New Ireland & Kavieng · Papua New Guinea · Wreck
Stubborn Hellion B-25
A Second World War bomber that ditched after a raid on Kavieng
Area photo: Micha Baum · CC BY-SA 4.0
Stubborn Hellion is a B-25 medium bomber that crash-landed in the sea after being badly damaged on a bombing raid over Kavieng, a Japanese base in the Second World War. The broken plane now lies in shallow water on a silty bottom some 16 km (10 miles) from town, an aircraft wreck within easy recreational depth.
Also known as Stubborn Hellion, B25 Mitchell Bomber.
Where it is and how deep
No published position for this site — the map shows New Ireland & Kavieng and its other sites; operators know the mooring.
The dive
The damaged bomber sits in 12 m of water on a silty bottom, so the whole wreck lies within a shallow, easy profile. The turret guns and the flexible-mounted tail gun are still in place on the plane, which came down in the water after the bombing raid on Kavieng.
The wreck
- Vessel
- Stubborn Hellion
- Type
- B-25 medium bomber
- Cause
- Crash-landed in the sea, badly damaged after bombing Kavieng
- Lies
- Damaged, on a silty bottom in 12 m of water
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Fair | Fair |
Season follows New Ireland & Kavieng: The New Hanover trips run from May to October; rain from late December to March and North Pacific swell from November to April mark the rest of the year.
Sources
- Wrecks – Scuba Ventures Kavieng — Scuba Ventures Kavieng
More dive sites in New Ireland & Kavieng
Channel & pass
Eagle rays and grey reef sharks crowding the channel as the tide floods in
Wall
A coral slope that suddenly turns into a sheer drop out of sight
Wreck
A wartime Japanese floatplane ringed by schooling batfish and snapper
Pinnacle
An isolated ocean ridge whose point pulls in barracuda and jacks
Coral garden
Frogfish, seahorses and the odd mimic octopus on the sandy slope west of the island
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