands War (Paper), Newport: Naval War College, archived from the original on October 27, 2011
- ISBN 978-1-4008-6158-3.
- ^ Schmidt, LT Wade H., "Top Torpedo", Proceedings, no. March 1993, U.S. Naval Institute
- ^ Haggart, James A. Lieutenant Commander U.S. Navy (1 May 1984), The Falkland Islands Conflict, 1982: Air Defense Of The Fleet (Paper), Marine Corps Command and Staff College via globalsecurity.org
- ^ UK Military Aircraft Losses – 1982 Wolverhampton Aviation Group
- ISBN 978-0-85130-304-8
External links
- (in Spanish) La Nacion newspaper: La guerra que no se vió[permanent dead link] (in Spanish)