THE end of HMS Antelope is one of the defining images of the Falklands War and Roger Sell saw it happen.

Roger was at Hereford Town Hall last Thursday for a special salute to the ship from its "home" city, 25 years to the day after he watched an explosion rip Antelope apart.

Part of Antelope's antenna - with a distinctive dent reputedly caused by the wing-tip of an attacking Argentine jet - is on show at the Town Hall, along with the frigate's nameplate and other artefacts brought up from the seabed.

Last Thursday's salute, timed to coincide with the day the Antelope went down, saw a wreath laid at the display by the Mayor of Hereford, Councillor Chris Chappell.

Roger, who is now working with Herefordshire Council's traffic team, was back in uniform for the occasion. He remains a lieutenant with the Royal Naval Reserve.

Antelope was Hereford's adopted ship. Roger is Hereford-born and bred. Fate put the two of them together in San Carlos Water on May 23, 1982.

Two 1,100lb bombs struck Antelope when she was attacked by Argentine jets, killing a crewman. After initial damage control, the ship moved into sheltered waters so ordnance disposal experts could come aboard and defuse the bombs but a time-delay device detonated one of the bombs as they did so. Staff Sergeant James Prescott was killed in the explosion.

Ripped apart from water line to funnel, Antelope blazed until her missile magazines exploded and the definitive image was captured on camera.

Roger was watching from the upper deck of HMS Cardiff when the blast occurred. "It lit up the night sky. You don't ever forget something like that," he said.

Further fierce explosions tore through Antelope overnight and, by the morning of May 24, she had more or less melted into mangled metal. Soon, she would break up and sink, her remains now protected as a military grave.