Divers Seek Access

[Old Hippie]

Thai Divers Seek Access to WWII Submarine

July 10, 2005 5:40 AM EDT

BANGKOK, Thailand - Divers in Thailand have sought U.S. approval to explore the purported wreck of an American World War II submarine, but a U.S. official said Saturday that the vessel is a war grave that must remain undisturbed.

 

The wreck, thought to be of the USS Lagarto, was discovered in May by divers now trying to obtain Pentagon permission to film and conduct research on the Balao class submarine, Jamie MacLeod, a 43-year-old professional shipwreck diver from Chichester, England, told The Associated Press on Saturday.

 

Eighty-six sailors perished when the Lagarto sank in May 1945 - reportedly after being hit by mines laid by an enemy Japanese ship about 115 miles off the eastern coast of Songkhla province in the Gulf of Thailand.

 

MacLeod, who is based on the Thai resort island of Tao, says he is virtually certain the wreck is that of the Lagarto, but that he was waiting for U.S. military permission before further exploring the 311-foot, 9-inch boat.

 

"It's a war grave. It belongs to the military," said MacLeod, who wants to film the vessel for a documentary. "We've known this was in the Gulf since the end of World War II."

 

But a U.S. Embassy spokeswoman said the divers would never get permission to study the sub because it belongs to the U.S. Navy and "is a final resting place for the people who went down with it, and it is not to be disturbed."

 

She spoke on condition of anonymity, a routine request for U.S. officials at the Embassy in Bangkok. The spokeswoman said she had discussed the submarine with Defense Department officials in recent days.

 

Divers spent weeks earlier this year scouring Thai waters for the boat, which sits upright on the ocean floor at a depth of about 197 feet, according to MacLeod. "You can see the whole wreck - it's complete," he said.

 

There are many World War II-era wrecks in the Gulf of Thailand and Indian Ocean, including two British battle cruisers off Malaysia and numerous Japanese vessels that went down in Thai waters. Songkhla province is about 590 miles south of the Thai capital, Bangkok.

[limbo]

They just took off yesterday to explore.

 

Apparently they got permission to dive it again.

[sayjann]

they still talking about this?.

i read this story in The Nation back in May..........

[..]

Here is a cool web site on the sub.

 

Cheers,

SD

[Flashermac]

My dad's first cousin is the sole survivor of the USS Cisco -- the only name not listed on those lost with the boat. It was a brand new sub that had just sailed all of the way from California to Oz. They put in at Darwin, and cuz was taken off because he was suffering from jaundice. The sub apparently was spotted when they left Darwin by a Japanese aircraft seen high in the sky. The Nipponese folks guessed the probable destination and were waiting. The Cisco radioed that they had spotted an enemy convoy and were going to attack. Then nothing more was heard. A sister sub reported hearing heavy depth charging for several days in the area the Cisco was heading. It wasn't often that Tojo's navy got a US sub, but they got this one. Cuz is still alive, 60 years after all of his shipmates died. Sort of spooky ...

[Flashermac]

http://www.ussubvetsofworldwarii.org/lost_boats/LAGARTO.htm

 

 

"This vessel's first patrol was in the Nansei Shoto chain as part of an anti-picket boat sweep made by submarines to aid Admiral Halsey's Task Force 38 in getting carrier planes to Japan undetected. She sank the Japanese submarine I-371 on 24 February 1945, and participated in several surface gun attacks with the USS HADDOCK II (SS-231) and USS SENNET (SS-408). Two small vessels were sunk and two more damaged in these attacks, and LARGARTO shared credit for the results with these submarines. Cdr. Latta had previously made seven patrols as Commanding Officer of USS NARWHAL II (SS-167). Every patrol made by this officer was designated successful for the award of combat insignia, a record surpassed by no commanding officer in the Submarine Force. "