Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.05. AI generated picture of the imagined situation of the sunken Oryoku Maru on the Olongapo Harbor Bottom.

Randy Anderson says this:

The image accompanying these posts are reconstruction that illustrates the present-day wreck site of the Oryoku Maru in Subic Bay, based on compiled scuba diver reports, site descriptions, and known environmental conditions. It represents an interpretive layout of the debris field rather than a precise archaeological survey, reflecting how the wreck appears today after decades of collapse, silt accumulation, and disturbance.

Mark Kelso says this: “Little more to it than the AI image”.

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Oryoku Maru Remains Recovery Ops. 2026

Google AI Overview

As of April 2026, the US Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) is conducting a major underwater recovery operation in Subic Bay, Philippines, to recover the remains of over 250 American POWs from the sunken Japanese “hell ship” Oryoku Maru. The multi-year project, which began in earnest in February 2026, involves specialized diving teams excavating the wreck—lying 17–25 meters deep—to provide closure for families after 80 years.

Key Details of the Recovery Operation:

Mission Status:The mission started in February 2026 and is considered one of the DPAA’s largest and most complex, involving 15 specialists from the salvage vessel USNS Salvor.
Location:The Oryoku Maru rests roughly 400–550 yards from Alava Pier in Subic Bay, near the former Olongapo Naval Station.
Challenges:The wreck site has poor visibility and was heavily damaged and broken apart by explosions during the war, creating a tangled, challenging environment for divers.
Partnerships:The DPAA is working closely with the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the National Museum of the Philippines to perform the excavation.
Historical Context:The ship was sunk by US Navy aircraft on Dec. 15, 1944, unaware it was transporting 1,619 Allied prisoners of war, causing extensive loss of life. net +5

URLs where this information and pictures came from:

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Oryoku Maru under Attack 15^th Dec. 1944, click here!

Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.01

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The DPAA Announcement 24^th Feb. 2026, click here!

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The next 4 pictures are from Randy Anderson and came from these Facebook Pages, click here!

Philippines MIA Search and Recovery Project:

Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.02 USNS Salvor T-ARS-52 arrived in Subic Bay

Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.03 USNS Salvor T-ARS-52 is anchoring into position

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AI generated pictures of the imagined situation of the sunken Oryoku Maru on the Olongapo Harbor Bottom.

Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.04. AI generated picture of the imagined situation of the sunken Oryoku Maru on the Olongapo Harbor Bottom.

Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.05. AI generated picture of the imagined situation of the sunken Oryoku Maru on the Olongapo Harbor Bottom.

Randy Anderson says this:

Mark Kelso says this: “Little more to it than the AI image”.

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Between the entrance to the Alava Extension Wharf and the former Subic Bay Naval Base Port Control Building is now a hotel and I took advantage of that and shot these pictures from its top there. Two shots are from the former Cubi Point Naval Air Station site across the former Olongapo Harbor

Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.06. USNS Salvor T-ARS-52 is moored into position over the wreck of the Oryoku Maru and is conducting salvage operations. Notice the cruise liner tied up at Boton Piers.

Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.07. USNS Salvor T-ARS-52 is moored into position over the wreck of the Oryoku Maru and is conducting salvage operations.

Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.08. A view across the harbor of USNS Salvor T-ARS-52 which is moored into position over the wreck of the Oryoku Maru and is conducting salvage operations.

Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.09. A view across the harbor of USNS Salvor T-ARS-52 which is moored into position over the wreck of the Oryoku Maru and is conducting salvage operations. Notice, that all the way at left there is road cut coming down from Kalaklan Ridge, that is supposed to be part of a Barretto Bypass Road, but that project is going very slowly.

Oryoku Maru Recovery Ops.10. Yours truly and USNS Salvor T-ARS-52 which is moored into position over the wreck of the Oryoku Maru and is conducting salvage operations. Notice, there is a cruise liner in port, tied up at the former service Craft area at Boton Wharf. I can proudly say that I served on three of that type of ship as a diver and two amphibious ships.

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Oryoku Maru POW Remains Recovery Update, 10 Oct 2026

01 U.S. Navy divers are part of the military’s complex recovery mission. The DPAA in Hawaii

The salvage ship and divers are long gone. As far as I can tell the US Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) has not posted any updates, click here:

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Wall Street Journal picture and article with the URL, but they want you to sign in or up to read the whole article:

02 U.S. Navy divers are part of the military’s complex recovery mission. The WSJ Article

Mike Cherney

Photography by Veejay Villafranca for WSJ

July 29, 2026 9:00 pm ET

SUBIC BAY, Philippines—Petty Officer First Class Taylor Lucas was nearly 80 feet underwater, inside the wreckage of a Japanese liner used to transport captured American soldiers and sailors in World War II.

In the darkness, the U.S. Navy diver dug through mud, wood and steel.

The URL, click here:

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03 U.S. Navy divers are part of the military’s complex recovery mission. Reporter Mike Cherney of the above WSJ Article

Mike Cherney, was the reporter who visited the Oryoku Wreck Diving/Salvage site and who wrote the WSJ Article above, he is interviewed by the Podcast:

You Tube, Trump report podcast, interviewing the Wall Street Journal Reporter

Inside the daring mission to recover America’s lost WWII POWs from the ocean.

The Trump Report, about 13 minutes

The Wall Street Journal’s Mike Cherney joins Maddie Hale to discuss the extraordinary mission to recover the remains of hundreds of American POWs from the WWII hells hip Oryoku Maru, how divers are searching the wreck more than 80 years later, the challenge of identifying the missing servicemen, and what the mission means for families still waiting for answers. For the URL click here:

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04 U.S. Navy divers are part of the military’s complex recovery mission. Diver on Diving Stage Descending This is from a YouTube Short Video, click here:

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