ARA Veinticinco de Mayo (V-2)

ARA Veinticinco de Mayo (V-2) History

In relatively recent history, the Argentine Navy has deployed no less than two aircraft carriers. His first ship was the ARA Independencia (V-1), a former British battleship (HMS Warrior) that later served with the Canadian Navy under the same name. In 1958, the ship was procured by the Argentine government, followed by the ARA Veinticinco de Mayo (V-2) as the second carrier.

ARA Veinticinco de Mayo was launched for the UK in 1944 as HMS Venerable (R63) and sold to the Netherlands on 12 March 1969 as HNLMS Karel Doorman (R81) in 1948. ARA Veinticinco de Mayo (V-2) bears the name "May Revolution" in Argentina of 1810.

With the arrival of ARA Veinticinco de Mayo, ARA Independencia was replaced and retired in 1970, leaving Argentina with only one operating airline. She was assigned to her home port at the Belgrano Naval Base, south of the capital, Buenos Aires. According to the commission, the vessel has a displacement of 20,000 tons, a length of 630 feet, a beam of 80 feet and a draft of 24.5 feet.

Her propulsion system consists of four boilers feeding steam turbines that drive a pair of shafts. The maximum speed is 24 knots. Her crew of 1,300 men was defended by 12 40mm anti-aircraft guns. Their typical air force consists of about twenty to twenty-four aircraft.

The Veinticinco de Mayo Air Force consists of former United States Navy (USN) Grumman F9F Panther jets. Over time, these were dropped in favor of the more agile and modern Douglas A-4(Q) Skyhawk series - also used by the U.S. Navy.

Grumman S-2 Tracker twin-prop aircraft were brought on board to provide anti-submarine (ASW) missions, while Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King naval helicopters were procured for ASW, Search and Rescue (SAR) and general surface water mission supply services. While the French Super Ensign The fighter jets were also eventually procured by the Argentine Navy, but the carrier's current catapult arrangement proved unsuitable for launching the flag at sea.

Veinticinco de Mayo's first call to action should have been the Argentine invasion of Chilean territory during Operation Soberania (1978). When the surgery was in progress, it stopped just a few hours after it started.

The importance of Veinticinco de Mayo to the Argentine Navy against the British did not come into play until the Falklands War in 1982. Therefore, the ARA Veinticinco de Mayo stood with the light cruiser ARA General Belgrano to support the first landings. Their value was so great that both ships were targeted by the British, which eventually resulted in the Belgrano being sunk by the British (HMS Conqueror).

The loss of this large ship forced the Argentines to put away their prized aircraft carrier for fear of another irreparable loss. This then led to her squadrons operating from land bases during the conflict - culminating in a British victory.

ARA Veinticinco de Mayo continued to serve after the Falklands War. Catapult support for the ex-French flag was finally added in 1983, but the ship needed more work in other areas - and this was at a time when the Argentine army continued to cut defense spending.

When she retired from active duty in 1990, she was eventually sent to a scrapyard, stripped of useful parts, and discharged from the Argentine Navy in 1997. She was shipped to India in 2000, where she was scrapped.

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