The mystery of World War II shipwrecks that have vanished

British heavy cruiser HMS Exeter that was sunk during World War II. It has now vanished from its watery grave

– The mystery of World War II shipwrecks that have vanished:

IT’S the bizarre mystery at the bottom of the Java Sea. The wrecks of military warships that have disappeared without a trace.

The warships sunk following one of the bloodiest naval battles of World War II.

During 1942’s Battle of the Java Sea, more than 2000 sailors perished as the Allies struggled to keep the Japanese Navy from marching across South East Asia.

By the time the fighting subsided, at least five allied ships, some with bodies still inside, lay stricken on the seabed.

In 2002, they were still largely intact at the bottom of the Java Sea.

Today, all five have vanished.

None of the ships could be considered small. The USS Perch was 91m long and weighed 1370 tonnes. The Dutch warship HNLMS De Ruyter was 171m long and when full weighed more than 6650 tonnes while Britain’s HMS Exeter was even heavier at a whopping 8520 tonnes.

“It’s astonishing,” Joss Parsons, a maritime services expert told news.com.au. “These are warships, not small 10 metre tinnies.”

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H/t reader kevin a.

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