List of shipwrecks in international waters

This is a list of shipwrecks located in international waters.

Arctic Ocean

Ship Sunk date Notes Coordinates
USS Jeannette 13 June 1881 A Philomel-class gunboat that was converted into an Arctic exploration vessel, and became trapped in the ice near Wrangel Island. The ship remained trapped for 21 months, and was carried some distance northeast before sinking; three of the De Long Islands were discovered and named by her crew along the way. 77°15′N 154°59′E / 77.250°N 154.983°E

Barents Sea

Ship Sunk date Notes Coordinates
HMS Achates 31 December 1942 An A-class destroyer that was sunk 135 nautical miles southeast of Bear Island, in the Battle of the Barents Sea. 73°18′N 30°6′E / 73.300°N 30.100°E
RFA Aldersdale 7 July 1942 A Dale-class oil tanker that was damaged by aircraft and sunk by U-457. 75°0′N 45°0′E / 75.000°N 45.000°E
HMS Bickerton 22 August 1944 A Buckley-class destroyer escort that was torpedoed by U-354 and scuttled. 71°42′N 19°11′E / 71.700°N 19.183°E
HMS Edinburgh 2 May 1942 A Town-class light cruiser that was scuttled 400 kilometres northeast of Kola Bay, Russia. 72°N 35°E / 72°N 35°E
SS Empire Byron 5 July 1942 A cargo ship that was torpedoed by U-703. 76°18′N 33°30′E / 76.300°N 33.500°E
SS Empire Cowper 11 April 1942 A cargo ship that was bombed by German aircraft. 71°01′N 36°00′E / 71.017°N 36.000°E
SS El Occidente 13 April 1942 A cargo ship that was torpedoed by U-435. 73°12′N 28°18′E / 73.2°N 28.3°E
Z16 Friedrich Eckoldt 31 December 1942 A Type 1934A-class destroyer that was sunk by HMS Sheffield in the Battle of the Barents Sea. 77°19′N 30°47′E / 77.317°N 30.783°E
FV Gaul 8–9 February 1974 A British fishing vessel that disappeared without trace; the wreck was not discovered until 1997.
HMS Trinidad 15 May 1942 A Crown Colony-class cruiser that was attacked by Japanese bombers and scuttled north of North Cape, Norway. 73°37′N 23°27′E / 73.617°N 23.450°E
SM U-28 2 September 1917 A Type U 27 U-boat that attacked the SS Olive Branch at close range, 85 miles northeast of North Cape, Norway. The gunfire detonated the Olive Branch's cargo of munitions, and the U-boat was sunk in the resultant explosion. 72°34′N 27°56′E / 72.567°N 27.933°E
U-288 3 April 1944 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by British aircraft southeast of Bear Island. 73°44′N 27°12′E / 73.733°N 27.200°E
U-314 30 January 1944 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by HMS Whitehall and HMS Meteor southeast of Bear Island. 73°41′N 24°30′E / 73.683°N 24.500°E
U-354 24 August 1944 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by British ships northeast of North Cape. 72°49′N 30°41′E / 72.817°N 30.683°E
U-425 17 February 1945 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by HMS Lark and HMS Alnwick Castle near Murmansk, Russia. 69°39′N 35°50′E / 69.650°N 35.833°E
U-457 16 September 1942 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by HMS Impulsive northeast of Murmansk, Russia. 75°05′N 43°15′E / 75.083°N 43.250°E
U-472 4 March 1943 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by HMS Onslaught and British aircraft southeast of Bear Island. 73°05′N 26°40′E / 73.083°N 26.667°E
U-585 30 March 1942 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by a German mine north of Murmansk, Russia. 70°00′N 34°00′E / 70.000°N 34.000°E
U-589 14 September 1942 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by HMS Onslow and a British aircraft. 75°40′N 20°32′E / 75.667°N 20.533°E

