Dive site
HMS Hermes
Indian Ocean, off Batticaloa, Sri Lanka
- Typical depth
- 53 m
- Type
- Wreck
- Level
- Technical
Notes
World's first purpose-built aircraft carrier, sunk by Japanese carrier aircraft on 9 Apr 1942 during the Indian Ocean raid. 182 m on her port side at ~53 m; war grave.
Marine life
- Rays
- eagle ray
- Other
- the world's first purpose-built aircraft carrier — war grave to over 300 lives
- Sharks
- occasional whitetip reef shark
- Pelagics
- barracuda, jacks, tuna
- Reef fish
- snapper, sweetlips, batfish, fusiliers
Wreck
- Vessel
- HMS Hermes
- Class
- Hermes-class aircraft carrier — the first ship designed and built as a carrier
- Origin
- United Kingdom (Royal Navy)
- Sunk
- 1942 — sunk by Japanese carrier dive bombers during the Indian Ocean raid, 9 Apr 1942
- Length
- 182 m
- Penetration
- Possible — with training
Site features
- Wreck
- Deep Wreck
- Trimix
- War Grave
- Historic
- Aircraft Carrier
- Intact Superstructure
- Exposed Site
When to dive
- Best
- Mar–Sep
- Avoid
- Oct–Jan
Sri Lanka's east coast is divable from March through September; the northeast monsoon then shuts Batticaloa down. The wreck sits ~10 nautical miles offshore — a long boat ride from Trincomalee or Batticaloa, weather-dependent.
Conditions & access
- Visibility
- 15–30 m
- Water temp
- 27–30 °C
- Current
- Moderate
- Access
- Open access
- Min cert
- Trimix or CCR. Wreck lies on her port side at 45–53 m; bottom times of 20+ minutes require staged decompression. War grave — touch nothing, take nothing.
Location
7.7167° N, 82.0500° E
Dive clubs that visit this site
3 operators list this site on their website
- DiveSriLanka.comBatticaloa, Sri Lanka · Dive centre[source]
- Sri Lanka Diving ToursNegombo / Trincomalee / Batticaloa, Sri Lanka · Dive centre[source]
- Tech AsiaPuerto Galera (operates Sri Lanka tours), Philippines · Dive centre[source]
Sources
Curated from 1 source
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