Truk Lagoon

Truk Lagoon is unquestionably the world's best shipwreck diving destination. The number, variety, and size of the wrecks and the spectacular marine life that grows on them are unequalled.  In February of 1944, Japan's fortress of Truk Lagoon was attacked by the US Task Force 58.  More than 400 Japanese planes were wiped out and some 50-60 ships were believed sunk.  The two days of devastating air assault created what is today known as the "Ghost Fleet of Truk Lagoon."  During the past 50 years, these lifeless hulks have been transformed into magnificent artificial reefs, some with greater concentrations of soft and hard corals, sponges, and marine life than the neighbouring coral reefs.

Some of the 35 wrecks that have been charted & explored are the Fukikawa Maru, a 437-foot freighter that served as an aircraft ferry, the Shinkoku Maru, a 500-foot intact tanker, the Sankisan Maru, a 380-foot freighter, the Hino Maru No. 2, a 200-foot cargo vessel whose bow gun nearly reaches the surface, and several war planes.  On these wrecks, you may find such wartime relics as military trucks, cases of ammunition, field artillery pieces, airplanes and propeller blades, sake bottles, and machine guns.