Greenland Sea

Ship Sunk date Notes Coordinates
Lauenburg 28 June 1941 A German weather ship that was captured and scuttled by four Allied warships, in order to acquire important codebooks and parts of an Enigma machine. 71°00′N 8°20′W / 71.000°N 8.333°W
SS Oliver Ellsworth 13 September 1942 A Liberty ship that was torpedoed by U-408 about 100 miles southwest of Spitsbergen, Norway. 75°52′N 7°55′E / 75.867°N 7.917°E
SS Santa Rosa 13 September 1942 An ocean liner that was sunk by German forces 198 miles northwest of Bear Island. 76°00′N 9°18′E / 76.00°N 09.30°E
HMS Somali 20 September 1942 A Tribal-class destroyer that was torpedoed by U-703 and sank under tow north of Iceland. 69°11′N 15°32′W / 69.183°N 15.533°W
SS Stalingrad 13 September 1942 A cargo ship that was torpedoed by U-408 about 100 miles southwest of Spitsbergen, Norway. 75°52′N 7°55′E / 75.867°N 7.917°E
U-88 12 September 1942 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by HMS Faulknor south of Svalbard. 75°04′N 04°49′E / 75.067°N 4.817°E
U-289 31 May 1944 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by HMS Milne northeast of Jan Mayen Island. 73°32′N 00°28′E / 73.533°N 0.467°E
U-408 5 November 1942 A Type VIIC U-boat that was sunk by an American aircraft north of Iceland. 67°40′N 18°32′W / 67.667°N 18.533°W

