Hellcat found off Miami

[Warbirdnerd]

Sunken wreckage of WWII fighter plane found off Miami Beach
BY SUSAN COCKING The Miami Herald
A research submarine found the wreckage of a World War II fighter plane in 240 feet of water off Miami Beach.
The crew of a research submarine studying artificial reefs off Miami-Dade County has discovered the mostly intact wreck of a U.S. Navy World War II fighter plane lying upside down 240 feet deep off Miami Beach.
Researchers aboard the Antipodes were using three-dimensional sonar gear to investigate a blip on the sea floor last June when they found the 28-foot-long Grumman F6F Hellcat — encrusted with marine growth and dotted with exotic lionfish. The researchers shot high-definition photos and video of the plane and sent them to the U.S. Navy and Smithsonian Institution.
Officials of the Naval History and Heritage Command in Washington, D.C., identified it as a Hellcat — rolled out starting in 1943 to counter the Japanese Zero.
Stockton Rush, CEO and co-founder of OceanGate, Inc. — the private company that provided the sub to Miami-Dade County’s environmental agency — was surprised and elated at the find.
“It was quite a surprise coming on that wreck,” Rush said. “At first, it appeared to be a 100-foot-long shipwreck, but we found it was an aircraft with a large silt berm that the Gulf Stream had pushed up against it.”
The exact origin of the downed plane hasn’t been determined yet, but Rush hopes to escort Navy experts aboard his sub to take a closer look in the next couple of weeks.
According to the Naval History and Heritage Command, 79 Hellcats were lost off Florida’s east coast between 1943 and 1952. But many of the crews survived by bailing out or ditching. They were not part of the mysterious Flight 19 “Lost Patrol” that vanished on a routine training mission off Fort Lauderdale in 1945. The “Lost Patrol” consisted of five TBM Avengers and the PBM Mariner that was sent to look for them.
Robert Neyland, head of the NHHC’s underwater archeology branch, says tampering with the wreck — should some deep diver stumble upon it — is a violation of the Sunken Military Craft Act, which treats Navy ships and aircraft as historic sites — and possible graves.
According to Bob Rasmussen, director of the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, more than 12,000 Hellcats were delivered to the Navy, but only a handful are still around today.
“The discovery of one more — even under 240 feet of Atlantic Ocean — is important to naval aviation history,” Rasmussen said.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/11/26/3 ... rylink=cpy

Found it here:
http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/11/26/3 ... ghter.html

[Pat Carry]

Most interesting, thanks. I suppose at this point if there was an attempt to retrieve the plane it would simply fall apart.

[hang the expense]

Most interesting, thanks. I suppose at this point if there was an attempt to retrieve the plane it would simply fall apart.

I agree,I dont think it's deep enough to be of any count.There is no such thing as too many Hellcats.

[Russ Matthews]

New video of the wreck aired today (Feb 20, 2013) on "CBS This Morning." See it here ...

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=50141398n

[wendovertom]

Cool! looks like it went down in pretty good shape - rather than in multiple pieces I guess is what I mean.

Tom P.

[Wildchild]

Due to it being upside down, my guess is the Navy will rasie it no matter what to see if there are remains inside the plane.

[michael barnette]

I was able to get out Friday to get some detailed high definition video footage of the Miami Hellcat. Video can be viewed here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGhNcu532Ww

Cheers,
Mike

[dbrown]

Wow - you can really see how the Lionfish is thriving off the coast.

Great video.

[rcaf_100]

Looks like red paint showing through the marine growth...possibly a drone?

[airnutz]

Wow - you can really see how the Lionfish is thriving off the coast.

Great video.

Vermin of the sea...kill, kill, kill ! I hear they taste good tho!

[airnutz]

Looks like red paint showing through the marine growth...possibly a drone?

Ditto that! I think your right.

[Chappie]

Awesome. I say raise that baby, keep the Navy from hoarding it, and restore her to airworthy! Hopefully, it can be identified soon and hope the pilot survived.


Chappie

[jaybird]

Awesome video, but I got to say, I enjoyed your B-17 skydive one even more! Great videos. Channel subscribed.

[wendovertom]

I say raise her for the sole reason of getting rid of all the lionfish - pretty fish but they are vermin.

Tom P,

[k5083]

I was unaware of the lionfish issue but just read up on it. Now I want to eat as many as possible. Wish they were easier to find and cheaper.

August