WesWorld

30 May
The first dedicated submarine tender, the ARA Delphin, commissioned and joined the Auxiliary Squadron at Bahia Blanca today. Planned for several years, this vessel will support submarine operations further south along the coast and allow for repairs and resupply in wartime using suitable bays and coves.

22 June
The Malón de la Paz, a march of indigenous peoples has arrived in the capital today demanding the restitution of their ancient lands.

Malón is an Argentine Spanish word derived from Mapudungun malok, "invade". It refers to a surprise incursion. The expression Malón de la Paz therefore means "Peace Incursion". It was coined by one of the initial organizers of the march, retired military engineer Mario Augusto Bertonasco who had worked with the Mapuche in land claims and then moved to Jujuy and to Orán, Salta.
The lands originally inhabited by indigenous peoples in Argentina were almost completely occupied by the initial Iberian settlers and their descendants. In some regions the indigenous population were assimilated as cheap workforce and in others they were displaced and then exterminated. Near the end of his term, President Hipólito Yrigoyen planned to expropriate lands and grant them to their former indigenous inhabitants, but President Gomez did not honour these plans when he came to power in 1930. On 31 August 1945, Kolla communities in the north western provinces of Jujuy and Salta, through a group of representatives, sent a note to the Ministry of the State demanding the restitution of their lands, in compliance with previous laws. On 17 January 1946 State Minister Alfredo Sicillia signed the expropriation decree. But as funds for the necessary land surveys and paperwork were in progress, the election and changes in government meant the plans were halted and blocked by the powerful conservative landowning cartels.
Veteran rights campaigner Mario Augusto Bertonasco helped to organise the march. It started on 15 May 1946 in Abra Pampa, Jujuy, and arrived at the provincial capital San Salvador de Jujuy on 24 May, where the Puneños (on foot) were joined by another column coming from Orán and Iruya, Salta (on mules). They were 174 members in total. Two days later the marchers departed for Salta and then passed by Tucumán on 9 June before arriving in Córdoba. Here they have been received by a Neighbours Commission with offers of food and clothing and a supporting crowd of 60,000 people, including municipal authorities and farmers (who are also campaigning for agrarian reform). The Aboriginal Protection Department of the Ministry of State has given them accommodation in the city.

23 June
The Malón de la Paz leaders Valentín Zárate and José Nievas were received by the President of the Chamber of Deputies to raise their issue. Overnight members of Nationalist groups caused minor incidents but were repelled by the people and the police arrested a few of the ringleaders as they attempted to flee. This event however caused the President to cancel his planned visit to meet the marchers.

18 July
The notorious corrupt cattle baron, businessman and politician Antonio D’Silva has been granted parole and quietly left his Tierra del Fuego prison this morning under guard. It is believed he is heading for his ranch in Patagonia.

24 July
News of the release of Antonio D’Silva has been leaked by a left-wing newspaper via in inside informer. There were angry calls from the United Workers Party for an official statement to be made. Crowds of protestors gathered outside the High Court in Cordoba.

26 July
An article in the Marxist Party newspaper 'Worker's Press' today claims that D' Silva's parole was signed by the Conservative Party State Minister Jose Marcos de Ballista. It also claims that the refused to sign and enact the expropriation decree to return areas of indigenous land.

8 August
Naval forces begin annual winter exercises off Patagonia involving the battleship fleet and several cruisers and destroyers.

27 August
Forces of the Naval Prefecture were sent to force the indigenous marchers currently in Cordoba to get on a train to return them to Jujuy.
On encountering resistance, the Police were called and around midnight the Immigrants' Hotel was attacked with tear gas. Lieutenant Bertonasco of the Naval Prefecture however refused to give the order of abandoning the hotel and withdrew his forces. The marchers were finally evicted from the hotel but once in the train, the marchers broke the windows and some of their leaders jumped off.
The Kolla deputy for Jujuy, Dionisio Viviano, met with them and Bertonasco to intercede for the marchers, but were not heard. The train passed by Rosario en route back to the northwest, with the stations surrounded by local police forces to keep the passengers from coming out.
Unofficial sources claim State Minister Jose Marcos de Ballista was behind the order, while others implicate the President.

28 August
As a stop-gap until the new Gloster Meteor jet-fighters are delivered, the Air Force has agreed an order with FMA for 35 new-build FMA I-02III Pulqui fighters. These aircraft will feature several improvements including a further developed Spartan V-12 engine with new supercharger now capable of achieving 1,600hp, a new gunsight and four Orkileon 20mm cannon replacing the machine-guns. The first will enter service in January 1947.

The 1,600hp Spartan 1500S-SP V-12 inline engine has a modified two-stage supercharger giving a maximum sea level output to 16,000ft. The estimated performance is; maximum speed 431mph at 15,000 feet; service ceiling 38,500ft; rate of climb 3,062ft per minute at 1,500ft; range 975 miles full fuel load including two drop-tanks
Armament will comprise; four 20mm Orkileon cannon in wings and two underwing and one ventral bomb-rack for one 150-250kg bomb each, 500kg maximum load, alternatively 8x 75mm RPs can be carried on wing racks.

