40 years ago, which coincided with June 8, 2022, there was an incident that was somewhat forgotten, but smelled of mystery in the Malvinas War (Falkland). Reportedly a supertanker weighing 100,000 tons with a Liberian flag was attacked while sailing in the South Atlantic, in a location not far from the arena of the war between Argentina and Britain.
What is interesting to note is that the tanker's name is Hercules, while the one suspected of carrying out the attack is a C-130 Hercules transport plane modified for bombing.
Quoted from the New York Times – nytimes.com, on June 8, 1982, after stopping in Brazil, the tanker Hercules was in international waters about 600 nautical miles from Argentina and 500 miles from the Falklands; where this ship is actually outside the "war zone" defined by Britain and Argentina. Hercules was sailing from St. Croix in the Virgin Islands to Alaska.
With a crew of 30 Italians, the Hercules sails crude oil between Valdez, Alaska, and Saint Croix, in the United States Virgin Islands. At that time, the tanker Hercules was owned by United Carriers Inc and operated by Hess Corporation. However, Maritime Overseas refused to identify the tanker's charterer.
At 12:15 a.m. Greenwich time, the captain of the ship made a regular radio report to the Argentinean authorities, providing the ship's name, international call sign, list, position, course, speed and description of the voyage.
And unexpectedly, 45 minutes later a plane that allegedly belonged to Argentina began to circle the position of Hercules. The captain of the ship repeated the previous message over the radio to Argentine authorities, who acknowledged receiving it.
Six minutes later, without provocation, another Argentine military aircraft began to bomb Hercules. A second bombardment soon followed, and a third strike took place about two hours later when an Argentine jet hit the ship with an air-to-surface rocket.
Hercules was damaged but did not sink, in an emergency, Hercules turned around and sailed to Rio de Janeiro, the nearest safe port. In Rio de Janeiro, it was discovered that the ship had suffered severe deck and hull damage and that an unexploded bomb remained lodged in tank number two.
After an investigation by the Brazilian Navy, it was decided that it would be too dangerous to release an unexploded bomb, and on July 20, 1982, the Hercules was sunk 250 miles off the coast of Brazil.
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| The headlines of the time |
Interestingly, from the information from the tanker crew who saw the attack firsthand, they confirmed that the one carrying out the air attack was an Argentine C-130 Hercules modified to launch bombs. At least six 500 pound (225 kg) bombs were released from the C-130, but only two managed to hit the tanker.
According to the United States Coast Guard, the ship reported that it had tilted 6 degrees after sustaining airstrike damage. Apparently a bomb that hit the fore deck failed to detonate and glided harmlessly into the sea. Hercules' position several hours after the attack was said to be 45 degrees south latitude, 42 degrees, 25 minutes west longitude, in the South Atlantic.
In Washington, a State Department official said the United States asked Britain and Argentina to help identify the attackers.
The official, Carolyn Johnson, said the United States was also asking the two countries to ensure the safety of unarmed merchant ships in the South Atlantic. Britain has denied involvement, but there was no clear response from Argentina to the incident.
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