Meet the site
The British Motorist was a 6,891-ton steel tanker built in 1924 by Swan, Hunter and Wigham Richardson in Newcastle upon Tyne for the British Tanker Company - a 134 m, single-funnel motor ship with an eight-cylinder oil engine good for 11 knots. On the morning of 19 February 1942 she was in port refuelling the destroyer USS Peary when the raid began. Two bombs hit her: one destroyed the bridge and a second struck forward. She listed to port, caught fire amidships and capsized, sinking on her side. Her master, Captain Gilbert Bates, and the second radio officer were killed out of a crew of 61. For years half of the hull was exposed at low water. The 19 February 1942 raids - two waves of Japanese carrier and land-based aircraft, the first and heaviest attack ever made on mainland Australia - sank eight ships in the harbour and killed more than 230 people. In 1959-60 the Japanese firm Fujita Salvage cut most of the wrecks down to or below the waterline for scrap, so what divers find today is usually the lower hull, machinery that was too heavy to lift, and the cargo that the salvors were not permitted to remove. The British Motorist was the first ship Fujita raised. The salvors cut her into sections, welded the fore and aft parts together and towed them to Japan for breaking, and in the meantime she served as storage and living quarters for the Japanese salvage crews working the other wrecks. The engine room was too heavy to lift and was left behind, so today's dive is a compact block of machinery and a jumble of artefacts spread over a silty bottom in 18-20 m. It is the least visited of the big raid wrecks because there is less structure to follow, but it is close to the wharf, easy to reach, and holds good numbers of snapper and rock cod around the machinery. It suits divers who have already done the Meigs and Zealandia and want to complete the set of 1942 sites.
What you might see
Golden snapper, rock cod (estuary cod), jewfish, batfish, sponges and soft corals on the machinery
Location
A short distance off the Darwin wharf precinct in the inner harbour; only the engine-room section and debris remain.
Before you make plans
Conditions, access and operator schedules can change. This is a location guide, not a dive plan. Ask a local operator about current conditions and suitability for your training and experience.
Sources & further reading
dsac.com.aumarinelife.org.auen.wikipedia.orgen.wikipedia.orgnt.gov.auRecord updated 27 Sept 2026. Source claims are being reviewed.