Advanced Micronesia
Chuuk Lagoon
Dozens of ships sunk in two days in 1944, and many still holding fuel
In February 1944, two days of air raids sank dozens of ships from an anchored fleet in this lagoon. Eighty years later, they're still there, with tanks in the cargo holds, bottles in the pantry, and the remains of those who were aboard.
In this guide you'll find what's on the bottom of the lagoon and in what condition, what penetration diving in these wrecks really involves, why they're war graves and what obligations that imposes, when to go, and what training you need.
It's one of the largest concentrations of diveable wrecks in the world, and the destination where the line between diving a wreck and desecrating a grave becomes a practical matter, not a theoretical one.
Geography and access
Chuuk is a huge atoll in the western Pacific, with a lagoon dozens of kilometers across, protected by a ring of reef and dotted with volcanic islands.
That lagoon served as an anchorage and logistics base during World War II. In February 1944, a two-day Allied air operation sank dozens of cargo ships, transports, tankers, and aircraft there.
The wrecks lie at depths ranging from just a few meters to more than sixty, many upright or slightly listing on a sediment bottom, with a significant part of their cargo still intact: vehicles, ammunition, spare parts, crockery, bottles.
The warm water and the lagoon's shelter have produced spectacular colonization: soft coral, sponges, and hard corals cover entire superstructures.
Getting there is a long haul: a flight with several connections across the Pacific. Diving is organized from lodges on the main island or from a liveaboard, with short crossings inside the lagoon.
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