Truk Lagoon Wrecks (The Deepest, Biggest, & Most Popular Wrecks)

What are the deepest, biggest and most popular Truk Lagoon Wrecks?

I have spent a bit of time compiling a list of the Truk Lagoon wrecks. If you’re planning a trip to Truk or Chuuk Lagoon, I’m hoping this article will help you do just that. However, please add a comment below, if it could be improved in any way.

Truk Lagoon wrecks or Chuuk Lagoon wrecks?

Truk Lagoon is the name these Pacific lagoons and islands were named in 1944 when they were in Japanese occupation. However, the name of Truk Lagoon was changed in 1990 to Chuuk Lagoon.

Scuba divers seem to use these two names synonymously. Whilst the correct name is Chuuk Lagoon, at the time these ship wrecks were sunk, which are now dived by scuba divers across the world, it was named Truk Lagoon.

For the purpose of this article, I am going to continue referring to Truk Lagoon as Chuuk Lagoon instead.

Chuuk Lagoon wrecks – A complete list in alphabetical order

Below is a table showing the majority of the Chuuk Lagoon wrecks for scuba diving. To scroll through the wrecks, click on the ‘Next’ button below and then to scroll back, click on the ‘Previous’button.

You can also search of a specific wreck too in the search box below.

Which are the deepest of the Truk Lagoon Wrecks?

Truk Lagoon diving depths range from a shallow 15 metres (50 feet), through to 67 metres (220 feet).

One of the deepest wreck of Truk Lagoon, or should I say Chuuk Lagoon is the San Fransisco Maru. But not the deepest. She lies in 64 metres (210 feet) of water, which means that only the most advanced divers can diver her.

One of the deepest wreck of Truk Lagoon, or should I say Chuuk Lagoon is the San Fransisco Maru. But not the deepest. She lies in 64 metres (210 feet) of water, which means that only the most advanced divers can diver her.

Even the shallowest part of the San Francisco Maru wreck is at 43 metres (140 feet). This means that you can’t dive for too long before going into decompression stop diving.

I include the San Francisco Maru first in the deepest Chuuk Lagoon wrecks, as she is considered to be one of the most exciting of the Chuuk Lagoon wrecks, with her many artifacts still remaining in her midst. This includes a battle tank, as featured in the above image of her.

The San Francisco Maru wreck was a passenger cargo ship measuring 117 metres (385 feet). She was 5,831 tons and operated in world trade operations in minerals such as coal, bauxite, and phosphate for transportation to the Japanese Empire.

Divers will get to see a bow gun, trucks, tanks, mines, shells, bombs, aircraft engines, ammunition, china and depth charges on stern.

The San Francisco Maru was 117 metres (385 feet) in length and weighed 5,831 tons. This passenger-Cargo ship was built in 1919 for Yamashita Kisen Kabushiki Kaisha.

The deepest Chuuk Lagoon wreck – Reiyo Maru No. 6

Reiyo Maru is the deepest of all Chuuk Lagoon wrecks you can scuba dive. She is sitting in 67 metres (220 feet) of water and even the shallowest part of her is at 53 metres (175 feet).

With the limit for recreational divers set at 40 metres, the Reiyo Maru wreck is off-limits for most scuba divers.

The Reiyo Maru wreck was a passenger cargo ship built in 1920. She was 121 metres (400 feet) long and weighed 5,446 tons.

Reiyo Maru was sunk by US aircraft on the first day of Operation Hailstone. She was sunk by American dive bombers which came from the USS Essex. These bombers scored two direct hits with 1,000 lb. bombs.

Which is the biggest Truk Lagoon wreck?

Depending on how you measure the biggest wreck of Truk Lagoon, depends on which is considered the biggest.

If we look at this in terms of weight, the largest of all the wrecks in Chuuk Lagoon you can dive is Heian Maru. Heian Maru is a converted submarine tender and weighed in at 11,614 tons.

This ghost fleet ship was be sunk by American Forces during Operation Hailstone and stood in at 155 metres (510 feet) in length.

Heian Maru is lying in 11-33 metres (35-110 feet) of water on her port side.

Inside the superstructure you’ll see shells (bombs), torpedoes, submarine periscopes, china plates, Sake bottles, medical kits, a bath tub, a radio room and many other artifacts.

Her name can be clearly seen on the side of her hull, as show in the above picture of her. You can also see her huge propellers too.

