The Falklands War: In terms of lives lost, day 2 would prove to be the costliest.
Dear Fellow Earthlings,
On the 2nd of May 1982 the Argentine forces were dealt a severe blow by the British forces. The British submarine Conqueror torpedoed and sank the Argentine cruiser General Belgrano, resulting in the deaths of approximately 360 members of Argentina's forces. These losses on only the second day of the war would prove to be the costliest of the entire war.
Some people were upset by the news that the torpedo attack had occurred outside of the "Total Exclusion Zone" (TEZ) set up by Great Britain. But the General Belgrano was clearly on a war footing, as she headed directly for the TEZ. The cruiser constituted a menace to the British Fleet in the area. Therefore the British Task Force commanders requested permission to sink the General Belgrano from Great Britain's cabinet. Not long afterwards (about 3 hours after the request was made) permission was granted. The captain of Conqueror fired several torpedoes from a distance of about two kilometers.Two torpedoes hit the cruiser, which sank several hours later.
The terrible loss of life on just the second day of hostilities shocked the whole of Argentina. Undoubtedly, the reaction many of the British Force leaders sought from the Argentines was that war is hell!
The Argentine Navy's two largest and most dangerous ships had been the General Belgrano and their aircraft carrier Veinticinco de Mayo. Now they had only one of those very important ships left!
The British had been intent on putting both of those vessels out of commission as soon as possible. And now they had already sunk one of them!
Back in Port Stanley the locals were not yet aware of the General Belgrano's sinking -- but were hopeful, as the sound of British and Argentine artillery exchanges filled the air, that British Forces would soon come ashore and liberate them.
Steve Walker Earthsaver and Jingles Creator
© 2013 Steve Walker, The Jingles-The Japan Foundation for English Pronunciation, Summit Enterprises.