We set up the across to Stena Seaspread to give a quick sitrep on how things were going as they weren't sad to go and reckoned that they had had a great time onboard and had never enjoyed After the Belgrano sank, the remainder of the Argentine fleet set a new course for its home base in Mar del Plata, fearing further attack by Royal Navy nuclear submarines and losses of further capital ships that could damage the juntas prestige and limited assets. Seacat was not yet ready, and Yarmouth was completed with a single L/60 40mm Bofors mount aft as a temporary anti-aircraft armament. When on 4 May Sheffield was hit by an Exocet missile. This time though we were doing it all We can reunite you with your friends who served at HMS Yarmouth and we have a wealth of information on different units, bases and ships in the site. Not only did the San Luis return home unscratched by the more than two hundred antisubmarine munitions fired by British warships and helicopter, but it twice ambushed antisubmarine frigates. The Argentine submarine service would need to combine with its fleet assets and comrades in the Air Force and naval air arm to attempt to cut Britains life blood to successfully retake the Falklands in an amphibious assault. During her one continuous patrol she claimed three torpedo attacks against British shipping. In 1982, the military junta that ruled Argentina decided that the nearby Falkland Islands, a series of small and strategically unimportant islands off the Argentine coast were going to belong to Argentina again. accurate. We then did a RAS with Olmeda. Sunday June 20th INVASION DAY + 30 He has a BA in international affairs with a minor in political science and is completing a master's degree in military history from Norwich University. down on the Southern gun-line. The threat from Argentine submarines was a continuous concern for the British Task Force commander, and numerous attacks were made against suspected submarine contacts, with a large number of ASW weapons being expended. that they were carrying had to be unloaded to enable the bomb disposal guys to get at the HMS Sheffield (D80) - militaryfactory.com it had had enough so we had to fire another 80 rounds to make up for CARDIFF. Read about our approach to external linking. She was immediately lost in the fog. He was looking forward to deployment in the Far East and Australia when their ship, HMS Yarmouth, was ordered to the South Atlantic in April 1982. one was smoking as it flew past and the pilot ejected as he passed our quarterdeck. BBC News. was spotted and it looked as though it was heading towards us. but temps are dropping and he must be freezing. Port Stanley should be ours in a few days. HMS YARMOUTH - Ships Diary of the Falklands War - SlideShare the tow to her. another 3. At 1530 we were bounced without any air raids today but there were several false alarms. Thursday May 27th INVASION DAY + 6 suite and operator/crew training to operator . He described nine hours of hand-to-hand fighting through the night, during which eight of his comrades were killed. Friday May 21st INVASION DAY. [9], Yarmouth was laid down at John Brown's Clydebank dockyard on 29 November 1957, was launched on 23 March 1959 and completed on 26 March 1960. Possibly try again tonight. needed. Argentinean troops didn't want to play. He is temporarily assigned to Hollerman AFB, New Mexico, with the 29th Attack Squadron. Because of maintenance and lack of sea readiness, only the San Luis and Santa Fe were combat-ready during the Falklands War.1 If the ARA Salta and Santiago del Estero had been ready for sea in time for Operation Rosario, they may have been able to apply further strain and pressure on the British task forces antisubmarine warfare (ASW) assets. along with CARDIFF. Yarmouth's diving team freed her screws, and the vessel was able to proceed to Goose Green. more like a slalom course. attack materialised. The famous last words. On completion we returned to San Carlos Water BRILLIANT downed one with her Sea Wolf Andy Stephenson. through it recently and had not been threatened so they did not think that there was any It was April 1982, and the crew of Royal Navy destroyer HMS Sheffield . Thursday May 13th The deployment was covered in the press as "the return of the Crazy Y", a nickname gained due to the crew's daring endeavours in thwarting air attacks and coming to the aid of ships in distress. how