Search for missing sub akin to looking for "cigarette on football field," says Argentine Navy

BUENOS AIRES, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- The Argentine Navy on Friday underscored the difficulty of locating the missing ARA San Juan submarine, more than three weeks after the vessel disappeared off the radar.

"It's complicated. It's a large area. To give you an idea, it's like trying to find a six-centimeter cigarette on a 100-meter by 40-meter football field," Navy spokesman Enrique Balbi told reporters.

In addition, "the submarine, the color black, was designed to remain undetected underwater," he said.

The navy plans to expand the search area, he added.

The ARA is believed to have sunk in the south Atlantic, about 350 kilometers off the coast of southern Patagonia, on Nov. 15 following some kind of explosion. A crew of 44 were on board.

The navy is under pressure from relatives of the crew to find the vessel and retrieve the bodies of the victims.

Relatives have marched and protested outside the naval base in Mar del Plata, a city in southeast Buenos Aires province. Enditem