U-701

[marlin]

I am new here and I need help. An old artical in Discover Diving or Sport Diver about Uwe Lovas's discovery of the U-701 showed Uwe holding the sky perriscope that he had recovered from the wreck. I need a copy of this picture. I have searched all my ventage (early nineties) and have found everything but this. Please Help

 

[aue-mike]

Uwe did not recover the scope off the U-701. You are thinking of the U-1105. He recovered that scope (1105) but it was subsequently turned over to the state of Maryland, and is now on display at the Piney Point museum.
The recovery of the U-701 scopes happened earlier this year, and was after some other individual dredged out the tower.
Can I ask for your name and why you are interested in this?

 

[busraider1]

dredged... U mean with fishing line.. was this by accident, or by de-silting the tower..?? and isn't there laws protecting certain, underwater historical preservation sites..

 

[aue-mike]

dredged... U mean with fishing line.. was this by accident, or by de-silting the tower..?? and isn't there laws protecting certain, underwater historical preservation sites..

No, this was done with an air or water dredge specifically to excavate sediments from the interior of the U-boat.
There is the principle of sovereign immunity, in which the vessel (military) is still the property of the respective country. There are no other specific laws protecting this wreck.

 

[DivePartner1]

I am new here and I need help. An old artical in Discover Diving or Sport Diver about Uwe Lovas's discovery of the U-701 showed Uwe holding the sky perriscope that he had recovered from the wreck. I need a copy of this picture. I have searched all my ventage (early nineties) and have found everything but this. Please Help

According to the Virginia Pilot, the periscope of U-701 was recently plundered but I expect that you are aware of that story and are trolling for information.

Excerpts of the September story by Catherine Kozak ofThe Virginian-Pilot were postd on the yahoo DC-scuba Board:

"HATTERAS VILLAGE - As far as shipwrecks go, the World War II German submarine U-701 was pristine. Its location 22 miles off the coast of Cape Hatteras was known by few divers and, as a consequence, it was virtually intact 62 years after it was sunk.

. . . .

"But a dive party in late August discovered that one of the
last unsullied German U-boats on the East Coast had been picked over. At least 10 sailors are believed to be entombed in the boat. "Basically, they've taken anything that they could get," said John Pieno, owner of Outer Banks Diving in Hatteras.

'"They've just done wanton destruction that's uncalled for."

"Pieno, one of the proponents of the proposed preserve, said
that the U-701's radio antenna and the sky periscope had been removed, the housing around the attack periscope had been cut, 88 shells had been taken, and the deck gun was missing some brass and sights. There also was evidence of dredging around the conning tower, where items inside
were missing .. . . .

"A notice in the Federal Register, published Feb. 5, stated
that Germany retains ownership of its vessels and that sunken warships are maritime graves that warrant respect.

'"No intrusive action may be taken in relation to German
State vessels without the express consent of the German government," the notice said. The notice also stated that the United States will use its authority to protect and preserve sunken craft of all nations, whether in federal or international waters.

. . . .

"At a meeting at the German Embassy in June, representatives
of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the U.S. Department of Justice, the Coast Guard, the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras and the local diving community agreed to work toward establishing a diving preserve at the resting place of the U-701.

. . . .

'"What we were looking for here was a sign of responsibility
on the part of the diving community, which preserves the things that are, in fact, protecting their sport," said Joseph Schwarzer, executive director of the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum. "I wouldn't be surprised to see more government regulation as a result of this."'

* * *

 

[marlin]

Mike
I dive hatteras a lot and also spent a lot of time looking for the 701. Mostly on paper but a few boat trips. I know just as you do that Uwe, Steve, and Dave have been diving this dive site from 1989 to present. They have kept the numbers a secret just to have their own private dive site. Nothing wrong with that, we all do the same thing. It disturbes me that the Virgina Pilot is acting like Fox News. Uwe did get the gun site and three brass plates from the 701. He is pictured with the artifacts in Keatts book "Dive into History-U-Boats". One plate he gave to Deagan; a really cool thing to do. VP has said the gun site had just been taken. Not true or Keatts book is wrong. I thought he got the sky perriscope but as you pointed out I may be getting the stories confused. I personally do not want to see a preserve. I feel that when we start to give control to the government and people like Joseph Swartzer of the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum, the things we love about the sport will be lost forever. Do you know of anything the government got involved in that it did not screw up. I know this is an unpopular view but this is how I feel about. Hatteras has a shipwreck museum but nearly a third the space is a gift shop. The back room is full of artifacts that have been donated and are not on public display. I have photographs of the back room that prove this fact. Remember when Swartzer referred to divers as wreck rapers? I cannot imagine someone like this in a position of power to influence diving in North Carolina. What would be the next preserve, Dixie Arrow, Proteus, Keshena, these are also tombs, as people died during the sinking. I am afraid that if the camel gets his nose in the tent, he is coming in. Let he that has no artifacts in his home, or in his possession, cast the first stone. I don't like the idea of Larry Keen dredging the wreck either.

 

[aue-mike]

I simply wanted to correct the statement about the scopes.
Still curious about who I am talking to...