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Ship History
Aikoku Maru was converted from a three
deck passenger ship to an armed merchant cruiser. She was outfitted
with an array of eight 5.5 inch guns, torpedo tubes, AA guns, and
two reconnaissance float planes.
Sinking History
The morning of February 16, 1944 she was anchored
at Truk Lagoon. Between
0815 and 0830 US Navy aircraft from the Intrepid and Essex
dropped
bombs onto the ship
and saw her explode and sink almost instantly. One of TBF dive bomber
that attacked this ship was destroyed when its bombs hit the ship's forward
deck that was jammed with munitions. Blown nearly in half, the 500 foot
armed cargo ship came to rest in 230 feet of water.
Death of the 1st Amphibious Brigade
When it sank, she was carrying troops 400 troops of the 1st Amphibious Brigade
who were destined for the Marshall
Islands.
The bones of these men lie in the holds, which served as makeshift and
cramped quarters. All these troops died instantly from the shock wave
of the large explosion of the bomb hit that sank her. In addition to these losses were an unknown number of ship crew members.
Shipwreck
The forward section
of ship disintegrated by explosion. Interior may be explored at great
risk
of
silt and debris. Aft hold once held the remains of approximately 400
sailors who were onboard.
Recovery of Remains
The remains of approximately 400 men were recovered,
cremated and returned to Japan in 1984. These ashes were spread over
the sea after a ceremonies at their Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. This
wreck was first dived by members of Jacques Cousteau's documentary team in 1969 when filming Lagoon of Lost Ships. At that time, the wreck in 200 feet of water
was then unidentified.
Peter Ording adds:
"This was one of my more memorable
dives, the engine room photos at a depth of 200 feet not exactly a routine dive."
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Last Updated
October 1, 2009
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