Scuba Diving in the WWII Wrecks of Coron, Philippines

[Jaii Fredregill]

On the 24th of September 1944, the U.S. Navy launched an aerial assault on a Japanese warships in the shallow waters of the Bay of Coron. Seventy-five years later, the shipwrecks left in the wake of the attack are still intact, ready to be explored by recreational divers. The full trip report with photos can be found here: Scuba Diving in the WWII Wrecks of Coron, Philippines | My Mola

 

[Centrals]

The best wreck in my book is Kyokuzan Maru which is unfortunately quite a distance from the rest of the wrecks.
Plenty to see in the cargo holds(car and truck) and also broken porcelain ware in one of the room.

 

[Jaii Fredregill]

The best wreck in my book is Kyokuzan Maru which is unfortunately quite a distance from the rest of the wrecks.
Plenty to see in the cargo holds(car and truck) and also broken porcelain ware in one of the room.

Kyokuzan Maru sounds amazing. I really hope to get there too.

 

[DvrRick]

I'll be diving here soon. Can anyone recommend a good book to read about the battles and wrecks so I know what I am looking at? I would like to get a good sense of the history here before I arrive. Thanks.

Thanks for the report as well!

 

[Jay]

Not exactly a book, but some ok links - especially the ScubaTech link

Shipwrecks of Coron, Corto Divers and Corto del Mar.

 

[dlofting]

I'll be diving here soon. Can anyone recommend a good book to read about the battles and wrecks so I know what I am looking at? I would like to get a good sense of the history here before I arrive. Thanks.

Thanks for the report as well!

There's not really much to the story because the ships were pretty much all cargo types. i.e. no weapons. The Japanese moved them from the Manila area because they thought they were out of reach of the American carrier based planes. The Americans installed wing tanks that could be jettisoned to extend their range and caught the Japanese napping. You can find more detailed descriptions on the internet.

Our divemaster had excellent drawings of each ship that he used for a detailed briefing before each dive..we were on a liveaboard. I agree with@Centrals about the best wreck.

 

[Centrals]

Check this out:
http://seascansurvey.com/nakajima-ki-43-fighter-wreck-coron/

 

[YYCLuke]

I forget which wreck we penetrated (it was my first and only wreck so far, I was overwhelmed with the sight and experience) but I remember going into the engine room and seeing the insulated bricks stamped with Liverpool Asbestos Company. Which made me laugh, since I've done years of industrial asbestos abatement. And it makes you realize the Japanese commandeered the ship from the Brits. Pretty neat.
Plus, I saw some of the biggest lionfish I've ever seen on that dive. They were near the mast of the ship, and were literally 16-18" long! I didn't have a measuring tape handy...