At 6,500 meters below sea level, the USS Johnston is the deepest shipwreck in the world - and a relic to one of the most epic battles in the Philippines during World War II.
The 115-meter-long ship was sunk on October 25, 1944 during the Battle of Leyte Gulf as US forces fought to liberate the Philippines -- then a US colony -- from Japanese occupation.
AN AMERICAN exploration team found at 6,500 meters below sea level—the deepest wreck dive, according to the Agence France Presse— the wreckage of the USS Johnston (DD-557), a US Navy Fletcher-class that sank during the Battle of Samar in World War II at the ocean floor off Samar Island.
A crewed submersible filmed, photographed and surveyed the wreckage of the USS Johnston during two 8-hour dives completed late last March, said the Texas-based undersea technology company Caladan Oceanic.
The 115-meter-long ship was sunk on October 25, 1944 during the Battle of Leyte Gulf as US forces fought to liberate the Philippines -- then a US colony -- from Japanese occupation.
Its location in the Philippine Sea was discovered in 2019 by another expedition group, but most of the wreckage was beyond the reach of their remotely- operated vehicle.
"Just completed the deepest wreck dive in history, to find the main wreckage of the destroyer USS Johnston," tweeted Caladan Oceanic founder Victor Vescovo, who piloted the submersible.
"We located the front 2/3 of the ship, upright and intact, at a depth of 6456 meters. Three of us across two dives surveyed the vessel and gave respects to her brave crew."
Only 141 of the ship's 327 crew survived, according to US Navy records.
The Caladan Oceanic-backed expedition found the bow, bridge, and mid-section intact with the hull number "557" still visible.
Two full five-inch gun turrets, twin torpedo racks and multiple gun mounts remain in place, it said.
Team navigator and historian Parks Stephenson said the wreck bore the damage inflicted during the intense surface battle 76 years ago.
"It took fire from the largest warship ever constructed -- the Imperial Japanese Navy battleship Yamato, and ferociously fought back," said Stephenson.
“Sonar data, imagery and field notes collected during the dives would be turned over to the US Navy,” Vescovo said.
(RdlC)
Tags: #shipwrecks, #Samar, #USSJohnston, #WorldWarII