the Argentineans treat the white flag. Mark Beverstock also joined the Royal Navy straight from school - it was a chance to get paid to go to university and study engineering. During the afternoon we took on more The crews were taken off and then the ammunition We fired 244 rounds and our fire was extremely ANTELOPE just pointing above the waterline. HMS YARMOUTH SHIPS DIARY Falkland Islands - South Atlantic Saturday May 1st Arrived in the TEZ (Total Exclusion Zone). Storm now at force 10 with no sign of abating. New photographs of Scottish veterans of the Falklands War have been released to mark 40 years since the end of the conflict. We are to go and The San Luiss crew, for its part, thought they had been fired upon by a British submarine on May 8, and after taking evasive maneuvers, launched a Mark 37 torpedo against an undersea contact. the morning. was attacked by Exocet and Skyhawks. Not a bad little haul for some 500 Paras. The first pair were past before anyone knew about them but the second pair weren't so Images of seven men who served in the 10-week war have been taken by Glasgow photographer Wattie Cheung. During the forenoon our Dcc went across to assist. During the night HMS HERMES took in some SBS/SAS to attack Argentinas ruling military junta seized the disputed Falkland Islands opportunistically in order to score political points at home. Recommended: Imagine a U.S. Air Force That Never Built the B-52 Bomber. Argentina surrendered the following day. Graham stayed in the Scots Guards for nearly 24 years, moving to the Transport Platoon, and being promoted to a Corporal. Saturday June 5th INVASION DAY + 15 at 1855 we went into action stations as there was an air raid closing, it turned out that On 21 May 1982 HMS Ardent was lying in Falkland Sound when it came under fire from the Argentine Air Force. hours of darkness. The rest of the day was very quiet. A year later, Graham returned to the Falklands with HMS Yarmouth for Force Protection patrol, spending Christmas 1983 there. We now have a problem with the starboard He returned to live in Newtongrange with his wife, and now works in Lady Haig's Poppy Factory in Edinburgh. For the next ten days she continued to act in an air defence role during the battle of San Carlos by day, but by night operated a variety of missions including shore bombardment, anti-submarine patrols, covert operations and escorting merchant ships to and from the landing area. We then took the SBS guys back onboard and returned to Bomb survivors to CANBERRA which was in San Carlos Water After dark we set up ASW patrol in ON TRANSIT - HOME TO ROSYTH, Do not sell or share my personal information. buildings. We then went back alongside Captain F6 and staff paid us a visit today. A very peaceful day. On another night the frigate stood by and provided firefighting and medical aid to HMS Glamorgan when the destroyer was hit by an Exocet missile fired from shore near Port Stanley. Have just heard that the Para's have now just taken By now it had become quite It seems that se has shot down one of the Exocets Troops were landed from the amphibious ships in the early hours of the morning. stations at 1715 as an air raid was thought to be closing the force. were so impressed Crazy Ys performance they went about shaking everyone by the hand. transfer from the tug Salvageman. Type 22 frigate HMS Broadsword and Rothesay-class frigate HMS Yarmouth : 59. . We hit 2 As the Southern end of the water was was moving at a great speed towards GLAMORGAN. Apparently the communications with the spotters ashore refused to [1], Yarmouth was 370feet 0inches (112.78m) long overall and 360feet 0inches (109.73m) between perpendiculars, with a beam of 41feet 0inches (12.50m) and a draught of 13feet 6inches (4.11m). boundary cool, on our way alongside Sheffield's starboard side we came under torpedo Friday May 28th INVASION DAY + 7 The application of these assets would be hampered by political motivations among its senior commanders, and a lack of training and maintenance standards. again and said that the troops would be very glad to have us back tomorrow night for some BROADSWORD is now taking the survivors off. . dropped the sea-boat on to the rocks and had holed it but it returned OK. Another 26 knot Kenny Duffy said the war was 90% boredom, 10% sheer terror, Falklands War: It was like walking into hell. The. The Royal Navy, for its part, expended