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File photo of the Argentine submarine ARA San Juan leaving Buenos Aires. Photo: Reuters

Argentina finds lost submarine in deep Atlantic, one year after it disappeared

  • Discovery came just days after a ceremony commemorating the lives of the lost 44 crew members
Argentina

Argentina’s navy announced early on Saturday that searchers found the missing submarine ARA San Juan deep in the Atlantic a year after it disappeared with 44 crewmen aboard.

The vessel was detected 800 metres (2,625 feet) deep in waters off the Valdes Peninsula in Argentine Patagonia, the statement said.

The navy said a “positive identification” had been made by a remotely operated submersible from the American ship Ocean Infinity, which was hired for the latest search for the missing vessel.

The discovery was announced just two days after families of the missing sailors held a commemoration one year after the sub disappeared on November 15, 2017.

A ceremony to honour the 44 crew members of the ARA San Juan submarine a year after it went missing, at Mar del Plata’s naval base in Buenos Aires province on November 15, 2018. Photo: AFP/Noticias Argentinas/Diego Izquierdo

On Thursday, on the anniversary of the disappearance, President Mauricio Macri said the families of the submarine crew should not feel alone and delivered an “absolute and non-negotiable commitment” to find “the truth”.

Macri promised a full investigation after the submarine was lost. Federal police raided naval bases and other buildings in January as part of the probe, soon after the government dismissed the head of the navy.

Argentina navy chief’s sacking over submarine tragedy is biggest scalp yet

The San Juan was returning to its base in the coastal city of Mar del Plata when contact was lost.

Argentina gave up hope of finding survivors after an intense search involving 18 countries, but the navy continued searching for the vessel.

Workers stand around the ARA San Juan submarine during a ceremony celebrating the first stage of major repairs at the Argentine Industrial Naval Complex in Buenos Aires on September 27, 2011. Photo: AP

The German-built diesel-electric TR-1700 class submarine was commissioned in the mid-1980s and was most recently refitted between 2008 and 2014. During the US$12 million retrofitting, the vessel was cut in half and had its engines and batteries replaced. Experts said refits can be difficult because they involve integrating systems produced by different manufacturers, and even the tiniest mistake during the cutting phase can put the safety of the ship and crew at risk.

‘Hydro-acoustic anomaly’ raises possibility that missing Argentine submarine exploded

The navy said previously the captain reported on November 15 that water entered the snorkel and caused one of the sub’s batteries to short-circuit. The captain later communicated that it had been contained.

Some hours later, an explosion was detected near the time and place where the San Juan was last heard from. The navy said the blast could have been caused by a “concentration of hydrogen” triggered by the battery problem reported by the captain.

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Argentina finds lost submarine in Atlantic
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