Istria · Croatia · Wreck
Vis
Croatia's first ship sunk on purpose for divers
Area photo: Tanya Dedyukhina · CC BY 3.0
The first ship deliberately sunk for divers in Croatia: a 58-metre command vessel of the Yugoslav Navy, built in 1956 at the Uljanik yard in Pula and now sitting upright about 250 metres off the coast with her bow to the north. Her upper decks come up to within 20 metres, the hull rests at 32, and the maximum depth on the site is given as 34.
Also known as Admiral Ship Vis.
Where it is and how deep
44.7841° N, 13.8924° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
She lies upright with her bow pointing north, some 250 metres off the coast south of Polje Bay and close to the small bay of Plovanija. The descent puts you on the superstructure first, because the upper decks come up to within 20 metres of the surface, and that shallow top is what makes the wreck workable for divers who are not qualified beyond recreational limits.
Below that it turns into a deep dive. The hull is steel and the decks are aluminium; she is 58 metres long, 8.7 wide and 662 tons, so a lap of the main deck with a look at the bow and the stern fills a dive at 32 metres without any need to hurry along her. Bottom time down there is short, so pick the route on the boat and keep the ascent conservative.
The wreck
- Vessel
- Vis
- Type
- Ex-Yugoslav Navy command ship
- Length
- 58 m (190 ft)
- Built
- 1956
- Cause
- Deliberately scuttled to create Croatia's first purpose-sunk dive wreck
- Lies
- Upright with bow to the north, about 250 m off the coast, on the bottom at 32 m
Vis was built in 1956 at the Uljanik shipyard in Pula, part of Tito's fleet and designed to work as a command ship of the Yugoslav Navy. She was later sunk on purpose to make a dive site, the first vessel in Croatia to go down for that reason, and now lies a few hundred metres off the coast south of Polje Bay, close to the small bay of Plovanija.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Off-season | Off-season | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Off-season |
Season follows Istria: The main season runs 1 May to 31 October; the sea passes 20°C from mid-June to September, and a few sites are diveable only outside the high season.
Know before you go
- The deck level sits at 32 m with 34 m quoted as the maximum, so the deep half of this wreck is a decompression risk on a recreational plan. Set the depth you intend to work before you drop.
Questions divers ask
Can beginners dive the Vis wreck?+
Her upper decks are reachable by divers working to 20 metres, so the shallow part of the wreck sits inside recreational limits. The deck level at 32 metres and the 34 metre maximum are a deep dive and need the training to match.
Why is the Vis wreck significant?+
It is the first ship in Croatia to be sunk deliberately as a dive site. She was built in 1956 at the Uljanik shipyard in Pula as a command ship for the Yugoslav Navy, and now lies upright a few hundred metres off the same coast.
Sources
- Vis, wreck — Scubago
- Admiral Ship Vis — Diving Pula
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