Archaeological Investigation of a PB2Y-5R Coronado in Kwajalein Lagoon

Summary

This is an abstract from the session entitled "East Carolina University Partnerships and Innovation with Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency" , at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

In February 1945 a Consolidated PB2Y-5R Coronado crashed into Kwajalein Lagoon while attempting to land after a regularly scheduled flight from Honolulu. The conditions of the wrecking event resulted in the forward portion of the aircraft being torn off and sinking in the seadrome near Ebeye Island, while the rest of it remained afloat. The largely intact remains of the seaplane’s bow and some smaller pieces of wreckage were relocated by a local avocational group in 2010 and its position was reported to DPAA for further investigation. In 2019 ECU researchers and associates conducted a detailed archaeological investigation of the wreckage. This paper discusses the development of the Consolidated Coronado aircraft and its variants, provides information about the aircraft and its loss, presents the results of the archaeological survey, and offers some insight into this unique archaeological site.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• East Carolina University Partnerships and Innovation with Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2020

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 536