The historical sequence and the counterfactual diverge only if General Belgrano survives long enough for the attack to develop. British submarines were positioned to shadow the principal Argentine groups and report their movements to the surface fleet. Published accounts often give operating areas rather than exact submarine positions, so coverage of the three Drummond-class corvettes is likely but uncertain. Submarine detection remains the decisive obstacle before any Argentine surface weapon or aircraft could matter.
Chapter · 0:00-2:23
Why British submarines constrained Argentina's attack plan
The Argentine surface attack had a plausible chance only if its three groups could evade British submarines already gathering intelligence around them.