The longest Truk Lagoon wreck

The next measure to judge the biggest wreck in Chuuk Lagoon is using length as a measure. The longest ship in this sunken ghost fleet is the Aikoku Maru wreck.

The Aikoku Maru, which is a converted passenger freighter, is sitting upright with her fore ship destroyed.

It has AA guns and a huge stern gun and personal artifacts. This wreck lies at a depth of 24-64 metres (8-210 feet).

The Aikoku Maru has a length of 155 metres (527 feet) and weighed in a 10,437 tons.

The shallowest wreck of Chuuk Lagoon

Hino Maru No. 2 is in the shallowest of waters in Chuuk Lagoon, with the shallowest part at just 2 metres (6 feet).

The deepest part of Hino Maru No. 2 is at 18 metres (60 feet) making her one of 19 wrecks that can be dived by recreational divers limited to 40 metres.

The Hino Maru No. 2 is known as the ‘Gun High’ wreck. Although the bow is only 6 feet from the surface, the deck gun is just 3 feet below the surface.

There are plenty of photographic opportunities on this shallow wreck of Chuuk Lagoon, which is also good for snorkeling too.

How deep are the wrecks in Truk Lagoon?

As already noted above the Truk Lagoon diving depths range from 15 metres (50 feet) through to 67 metres (220 feet) deep.

Whilst on the one hand the shallower dive can be dived by any certified scuba diver, on the other hand the deepest dive on the Reiyo Maru can only be dived by certified technical divers.

You’ll be able to see the various depths of the wrecks in Truk Lagoon, but I thought it would be useful to grade the wrecks in terms of depths.

I’ve used the deepest part of the wreck for this purpose, as you don’t tend to dive a wreck for its shallowest part.

The following categories of the wrecks in Truk Lagoon are using the max depths for each of the wrecks.

However, you’ll see that some of the wrecks are only just over the category limit and could easily be dived using a shallower dive profile. This is so long as you limit your depth to your planned depth rather than the deepest part of the wreck you dive.

Always remember: Plan your dive and dive the plan!

This further article on how deep are the dives in Truk Lagoon, has an easy to follow table, which gives a better idea of which wrecks you might be able to dive on each dive depth profile.

Truk Lagoon diving depths – up to 20 metres (66 feet)

There are just two wrecks that fall into this category, if you exclude the plane wrecks sitting in Truk Lagoon.

These are Susuki Patrol Boat No. 34 (15 metres or 50 feet) and Hino Maru No. 2 (18 metres or 60 feet).

Truk Lagoon diving depths – up to 30 metres (100 feet)

In addition to the above two wrecks that are up to 20 metres (66 feet) deep (which of course are up to 30 metres (100 feet) deep too), there are a further three wrecks, making a total of five wrecks up to 30 metres (100 feet) deep in Truk Lagoon.

These include the Hoyo Maru, Futagami Tugboat and the Sankisan Maru.

For example, Sankisan Maru has several trucks lashed to the deck. There are many artifacts around her and most of her forward deck is covered in coral. Additionally, there’s an abundance of sea life and there’s excellent visibility on this wreck dive.

But the wreck which is featured in the above underwater photo is the
Hoyo Maru wreck.

The Hoyo Maru wreck was a tanker. At the time she was sunk, she was undergoing repairs due to being torpedoed in November 1943. She finally came to rest on the seabed on 17 February 1944.

As she sank, she capsized and now she lies upside down with a broken back. The engine room is damaged, but still accessible by scuba divers and the main hull is covered in hard corals.

The Hoyo Maru wreck is sitting at a depth of 3-30 metres (9-100 feet). She is 145 metres (475 feet) in length and weighed 8,691 tons.

She was built in 1936 originally as a commercial oiler, but was requisitioned by the Japanese Navy in 1941.

Truk Lagoon diving depths – up to 40 metres (131 feet)

There are a total of 19 wrecks which are sitting in a depth of 40 metres or less in Chuuk Lagoon. That’s a lot of wrecks to dive on a scuba diving holiday, which means you don’t have to go extra deep to enjoy the Chuuk Lagoon wrecks.

The wrecks which are in addition to the wrecks already listed in the 20 and 30 metre depth ranges above include Yamagiri Maru, Rio De Janeiro, Heian Maru, Amigisan Maru, Yubai Maru, Gosei Maru and Kiyozumi Maru.

