Deepest Wreck Dive Ever Explores Lost WWII Ship

“Just completed the deepest wreck dive in history, to find the main wreckage of the destroyer USS Johnston. We located the front 2/3 of the ship, upright and intact, at a depth of 6,456 meters. Three of us across two dives surveyed the vessel and gave respects to her brave crew,” Caladan Oceanic’s founder Victor Vescovo said on Twitter. Vescovo piloted the submersible with the help of his team.

US Navy records from World War II state that only 141 of 327 of the ship’s crew survived. The expedition team found two intact five-inch gun turrets, many gun mounts, and torpedo racks.

The vessel was originally explored in 2019 during an expedition and later became an object of interest to Caledon Oceanic. Thanks to new cutting-edge submersible technology, Caledon Oceanic were able to observe the USS Johnston during the recent dive, delivering us the first-ever images of the wreck.