Atlantic Ocean

Ship Sunk date Notes Coordinates
SS Arandora Star 2 July 1940 A cruise ship that was torpedoed by U-47, resulting in over 800 deaths. 56°30′N 10°38′W / 56.500°N 10.633°W
Atlantis 21 November 1941 An auxiliary cruiser that was sunk by HMS Devonshire. 4°12′0″S 18°42′0″W / 4.20000°S 18.70000°W
Bismarck 27 May 1941 The largest battleship ever built by Germany. 48°10′N 16°12′W / 48.167°N 16.200°W
SS City of Benares 18 September 1940 A passenger ship that was torpedoed by U-48. 260 people were killed, including 77 children who were being evacuated to Canada. 56°43′N 21°15′W / 56.717°N 21.250°W
HMS Courageous 17 September 1939 A Courageous-class battlecruiser that was torpedoed by U-29. 50°10′N 14°45′W / 50.167°N 14.750°W
SS Dorchester 3 February 1943 A troopship that was torpedoed by U-223 south of Greenland. 59°22′N 48°42′W / 59.367°N 48.700°W
SS Empire Endurance 20 April 1941 A cargo liner that was torpedoed by U-73 southwest of Rockall. 53°05′N 23°14′W / 53.083°N 23.233°W
RMS Empress of Britain 28 October 1940 An ocean liner that was torpedoed by U-32 northwest of Gweedore, Ireland. 55°16′N 9°50′W / 55.267°N 9.833°W
HMS Glorious 8 June 1940 A Courageous-class battleship that was sunk by Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. 68°38′N 03°50′E / 68.633°N 3.833°E
SMS Gneisenau 8 December 1914 A Scharnhorst-class armored cruiser that was scuttled in the Battle of the Falkland Islands.
HMS Hood 24 May 1941 An Admiral-class battlecruiser that was sunk by the Bismarck in the Battle of the Denmark Strait. Hood was the last battlecruiser built for the Royal Navy. 63°20′N 31°50′W / 63.333°N 31.833°W
SS Imo 30 November 1921 A whaling supply ship known for her involvement in the Halifax Explosion, after which she was repaired and ran aground three years later off East Falkland.
K-219 6 October 1986 Sank (after an alleged collision with USS Augusta) due to an explosion in a missile tube and a fire, which disabled the submarine and led to evacuation. The boat sank with her two nuclear reactor plants, 16 SS-N-6 liquid-fueled missiles, and 34 nuclear warheads. 31°25′N 54°42′W / 31.417°N 54.700°W
RMS Laconia (1921) 12 September 1942 An ocean liner that was torpedoed by U-156 about 130 miles northeast of Ascension Island. Upon realising there were civilians and POWs aboard, the U-boat attempted to rescue the survivors, but was bombed by US aircraft in the Laconia incident. Around 1,649 people died. 5°5′S 11°38′W / 5.083°S 11.633°W
Lady Elizabeth 17 February 1936 A barque that was damaged off Cape Horn in 1913, and condemned. It went on to serve as a coal hulk in the Falkland Islands, until it broke its moorings and drifted into Stanley Harbour during a storm.
ST Leukos 9 March 1940 A fishing trawler that was torpedoed by U-38 off the coast of Ireland. 55°57′N 9°15′W / 55.950°N 9.250°W
SS Montanan 18 August 1918 A cargo ship that was torpedoed by U-90 600 miles west of Le Verdon-sur-Mer, France. 46°47′N 13°42′W / 46.783°N 13.700°W
Pamir 21 September 1957 A Flying P-Liner sailing ship that was sunk by Hurricane Carrie near the Azores. 35°57′N 40°20′W / 35.950°N 40.333°W
SS Prins Olav 9 June 1940 A passenger and cargo steamship that was sunk by German bombers off the coast of Norway. 67°07′N 01°00′E / 67.117°N 1.000°E
Rudyard Kipling 16 September 1939 A fishing trawler that was sunk by U-27 about 40 miles west of Clare Island, Ireland. 53°50′N 11°10′W / 53.833°N 11.167°W
SMS Scharnhorst 8 December 1914 An armored cruiser that was sunk in the Battle of the Falkland Islands. 52°29′58″S 56°9′59″W / 52.49944°S 56.16639°W
USS Scorpion 22 May 1968 A US nuclear submarine equipped with two nuclear warheads and one nuclear reactor. The cause of its sinking was never determined; one theory is that an overheated torpedo exploded in the tube.
USS Thresher 10 April 1963 Sank during deep-diving trials with all hands on board. Flooding had led to a reactor shutdown, and the sailors were unable to surface due to a malfunction in the emergency blow system. It lies on the seafloor with one nuclear reactor in place. 41°46′N 65°03′W / 41.767°N 65.050°W
RMS Titanic 15 April 1912 The largest passenger ship in the world when she sank with over 1500 lives lost. She sank and broke in half over the course of two hours, following a collision with an iceberg. 41°43′57″N 49°56′49″W / 41.73250°N 49.94694°W
U-110 9 May 1941 A Type IXB U-boat that was captured by British forces, who retrieved from it a number of secret cipher documents. It sank under tow the following day. 60°22′N 33°12′W / 60.367°N 33.200°W
SS Washingtonian 26 January 1915 A cargo ship that collided with the Elizabeth Palmer off the Delaware coast. 38°27′28″N 74°40′34″W / 38.45778°N 74.67611°W
USS West Gate 7 October 1918 A cargo ship that collided with USS American 250 nautical miles south of Halifax, Canada. 40°35′N 63°48′W / 40.583°N 63.800°W
USS West Lianga 4 November 1942 A cargo ship that was torpedoed by U-132. 55°18′N 40°0′W / 55.300°N 40.000°W

