These haunting images show the wrecks of three Royal Navy ships sunk in the Falklands War and which are the final resting places for 42 British servicemen.
The remains of HMS Coventry, HMS Antelope and her sister ship HMS Ardent have been captured using sonar images taken by the survey vessel HMS Enterprise.
The wrecks have been scanned to mark the 35th anniversary year of the conflict and the new images will be used to update charts used by fellow ships.
This is the wreck of HMS Coventry which sank 13 miles north of Pebble Island having been attacked by the Argentine Air Force on May 25, 1982. The vessel sank in minutes having been hit by three bombs with the loss of 19 of her crews
HMS Antelope split in two after it was struck by a 1,000lb bomb dropped by a jet on San Carlos Water in the Falklands
The 1,000lb bomb failed to detonate when it ripped through Antelope’s deck. However the bomb finally exploded as bomb disposal expert Sergeant James Prescott attempted to defuse the weapon. The ship was ripped apart by the powerful blast
One of the images captures HMS Coventry which lies with her port side buried on the sea bed 300ft down and 13 miles north of Pebble Island.
On May 25, 1982, Argentina’s national day, the destroyer was on duty north-west of the Falkland Islands when she came under attack from several enemy aircraft.
Three bombs tore the heart out of Coventry as they struck on the port side, causing her to sink in minutes with the loss of 19 men.
Another image shows the separated remains of HMS Antelope, which lies at a 45-degree angle on the bottom of San Carlos Water.
Antelope was struck by a 1,000lb bomb dropped by an Argentine aircraft on May 23, 1982.
It failed to explode initially but was triggered as bomb disposal experts worked to defuse it.
Bomb disposal expert Sergeant James Prescott was killed instantly in the blast which tore the ship in two as her keel broke and her superstructure melted into a heap of twisted metal.
The explosion which ripped through HMS Antelope was captured by TV cameras which showed the savagery of the blast
Antelope’s sister ship HMS Ardent was sunk in Grantham Sound after being hit by several bombs during an air raid
Ardent burned overnight having been attacked on May 21 while it was bombarding a nearby airstrip. It sank killing 22 men
TV and still pictures of Antelope’s sinking became one of the iconic images of the Falklands War.
Her sister HMS Ardent sank in Grantham Sound after being hit by a succession of bombs on May 21, 1982.
Ardent was bombarding an Argentine airstrip from the nearby Falkland Sound when she was attacked by at least three waves of enemy aircraft.
The type 21 frigate burnt throughout the night and sank the next day, taking 22 men with her.
Commander Philip Harper, chief officer of Enterprise, said: ‘Of all our sonar images of 1982 wrecks, we think Antelope is the most remarkable – the 4.5-inch gun is probably still loaded.’
Twelve of the survivors of the Coventry, who escaped the blazing inferno on life rafts, visited the site to coincide with the project.
A service of remembrance was held before a wreath was cast into the South Atlantic and a tot of rum poured into the ocean at the request of relatives of the crew lost.
Chris Howe, Coventry Association chairman, consisting of surviving crew, said: ‘Hopefully we have done our shipmates proud, right over the spot where we were sunk 35 years ago.
‘It’s been amazing to come back here and remember our shipmates who are still on patrol.
‘Some of us are of an age where we might not be able to get down here again.’
Sister ships HMS Ardent and Antelope lost with days
HMS Ardent was engaged in shelling an Argentine-held runway from Falkland Sound on May 21, 1982.
The vessel, which was launched in 1975 was attacked by at least three waves of aircraft. The Type 21 Frigate burned overnight before it sank the following day.
During the initial attacks, Ardent lost most of its attacking and defensive capability, especially after its Sea Cat missile system was destroyed.
The ship, which still had power was ordered to sail to Grantham Sound where it later sank.
A total of 22 of the 199-strong crew lost their lives.
The survivors were recovered by HMS Yarmouth.
HMS Antelope was sent to replace HMS Ardent to carry out air defence duties on May 23 – just three days after her sister ship was sunk.
HMS Ardent, pictured, was sunk three days before her sister ship HMS Antelope while on a dangerous air defence operation
HMS Antelope, pictured, was destroyed after a bomb exploded during an attempt to defuse the weapon went wrong
Antelope was attacked by four A-4B Skyhawks in two waves. The second jet was shot down after it managed to hit the frigate with a 1,000lb bomb – which failed to explode. However, one crewman was killed.
The crew on Antelope managed to shoot down one of the aircraft in the second wave which slammed into the ship’s mainmast. His bomb failed to detonate despite hitting the ship.
Following the attack, Antelope was ordered to move to sheltered water where a pair of bomb disposal technicians from the Royal Engineers attempted to defuse the devices.
However, during the attempt to defuse the bombs, one of them went off, killing one of the EOD technicians and setting off a chain of explosions across the ship.
HMS Coventry’s dangerous mission to protect the fleet
HMS Coventry was on picket duty to engage Argentine aircraft seeking to engage the main Royal Navy fleet in San Carlos Sound when it was attacked repeatedly on May 25, 1982.
Coventry and HMS Broadsword were operating north west of the Falklands Islands as an early warning against air attack.
Argentine forces sent two flights of US-built A-4B Skyhawks against the pair of ships consisting of four aircraft.
HMS Coventry, pictured after it was struck by three 250lb bombs delivered by a pair of Argentine A-4B Skyhawks on May 25, 1982
The jets flew fast and low using Pebble Island as cover from HMS Coventry’s radar. During the first raid, the first pair of aircraft targeted Broadsword and hit her with a 1,000lb bomb which failed to explode – although it smashed through a Lynx helicopter on the flight deck.
Moments later the second pair of A-4Bs approached Coventry which fired off an un-aimed Sea Dart missile to distract the pilots.
Yet, the Argentine pilots continued their approach and began to strafe Coventry with cannon fire. The first pilot released three 250lb bombs at low level. Two of the three bombs exploded deep inside the vessel causing it to sink within minutes with the loss of 19 crew.