Argentine submarine: the government "lacks means" to lift the lost boat

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AFP

The Argentine Defense Minister said that he "could not afford" to raise a missing submarine, which had disappeared with 44 crew members on board, after the discovery of his Wreck under the Atlantic Ocean.

The ARA San Juan disappeared on November 15, 2017, 430 km from the Argentine coast, and was found a year and a day later.

Officials said the ship was 900 meters below the surface.

The parents of the crew require that the government raise the wreckage.

Navy Commander Gabriel Attis confirmed that the submarine had imploded. He added that the hull was "totally deformed and collapsed" and that the debris was scattered over an area of ​​about 70 m (229 feet).

• Who are the teammates of the Argentine submarine gone?

The wreckage was discovered by the American research company Ocean Infinity, a private American company able to map the seabed. Argentina had engaged its services after an international operation failed to locate the convicted ship.

The company, which uses underwater vehicles, had previously tried to recover the wreckage of the Malaysian Malaysian Airlines MH370 aircraft.

How did the families of the victims react?

Yolanda Mendiola, mother of missing sailor Leandro Cisneros, 28, said the crew's families had been reunited by the navy for the latest details.

"We are with the other parents, they will show us the pictures, they say our kids are inside," she said.

"We are all destroyed here."

Ms. Mendiola called on the government to recover the wreckage stating, "If we do not see it, we will not be able to close the doors, so we will ask the President (of Argentina) to find the way to to recover it.) because it's possible, the company said. "

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Reuters

This discovery comes a day after the parents gathered at a dark ceremony to remember their loved ones. President Mauricio Macri was present and promised to continue research on the submarine.

An unnamed naval officer told the AFP news agency that the ship could be lifted for a fee: "The submarine 's ascent to the surface is not impossible, but it' s not possible. is a very complex operation, and therefore very expensive ".

It is still unclear what caused the implosion of the submarine and the families of the victims want an independent investigation.

"We found them," local radio Jorge Villarreal, father of a member of the team, told local radio. "Now, let's seek the truth.For us, it's the beginning of a new chapter."

What happened to the submarine?

The ARA San Juan was returning from a routine mission to Ushuaia, near the southern tip of South America, when she reported a "power outage."

According to Navy Commander Gabriel Galeazzi, the submarine would have surfaced and reported what was described as a "short circuit" in the ship's batteries.

The submarine was ordered to cut off its mission and return immediately to the Mar del Plata naval base.

On November 15, the last contact of the Argentine Navy with the ship took place around 7:30 am (10:30 GMT). His captain would then have confirmed that the crew was doing well.

• What happens when a submarine disappears?

Eight days after the demise of the submarine, the CTBTO – which operates a network of listening posts to monitor nuclear explosions – said that there had been a "hydroacoustic anomaly" at about 30 nautical miles (60 km) north of its last known position at 10:31 am (13:31 GMT).

Last year, the spokesman of the Navy, Enrique Balbi, told reporters that water had entered the submarine's snorkel, which can be used to suck in the water. air above the surface when the submarine is submerged.

The salt water sank on a battery tray in the bow, causing a short circuit and slow combustion of the battery, he said. The submarine had reported the fault and had been ordered to return to the base, but had subsequently disappeared.

The Argentinian authorities then opened a criminal investigation into the disappearance.