An Argentinian Navy submarine that went missing a year ago off the country's Atlantic Coast has been found with its tail partially "imploded".
It was found by a private company involved in the massive search for the vessel and its 44-member crew, Argentina's defence ministry says.
The German-built ARA San Juan submarine found on the ocean floor was said to have had many flaws. (AAP)
The vessel, discovered by marine tracking contractor Ocean Infinity, was found 907m below the ocean surface in a canyon on the ocean floor with its tail partially imploded, Defence Minister Carlos Aguad told a news conference on Saturday.
Given the poor visibility at the site, the ministry said it only had preliminary information about the state of the submarine, which was scattered in pieces on the ocean floor.
Aguad could not say if the submarine could be recovered, but said the government did not have the means to extract the submarine.
Father of one crew member Jorge Villarreal told local radio, "now we are going to search for the truth".
"For us this is the start of a new chapter," he said.
A massive international search was launched after the submarine disappeared on November 15 last year but hopes of finding the crew alive were given up two weeks later and the search was scaled down.
Argentina's government bowed to pressure from the families of the missing crew in January by offering $US4.8 million ($A6.5 million) for information leading to the submarine's recovery.
A judge who investigated the disappearance has previously said the submarine, which was built in the German seaport of Emden in 1983 before completing an update in Argentina in 2013, had "many flaws".
Former spokesman of the Navy, Enrique Balbi, gives details of the state of the remains of the submarine Ara San Juan during a press conference. Source: AAP
