have there been any recent surveys or explorations of the wrecks there? aren't there still some high seas fleet ships? seems like a ripe area for a documentary.
- posted
19 years ago
have there been any recent surveys or explorations of the wrecks there? aren't there still some high seas fleet ships? seems like a ripe area for a documentary.
i remembered reading there were high seas wreck's there in ww2 and wonder about now.
Since Scapa was(is?) an active naval base I'd wager that most if not all wrecks have been removed. Navigation hazards aren't appreciated in busy ports.
About a dozen warships still lie in Scapa Flow, the list below is taken from
There have been many documentaries about the scuttling and wrecks, at least on Scottish TV channels. HMS Royal Oak also lies in the Flow, and leaking engine oil is an ongoing problem which has required the navy to take remedial action on her to seel her hull. Stories about this appear on the Scottish news quite often.
John
The German wrecks are :
German Naval Wrecks. The remaining German Wrecks from the First World War are closely grouped near the island of Cava, lying between the Mainland and Hoy.
Or a repeat!
In a documentary made some decades ago, where two men from both sides of the battle get taken out, wreaths in hand, ina small boat and get taken out to the site of the Royal Oak. One of them told of how the captain was one of the 'old guard' and stood to attention at his quarters as the ship was sinking. Seeing his men jumping ship he shouted for them to come back. "F*ck off!" was this old boy's retort.
They're war graves of course so it is with only the most special permission that a dive can be made.
Richard.
Go to this site - good article on the raising of many of the High Seas Fleet
coolness, i knew something was left. i will have to search for documentaries. i'm sure someone is selling them. dresden 2 i read about long ago,
Great site!
Lots of great period photos.
Tom
I thought it was called SCAPA FLOE ??
Ken
John Walker wrote:
That's what I thought; like the USS Arizona, HMS Ark Royal is a war grave and must be left where it lays. The Arizona also leaks from its fuel bunkers and they are attended too. Just how many men went down with the Ark Royal? Mike IPMS
message
The Royal Oak is a war grave, the German wrecks aren't. I don't think anyone went down with the Ark Royal, but since she's in about 3500 feet of water it's unlikely she will be interfered with either way.
John
From what I was told by an old Royal Navy veteran, the Ark Royal isn't a war grave, it's a war embarrassment. Seems there was a serious command breakdown which is why a single torpedo ended her career.
Bill Shuey
Mike IPMS
>Many of these ships have been, and continue to be, 'mined' for the steel they are made from - as it was made before the atmosphere became contaminated with the results of nuclear explosions, the metal is highly sought after for scientific instruments (Modern steel being contaminated by the particles in the air used during manufacture)
IIRC, some of it went into spave with NASA.
Regarding this and War Graves, certain less scrupulous Far Eastern metals dealers have been casting envious eyes in the direction of Renown (or was it Repluse?) and the Prince of Wales - apparently one of the latter's brass propellers has already disappeared.
Don't reply to the btconnect address - and remove nospam!!
Wouldn't this "old" steel become just as "contaminated" when they melt it down to make something else? And I guess that means we are all contaminated forever?Now I wish I had bought that undersea condo when I had the chance...
I'm surprised that so many of you consider the sunken ships at scapa flow (floe whatever) as war graves or even wrecks. Scapa Flow was the designated site for the surrender of the German High Seas fleet after WWI. When the fleet complied and sailed into Scapa Flow the German sailors decided to scuttle their ships instead of suffering the humility of turning them over to the British. Wreck implies the vessel sank due to a natural catastrophe or enemy action. These were sunk on purpose. I'm Not implying that there arn't any true wrecks there. Jjust stating that scapa flow is not a war memorial, or a grave yard of sailors killed in battle. If they had scuttled them off the coast of Florida we would call it a man made reef.
Someone posted that the British government has designated them as war graves, but your point is taken. However, the HMS Royal Oak was certainly a combat loss and thus deserving of war grave status.
WmB
To reply, get the HECK out of there snipped-for-privacy@earthlink.net
I had read the U-boats sunk under Operation Deadlight off Ireland after WWII are also a source for nuke free steel. Anybody happen to know if that's true? I'm pretty sure they were sunk in deep water, so I'm thinking the return on the investment might be a little thin.
WmB
To reply, get the HECK out of there snipped-for-privacy@earthlink.net
As far as I know, there is only one ship at Scapa Flow designated as a war grave, That's the battleship H.M.S. Royal Oak, torpedoed by Gunther Prien in his famous penetration of the anchorage at the start of W.W.II. The German ships are simply scuttled ships. The last of the German Battlecruisers, Derflinger I believe, was raised just before W.W.II began and was kept afloat, albeit upside down, until after the war when she was towed away and cut up. As others have pointed out, the steel in these ships was smelted before the atomic era began and contains no nuclear by products. That makes it very useful for certain types of instrumentation. It's too bad the Derflinger wasn't saved. Boy, what a museum ship she would have made. We can still hope maybe they will save one of the remaining ships.
Bill Shuey
PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.