Man who sank 'Belgrano' is proud of the job done

Speaking yesterday on the 30th anniversary of the episode, Bill Budding also remains four-square behind the decision to defend the islands against Argentine forces. And he is sure the Royal Navy would be ready to mobilise were the Buenos Aires regime to launch another invasion.

A total of 323 people went down with the 185-metre long Belgrano – accounting for over half of Argentine deaths in the war.

While looking over Falklands memorabilia in his home in Thurso, the 67-year-old veteran revealed it was a double quirk of fate that left him with the job of firing the torpedoes.

Shortly before the sinking, Mr Budding and several others had been scheduled to leave the nuclear-powered submarine Conqueror.

He said: “My relief had been designated but as the boat was going off and was the most senior boat, the skipper decided that we would have to stay for a bit longer.”

The chief ordnance artificer, one of the most experienced members of the crew, was on duty as the confrontation with the Belgrano loomed.

Even then, he was not due to fire the missiles. The torpedoes were invariably activated from the control room by the skipper or another senior officer. But a technical gremlin triggered a contingency plan which involved Mr Budding pulling a lever in the loading bay.

He recalled: “I had to pull them off by hand, which is why we only hit with two, not three as there was a slight delay. I had never done it before and I remain the only one that has ever done it.”

Two of the three torpedoes found their mark, holing the cruiser below the waterline.

He recalled the initial surge of excitement felt by himself and the rest of the crew as they heard the explosions. That, he said, was quickly followed by feelings of sorrow about the huge loss of life.

“Once you fire, you’re timing it and you wait for the bang. All I wanted was the bang – is my stuff going to work?

“Then we got the bang and there was a great big cheer, naturally. It sounds awful now but that is your natural reaction.”

He continued: “Now, thinking back, it’s not very nice. It was very cold and there was never going to be many people surviving it in the sea down there. But it’s the job we’re paid to do, unfortunately, and we had to do it and we did it well.”

Labour MP Tam Dalyell subsequently condemned the actions of the Thatcher government and the crew of the Conqueror, dubbing the sinking a war crime.

While arguments have continued as to whether or not the Belgrano was outside the Falklands exclusion zone, Mr Budding said there is no doubt it was on a war footing.

He was frustrated his sub did not open up on the cruiser a couple of days earlier when he spotted it through the Conqueror’s periscope refuelling, together with the two destroyers shadowing it.

Mr Budding, of Harald Drive, said: “As we all know now, she wasn’t outside the exclusion zone – she was looking for targets and we did a good job.”

He said Britain was right to defend the Falklands and he would support action to defend it were Argentina to make a new bid to win control of it, against the wishes of islanders.

Looking back on his experience, he said: “I’m proud of the job we did but I don’t think it’s something I’d like to do again. Believe me, there’s nothing nice about going to war, as you can see from the daily bulletins coming out of Afghanistan.”

The incident – the only time a ship has been sunk by a nuclear-powered sub – was the first and last action Mr Budding saw on active service.

After stints at Faslane and Vulcan, he left the Navy in 1985, since when he had spells running an inn near Thurso; in charge of a top-class golf course in Berkshire, and with a haulage company in Caithness.

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