This B-24 Liberator is the last one of the series.
The undersea world around the island of Vis is without a doubt one of the areas in the Adriatic Sea that has the most shipwrecks.
Throughout history there were very rough seas in which numerous ships, even airplanes disappeared entirely. Two airplanes performed forced landings in the sea near the fisherman’s village of Rukavac. One of them is known as the B-14 Flying Fortress, and the other is a B-24 Liberator.
The latter is unique because it’s the last of its kind to ever be made. It has been named ‘Tulsamerican’ and on its fuselage it carries the signatures of all the workers who helped to create it.
The sea in this area is pretty deep and it’s quite a coincidence that the Liberator now rests at the depth of 40 meters. During sinking, the part of the body with the vertical stabilizer broke off.
We had the opportunity to dive in the central part of the airplane. The aircraft's four engines can be seen clearly, the landing gear is still in its lowered position and parts of the cockpit, as well as many other smaller parts, are found in a wider circle around the wreck.
This airplane was discovered in 2009, but until the summer of 2014 it was prohibited to dive around it because of research led by the Croatian Office for the Preservation of Cultural Monuments.
According to most recent information, there is the possibility that the location will be closed again for diving this summer as new research programs are planned.
Article by Janez Kranjc
Photos by Ivana Orlovic Kranjc
Mares
17th June 2017
Vis, Croazia 