11 September
A team of thirty FMA aeronautical engineers have left for Great Britain on a chartered steamer.

23 September
The 1946 Campeonato Argentino de Rugby was won in a thrilling final today by Córdoba Athletic who beat Capital 9-6. This is the second time this annual rugby union competition has been held.

30 September
The ARA Patagonia slipped out of Bahia Blanca to begin her post refit trials this morning. The freshly painted vessel looked better than new as she effortlessly headed into the main channel.

9 October
First flight of the tandem-seat trainer and aerobatic aircraft, the I.Ae. 32 Chingolo. Very similar to the I.Ae.31 flown last year, the aircraft was built at the Mario Vicente workshops in Córdoba. Specs Here

13 October
The Belgian heavy cruiser King Albert arrived in Bahia Blanca this evening on the latest stage of its South American tour. This is the first Belgian warship to visit Argentine waters and so drew a crowd of curious onlookers. The ship’s captain, Capitaine de vaisseau Adrien Lecointe and his officers dined this evening with Vice Almirante Gomez and his staff aboard the battlecruiser Veinticinco de Mayo.

14 October
The Belgian political and economic party held talks with government officials in Bahia Blanca today and attended a formal evening reception hosted by the Mayor of the city. Some trade deals were struck and there were some fruitful discussions regarding political links with Belgium, which so far had not had much interest in the region and whose relations were damaged by association with the Netherlands following the South American War.

15 October
The heavy cruiser King Albert left Bahia Blanca harbour this morning to continue her voyage, she was escorted by the destroyer Bombardero safely out of territorial waters.

27 October
Today sees the end of an era as the American-built super-dreadnought ARA Libertad was formally decommissioned at Bahia Blanca. Yesterday the ceremonial role of Fleet Flagship, a position held by Libertad since her completion, was handed to the battlecruiser ARA Veinticinco de Mayo. No word has yet been given on when the ARA Capitan Gascon may be retired.

20 November
The first photograph ever taken of the Earth from outer space at an altitude of 105 km (65) miles has been made during a Gold Atlantean-Argentine rocket flight using the AAAM-4 (Gold) rocket. The camera was destroyed after being dropped back to Earth in Patagonia, but the film survived.


9 December
Another foreign vessel arrived in Bahia Blanca on a flag tour of South America, this time the German aircraft carrier Wallenstein. Aboard her were several vehicles and aircraft and trade exhibitions manned by a group of German salesmen and officials. There also rounds of visits by officers to Argentine vessels and reciprocal visits by Argentine officers to the Wallenstein and her consorts. The German officers had dinner aboard the Veinticinco de Mayo, a symbol of the current fruitful trade between Argentina and Germany.
Of all the equipment aboard the Wallenstein the two Arado Ar234 jet-powered fast bombers generated the greatest interest among Argentine officials. Although the potential of the aircraft excited the Air Force officers, the expensive commitments to the Gloster Meteor jet-propelled fighter was taking up most of the available funding for 1947, but it was hoped in 1948 that the situation might allow a modernisation of the bomber fleet to begin.
[As a side note, Erhard Milch was endeavouring to get aboard to see for himself the latest German developments. He investigated perhaps donning a disguise to get aboard. However, his horrified colleagues at the Instituto Aerotechico feared either a political incident, or more unlikely, a snatch operation and they foiled his plans and he was forbidden from travelling to Bahia Blanca for his own safety. He was informed of an vague kidnapping plot uncovered against him by intelligence sources and instead his aide went and a made a full report to Milch.]


[Please note my previous rocket-related post has been deleted as there was a mix-up in my files]

21 December
The football club, Club Atlético Independiente, has won the Primera División Argentina to make it two years in a row with for the first time, they achieved 34 points and 13 wins. Rosario Central were runners up with 13 wins and 29 points.

29 December
Another AAM-4 (Gold-12) rocket launched in Southern Argentina has reached an altitude of 100 miles. The rocket has sent back unprecedented information about the Sun, providing the first photograph of the solar ultraviolet spectrum with specialist equipment built by the University of Junon in Atlantis.
[Following the success of Gold-9 on 9 December, it was not reported that Gold-10 exploded prematurely on 15 December during a calibration flight, at a height of 60,000ft.; Gold-11 fired on 22 December suffered an early engine shut-down and came down some 200km downrange, demolishing a farmer's chicken coop.]

You forgot a bit of news...

Quoted

December 30
A group of chickens was protesting outside the Argentine rocket launch facilities today, demanding compensation for the loss of their coop which was destroyed by a malfunctioning AAM-4 rocket. A representative of the Argentine-Atlantean Rocket Program met up with the angry chickens to negotiate, but the meeting was unsuccessful and the representative returned with egg on his face.

Yep, beware those angry chickens!

Mind you, if it exploded on contact, the farmer might be able to set up Argentina's first drive-thru fried chicken bar, PFC (Patagonia Fried Chicken)!