100
BEST
WRECK
DIVES
How many have you dived? Kendall McDonald continues to line up the wrecks in British waters in ascending order of interest.
70 HMS Drake
14,100-ton armoured cruiser, built 1902. 529ft x 71ft. 30,557hp triple-expansion engines. Many guns and two torpedo tubes. POSITION: 55 17.13N; 06 12.50W (all positions are GPS). DEPTH: 18m.
SUNK: 2 October, 1916, by torpedo from German U-boat while escorting convoy off north coast of Ireland. The captain succeeded in anchoring in Church Bay, Rathlin Island, but Drake capsized later.
DIVING: Most dived wreck off Ulster. Not a war grave, as bodies of 19 killed in torpedo explosion were removed before she sank. Entire hull interior is open through holes blown during Royal Navy salvage. Beware of live ammunition.
LAUNCH: Ballycastle.
69 NEWHOLM
3399-ton British steamer, built 1899. 330ft x 48ft. 293hp triple-expansion engines. CARGO: Iron ore, Bilbao to Middlesbrough. Position: 50 12.52N; 03 38.45W. DEPTH: 28-44m.
SUNK: 8 September, 1917, back broken when hit German minefield. Twenty of crew of 29 killed.
DIVING: Lies on starboard side, bow down steep sandbank, stern towards shore. Stern rails at 28m near cast-iron propeller. Major break near mast at 32m. Bow section separated and deeper at 43m. Sanded up amidships. Good for marine life.
LAUNCH: Salcombe.
68 POMERANIA
3382-ton Hamburg-Amerika Line steamer, built 1873. 360ft x 40ft. 600hp two-cylinder engines. CARGO: General, 109 passengers, New York for Hamburg via Plymouth. POSITION: 51 02.72N; 01 18.80E. DEPTH: 25m.
SUNK: 25 November, 1878, by collision with iron-hulled barque Moel Eilian off Folkestone. Four out of nine lifeboats destroyed in collision. Forty-eight drowned.
DIVING: Highly rated. Lies on port side, bows to the east. Well broken but parts of deck intact. Some gold and silver coins recovered recently from passenger accommodation. Many clock mechanisms in boxes in holds.
LAUNCH: Folkestone.
67 UC-47
420-ton German UCII-class minelayer submarine of Flanders Flotilla, built 1916. 170ft x 17ft. Seven torpedoes, 18 mines, 88mm gun. POSITION: 54 01.00N; 00 20.00E. DEPTH: 51m.
SUNK: 18 November, 1917, by ramming and depth-charging of HMS P-57. No survivors.
DIVING: Bow down in sand. Conning tower opened, possibly by Royal Navy diver Dusty Miller, who entered her next day to retrieve minefield plans (Diver, September and October 1998). Interior silted up to hatch. Live shells scattered around gun. Stern torpedo tubes (empty) blown off. Bow torpedo tubes with doors closed lie clear. Large hole on port side stern. Aft hatch shut. Stern 6m clear. Both propellers in place. Mine chute hatches closed.
LAUNCH: Bridlington.
66 SKAALA
1129-ton Norwegian steamer, built 1906. 229ft x 35ft. CARGO: Patent fuel (coal briquettes), Port Talbot for Rouen. POSITION: 50 11.20N; 03 50.33W. DEPTH: 43m.
SUNK: 26 December, 1917, by torpedo from UB-35. One of crew of 17 killed.
DIVING: Upright, listing to port. 33m to deck. Superstructure collapsing into engine room. Propeller is iron. Torpedo damage to starboard side. Fishing boat wreck lies across No. 2 hold. Builder's plate recovered. Coal briquettes, stamped Cardiff and with Royal crown are extremely heavy. Take great care, two diving deaths here.
LAUNCH: Salcombe.
65 OCEANA
6610-ton P&O liner, built 1888. 468ft x 52ft. 7000hp triple expansion engines. CARGO: General, plus 747,110 worth of gold and silver ingots. 40 passengers, 210 crew, London to Bombay. POSITION: 50 42.32N; 00 25.75E. DEPTH: 22m.
SUNK: 16 March, 1912, in collision with Pisagua, 2850-ton German four-masted steel barque. Nine from Oceana drowned when lifeboat capsized. All except a few ingots recovered in immediate diving salvage.
DIVING: One more silver ingot recovered by sport diver in 1996. Beware strong tides, dive only on slack of 30 minutes. Boilers 6m proud amid tangle of wreckage. Sand covers and uncovers some sections.
LAUNCH: Eastbourne.
64 HMS FOYLE
550-ton Royal Navy destroyer-torpedo boat, built 1903. 225ft x 24ft. 7000hp triple-expansion engines. One 12-pounder, five 6-pounders, two torpedo tubes.
POSITION: 50 16.70N; 04 10.80W. DEPTH: 46m.
SUNK: 15 March, 1917, bow section blown off by German mine in Dover Straits, sank immediately, stern section sank while under tow 3 miles east of Eddystone. Twenty-seven out of 70 killed.
DIVING: Very broken. Boilers obvious. Some sections 6m proud. One gun clear, rest under wreckage piled near bow. Torpedo tubes visible. Starboard side collapsing inwards. Nameplate recovered 1972. Treat as war grave.
LAUNCH: Plymouth.
63 AURANIA
13,936-ton Cunard liner, built 1917, used as troopship. 520ft x 65ft. Steam turbines. In ballast, Liverpool to New York. POSITION: 56 36.10N; 06 19.60W. DEPTH: 9-26m.
SUNK: 5 February, 1918, under tow after torpedo from UB-67 hit port side of engine room. Eight firemen killed. Driven ashore by gale at Caliach Point, Isle of Mull.
DIVING: Much broken. Bow 7m proud in 26m, stern badly smashed in 12m. Northampton BSAC found "Silver Pit" (remains of the silver room where liner's silver plate was stored). Care with underwater back-swell off cliffs. Wreck owned by Richard Greeves of Salen Pier, Aros, Mull, who also supplies air.
LAUNCH: Calgary Bay, Mull; Tobermory.
62 EMPRESS OF INDIA
15,585-ton Royal Sovereign class battleship, built 1891. 380ft x 75ft. Four 13.5in, ten 6in, sixteeen 6-pounder guns. POSITION: 50 29.72N; 02 57.88W. DEPTH: 44m.
SUNK: 4 November, 1913, by shells fired during Royal Navy gunnery tests, holed below waterline, capsized.
DIVING: Sits upside-down. Propellers removed earlier. Hole in port side due to salvage of a condenser. Depth to keel 30m. Two openings amidships where contents of mess have spilled out. Portholes "like bay windows". Do not enter by going in through 3m scour underneath, as most of wreck tight to mud seabed.
LAUNCH: Teignmouth; Brixham.
61 AKKA
5409-ton Swedish motor vessel, built 1942. 434ft x 56ft. Twin six-cylinder oil engines. CARGO: Iron ore, Oxeloesund, Sweden for Glasgow. POSITION: 55 56.72N; 04 54.33W. DEPTH: 40m.
SUNK: 9 April, 1956, by striking Gantock Rocks, Firth of Clyde due to steering problems. Six killed out of crew of 33.
DIVING: Largely intact, upright, and biggest reck in Clyde. Superstructure lies to west. Bow shallowest part at 16m, stern deck at 24m. Beware tides and collapsing areas. Penetrate with great care. Silt easily stirred up in holds, lower decks and engine room.
LAUNCH: Largs; Gourock.
Appeared in DIVER - July 1999.
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