USS Houston found

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Marcus
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USS Houston found

#1

Post by Marcus » 19 Aug 2014, 18:38

The US Navy has confirmed a wreck found on the bottom of the Java Sea is the USS Houston, a cruiser sunk by the Japanese in World War Two.
The wreck is the final resting place of as many as 700 US sailors and marines, the Navy said.
US and Indonesian divers discovered evidence that pieces of the hull and unexploded ordnance had been removed.
The site is a popular underwater dive spot, and officials are co-ordinating its conservation.
"In my discussions with our Indonesian navy partners, they share our sense of obligation to protect this and other gravesites," Adm Harry Harris, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, said in a statement.
The Houston, nicknamed "the Galloping Ghost of the Java Coast", sank during the Battle of Sunda Strait on 28 February 1942. Its commanding officer, Capt Albert Rooks, was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, the highest US military decoration, for extraordinary heroism during the battle.
All 1,068 sailors and marines on board were presumed dead after the sinking. But when the war ended in 1945, 291 sailors and marines who survived the sinking and three years in prisoner of war camps were repatriated to the US.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-28857195

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Maxschnauzer
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Re: USS Houston found

#2

Post by Maxschnauzer » 20 Aug 2014, 00:12

Hooyah! to the U.S. Navy divers of Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit One (MDSU-1) out of Pearl Harbor who spearheaded this effort.
Cheers,
Max


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Takao
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Re: USS Houston found

#3

Post by Takao » 20 Aug 2014, 09:18

The truth is somewhat more mundane, than the "sensationalized" Associated Press article.
http://www.msc.navy.mil/sealift/2014/Au ... eguard.htm

The Houston was found and first dived back in the 70's. and as the AP article correctly states, has been a popular diving site.

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Maxschnauzer
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Re: USS Houston found

#4

Post by Maxschnauzer » 20 Aug 2014, 15:11

Absolutely. Many "souveniers" have been pillaged over the years in what is IMO the nautical equivalent of grave robbing. 40 meters depth is shallow enough for SCUBA but NITROX divers have a lot more bottom time to scavenge.
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Max

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Takao
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Re: USS Houston found

#5

Post by Takao » 20 Aug 2014, 21:51

"Souvenirs" I can see as somewhat justified, as these ships will not be around forever. But the trigger for this was some "fly-by-night" Indonesian metal scrappers looking to make a quick buck, by salvaging these ships for the metal scrap, as has been known to have occurred with the HMAS Perth, and at least one sunken Dutch World War II submarine.

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