Indian Ocean

Ship Sunk date Notes Coordinates
HMS Cornwall 5 April 1942 A County-class heavy cruiser that was sunk by Japanese dive bombers in the Easter Sunday Raid. 1°54′N 77°54′E / 1.900°N 77.900°E
HMS Dorsetshire 5 April 1942 A County-class heavy cruiser that was sunk by Japanese dive bombers in the Easter Sunday Raid. 1°54′N 77°45′E / 1.900°N 77.750°E
MV Empire Day 7 August 1944 A cargo ship that was torpedoed by U-198 about 200 nautical miles east of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. 7°06′S 42°00′E / 7.100°S 42.000°E
SS Fort Lee 2 November 1944 A T2 tanker that was torpedoed by U-181. 27°35′S 83°11′E / 27.583°S 83.183°E
SS James B. Stephens 8 March 1943 A Liberty ship that was torpedoed by U-160 about 150 miles northeast of Durban, South Africa. 28°53′S 33°18′E / 28.883°S 33.300°E
Magicienne 24 August 1810 A Magicienne-class frigate that ran aground off Mauritius in the Battle of Grand Port.
Pinguin 8 May 1941 An auxiliary cruiser that was sunk by HMS Cornwall. 3°30′0″N 57°48′0″E / 3.50000°N 57.80000°E
HMS Sirius 23 August 1810 A frigate that ran aground off Mauritius in the Battle of Grand Port.
SS John Barry 28 August 1944 A Liberty ship that was torpedoed by U-859 off the coast of Oman. 15°06′N 55°11′E / 15.10°N 55.18°E
HMS Hermes 9 April 1942 The world's first purpose-built aircraft carrier, which sunk after receiving 40 direct hits from Vice-Admiral Chuichi Nagumo's 70 Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter/bombers off the coast of Sri Lanka. 7°35′N 82°5′E / 7.583°N 82.083°E
HMAS Vampire 9 April 1942 A V-class destroyer that was sunk by Japanese aircraft off the coast of Sri Lanka. 7°35′N 82°5′E / 7.583°N 82.083°E
SMS Emden 9 November 1914 A light cruiser that was run aground while under attack from HMAS Sydney in the Battle of Cocos.
SS Thistlegorm 6 October 1941 Sunk by German bombers near Sharm el-Sheikh.[1] 27°48′51″N 33°55′12″E / 27.81417°N 33.92000°E
USS Grenadier 22 April 1943 A Tambor-class submarine that was bombed by Japanese aircraft and scuttled the next day. 6°30′N 97°40′E / 6.500°N 97.667°E

