Australia finds wreck of first Allied vessel to sink in WWI

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Australia has discovered the wreck of its first submarine off the coast of Duke of York Island in Papua New Guinea, authorities said on Thursday, resolving one of the country's oldest naval mysteries after 103 years.

The 800-tonne submarine, AE1, was the first Allied vessel to sink during World War One and the first ship lost by the Royal Australian Navy, while patrolling for German warships in 1914, in circumstances that have never been established.

The destiny of AE1 had been one of the most enduring puzzles for the marine, when the vessel disappeared without a distress call off the coast during the war. According to naval historians, ships could find "no trace" of AE1, not even "the tell-tale shimmer of escaping oil on the water."

The AE1 submarine. /Reuters Photo

The Australian Navy and several private bodies found the final resting place of the vessel's 35 crew on their 13th attempt, Defense Minister Marise Payne told media.

Payne and navy officials said the cause of the submarine's loss would now be searched. Retired rear admiral Peter Briggs, who worked on the study, said he believed the cause was most likely "a diving accident."

"The submarine appears to have struck the bottom with sufficient force to dislodge the fin from its footing, forcing it to hinge forward on its leading edge, impacting the casing," he said.

The AE1 submarine. /Reuters Photo

The submarine's vanishing "was a tragedy for our then fledgling nation," Payne said, adding that a small commemorative service was held aboard the survey ship that found the wreck and authorities were trying to contact the crew's descendants.

"It is my hope that what we have done in the last couple of days will now provide relief to the family and descendants of all of those members," said navy chief Vice Admiral Timmy Barrett, adding that the crew had come from Australia, Britain and New Zealand.

The authorities did not disclose the wreck's location, except to say it was found off the Duke of York Islands. The governments of Australia and Papua New Guinea said they planned to preserve the place as discussions with the Papua New Guinea government to establish a lasting commemoration of the site have been entered.

Source(s): Reuters