In early 1944, American sea power was beginning to challenge Japan’s Pacific frontier territories, and the islands of the Pacific became a key strategic target. With the elimination of the Japanese airforce and the establishment of air superiority by the US, the Japanese fleet in the islands was vulnerable to attack. The result was Operation ‘Desecrate One,’ a series of airstrikes on the Japanese fleet, which resulted in the sinking of more than 60 Japanese ships in Palau. Subsequent operations, ‘Snapshot’ and ‘Stalemate II,’ further decimated the fleet, leading up to the amphibious landings in Peleliu in September 1944.

After the war, the Japanese government was given permission to conduct salvage operations to raise money to pay war claims, and at least 27 of the wrecks were partially or completely salvaged. The remaining wrecks became encrusted with hard and soft corals, acting as artificial reefs and supporting a profusion of marine life in Palau’s rich marine environment.

With the growth of recreational scuba diving in Palau in the 1970s, the potential of the wrecks became more apparent, and local dive company Fish ‘n’ Fins, with the help of local brothers Tewid and Tiakl Boisek, who had worked with the salvage teams, located several more during the 1980s and 90s.