Pacific Ocean

Ship Sunk date Notes Coordinates
Akagi 5 June 1942 An aircraft carrier that was scuttled during the Battle of Midway. 30°30′N 178°40′W / 30.500°N 178.667°W
Amaranth 30 August 1913 A barquentine that was wrecked on the southeast shore of Jarvis Island. 0°22′S 160°01′W / 0.367°S 160.017°W
Asama Maru 1 November 1944 An ocean liner that was torpedoed by USS Atule 100 miles south of Pratas. 20°17′00″N 117°37′59″E / 20.2833°N 117.633°E
Chūyō 4 December 1943 A Taiyō-class escort carrier that was sunk by USS Sailfish off Hachijō-jima. 32°37′N 143°39′E / 32.617°N 143.650°E
MV Derbyshire 10 September 1980 A 169,000 ton bulk carrier, the largest UK ship ever to have been lost at sea. It sank 230 mi (370 km) off the coast of Okinawa, Japan, claiming the lives of all 44 on board. The Kowloon Bridge was a sister ship. 25°30′N 130°30′E / 25.500°N 130.500°E
Essex 20 November 1820 A whaler that was attacked and sunk by a sperm whale, inspiring the novel Moby Dick. 0°41′S 118°00′W / 0.683°S 118.000°W
USS Gambier Bay 25 October 1944 A Casablanca-class escort carrier that was sunk in the Battle off Samar. 11°46′N 126°09′E / 11.767°N 126.150°E
Hiyō 20 June 1944 A Hiyō-class aircraft carrier that was sunk in the Battle of the Philippine Sea. 16°20′N 132°32′E / 16.333°N 132.533°E
Hội An wreck A wreck that was discovered 22 miles off the coast of Vietnam, with a cargo of 15th century Vietnamese ceramics.
K-129 8 March 1968 A Soviet diesel submarine which carried three nuclear warheads. It was partially recovered from the seabed in 1974 by the CIA's Project Azorian. The USS Halibut allegedly took upwards of 10,000 pictures of the shipwreck. The exact location of the wreck remains an official secret of the United States intelligence services.
USS Lexington 8 May 1942 A Lexington-class aircraft carrier that was sunk at the Battle of the Coral Sea. 15°11′57″S 155°27′23″E / 15.19917°S 155.45639°E
Montevideo Maru 1 July 1942 A prisoner-of-war transport ship that was torpedoed by USS Sturgeon, killing over 800 Allied prisoners-of-war and 200 civilians. 18°37′N 119°29′E / 18.617°N 119.483°E
HMS Pelorus 25 December 1844 A Cruizer-class brig-sloop that struck a shoal off the coast of Borneo. 8°8′30″N 115°30′00″E / 8.14167°N 115.50000°E
MV Princess Ashika 5 August 2009 An inter-island ferry that sank northeast of Nukuʻalofa, Tonga.
Ryou-Un Maru 5 April 2012 A Japanese fishing boat that was swept out to sea by the March 2011 tsunami, and was discovered a year later in Canadian waters. Salvage attempts were not successful, and the ship was sunk by USCGC Anacapa 180 miles off the coast of Southeast Alaska.
Shinano 29 November 1944 A Yamato-class battleship that was torpedoed by USS Archer-Fish 200 kilometres southeast of Shingū, Japan. 32°0′N 137°0′E / 32.000°N 137.000°E
Tatsuta Maru 8 February 1943 An ocean liner converted into a troopship that was torpedoed by USS Tarpon 42 miles east of Mikura-jima, Japan. 34°00′N 140°00′E / 34.000°N 140.000°E
Tek Sing 6 February 1822 A junk that ran aground on a reef in the Gaspar Strait with nearly 2000 people on board. 2°24′54.27″S 107°04′10.17″E / 2.4150750°S 107.0694917°E
Toya Maru 26 September 1954 Japanese passenger ferry that sank during a typhoon, resulting in an estimated 1,172 deaths. 41°11′36″N 140°09′07″E / 41.1932°N 140.152°E
Ural Maru 27 September 1944 A hospital ship that was torpedoed by USS Flasher 240 kilometres west of Luzon, Philippines. 15°40′N 117°18′E / 15.667°N 117.300°E
Vũng Tàu shipwreck The wreck of a lorcha that was discovered 100 miles from Vũng Tàu, Vietnam. It dates from around 1690 and was carrying millions of dollars worth of porcelain when it sank.
Yamato 7 April 1945 A Yamato-class battleship that was sunk by US aircraft north of Okinawa, Japan. 30°22′N 128°04′E / 30.367°N 128.067°E
USS Yorktown 7 June 1942 A Yorktown-class aircraft carrier that was sunk at the Battle of Midway. The wreck was discovered in 1998. 30°35′59″N 176°34′4″W / 30.59972°N 176.56778°W

Southern Ocean

Ship Sunk date Notes Coordinates
MY Ady Gil 7 January 2010 A trimaran, formerly named Earthrace, that broke the global circumnavigation record in 2008. It was later converted into an anti-whaling ship, and was sunk in a collision with MV Shōnan Maru 2, sparking a series of legal disputes. 64°01′50″S 143°05′23″E / 64.03056°S 143.08972°E
MV Explorer 23 November 2007 A cruise ship that hit an iceberg in the Bransfield Strait. 62°24′18″S 57°11′46″W / 62.404882°S 57.196247°W
San Telmo 2 September 1819 A ship of the line that sank in a storm in Drake Passage. 62°20′S 60°30′W / 62.333°S 60.500°W

References

  1. ↑ "DiveSiteDirectory for Thistlegorm". Divesitedirectory.co.uk. Retrieved 27 April 2010.

Further reading

External links