The wreck Rio de Janeiro Maru, as featured in the above image, was a 140 metre (461 feet) long passenger liner. She was sunk on 17 February 1944 by US aircraft during Operation Hailstone.

She is lying on her starboard side in 15-33 metres (50-110 feet) of water. There’s abundant see life and great visibility on this great diving wreck.

Points of interest for scuba divers include a huge stern gun, several large gun turrets and gun barrels in the holds. There are also many beer bottles and there’s good access to the wreck with an interesting engine room.

Truk lagoon diving depths – over 40 metres

The rest of the Truk Lagoon wrecks lie in waters in excess of 40 metres, starting with the I-169, as show in the above image.

The I-169 Submarine along with the Momokawa Maru are only just over the recreational diver depth of 40 metres and sit in 43 metres (140 feet) of water.

So in theory if you’re a recreational diver and would like to dive another two wrecks of Truk Lagoon, you probably can. So long as you stay off the bottom by the additional three metres (9 feet), you’ll be fine.

One other wreck you could include in your Truk Lagoon dive plan or itinerary, is the Taiho Maru, which sits in 44 metres of water.

Truk Lagoon diving depths – up to 50 metres (164 feet)

If you are a dive leader with BSAC, you are permitted to dive up to 50 metres (164 feet).

That means you are able to dive on a further eight wrecks in addition to the wrecks sitting in 40 metres of water. These include the ones discussed above sitting in 43-44 metres (140-145 feet) of water too.

The additional five wrecks include the Matsutani Maru or Shotan Maru, Nippo Maru, Seiko Maru, Ojima and the Hoki Maru wrecks.

Truk Lagoon diving depths – over 60 metres (197 feet)

The rest of the wrecks in Chuuk Lagoon are in excess of 60 metres and will require advanced and very deep diver experience and training.

For these depths of dive you will need to be introduced to mixed gas type diving and you may be better off using a rebreather. Although having said that, many technical divers still dive to these extreme depths using compress air tanks.

If you are a very keen wreck diver and love to go deep, and you have the relevant certifications and experience, then you will probably want to dive on the San Fransisco Maru. The San Fransisco Maru is considered to be one of the most exciting wrecks of Chuuk Lagoon.

The most popular wrecks of Truk Lagoon

The most popular wreck of Truk Lagoon would include Fujikawa Maru wreck., Rio de Janeiro Maru, Heian Maru Wreck, Aikoku Maru Wreck (see above), Nippo Maru Wreck, San Francisco Maru Wreck (see above) and the Shinkoku Maru Wreck.

Why the Fujikawa Maru is one of the most popular Truk Lagoon wrecks

Fujikawa Maru is popular because of the iconic workshop compressor which looks like R2D2, as per the image above image.

The Rio de Janeiro Maru wreck is popular because of its huge stern gun, it has several large gun turrets and gun barrels in the holds.

There are also many beer bottles and there’s good access to the wreck with an interesting engine room.

The Heian Maru Wreck is made popular by divers because there are many relics and artifacts and the interior is easy to penetrate for divers. Inside the superstructure you’ll see shells (bombs), torpedoes, submarine periscopes, china plates, Sake bottles, medical kits, a bath tub, a radio room and many other artifacts.

But also her huge propeller is still intact, as the the image above.

More Reading: Recovery of the Junkers Jumo 211 (recovery of underwater artifacts)

Why the Nippo Maru is one of the most popular wrecks

On-board the Nippo Maru she had coastal defense guns, field artillery, trucks, a battle tank (see above image), machine guns, shells, mines. Nippo Maru has a particularly photogenic bridge.

These are what makes her one of the most popular Truk Lagoon wrecks to scuba dive.

To see the location of the Truk Lagoon wrecks on a map, please follow this link to: Truk Lagoon wreck map.

I hope you enjoyed this article about Truk Lagoon wrecks

I’d love to hear from you. Tell us about your adventures of diving and snorkeling, in the comments below. Please also share your photos. Either from your underwater cameras or videos from your waterproof Gopro’s!

If this article hasn’t answered all of your questions. If you have more questions either about snorkeling or scuba diving (or specifically about Truk Lagoon wrecks), please comment below with your questions.

There will also be many more articles about scuba diving (and snorkeling) for you to read and learn about these fabulous sports.

Have fun and be safe!