Separated for nearly 40 years, two arrivals from the Super Etendard at the Espora base

Adrián Luciani / [email protected]

Just under four decades separate the first and last arrival of Super Etendard aircraft to Commander Espora Air Force Base.

The first took place on November 18, 1981, when five of the 14 fighter-bombers that Argentina had acquired the previous year arrived aboard the ship ARA Cabo de Hornos.

They were taken by night to the Naval Auxiliary at km 7 of Puerto Belgrano, and from there the following day they took off for Compound Espora Air Base.
The first four land at 15h and the remaining minutes later.

On December 7, 1981, the first flight over Bahía Blanca with four Super Etendards took place.

A second wave arrived in Espora after the Falklands War, where they had a remarkable performance.

Perhaps to illustrate his importance in the conflict he is addressing, he is only referring to the memoirs of French President Françoise Miterrand when he recalled the dialogue he had with Margaret Tatcher.

According to the psychobadyst of the French president of May 4, 1982, Mitterrand arrived very upset at his session.

Margaret Thatcher had treated him with anger and accused him of having misled, since he had told her that it was impossible for the Super Etendard to operate and had told him that this attack on Sheffield was a "new Trafalgar" and that, unless given the keys to the Exocet would attack an Argentine city with a nuclear bomb.

"He has four nuclear submarines in the South Atlantic and has threatened to launch an atomic bomb against Argentina, unless I provide the secret codes to disable the anti-ship missiles that we sold to the Argentineans Margaret has been very precise over the phone, and I believe she is capable of it. "

After the war, the remaining 9 Super Etendards bought in France arrived and in 1983, after the reforms of the aircraft carrier ARA 25 de Mayo (V-2), began to operate, part of the group Embarked Air Group (GAE) ,

This phase ended in mid-1988, when the aircraft carrier entered a period of never-ending reforms that was finally abandoned in India.

Three are the airplanes that have since lost the second squadron for fighter and attack in the event of an accident.

Two killed Commander Carlos Manchinelli (1989) and Sergio Márquez (1993).

Last week, a new story was written with the arrival of five other Super Etendard (used) bought in France and a large batch of engines and spare parts.

This will allow the rebirth of the team.