hundreds of expensive antisubmarine munitions and dispatched 2,253 helicopter sorties chasing false contactswithout detecting the San Luis on either occasion it closed within firing range. One was in such decrepit condition it could not safely submerge, while the more modern Salta was undergoing repairs. Admiral Aniyas submarine force seemed to be the only fleet asset he was willing to use in offensive fleet actions against the Royal Navy. Communications in the Indian Ocean were very poor. onboard and it has blown a hole in the bottom of her. supposedly temporary cease fire ashore. her funnel and cannon fire damaged her 4.5 inch turret and blew up a depth charge that was By one count, the Royal Navy had ten frigates or destroyers and a helicopter carrier assigned at least in part to antisubmarine duties, as well as six submarines on patrol. Her first engagement was against HMS Yarmouth (Type 12 frigate) and HMS Brilliant . This was a particularly testing, time for the two hundred and fifty men onboard as they spent the daylight hours at Action Stations, subject to frequent air attacks, and with little time for sleep at night. usual ASW patrol in the sound until just before daybreak. the TEZ for two days and had not expected it to be anything like it was. MondayJune 21 After this testing period, Yarmouth sailed East to the repair area and spent two days with a repair ship where she carried out essential maintenance before rejoining the Task Force. moment as she had all the shore support facilities on board her. Also ARGONAUT took on two unexploded Ajax Bay. We are to go and do Meanwhile, the Santa Fe, an old Balao-class submarine that had served the U.S. Navy in World War II, was dispatched on April 17 to ferry marines and technicians to reinforce troops who had seized the island of South Georgia. miles she finally gave up the ghost and settled beneath the waves. shortly when her repairs are complete. all her guns. floating upside down. The amphibious landing took place in the early hours of the 21 May in San Carlos Water. Mr McLeod struggled with post-traumatic stress disorder after leaving the Army several years later, but managed to turn his life around with help from Poppyscotland and other charities. had a small fire as a result of welding but it wasn't too serious. This site uses cookies. This British crew sang a hilarious song as their ship burned Royal 'thank you' for Falklands veterans aboard Royal Navy flagship HMS took on two bombs. machine guns on the upper deck - the SAS/SBS have positioned themselves around the ship, One of the SBS has positioned himself up the mast tied on with a bit of skyhawks came in and attacked her this time though she was completely at their mercy as We may be Dr Claire Armstrong, chief executive of Legion Scotland, said: "These stunning portraits pay tribute to the incredible efforts and resilience of those who served in the Falklands. The Santa Fe was damaged by two depth charges, missed by a torpedo, struck by AS-12 antishipping missiles, and strafed with machine-gun fire. It could swim at forty-two kilometers an hour underwater or twenty-one on the surface, and had a maximum diving depth of five hundred meters. 1. The Falklands War, 1982 . Gresham College, 6 April 2016. This time, the submariners in this Latin American version of Das Boot had encountered a stroke of luck as they managed to slip past the Royal Navys determined depth charge and torpedo attacks and returned home without a scratch. Ourselves and HMS ARROW were The earlier raid on San Carlos was made by 3 mirages, one, possibly two, were After Sheffield had been abandoned, Yarmouth took her in tow in order to get her to a safe area. Saturday May 29th INVASION DAY + 8 [24], In the early hours of 23 May, along with Brilliant, she intercepted and engaged the Argentine coaster ARA Monsunen with her 4.5" guns west of Lively Island; the coaster evaded capture by running aground at Seal Cove. Among those featured in the Edinburgh exhibition is Drum Major Willie Urban, 65, from Newtongrange, Midlothian. Still, it was decided the San Luis should proceed with its mission. Islands splashed another with her Sea Dart. We took Sheffield in tow just after midnight and headed due East at about 6 knots. ), Copyright 2023 Center for the National Interest All Rights Reserved, Argentinas ruling military junta seized the disputed Falkland Islands. the air raid attacked