Asian Diver and Scuba Diver No. 4/2017 Volume 148 | Page 3

1,000 WORDS
EXCITEMENT BUILDS as I recognise the familiar shape emerging
beneath me. The distinct outline is of the A6M Zero, the legendary World
War II Japanese fighter that I once built models of as a child. Hovering
above the 17-metre-deep seabed, I stare in an awe-inspired trance at
this incredible warbird. Both revered and feared by the men who flew
against it, this aircraft was the most capable carrier-based fighter the
world had ever seen during the outbreak of war. In the hands of a good
pilot, of which there were many in the Japanese Navy, this renowned
dogfighter was a tough match for any opponent it encountered. “Never
try to turn with a Zero” became the mantra of the Allied pilots as this
fast, light and manoeuvrable enemy forced them to change their tactics
to survive in air battle.
This wreck was discovered by accident in January 2000, by a local
freediver fisherman, WilIiam Nuli. The propellers are intact, indicating
the engine may have shut down before it plunged into the sea as
spinning blades often shear off. There is also no visible evidence of
battle damage, so did it run out of fuel or did the engine simply fail?
The pilot’s canopy is open and the plane faces the shore less than 100
metres away. The condition of the aircraft indicates a controlled landing,
so did the pilot skillfully land on water and then escape to the jungles
of New Britain? This is the popular story of Tomiharu Honda, who is
identified as the pilot of this aircraft after research on the markings of
this A6M2. It’s never been established whether Tomiharu Honda made
it safely back to base; his fate has been lost in time, but due to William
Nuli’s chance find, we now at least know part of his story.
Text & image by Steve Jones
“I stare in an awe-inspired trance
at this incredible warbird”
Steve Jones