Wreckage of US warship sunk by Japanese torpedo during WWII found in Philippine Sea

August 20, 2017

Researchers have found in the Philippine Sea the wreckage of USS Indianapolis, which lost in the final days of World War II after it was sunk by a Japanese submarine.

Paul Allen, a Microsoft Corp. co-founder, in a statement posted on his website, said Indianapolis was discovered 5,500 meters below the surface, resting on the floor of the North Pacific Ocean, on August 18.

"We've located wreckage of USS Indianapolis in Philippine Sea at 5500m below the sea. '35' on hull 1st confirmation," he said on his Twitter.

Paul G. Allen’s Research Vessel (R/V) Petrel, a 250-foot ship with state-of-the-art subsea equipment capable of diving to 6,000 meters or three and a half miles, was used in searching for the wreckage of Indianapolis.

Japanese submarine torpedoed Indianapolis in the early morning hours of July 30, 1945 and sank in 12 minutes. Prior to the attack, the Indianapolis had just completed its secret mission of delivering components of one of the two nuclear weapons that were dropped on Japan. Of the 1,196 sailors and Marines on board, only 316 survived.

"While our search for the rest of the wreckage will continue, I hope everyone connected to this historic ship will feel some measure of closure at this discovery so long in coming," Allen said.

As the naval flagship of the Fifth Fleet, the sunken Indianapolis was the object of many previous search efforts.

According to Robert Kraft, director of subsea operations for Allen, Petrel and its capabilities, the technology it has and the research that they have done, were the culmination of years of dedication and hard work.

“We’ve assembled and integrated this technology, assets and unique capability into an operating platform which is now one among very few on the planet,” he said.

The other key factor in the discovery was information that surfaced in 2016 by Dr. Richard Hulver, historian with the Naval History and Heritage Command, which led to a new search area to the west of the original presumed position.

Allen-led expeditions have also resulted in the discovery of the Japanese battleship Musashi in March 2015 off Romblon province in the Philippines and the Italian WWII destroyer Artigliere in March 2017 along Sicily-Malta escarpment.

Allen said the 16-person expedition team on the R/V Petrel will continue the process of surveying the full site as weather permits and will be conducting a live tour of the wreckage in the next few weeks.

The Indianapolis remains the property of the U.S. Navy and its location will remain confidential and restricted by the Navy, he said.

The crew of the R/V Petrel has been collaborating with Navy authorities throughout its search operations and will continue to work on plans to honor the 22 crew members still alive today, as well as the families of all those who served on the highly decorated cruiser, Allen said. Celerina Monte/DMS