Douglas TBD recovery announcement

[Warbirdnerd]

Any idea what’s left of it?
https://www.dvidshub.net/news/557179/pr ... i-aircraft

[mike furline]

I think the photos are early 2000's.

https://news.usni.org/2026/01/30/conser ... smJg938aaQ

[Jim MacDonald]

Gee, this is puzzling, no mention of TIGHAR or Ric Gillespie. You would think that they would be involved since they've been involved in "Making History" with the "Devastator Project" in Jaluit since at 2003.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ztfh6nu7tvsyamdpb4h1c/TIGHAR-Tracks-Nov-2007.pdf?rlkey=cehh77xaaghq54c7kibk81y7p&st=hic0hzrn&dl=0

Mac

[old iron]

Another video on the project. For the Battleship New Jersey?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0v72GnwZf4

[lucky52]

It will take them five more years to decide how they want to pull it out, and by then there won’t be much left.

[Pat Carry]

As I recall sum 30 years ago Doug Champlin found 2 Devastators in the Atlantic and he offered to bring them up for the Navy. The navy declined. Now all these years later the Navy whats to bring one up. It seems silly.

[quemerford]

Gee, this is puzzling, no mention of TIGHAR or Ric Gillespie. You would think that they would be involved since they've been involved in "Making History" with the "Devastator Project" in Jaluit since at 2003.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ztfh6nu7tvsyamdpb4h1c/TIGHAR-Tracks-Nov-2007.pdf?rlkey=cehh77xaaghq54c7kibk81y7p&st=hic0hzrn&dl=0

Mac

This, if anything, should finally dispel any tenuous links that TIGHAR may have had with being considered a serious organization.

[JohnB]

This, if anything, should finally dispel any tenuous links that TIGHAR may have had with being considered a serious organization.

The only people who ever took the group seriously were group members.

You can do a search to find the TIGHAR PDF on the effort:
tighar.org https://tighar.org
PDF MAKING HISTORY SAVING A DEVASTATOR

In case you have already reached your daily limit of BS, I'll summarize:

The group went there with volunteer divers to assess the wreck along with a team of Navy divers working with the service's underwater archeology branch.
Despite using Navy resources and operating off the USS Safeguard, the group refers to the work as a "TIGHAR/USN" expedition.

A lot of their effort seemed to be meeting with Marshall Islands officials, necessitating a couple of trips to the island by RG and the group's "Minister of Foreign Affairs".... no doubt a title no other warbirds group can boast of having.
You can't make this stuff up.

A longtime TIGHAR-secptic over on the Key Publishing FlyPast/Aeroplane forum says the group spent over $200,000 in their effort.
https://www.key.aero/forum/historic-avi ... -out-again

The long and the short of it is, now 19 years later, the aircraft may finally be recovered...with no direct involvement by the group.