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Old 6th Dec 2010, 15:43
  #385 (permalink)  
jualbo
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
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Hello all:
I found some info about the place in which 1st Lt Ardiles Dagger fell. It seems that was found .
On 3rd may, the H-93 Chinook took off from Darwin at 10:30. They found the wreck of Ardiles' plane at 11:00 in 52º04' S 58º26' W. After landing they dug in the ground without success to find the cockpit, the ejection seat or the pilot. They returned at 13:15. The coordinates seems to be placed in the north of Lively island.
Also on that day, but in an unknown hour, two IA-58 Pucará flown by 1st Lt Fassani and Lt Giménez made a reco flight from Darwin. They explored Choiseul Sound, Lively Island, Sea lions island, George island and came back to Darwin by the same route. In one of Choiseul Sound´s islands they saw a dingy and a signal mark. They orbited trying to make a better observation. One of them went up to act as a radio station with their base as they couldn´t make a radio contact flying at low level. Once they got it, they returned. The pilots were asked by the intelligece officer in Darwin, 1st Lt Basilio, as well as by the Commander in chief Lt Cdr Pedrozo who ordered the inmediate take off of a Bell 212 with the intelligence officer and some personnel that found nothing. After a second debriefing, Fassani himself offered to go in the helo, but this second attempt was unsuccesfull again. Opposite to the island there was a kelper settlement called Walker Creek. Argentineans thought that the signal mark was probably from british commandoes to guide aircrafts. Here the sources says that some parts from Ardiles plane had been previously taken from this zone and carried to Darwin.
There is a sortie of a Bell 212 (H-83) from Darwin at 16:00, returning at 17:00, but not a second one. There are no more flights from helos from Darwin that day after this one.
On 6th may there is a report of a 601 Commando Company platoon visiting Lively island and founding two fuel tanks STILL burning believed from Ardiles' plane.
On 7th may, the H-93 Chinook took off at 13:20 from Darwin to look for the crash site. During the aproach they saw a british helo that scaped to sea. Then, they landed and began to dig where some parts of the plane were but couldn´t find any piece of the cockpit nor the pilot. They came back to Darwin at 14:25. Then they took off again at 16:50 with a high officer on board, Lt Cdr Aranda, to look for the cockpit, seat or clothes, but nothing was found. They returned to Darwin at 17:35.


Source: Historia de la Fuerza Aérea Argentina. Tomo VI. Volumen 1
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