Atlantic Conveyor was a 14,950
GRT roll-on, roll-off
container ship owned by
Cunard. She was built along with six other container ships, each named with the prefix
Atlantic, and each sailing under different national flags by different companies for the
Atlantic Container Line consortium.
Falklands war Along with her sister ship,
Atlantic Causeway,
Atlantic Conveyor was requisitioned by the
Ministry of Defence at the beginning of the
Falklands War through the
STUFT (ship taken up from trade) system. Because of the short time available, the decision that the ship was not "a high-value unit", and a controversy over whether arming auxiliaries was legal,
Atlantic Conveyor was not fitted with either an active or a passive defence system. The ships were used to carry supplies for the Royal Navy Task Force sent by the British government to retake the
Falkland Islands from
Argentine occupation. Sailing for
Ascension Island on 25 April 1982,
Atlantic Conveyor carried a cargo of six
Wessex helicopters from
848 Naval Air Squadron (NAS) and five
Royal Air Force (RAF)
Chinook HC.1s from
18 Squadron. At Ascension, she picked up eight
Fleet Air Arm Sea Harriers (
809 NAS) and six RAF
Harrier GR.3s. One Chinook of B flight
No. 18 Squadron RAF left
Atlantic Conveyor to support operations on Ascension. With the aircraft stored she then set sail for the South Atlantic. On arrival off the Falklands in mid-May, all of the Harriers were off-loaded to the carriers; the GR.3s going to while the Sea Harriers were divided amongst the existing squadrons on
Hermes and . With the additional aircraft on
Hermes a
Lynx HAS.2 helicopter was flown and parked on
Atlantic Conveyor on 20 May 1982.
Sinking On 25 May 1982 (the same day as the loss of )
Atlantic Conveyor was hit by two AM39 Air Launched Exocet missiles fired by two Argentine Navy
Super Étendard jet fighters. from
2da Escuadrilla Aeronaval de Caza y Ataque. Both Exocets struck
Atlantic Conveyor on the port quarter of the ship. There are conflicting accounts on whether the warheads exploded after penetrating the ship's hull, or on impact. All the survivors were taken to HMS
Hermes. Because fuel and ammunition were stored below decks, the incendiary effect of the unburnt propellant from the missiles caused an uncontrollable fire. When the fire had burnt out, the ship was boarded but nothing was recovered. While under tow by the requisitioned tug
Irishman,
Atlantic Conveyor sank in the early morning of 28 May 1982. Six
Westland Wessexes, three
Chinooks, and a
Lynx were destroyed by fire; only one Chinook (ZA718 '
Bravo November') and one Wessex, were saved. The loss of these helicopters meant that British troops had to
march on foot across the Falklands to recapture
Stanley.
Lost stores •
Tent accommodation: Four tented camps, incorporating field kitchens and sanitation facilities, with the capacity to accommodate up to 4,500 personnel •
Portable fuelling system and storage: A complete deployable fuel-handling system, comprising six 10-tonne dracones (flexible fuel tanks), together with pumps and hoses for bulk fuel transfer to shore •
General stores and munitions:
Cluster bombs for Harrier aircraft, along with a range of other ordnance including grenades,
anti-tank missiles, small arms ammunition, and logistic stores such as rations, cold-weather clothing, lighting, tools, and
desalination units ==Crew==