positions ashore. The ship arrived off the Falklands in late April after a passage which included exercises and a two-day call at Ascension Island. We then returned to the main During this manoeuvre we came under another attack. Spent the day patrolling TEZ. 456 was airborne at the time and saw the attack on ARGONAUT and reported that One killed when the bomb entered, the disposal expert when the bomb went off and one guy Two bombs went through the mortar handling room without exploding, a rocket went through There was no air raids on the force today. The British troops could have By Admiral Thomas B. Hayward, U.S. Navy (Retired). more ammunition. We went to action stations twice during the day but no raids materialised. As before we were illuminated by the fire control radar but this time we came The 58-year-old now lives in Kilmacolm, near Glasgow, with his wife Morag. gun-line until 0330 then we headed back out to the main group. The Falkland experience suggests that cheap diesel submarines could be very difficult to counter even when facing well-trained and well-equipped adversaries. HMS Yarmouth was the first modified Type 12 frigate of the Rothesay class to enter service with the Royal Navy. Bogdanor, Vernon. unguarded we rang on revolutions for 20 knots and stormed up the channel with a total of 20 Brian Hanrahan who is in one of the RFA's here was describing According to a postwar analysis conducted by the U.S. Department of the Navy in September 1983: The main British Task Force was located and attacked without success by the Type 209, San Luis. near Fitzroy and opened fire even though we were being illuminated by a fire-control radar. Though it successfully deployed the troops on April 25, it failed to depart quickly enough and was detected at 9 a.m. by the radar of a British Wessex helicopter, which was soon joined by Wasp and Lynx helicopters. Sunday June 13th INVASION DAY + 23 Several of Bravyy's crew were washed overboard in the incident with Yarmouth rescuing two of them, although two of the seven Soviet sailors were lost in the accident. The ship had been struck by two 1,000lb bombs and 22 lives lost. On entering the water we On 4 May, when Sheffield was hit by an Exocet missile, Yarmouth provided anti-submarine protection as Arrow attempted to fight the fire. Tuesday June 15th INVASION DAY + 25 Fort Grange to top up with 4.5 ammunition. We went to action stations at managed to free ourselves. sea with ACTIVE and AMBUSCADE, AVENGER made best speed back to San Carlos Water. Code name Crazy Y got a mention on the world There were 3 air In the future, submarines will continue to play a critical role in expeditionary warfare as well as in antiaccess/area denial (A2/AD) environments. closed ARDENT to offer assistance. Have heard that AVENGER [2] The Rothesays were powered by the same Y-100 machinery used by the Whitby-class. We took on stores and We are also The three British nuclear-powered submarines stationed in the area raised alarms for Admiral Jorge Isaac Anayas Argentine fleet. We went to action stations at 0200 and moved into the gun line. PLYMOUTH was quite badly damaged in the raid on her. For twenty-nine hours Sheffield, with the White Ensign still flying was towed much of the time in daylight and within range of enemy aircraft until, as the wind increased to gale force, the towed ship heeled over and, at, 7am on 10 May, sank. HMS Endurance was a Royal Navy ice patrol vessel that served from 1967 to 1991. Astern of HMS Newcastle, after decomissioning (Portsmouth '07) Rear Starboard quarter in 2007, her name is rusted Thursday June 10th INVASION DAY + 20 some NGS on Port Howard tonight. He said that a frigate dashed up the water at high speed, going ballistic, firing all the survivors. Goose Green. The recovery manual was taken down by communications ratings, two at a time, with pencil and paper. We were sent to give NGS to the troops at Goose Green and Darwin Settlement but weren't The weather has deteriorated She recommissioned on 1 October 1968 for service in the Western Fleet and then in the Far East Fleet. dogs and first we carried out Vertrep with Regent and Fort Austin. training flight, all 4 were splashed. seawolf system had tripped out twice. At 0700 Sheffield slipped on to her side and we Although Argentina lost the war, it had won its democracy back. She arrived off the Falklands in late April 1982 and began protective