vigil bbc . Gripped by the BBC's new undersea drama Vigil? The real-life tragedy of a British sub that helped inspire it will shock you even more
On November 22, 1990, the sonar of HMS Trenchant detected vessel on surface
Crew then moved the submarine nearer the surface to assess the situation
When the vessel surfaced the remains of a trawler's net were discovered.
All they saw was two fishing trawlers, Heroine and Hercules III. They could not make contact with them by radio and neither appeared to be in any distress, so they assumed all was well.

It was only when Trenchant surfaced hours later that the remains of a trawler's net were discovered with its wires and chains entangled and embedded in the hull.

That was when the ghastly truth emerged. There had been a third trawler — not just the two viewed through the periscope — in the Firth of Clyde, off Arran, in the early hours of that fateful November day 31 years ago.

The vessel in question was the Antares. Its net had been caught by the submarine during those manoeuvres, and the trawler had been dragged downwards and flipped before the trawl wires snapped. The boat sank in seconds and all crew were lost.


Royal Navy submarine Trechant Trenchent sinking of Antares Vigil BBC drama on, who is in new thriller starring Suranne Jones and Martin Compston mystery

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