Hellcat? Hell, yeah! (an adventure to the F6F Hellcat off Kihei, Maui)

[KrisB]

Kris, that sounds like a great dive, and something we'll have to give a try when we're next there. I'd specifically like to thank you for sharing the coordinates.

You're welcome. I really don't believe in keeping sites like this secret -- while the directions that most people have given were accurate enough to get us there, they were also vague enough for us to question them. Especially because nobody we talked to had *actually* been there.

Is this a new one, or the one that has been documented already on many of the Maui websites? Either way, nice pictures.

This is *not* new. But I wouldn't say it's "documented" -- it is mentioned on many of the Maui sites... so far the only photos I've seen are some posted here three+ years ago (and no longer show up) by Gilligan and the one that Ed Robinson uses on his site (and is used on almost all other sites that mention it alongside a photo).

Dan, a fellow we met that morning who came diving with us, enjoys identifying aircraft in competitions and was looking to find anything he could that would identify this specific airplane -- no luck. So, unfortunately, we can't provide any further details on how it got there... but since these 16 photos are posted publicly, it seems we've increased the record by at least 5 times.

Around Maui, this wreck really seemed to have an air of folklore: lots of people said it was there, but none had gone to visit it. Everybody knew how to get there... so that wasn't it. But for some reason, nobody wanted to get in the water and find it again.

 

[buknbull]

Kris, Amazing find.. I may try to use your notes and find it when I get out there in June... I'm sure it's not moving any time soon...

 

[JGibbs]

Was it worth swimming through the zone of sewage that is the North Kihei shoreline?

 

[KrisB]

Was it worth swimming through the zone of sewage that is the North Kihei shoreline?

Do you seriously believe that there is raw sewage being pumped into the ocean on a regular basis?

Honestly... the algae growth was not much worse than that in Wailea. The only difference is that the beaches don't all get cleaned up by machine as often.

By the way... the most recent event of raw sewage entering the ocean was at Cove Park ( Sewage spill closes Cove Park - News, Sports, Visitor's Information - The Maui News ) -- it was reopened after extensive testing. And I don't see anyone having a problem getting in the water there!

If you truly believe and trust everything in the little "Blue Bible" called Maui Revealed, you're in for some surprises!

 

[ScubaAndDreams]

You're not going to find anything on it to identify it unless the cockpit instrumentation panel is still present. I doubt it is....some engines have stamps identifying mfgs etc as well from that era, but good luck finding the stamp inside the engine underwater And I am sure you know that it is technically still Navy Property and doing anything but taking pictures can get you in big trouble...so removing anything for identification is pretty much a no-no.

Now, it's not hard to to 15 minutes of research and boiling down F6F hellcats that have crashed in/around Maui...there can't be that many of them....

Here are a few possibilities from 5 minutes of going through my info:

25 June 1943, VF-3 F6F-3 4895 MAUI HA

3 March 1944 F6F-3 40362 VF-19 MAUI ENS S.E. SIMONCIK S

1944 F6F-3 66051 VF-15 MAUI HAWAII

Get the accident reports, compare them to the location and you'll probably know which one it is (You can wait 3 months to get them for free or buy them for like 5 bucks from some people that collect them).

 

[KrisB]

You're not going to find anything on it to identify it unless the cockpit instrumentation panel is still present. I doubt it is....some engines have stamps identifying mfgs etc as well from that era, but good luck finding the stamp inside the engine underwater And I am sure you know that it is technically still Navy Property and doing anything but taking pictures can get you in big trouble...so removing anything for identification is pretty much a no-no.

Now, it's not hard to to 15 minutes of research and boiling down F6F hellcats that have crashed in/around Maui...there can't be that many of them....

Here are a few possibilities from 5 minutes of going through my info:

25 June 1943, VF-3 F6F-3 4895 MAUI HA

3 March 1944 F6F-3 40362 VF-19 MAUI ENS S.E. SIMONCIK S

1944 F6F-3 66051 VF-15 MAUI HAWAII

Get the accident reports, compare them to the location and you'll probably know which one it is.

Thanks, Sherman... are you using some sort of public records search for that, or is it a military-specific system? Is there any further information available publicly as to the history of that crash?

Dan had an idea that perhaps it was a drone -- apparently some F6F-5's were turned into radio-controlled drones and painted red (we'll inspect the exterior of it more thoroughly for this red paint on the next trip out)... was the Kahoolawe range ever used for target practice on aerial targets?

 

[buknbull]

Kris, For what it's worth.. While I was doing some looking around and surfing for info, I noticed that there are a few pics of this plane on Ed Robinson's website from '97. Ed Robinson's Diving Adventures - F4F Hellcat Fighter Maui Wreck Dive

could be a student wreck perhaps? keep us updated..

 

[KrisB]

Kris, For what it's worth.. While I was doing some looking around and surfing for info, I noticed that there are a few pics of this plane on Ed Robinson's website from '97. Ed Robinson's Diving Adventures - F4F Hellcat Fighter Maui Wreck Dive

could be a student wreck perhaps? keep us updated..

Thanks!

yes -- Ed Robinson's site was the only one that had any original photos that we could find of this wreck before our adventure. His photo is copied and displayed elsewhere as well.

 

[ScubaAndDreams]

Ok is it an F4F or an F6F?

 

[KrisB]

Ok is it an F4F or an F6F?

I've been assured by several that it is indeed an F6F Hellcat. *NOT* an F4F Wildcat.