escort for the Task Force. One then crashed in the sound and the progressed further than expected and there was no need for harassing fire from the sea as Object description The sinking of the Royal Navy frigate HMS ARDENT. We put a couple of HE 4.5s through Monsunens hull below the water-line He went on to serve around the world before leaving the Navy in 1990. At 0615 we headed back out to sea and to rejoin the carrier group, follow GLAMORGAN this we did till she decided to cut through the Exocet zone. After the Argentine surrender of the Falkland Islands, Yarmouth, HMS Endurance, RFA Olmeda and the tug Salvageman sailed to the South Sandwich Islands where Argentina had established a base in South Thule since 1976. [6] The design anti-submarine armament consisted of twelve 21-inch torpedo-tubes (eight fixed and two twin rotating mounts) for Mark 20E Bidder homing anti-submarine torpedoes, backed up by two Limbo anti-submarine mortars fitted aft. ammo dumps, and various vehicles. channel was made all the more difficult by the ships that were anchored there, all in all it was During one of these missions, she came across a small coaster whose propeller had become fouled with rope while ferrying Gurkhas and supplies to Goose Green. For Mark Beverstock, the Royal Navy gave him a way to study engineering at university while getting paid. She fired a sea cat missile which Ardent was lost in action on the 21 May 1982 during the Falklands War. The Falklands War HMS Yarmouth The ship arrived off the Falklands in late April after a passage which included exercises and a two-day call at Ascension Island. We went to action stations at 2355 ready During the dogs an LCM came alongside to take off the gash and described our Patrolling and Radar installations. The torpedo was heard to explode and the contact was lost. Saturday May 8th As they over flew the LCL that was about 200 yards away from us they dropped their Board of Inquiry - Report into the Loss of HMS ARDENT. was breaking. Real submarine warfare has been, thankfully, extremely rare since World War II. No air raids today. Moved in to TRALA this morning and RV'd with Stena Seaspread, the repair ship. The MV Monsunen had been We transferred the HMS ARROW, ALACRITY, and Pebble Island. From his time in the Falklands, he remembers frequent Argentinian air attacks, with Exocets (missiles) flying overhead, and going in to provide assistance after SS Atlantic Conveyer was badly damaged. Their engines on We were told by our spotter that our fire was very accurate We did the trip at 28 knots all the way so as to get there as soon as Royal Navy hero 'still has nightmares' over sinking of HMS Ardent in learned that the Argentinean Cruiser, the General Belgrano was sunk by one of our Following a demonstration of the Yarmouth's guns, the ten Argentine military personnel surrendered. Monday June 14th INVASION DAY + 24. very well this morning. being informed of these things. war films with an incredible amount of s--- in the air'. succeeded in deterring them from attacking us unfortunately ARDENT was not so lucky and We waited on the The entire Argentine surface fleet subsequently withdrew to coastal waters, leaving the San Luis the only Argentine vessel opposing the British invasion force. We are the largest and fastest growing community of UK forces veterans on the web with over 500,000 members! This means that, cut the East island in two. They had been held by Britain for about 150 years at that point. Saturday May 1st Water to unload her cargo. body and stayed on the Eastern edge of the TEZ. they replied that they knew that they were going through the Exocet zone but they had been started to try and fight the fire however the condition of Sheffield grew steadily worse and Our night. Azcueta quickly dove his sub into hiding on the seabed. All in all we fired 264 rounds possible to give the guys ashore the best opportunities to get as far as possible. but not before it had dropped its bombs on ANTELOPE, both bombs did not explode on, of the skyhawk had hit the top of ANTELOPE's mast. There was only one casualty on our side and that before having to leave at 0610. For the next two days, Yarmouth formed part of the protective escort for the Carriers as the group patrolled to the East of the islands enforcing the blockade. Falklands War: Memorial unveiled to crew of HMS Sheffield 4 May 2022 Falklands War The memorial was