Figure 1: HMS Sheffield (D80). Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 2: A dressed HMS Sheffield (D80) at anchor prior to the Falkland Islands War. She has not yet received the domes for her Type 909 trackers in this photo. Note the 'Loxton Bends' on each side of her funnel; this device was intended to reduce the ship's infrared signature, but was apparently not a success as no other ships of the class received them. M.D. Thomas photo. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 3: HMS Sheffield (D80) prior to the Falkland Islands War. M.D. Thomas photo. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 4: HMS Sheffield (D80) on fire after being hit by an Exocet cruise missile during the Falkland Islands War, 4 May 1982. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 5: HMS Sheffield (D80) on fire after being hit by an Exocet cruise missile during the Falkland Islands War, 4 May 1982. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 6: HMS Sheffield (D80) on fire after being hit by an Exocet cruise missile during the Falkland Islands War, 4 May 1982. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 7: HMS Arrow (F173) coming to assist HMS Sheffield (D80) after she was hit by an Exocet cruise missile on 4 May 1982, during the Falkland Islands War. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 8: HMS Arrow (F173) coming alongside to assist HMS Sheffield (D80) after she was hit by an Exocet cruise missile on 4 May 1982, during the Falkland Islands War. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 9: HMS Arrow (F173) alongside HMS Sheffield (D80) after she was hit by an Exocet cruise missile on 4 May 1982, during the Falkland Islands War. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 10: HMS Arrow (F173) assisting HMS Sheffield (D80) after she was hit by an Exocet cruise missile on 4 May 1982, during the Falkland Islands War. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 11: HMS Arrow (F173) assisting HMS Sheffield (D80) after she was hit by an Exocet cruise missile on 4 May 1982, during the Falkland Islands War. Note British Sea King helicopter hovering next to Sheffield. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 12: HMS Arrow (F173) assisting HMS Sheffield (D80) after she was hit by an Exocet cruise missile on 4 May 1982, during the Falkland Islands War. Note British Sea King helicopter hovering next to Sheffield. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 13: HMS Sheffield (D80) burning fiercely after she was hit by an Exocet cruise missile on 4 May 1982, during the Falkland Islands War. Note British Sea King helicopter hovering next to Sheffield. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 14: Burnt-out hulk of HMS Sheffield (D80) after the fires on board the ship were extinguished. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 15: Another view of the burnt-out hulk of HMS Sheffield (D80) after the fires on board the ship were extinguished. Note the large British Union Jack painted on top of the Sheffield’s bridge. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Figure 16: HMS Sheffield (D80) being taken under tow by HMS Yarmouth (F101). Sheffield foundered and sank while under tow on 10 May 1982. Royal Navy photograph. Click on photograph for larger image.
Note: Figures 4 to 16 can be found on an excellent web site for HMS Sheffield (D80): http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/davej32/d80%20index.html . Click under “Gallery” and then go to the link entitled “May 4, 1982.”
Named after a British city, HMS Sheffield (D80) was a 4,350-ton Type 42 destroyer that was built by Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering at Barrow-in-Furness, England, and was commissioned on 16 February 1975. The ship was approximately 410 feet long and 46 feet wide, had a top speed of 30 knots, and had a crew of roughly 300 officers and men. Sheffield was armed with one 4.5-inch gun, two 20-mm guns, six antisubmarine warfare (ASW) torpedo tubes, and one twin-armed Sea Dart GWS30 surface-to-air missile (SAM) launcher. The destroyer also was armed with one Westland Lynx helicopter, capable of launching either Sea Skua anti-ship missiles or Mk. 44 antisubmarine torpedoes.
For seven years, HMS Sheffield sailed all over the world, fulfilling numerous military commitments assigned to the Royal Navy. Then came the Falkland Islands War. On 2 April 1982, Argentina invaded and captured the Falkland Islands and South Georgia Island deep in the south Atlantic. These islands belonged to Great Britain and, after Argentina refused to return them, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher gave the orders to re-take the islands militarily. A large Royal Navy task force was assembled to mount an amphibious assault on the Falklands and HMS Sheffield was part of that task force. The Royal Navy, though, only had two small carriers that were able to take part in the operation (HMS Hermes and HMS Invincible), so Sheffield’s precious Sea Dart SAM missiles were to provide badly needed antiaircraft protection for the fleet.
On 4 May 1982 at approximately 10:00 AM, HMS Sheffield and two other destroyers were ordered away from the main task force as picket ships to provide long-range radar and missile protection for the British carriers. An Argentine Navy P-2 Neptune patrol aircraft detected the picket ships and soon two Argentine Dassault Super Etendards jet fighters, each carrying a single Exocet cruise missile, were sent towards the British destroyers. The jets flew in at low altitude and released their Exocets approximately 20 to 30 miles from the British destroyers.
HMS Glasgow, Sheffield’s sister ship, was in the northernmost position on the picket line and the first ship to detect the Argentine jets. Glasgow’s electronic warfare support measures (ESM) equipment detected the Exocet’s “seeker” radar, which meant that an incoming missile or missiles were headed for the ships. Glasgow radioed the news to the anti-air warfare coordinator on board the carrier Invincible but, unfortunately, the coordinator dismissed the report as one of the many false missile attack alarms received that same morning. Meanwhile, Sheffield’s radar did not pick up either the incoming planes or missiles because, at that precise moment, her satellite communications terminal was in use and that prevented the onboard ESM equipment from operating. The satellite communications link, therefore, proved incompatible with the ship’s anti-missile radar, although neither the Type 965 radar or the Sea Dart missiles carried by Sheffield were really designed to intercept low-flying cruise missiles. By the time Sheffield received Glasgow’s radioed warnings, the missiles could literally be seen heading towards the ship. A few seconds later, one of the Exocets hit Sheffield directly amidships while the second missile crashed into the sea a half mile off her port beam.
There is still some debate as to whether or not the missile actually exploded. But the impact of the missile hit caused massive damage to Sheffield. Major holes were punctured in the hull and a massive fire erupted, engulfing much of the ship. Twenty men were killed by the missile hit and another 24 were seriously wounded. The missile impact and subsequent fire crippled the ship’s onboard electrical systems and ruptured major water mains, preventing the crew from being able to successfully fight the fire. HMS Arrow and HMS Yarmouth were sent to assist Sheffield, but it was a losing battle. The fire was out of control and consumed most of the ship. The crew was evacuated from Sheffield and it took almost six days for the fires to burn themselves out. The burnt-out hulk of Sheffield was taken under tow by HMS Yarmouth but, due to rough seas and the continuous flooding that was taking place through the large hole in the side of the ship, Sheffield eventually sank on 10 May 1982.
Although the attack on the Royal Navy’s picket line did prevent the Argentinian jets and cruise missiles from hitting the British carriers, it came at a large cost. At that time, HMS Sheffield was the first Royal Navy warship to be sunk in action in almost 40 years and it was one of the first major warships to be lost to an air-launched cruise missile. Major design and electronic modifications were made to the remaining Type 42 destroyers after the loss of Sheffield, including the addition of two Phalanx 20-mm Close In Weapons Systems (CIWS) which were specifically designed to shoot down incoming cruise missiles. The fire on board the ship also convinced the Royal Navy to stop using synthetic fabrics in the clothing worn by its sailors because synthetics had a tendency to melt when exposed to fire, causing severe burns to anyone wearing such clothing during a fire. Navies around the world also were put on notice regarding the devastating capabilities of air-launched cruise missiles and how vulnerable warships were to these modern weapons.
