Stoney Cove · United Kingdom · Artificial reef · Freshwater
Viscount Aircraft Cockpit
An airliner cockpit on the 7 m shelf, placed around 1967
Area photo: Mat Fascione · CC BY-SA 2.0
The cockpit of a Vickers Viscount airliner was placed in Stoney Cove around 1967 during a joint rescue-services training exercise, and it now rests at the top of the roadway that leads down from the entry-level shelf into deeper water. At about 7 metres it is one of the shallowest wrecks on the site and the standard first stop for anyone starting to explore wrecks here.
Where it is and how deep
No published position for this site — the map shows Stoney Cove and its other sites; operators know the mooring.
The dive
The cockpit was placed in Stoney Cove around 1967 as part of a joint rescue-services training exercise, and it now rests on top of the roadway that leads down from the 7-metre entry-level shelf towards Stoney Cove's deeper terraces. Because it sits right at that transition, it works as a marker as much as an attraction: reach the cockpit and the dive can either stay shallow along the shelf or continue down the slope towards the 22-metre terrace.
Pike and perch are regularly seen keeping station on what is left of the flight deck, and the shallow depth means bright, even light for most of the year, which makes the cockpit an easy subject to photograph without a strobe. It is a standard stop on entry-level courses run from the Dive School, so expect to share the shelf with trainee divers working through skills under instruction.
Marine life and season
- Freshwater fish
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Good | Fair | Good | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime |
Season follows Stoney Cove: Open 362 days a year. Clearest from late October through winter, coldest in February-March, and a June-August algal bloom cuts visibility even at the warmest surface temperatures.
Know before you go
- The entry-level shelf is shared with trainee divers working through skills close to the surface; keep a clear head above you and watch for other groups before ascending.
- The wreck lies right where the shallow shelf tips into the slope down to the 22-metre terrace, so keep track of depth if visibility drops and you drift past the edge.
Questions divers ask
How deep is the Viscount cockpit?+
About 7 metres. It sits on top of the roadway at the edge of Stoney Cove's entry-level shelf, exactly where that shallow area gives way to the slope down into deeper water.
When was the Viscount cockpit sunk?+
It went in around 1967 as part of a joint rescue-services training exercise, decades before most of Stoney Cove's other named wrecks, which mostly arrived from the late 1990s onwards.
Sources
- The Viscount Aircraft Cockpit — Dive & Swim Stoney Cove
- Under Water Map — Dive & Swim Stoney Cove
- The Diver's Guide to Stoney Cove — Stoney Cove
In The Logbook
- Freshwater diving: lakes, springs and quarriesFreshwater · 15 min read
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