Wreck of top-secret submarine that disappeared 80 years ago discovered

After about 20 years of searching, Greek divers found the wreck of HMS Triumph, a top-secret submarine of the British Royal Navy during World War II.

Part of the wreck of the submarine HMS Triumph. Photo: K. Thoctarides/PlanetBlue.gr — Part of the wreck of the submarine HMS Triumph. Photo: *K. Thoctarides/PlanetBlue.gr*

The submarine HMS Triumph mysteriously disappeared while operating off the coast of Greece in 1942. More than 80 years after the disappearance, Greek diver Kostas Thoctarides announced that he and his colleagues had located the sunken ship in the Aegean Sea, Interesting Engineering reported on June 14.

The HMS Triumph “rests” dozens of kilometers from Cape Sounion at a depth of about 203 meters, but the exact location is not disclosed. According to Thoctarides’ Facebook post, the wreck of the HMS Triumph is in relatively good condition, with the hatches closed and the periscope retracted, suggesting the ship was in a deep dive before it ran into trouble.

The divers found some clues as to why HMS Triumph sank. The forward section was badly damaged and there were signs of an explosion. It is unclear whether this was caused by an internal or external cause, but it was serious enough to send the ship and its crew to the bottom. The divers are liaising with naval and maritime experts to investigate what happened.

The 64-man crew are believed to have died in the sinking. "I assume all 64 people were in the submarine, because they were diving deep and all the hatches were closed," said Rena Giatropoulou Thoctarides, a member of the team searching for the wreck.

Thoctarides and his colleagues have found four submarine wrecks, including HMS Perseus in 1997, but finding HMS Triumph has been extremely difficult. They have been searching for HMS Triumph for more than 20 years. "Most of the time, the weather was bad and the undercurrents were very strong," said Rena.

One of the keys to success was the use of an underwater remotely operated vehicle (ROV). “With a depth of 203 meters and such strong undercurrents, it was impossible for divers to work,” Rena said.

HMS Triumph was first launched in 1938 and completed more than 20 secret missions during her career, including anti-shipping operations in the Mediterranean. However, she is best known for her role in special operations during World War II.

HMS Triumph's final mission was on 9 January 1942, to rescue escaped prisoners of war from Antiparos, but it was not completed. According to Thoctarides' report, HMS Triumph had carried out several other ship-destroying operations en route. This may have been the ship's last action in the war before her demise. This is supported by the discovery of a number of torpedoes in the vicinity.

It is possible that a malfunctioning torpedo caused the HMS Triumph to sink, but experts will need to find out more to be sure. The divers even observed one of the ship's torpedoes sticking out of its tube halfway. Another possibility is that the ship was hit by a mine.

Thu Thao (According to Interesting Engineering )

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