The Galloping Ghost of the Java Coast: A Cursory Site Assessment of WWII Heavy Cruiser USS Houston

Summary

Between June 9-13, 2014, a joint Dive Exercise between the U.S. Navy and the Indonesian Navy was undertaken on the site believed to be the wreck of USS Houston (CA-30) as part of Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training Indonesia 2014. The 182m wreck, located in Banten Bay within the territorial waters of Indonesia, sank in combat during the Battle of Sunda Strait, resulting in one of the greatest losses of life associated with a single sinking event in U.S. Navy history. During the exercise, the wreck was documented and evaluated through the use of diving operations, a side-scan sonar, and a remotely operated vehicle in an effort to assess the vessel's state of preservation. This paper will present an overview of the joint effort, the methodology that was followed in surveying the site within a limited time-frame, and preliminary results of the assessment.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for Historical Archaeology 2015   •
• Fluidity and Connectedness in the Pacific: Maritime Cultural Landscapes and Seascapes

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Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 455