MoonWrasse
Contributor
The Coral Reef Squadron, comprising some WW2 aircraft which were recently sunk just 6 months ago to create a new dive site off Phuket have already been damaged by wayward fishing boats.
Lol, Captain Somchai Hazelwood reporting for duty...
PHUKET: One of the airplanes at the artificial reef dive site off Phuket known as the ªàoral Reef Squadron has been damaged after being hit by the anchor of a fishing trawler.
Rainer Gottwald, CEO of the Thai Dive Association (TDA) technical committee, said the damage probably occurred on the night of April 10. It was discovered the following day.
A second plane had a fishing net entangled on it, indicating damage by a trawler.
Since the ten aircraft were lowered into the sea off Phuket in November last year, sponges and shells have begun to accumulate on the hulls, yet the part of the plane struck by the anchor chain had been wiped clean by the impact, Mr Gottwald said.
TDA divers and Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organization officials visited the site on Wednesday to inspect the damage. They were able to remove most of the fishing net.
Strong currents had caused further damage to the plane hit by the anchor, Mr Gottwald said.
Fishing trawlers disregard instructions not to trawl near the site, though the TDA has yet to catch one of them in the act, he explained.
Trawling is prohibited by law anywhere within a 3,000-meter exclusion zone from land.
The Coral Reef Squadron site is marked by buoys, so there is little question of crews simply not knowing it is there.
«ñhey already know where it is. They have GPS systems; they have fish finders; and they have sonar, so they will know where it is, Mr Gottwald said.
Fishermen are not the only ones damaging the artificial reef, however.
Divers had further damaged the site by taking souvenirs. One of the helicopters blades has even been removed and several switches have also been removed from aircraft.
...
Phuket dive site damaged by trawler
Lol, Captain Somchai Hazelwood reporting for duty...
PHUKET: One of the airplanes at the artificial reef dive site off Phuket known as the ªàoral Reef Squadron has been damaged after being hit by the anchor of a fishing trawler.
Rainer Gottwald, CEO of the Thai Dive Association (TDA) technical committee, said the damage probably occurred on the night of April 10. It was discovered the following day.
A second plane had a fishing net entangled on it, indicating damage by a trawler.
Since the ten aircraft were lowered into the sea off Phuket in November last year, sponges and shells have begun to accumulate on the hulls, yet the part of the plane struck by the anchor chain had been wiped clean by the impact, Mr Gottwald said.
TDA divers and Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organization officials visited the site on Wednesday to inspect the damage. They were able to remove most of the fishing net.
Strong currents had caused further damage to the plane hit by the anchor, Mr Gottwald said.
Fishing trawlers disregard instructions not to trawl near the site, though the TDA has yet to catch one of them in the act, he explained.
Trawling is prohibited by law anywhere within a 3,000-meter exclusion zone from land.
The Coral Reef Squadron site is marked by buoys, so there is little question of crews simply not knowing it is there.
«ñhey already know where it is. They have GPS systems; they have fish finders; and they have sonar, so they will know where it is, Mr Gottwald said.
Fishermen are not the only ones damaging the artificial reef, however.
Divers had further damaged the site by taking souvenirs. One of the helicopters blades has even been removed and several switches have also been removed from aircraft.
...
Phuket dive site damaged by trawler
