Second World War
On 22. February 1945 nine Fairey Barracuda from 821 Naval Air Squadron are launched from the aircraft carrier HMS Puncher in the North sea on a minelaying operation along the western coast of Norway, or more specifically Karmsundet which is a narrow strait south of the coastal town of Haugesund.
About 13 hours later, at 4:40 pm, three submarines—Щ-205, Щ-206 and Щ-209 (Щ is short for Щука or shuka, which means pike in Russian)—received approval from the Kremlin to move towards the eastern shores of the Black Sea, while the M-33 and M-34 left for long-range patrol near the main base. It was the first day of the war in the Black Sea.
The distant Black Sea is a legend for all times. Tender and harsh, calm and violent, lukewarm and ice-cold—much can be said about this marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, which has enchanted sailors from all over the world since ancient times.
While Florida’s eastern coast certainly offers countless popular wreck dives, the Panhandle is an often-overlooked gem. The Florida Panhandle Shipwreck Trail provides an enjoyable mechanism for divers to experience the history and heritage the Gulf of Mexico has to offer within the realm of wreck diving.
Statnett, the Norwegian state-owned power grid operator, made the astounding discovery of the lost Karlsruhe cruiser around 488 meters (1,600 feet) below sea level off the Southern coast of Norway, some 13 nautical miles from the port of Kristiansand. Signs of wreckage were first detected three years ago during inspection work when sonar detected a shipwreck only 15 meters from an undersea power cable between Norway and Denmark.
The submarine was found by the Lost 52 Project, which locates lost U.S. World War II submarines, and is the first U.S. submarine discovered off the coast of Japan. Japanese records indicate that the sub was sunk by a 500-pound bomb dropped by a naval bomber in February 1944.
HMS Urge—part of Britain's 10th Submarine Flotilla—left the Mediterranean island of Malta on April 27, 1942 but never made it to its destination of the Egyptian port of Alexandria. Until its discovery this summer, the reason for both the ship's disappearance and its final resting place were unknown. The discovery of HMS Urge suggests it sank in 1942 after hitting an explosive marine mine placed by an enemy German warship.
This month's discoveries came after weeks of searching by crew members based on the research vessel Petrel. The vessel is owned by Vulcan Inc, a company created by the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.
One ship, the Kaga, was discovered last week, while wreckage from another carrier, Akagi, was found on Sunday, Vulcan Inc. said in a press release.
"Every shipwreck we find reminds us all of the ultimate sacrifice made by those who served their countries," said Robert Kraft, Vulcan Inc.'s director of undersea operations, in a press release. "Our team is truly honored to have discovered the Japanese Flagship Carrier, Akagi."
On 14 January 2019, the wreck of USS Wasp was located by the research vessel Petrel. The carrier sits upright in 4,345 meters (14,255 feet) of water, though parts of the hull appear to have split.
According to Wallin's report, UMEX (Underwater Exploration Team) found and identified Sch-317 yesterday, 2 May 2018.
This Soviet submarine lies at 78 meters / 255 ft between Gogland (Suursaari) and Tuiters (Tytärsaari) in the east part of the Gulf of Finland in Russian waters.
Sch-317 was sunk in 1942 by a German mine after surviving several attacks by allies that included bombing the Swedish coast.
The submarine's final resting place is near her home port.