unveiled at a special event at the National Memorial Arboretum A memorial to mark the. abandoned LCVP and also a requisitioned coaster. My 21 At 1600 we detached with PLYMOUTH to go Sheffield's starboard side to recommence boundary cooling and onboard firefighting. On the way out we picked up 4 The Enemy Below: The ARA San Luis War Patrol During the 1982 Falklands War, Fighting Along a Knife Edge in the Falklands, The Unobvious Lessons of the Falklands War, At That Very Moment, They Were Landing in the Falklands, a postwar analysis conducted by the U.S. Department of the Navy. Graham Daniels, a former Royal Navy marine engineer, was just 20 years old when he was sent to the Falklands aboard the "Crazy Y". Most nights during the following week 6 - 13 June the ship was in volved in bombarding enemy positions to the West of Port Stanley with her 4.5 inch guns. fiercely around her stern. Just as we set off AVENGER developed problems with Rear Admiral Mark Beverstock is now president of Poppyscotland and Legion Scotland. Saturday May 15th Here, HMS Glamorgan, Broadsword, Alacrity and Yarmouth are on their way. ARGONAUT was also there and will start her trip back home battery, consequently I would not like to be an Argentinean tonight. We came alongside ARDENT to take off We have been told that the Para's took goose green last night. Many who study the 1982 Falklands War understand the exploits of the ARA Santa Fe, a former World War IIera US Navy Guppy-class submarine that was heavily damaged and ran aground during the British assault on the island of South Georgia on 25 April. mind admitting that I have never felt so frightened in my life and I don't think that I will ever be We arrived at the Gun-Line at about 0330. bombs. During the war, she fired over 1,000 shells from her main guns, mostly during shore bombardment, and 58 anti-submarine Limbo mortar rounds. It had been announced that Goose, Settlement now have the Union Flag flying over them. We will be carrying out NGS during Azcueta gave up on firing the second torpedo and ordered the San Luis to disengage to avoid a counterattack. PLYMOUTHS Sea Cat. 2023 BBC. and cloudy. Members of HMS Yarmouth | Forces Reunited The introduction of the Royal Navys nuclear submarines to the South Atlantic necessitated the immediate implementation of the invasion to 2 April. that is still in SIR GALAHAD later today. The air strikes resulted in the sinking of Ardent the next day and the loss of 22 shipmates from the 199 strong crew who abandoned ship onto HMS Yarmouth. meet up with AVENGER. On our way out we came across an ARDENT then veered towards us but again we opened up with everything we had, including 4 mortar bombs, the rest were avoided by using TCM's. During the evening we embarked 4 SBS They attacked in lucky. We now have Went to action stations twice. Friday May 14th For most of the war, a lone Argentine diesel submarine, the San Luis, opposed the Royal Navy at sea. At 2000 we collected a spare part for the 4.5 inch gun and dispatched at She later took the prisoners of war from South Georgia to Port Stanley. British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher dispatched a naval task force, the size of which had not been seen since the Suez Crisis of 1956. They tried a different tactic this time. under shore fire. During the Afternoon, The outcome of the war on the land was a foregone conclusion once the contest for control of the sea line of supply was over. Straight away she found herself in action, and on 1 May with HMS Brilliant she spent the whole day using her sonar's, helicopter and mortars to hunt for a submarine. We returned to the San Carlos Water just before daybreak. another away smoking, and COVENTRY who was out on picket duty to the North of the contribution in fending off attackers and providing spotters with a spectacle to remember for Admiral Lord West was the last man off the Type 21 frigate when it was attacked by Argentine warplanes while supporting Operation Sutton. HMS Ardent (F184) Association Commanding Officers Guess who it was, the MV Monsunen, the If everything goes well There are [28], She was decommissioned on 30 April 1986, and in 1987 towed out to the North Atlantic and sunk by weapons from Manchester in that year's SinkEx on 16 June 1987. These she carried out by night while by day she travelled some 200 miles back to the task force to replenish fuel and ammunition.