News
B-29 plane crash dive site in Nevada re-opens to public
A rare piece of American history sitting at the bottom of Lake Mead in Boulder City, Nevada, will again be open to scuba divers.
A B-29 Superfortress World War II plane crash landed in Lake Mead in 1948 and wasn’t found again until 2002.
Public access to the crash site has been restricted for the past six years, but is now open again for a brief period.
Joel Silverstein and his dive crew have been given a special permit to give guided tours to this rare piece of American history.
“The B-29’s were very important during World War II,” said Silverstein. “They carried all the different bombs and a lot of people flew in them and they were the most popular and most used plane in World War II.”
The dive site is about a 30 minute boat ride from Echo Bay near Overton, Nevada. The war plane has sat there for nearly 70 years and Silverstein says viewing the plane is like a trip back in time.
“You want to think of the B-29 Overton site like a museum. And just like when you go into a museum, you go in with a guide. We take you down the anchor line across a mooring to a gateway to get to it,” he said.
The wreckage has been closed off to the public since 2009. Damage from visitors and the economic downturn forced the National Park Service to rethink access to the site.
“We did see some minor damage happen to the plane – people kicking it, stepping on things, touching certain areas,” said Silverstein.
The historically low water level of Lake Mead has let sunlight filter down to the bottom, illuminating the wreckage so divers can get a better look.
“The other advantage of the site being in shallower water is that more divers can actually access it,” said Silverstein. “Prior to it being at 118 feet, you had to have very heavy technical diving skills to dive it.”
Silverstein says there is noticeable damage to the bomber since the last time he’s been there.
An invasive species of quagga mussels cover the plane’s wings like a furry coat. The tail section and some internal components have also been damaged by the mussels.
“What’s happened with the quagga mussels is, they’ve attached themselves to the material,” said Silverstein. “They’ve added weight to some of that material and it’s torn off, so sections of the tail that were there before are no longer there.”
The B-29 was on a classified mission carrying a crew of five in July 1948. The plane was ditched into Lake Mead, skimming across the water, ripping off all but one engine. The five men floated for six hours until they were rescued.
Confusion about where the plane sunk caused the plane wreckage to go missing for more than 50 years until it was found in 2002 with the use of sonar.
The B-29 Superfortress crash site is only open for a limited time. For the next two years, they’ll run about 100 dives a year – a limited number to prevent damage to the crash site itself.
For more information visit Joel’s website.
Source: www.8newsnow.com
Photo: Mel Clark
News
Dive Worldwide Announces Bite-Back as its Charity of the Year
Over the next 12 months, specialist scuba holiday company Dive Worldwide will be supporting Bite-Back Shark & Marine Conservation with donations collected from client bookings to any one of its stunning dive destinations around the world. The independently-owned operator expects to raise £3000 for the UK charity.
Manager at Dive Worldwide, Phil North, said: “We’re especially excited to work with Bite-Back and support its intelligent, creative and results-driven campaigns to end the UK trade in shark products and prompt a change in attitudes to the ocean’s most maligned inhabitant.”
Bite-Back is running campaigns to hold the media to account on the way it reports shark news along with a brand new nationwide education programme. Last year the charity was credited for spearheading a UK ban on the import and export of shark fins.
Campaign director at Bite-Back, Graham Buckingham, said: “We’re enormously grateful to Dive Worldwide for choosing to support Bite-Back. The company’s commitment to conservation helps set it apart from other tour operators and we’re certain its clients admire and respect that policy. For us, the affiliation is huge and helps us look to the future with confidence we can deliver against key conservation programmes.”
To launch the fundraising initiative, Phil North presented Graham Buckingham with a cheque for £1,000.
Visit Dive Worldwide to discover its diverse range of international scuba adventures and visit Bite-Back to learn more about the charity’s campaigns.
MORE INFORMATION
Call Graham Buckingham on 07810 454 266 or email graham@bite-back.com
Gear News
Scubapro Free Octopus Promotion 2024
Free Octopus with every purchase of a SCUBAPRO regulator system
Just in time for the spring season, divers can save money with the FREE OCTOPUS SPRING PROMOTION! Until July 31st SCUBAPRO offers an Octopus for free
with every purchase of a regulator system!
Get a free S270 OCTOPUS with purchase of these combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with A700
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with S620Ti
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with D420
MK25 EVO Din mit S620Ti-X
Get a free R105 OCTOPUS with purchase of the following combinations:
MK25 EVO or MK19 EVO with G260
MK25 EVO or MK17 EVO with S600
SCUBAPRO offers a 30-year first owner warranty on all regulators, with a revision period of two years or 100 dives. All SCUBAPRO regulators are of course certified according to the new European test standard EN250-2014.
Available at participating SCUBAPRO dealers. Promotion may not be available in all regions. Find an authorized SCUBAPRO Dealer at scubapro.com.
More information available on www.scubapro.com.
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