Truk
http://www.shipwreckexpo.com/shipwreckdiving.htm
http://www.wreckdivingmag.com/
Wreck diving is a specialized area of scuba diving that can be enjoyed by all divers, in all areas of the world. In the Caribbean islands, traveling tourists can dive and photograph beautiful wrecks in crystal clear waters. These wrecks, as well as many others, for the most part require only standard equipment and scuba skills. Off the east coast of the United States, sport divers visit and penetrate into intact sunken German U-boats, tug boats, destroyers and sailing ships. This type of wreck diving is more advanced, due to the depth and conditions of the water. Depending on the condition of the wreck, location, water conditions, and whether a penetration is planned, special skills and equipment are needed to make the dive as enjoyable and as safe as possible.
Shipwreck diving enables sport divers to visit the past. Each wreck is a time capsule into history waiting to be explored. Sport divers also make interesting artifact finds while exploring the remains of sunken ships. This enables the sport diving community to make its own contribution to historians and archaeologists by giving them the information needed for wreck identification and further research. Within the pages of this on line test, you will find many helpful hints to make your dives easier and safer. Until now these tricks of the trade have only been learned by years of experience. Realize that no book or article can instantly make anyone an expert wreck diver. Our goal is to give you the needed information and provide a good foundation upon which to build. We will discuss specialized equipment, mental attitude, penetration, methods of research available to all divers, artifact preservation, restoration, modification and much more. You will also learn that the sport of wreck diving is performed on many different experience levels and that each dive is a learning experience for future trips. Hopefully this book will enhance your future adventures by functioning not only as an instructional manual but as a reference source.
Truk Lagoon served as an important and formidable Japanese advance naval base during World War II, and today contains the remains of numerous sea vessels from this period. A devastating U.S. Navy carrier strike on Truk Lagoon in 1944 demonstrated American aerial superiority in the Pacific Theater. From July 1942 to February 1944, Japan's Combined Fleet operated out of Truk, extending its power into the Southeast and Southern Pacific. In August 1942, Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, Commander in Chief of the Combined Fleet (First, Second and Third Fleets and the Sixth Submarine Fleet) arrived in Truk, maintaining his headquarters on board the giant battleship, Yamato. When Admiral Yamamoto's airplane was shot down near Rabaul on April 18, 1943, by American aircraft in an ambush attack, he was replaced by Admiral Mineichi Koga, whose flagship at Truk was the Musashi.
The threat of an American attack in early February 1944 caused the Combined Fleet to withdraw from Truk on February 10, never to return. The U.S. Navy's carrier strike on February 17 and 18, 1944, coordinated with an assault on Enewetak Atoll in the Marshall Islands, seriously impaired Truk's air force, destroyed virtually all Japanese shipping in the lagoon, and heavily damaged land installations. Truk was now virtually defenseless and the United States decided an invasion was unnecessary. The successful attack allowed plans to be made to bypass Truk and to strike at Japan's inner defenses in the Marianas. Within the lagoon are the submerged remains of freighters, tankers, supply vessels, the Fumitsuki, a Japanese destroyer and the 1-169, a large Japanese submarine. Today, the "underwater fleet" at Truk, resting amidst an infinite variety of marine life and containing the honored remains of Japanese warriors, is one of the world's underwater treasures.
The Truk Lagoon Underwater Fleet, Truk Atoll, has been designated a National Historic Landmark. At least 35 sunken sea vessels lie between Dublon and Fefan islands, and east and south of Dublon Island, around Eten, and south to Uman. For tour information please visit the website of the Federated States of Micronesia Visitors Board.