HMS Ardent (F184)
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| Career (UK) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | HMS Ardent (F184) |
| Operator: | Royal Navy |
| Ordered: | 17 April 1973 |
| Builder: | Yarrow Shipbuilders |
| Laid down: | 26 February 1974 |
| Launched: | 9 May 1975 |
| Commissioned: | 13 October 1977 |
| Homeport: | HMNB Devonport |
| Motto: | Through fire and water |
| Fate: | Sunk by Argentine aircraft on 22 May 1982 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Type 21 frigate |
| Displacement: | 3,250 tons full load |
| Length: | 384 ft (117 m) |
| Beam: | 41 ft 9 in (12.7 m) |
| Draught: | 19 ft 6 in (5.9 m) |
| Propulsion: |
COGOG: |
| Speed: | 32 knots (59 km/h) |
| Range: | 4,000 nautical miles at 17 knots (7,400 km at 31 km/h) 1,200 nautical miles at 30 knots (2,220 km at 56 km/h) |
| Complement: | 177 |
| Armament: | 1 × 4.5 inch (114 mm) Mark 8 naval gun 2 × Oerlikon 20 mm cannon 4 × MM38 Exocet missiles 1 × quadruple Sea Cat SAMs 2 × triple ASW torpedo tubes 2 × Corvus chaff launchers 1 × Type 182 towed decoy |
| Aircraft carried: | 1 × Westland Wasp helicopter, later refitted for 1 × Lynx |
HMS Ardent (F184) was a Royal Navy type 21 frigate. Built by Yarrow Shipbuilders Ltd, Glasgow, Scotland, she was completed with Exocet launchers in 'B' position.
Ardent participated in the Falklands War. On May 21, 1982, whilst lying in Falkland Sound and supporting Royal Marines, Ardent was attacked by Argentine A-4 Skyhawks and struck by nine 500 lb bombs, three of which exploded. The first two blew up in the hangar, destroying the Westland Lynx helicopter and blowing the Sea Cat launcher 80 ft (24 m) into the air before it crashed back down onto the flight deck. The third smashed the aft Auxiliary Machinery Room.
Power was lost to the ship and the 4.5 inch (114 mm) gun was put out of action. Ardent's hangar was a shambles and there were fires spreading in her stern. However, the ship could still make 17.5 knots (32.4 km/h). Minutes after the first attack three IAI Dagger aircraft attacked her, but scored no hits.
Twenty minutes later, as Ardent was sailing for San Carlos Water, three more Skyhawks scored two more hits on the ship's port stern. The fires now spread out of control and Ardent began to slow. Three Mirage aircraft attacked her, but scored no hits.
Ardent stopped in the shallow waters of Grantham Sound, the fires in her stern out of control. The Rothesay-class Yarmouth then came alongside to take off survivors. Ardent continued to burn throughout the night, accompanied by the occasional explosion, until she sank the following morning, with only her foremast remaining above the water. The last man to leave was her captain, Cdr. Alan West, who was subsequently awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, and served as First Sea Lord from 2002-2006.
Within days navy divers removed her light AA guns for fitting to other ships and her foremast was used as Navigational warning and datum by her sister ship Arrow whilst she bombarded Goose Green.
22 men died when Ardent sank. The wreck is designated as a controlled site under the Protection of Military Remains Act.
[edit] Official Argentine version
According to this Argentine Air Force official web site [1] Ardent received these attacks
- 14:00 by A-4B Skyhawks of 5th Air Group, one 1000 lb bomb explode on the stern.
- 14:40 by IAI Daggers of 6th Air Group, 2 other 1000 lb bombs on the stern.
- 15:01 by Argentine Navy A-4Q Skyhawks of 3rd Fighter and Attack Sqd. Although the Air Force web site mention 1000 lb bombs, Navy aircraft used 500 lb during the conflict.
[edit] External links
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