The drawing shown here is of the Akitsushima sunk in 1944, by a group of American carrier based aircraft. The Akitsushima is a Japanese Seplane Tender in the group of seven large ships that lie in the waters near Coron in the Calamianes Islands group (North Palawan). The other ships are freighters and a tanker.

The Akitsushima is a very big warship (118 m long) that lies on her port side. Max depth: 35 or 36 meters, average depth about 26 to 28 meters. The ship was hit near the stern where the flying boat rested on the metal tracks and sank immediately. The ship was almost torn into two pieces. The flying boat disappeared. Only half of the metal on the starboard side and half of the metal on the bottom of the ship kept the stern from separating from the rest of the ship. The internal damage is impressive. The crane used for lifting the seaplane out of the water is intact. The crane is lying on the sandy bottom and attracts schools of giant batfish and barracudas. One mounting of a 3-barreled antiaircraft gun is still present at the front of the flying boat tracks. This is a fascinating dive where you can see giant groupers, schools of barracuda hiding under the bow, and yellow fin tuna. Wreck divers can make an impressive penetration into the engine room to see the four engines. The gears and machinery for operating the crane are the main objects of interest for a penetration into the stern.

The Philippines has a ton of dive sites, but I mainly go to Subic Bay and Coron to dive the wrecks. I could describe the various dive sites, but you can learn much more about the diving and surrounding area by going to the web sites below. I have been to Coron about five times and I really enjoy the diving and the rural nature of the town of Coron. My last trip in October 2007, I did a four day live-aboard with a friend of mine on his sail boat. You can see photos of diving at Subic and Coron in the photo section of my profile. I can also send you a PowerPoint slide show about the wrecks at Coron.

Web sites for general information on Coron
http://www.diveright-coron.com/
http://www.philippinediving.com/

For dive shops or resorts try
http://www.divecal.com/
http://www.seadiveresort.com/home.html
http://www.sangat.com.ph/start_e.htm

For Subic Bay, try
http://www.subicdive.com/
http://www.divebluerock.com/
http://www.mangossubic.com/

Let me know if you need more info