Argentine submarine wreck found one year after disappearance
The crushed wreckage of an Argentine submarine has been located one year after it vanished into the depths of the Atlantic Ocean with 44 crew members, in the country’s worst naval disaster in decades.
There has been ‘positive identification of the ARA San Juan,’ at a depth of more than 800m (2,600ft), the navy tweeted, confirming the vessel had imploded.
Experts say raising the submarine would be an enormous undertaking costing a billion dollars or more. Defence Minister Oscar Aguad said Argentina had ‘no means’ to do so.
The Seabed Constructor, a ship owned by US search firm Ocean Infinity, made the discovery 16 November, one day after the first anniversary of the disappearance of the San Juan.
The ship had set out in September in the latest attempt to find the San Juan, whose disappearance cost the Argentinian Navy’s top officer his job.
The navy lost contact with the submarine on 15 November, 2017, about 450km from the coast while it was travelling northward from Ushuaia, at Argentina’s southern tip.
Adml Jose Villan, the navy’s new top commander, said that the rough terrain on the ocean floor made it difficult for search vessels, which had already trawled the site, to find the sub.
Pieces that were 11m, 13m and 30m long were spotted in a ‘moon-like zone with craters and canyons,’ said Capt Enrique Balbi, adding that the hull had been ‘crushed inwards.’
Aguad met earlier with family members to show photos taken by an underwater robot. They showed a propeller, the sub’s bow with torpedo-launching tubes, and an upper section of the vessel lying on the ocean floor.
You may also like
More from Defence Notes
-
![Intelligence innovation: From data overload to decision advantage (Podcast)]()
Intelligence innovation: From data overload to decision advantage (Podcast)
As militaries face an overwhelming flow of data, the challenge is shifting from collection to delivering fast, actionable insights that drive decision-making. Advances in AI and data integration are helping armed forces move beyond siloed systems to generate real-time intelligence across domains and allies.
-
![Teledyne FLIR adds GPS-denied 3D-mapping capabilities to its CBRN uncrewed platforms]()
Teledyne FLIR adds GPS-denied 3D-mapping capabilities to its CBRN uncrewed platforms
In a partnership with Emesent, Teledyne FLIR will equip its autonomous air, ground and detection systems with the Hovermap LiDAR payload in a move that highlights a broader market shift towards modular architectures, shared payloads and interoperability across platforms.
-
![US seeks 32% boost for missile defence budget with $23 billion earmarked for interceptors]()
US seeks 32% boost for missile defence budget with $23 billion earmarked for interceptors
The Pentagon’s proposed budget for the next fiscal year includes an impressive increase in the procurement of interceptors, with the number of the US Army’s PAC-3 MSE rounds expanding by 683%, the US Navy’s Standard Missile by 365% and the MDA’s SM-3 IIA by more than 1,000%.
-
![US Army partners with Global Military Products to surge munitions production]()
US Army partners with Global Military Products to surge munitions production
Global Military Products was selected by the US Army to operate the Quad Cities Cartridge Case Facility and ramp up the production of various calibre shell cases.
