Subic scuba diving El Capitan USS Majaba semi full video

Aaah El Capitan
When asked what I loved most about diving in El Capitan, I automatically said the fish. Yeah well, I love fish, but the immensity of El Capitan was also something to marvel at. It sleeps quietly now, but this US battle Star War ship is still serving. Serving as a reminder of history and Home to multitudes of fish and huge sponges, that look like spores from the deep.
Historical Subic Dive of USS Majaba, more well known as El Capitan. The USS Majaba was a big cargo ship built in 1919 in Portland, Oregon. It was first called Meriden, but later on, a lumber company from San Francisco bought it in 1923 and renamed it El Capitan.
When World War II started, the U.S. Navy needed more ships, so in April 1942, they borrowed El Capitan and renamed it Majaba. The ship was sent to the South Pacific Ocean to help out in the war.
At Guadalcanal, Majaba got hit by a torpedo and had to be beached to avoid sinking. After some repairs and getting its engines taken out at a place called Tulagi, the ship was used as a floating barracks, storage, and repair ship for the rest of the war.
In October 1945, the Navy took full ownership of Majaba. The ship stayed at Tulagi for a while, then got towed to the Philippines in 1945. On March 14, 1946, Majaba was put into the reserve fleet at Subic Bay but sadly, on July 14, 1946, the ship sank at the pier and couldn't be saved.
It now eternally sleeps with the fishes at 21 meters by the bay of Subic. Subic is well known for its naval base, which the Spanish established and which was taken over by the Americans and now Filipinos. It has since been a freeport, re-establishing itself as an economic free zone allowing for exchanges of goods while the wrecks of Subic slept untouched until scuba divers Johan de Sadelier a technical dive instructor before authorized recreational diving in Subic, started bringing down scuba divers to the wrecks of subic bay. Now more wrecks have been discovered one of which Mark of Mangos Dive Center said in one of his posts on the scuba board
"As far as the diving goes, Subic Bay is loaded with historic wrecks and features the most diverse wreck diving in the Philippines. For example: the 1894 US Armored Cruiser, American and Japanese Freighters, Douglas Sky Raider, M3 Half Tracks, Landing Craft, A Japanese DC-3, MD F4 Phantom even a late 1800's Spanish gunboat that was used as a blockade ship in the Spanish American war. This is the short list...Subic has over 15 primary dive sites with probably another 15 secondary. Plus, a couple of very nice reefs that cater to the macro-minded! All of these are listed on our website as also a simple google search will yield a ton of information." He passionately scoured Subic Bay for wrecks and contributed to five more historical Subic.
Back to El Capitan, the USS Majaba was originally built as a Design 1049 "Albania Type" cargo ship named Meriden in 1919 by the Albina Engine & Machine Works in Portland, Oregon. The ship had a tonnage of 2,254 GRT, 1,353 NRT, and a deadweight of 3,700 DWT. It displaced 5,070 tons and measured 300 feet (91.4 meters) in overall length, with a registry length of 289 feet (88.1 meters). The beam was 44.1 feet (13.4 meters), the draft was 17 feet 11 inches (5.5 meters), and the depth was 19.2 feet (5.9 meters). The ship was powered by a triple-expansion steam engine with a single propeller, allowing it to reach speeds of up to 12 knots. It was also armed with a single 3-inch (76 mm) gun mount.
Dive with us and discover what History lies under Subic Bay.