Wednesday, January 13th, Brad Varney, the owner of B&B Scuba, discovered a military wreck in Maui waters. He identified it as a Douglas SBD Dauntless. This is, simply put, a very cool and rare find that must have be incredible to see at the bottom of the ocean. If only I knew exactly where it was… I would be diving down there tomorrow, scuba license or no…
For everyone who doesn’t watch the History Channel for kicks: The SBD Dauntless was used to fight the Japanese Imperial Navy in 1942, is 10.9 meters long, and seats 2.
The identity of this plane is still not confirmed, however, Varney professes a thorough knowledge of military history, and others have tentively confirmed his assesment.
He explained to Ilima Loomis, Maui News Staff Writer, that “Part of me wants to keep it a secret, but on the other hand, when this gets out, I don’t want to see it desecrated,” (Read Ilima Loomis’s article HERE, the scuba diving picture is also by the Maui News)
I don’t see “desecration” as a likely possibility. After all, to find this relic,Varney dived to its remote location that has remained hidden during 70 years. It’s extremely unlikely that this location will be “desecrated” by graffiti artists, BB gun teams, and teenage parties, like Old Maui High or the military bunkers in Kihei. I personally don’t know too many modern pirates or “I passionately hate WWII aircraft relics and must destroy them” fanatics either.
I suppose the most likely scenario is that someone would decide a plane wing would look cool above their dining room table and try to steal it, but once again, dredging heavy war machinery out of the depths of the ocean is no simple task. Varney’s hidden treasure should be safe for now, and hopefully it will soon be possible for everyone else to turn off the History Channel and see the real thing.
Edited Jan. 21 to correct the second spelling Ms. Loomis’s name
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