Northern Territory
Diving in Darwin Harbour
Darwin Harbour is Australia's most historic wreck-diving location. The Japanese air raid of 19 February 1942 sank the USAT Meigs, SS Mauna Loa, British Motorist, Zealandia, Kelat and others, and they remain as protected war graves in 15–25 m, along with the Song Saigon refugee boat and a scatter of barges and aircraft. Visibility is low (3–8 m) and the tidal range reaches 8 m, so every dive is planned around slack water on the neap tides.
THE LOCAL PLANNING BRIEF
Understand the options around Darwin Harbour
Use harbour records for research, not self-directed entry
Harbour records may describe historical sites or past activities. Their presence here does not establish a current visitor service or a suitable place to enter the water. Follow current NT Government crocodile-safety information and discuss any proposed activity with a qualified local provider. Ask whether the named site is part of a currently offered, appropriate itinerary before arranging travel around it.
One useful question: Is there a current operator-led activity at this exact location, and which official guidance and permissions apply?
What this regional directory records Counts describe published records, not bookable trips or confirmed open sites.
There are 42 published site records in Darwin Harbour. The recorded categories include wreck (23), aircraft wreck (8), reef (5), artificial reef (2). These categories reflect the database; they are not a ranking, a conditions report or an assessment of your suitability.
Use the Darwin Harbour site cards to compare recorded access and depth, then open the individual pages for the map accuracy and source notes. Sites grouped in a region are not necessarily close enough to combine in one day.
Research operators in Northern Territory →Ask before booking
- Is there a current, appropriate operator-led activity at this location?
- Which official access and wildlife guidance applies?
- What permissions and travel arrangements must be confirmed?
Save the answers with the contact name and date. Separate confirmed arrangements from items still waiting for a reply.
Record your trip questions →Questions, answered
How do I choose a dive in Darwin Harbour?
Begin with the individual site and its source notes, then discuss the proposed trip with a local provider. The 42 published records are research options, not a list of trips available today. Match the plan to your training, recent experience and the operator’s current requirements.
When should I visit Darwin Harbour for diving?
Choose dates with a provider who runs the activity you want, then discuss seasonal patterns, recent conditions and alternative itineraries. A generic best-month claim cannot establish the conditions at your exact site or guarantee a wildlife encounter.
Can I use these maps to enter or navigate a dive site?
No. Recorded and approximate map positions support orientation only. Confirm the exact access, permissions, meeting point and route with the responsible local provider or manager.
Regional planning context: NT Government — Be Crocwise ↗. Directory counts come from published YouDive records. Individual site claims remain subject to their source and review notes.
Dive sites in this region
WreckDarwin Harbour
Booya
A complete 1917 three-masted schooner lost with five people in Cyclone Tracy and found by chance in 2003.
WreckDarwin Harbour
British Motorist
Engine-room remains of the tanker that was refuelling USS Peary when the 1942 raid began.
Aircraft WreckDarwin Harbour
C-47 Dakota A65-115
An almost intact RAAF Dakota transport that ditched off Mindil Beach in 1946, reached by a heritage mooring and guide line.
WreckDarwin Harbour
DK 06 Ham Luong
A small, upright refugee boat packed with fish, in reach of two other wrecks on the same dive.
WreckDarwin Harbour
Ellengowan
Darwin Harbour's oldest known shipwreck - an 1866 Norwegian-built missionary steamer with its boiler standing proud.
WreckDarwin Harbour
John Holland Barge
An upturned construction barge whose cylinders and beams form a maze of overhangs full of fish.
WreckDarwin Harbour
Medkhanun 3
A modern confiscated fishing boat lying intact on its side, with holds and wheelhouse visible - the shallowest of the complex.
WreckDarwin Harbour
SS Mauna Loa
Holds still full of 1942 war cargo - trucks, Bren carriers, a Harley-Davidson and ammunition.
WreckDarwin Harbour
SS Zealandia
The former Huddart Parker liner and troopship, now the most coral-covered of the 1942 raid wrecks.
WreckDarwin Harbour
USAT Meigs
The largest ship sunk in the 1942 raid, with a Bren gun carrier in the bow, trucks, railway iron and ammunition dumps still on…
WreckDarwin Harbour
USS Peary
The US destroyer sunk with 88 of her crew in the first raid on Darwin; the harbour's deepest and most solemn WWII dive.
Aircraft WreckDarwin Harbour
Beaufort A9-497
An intact RAAF Beaufort bomber with guns and cockpit instruments in place, found by sonar and kept undisturbed.
WreckDarwin Harbour
Bellbird
An upturned Cyclone Tracy trawler draped in gorgonians, a few minutes from the CBD and sheltered from the trade winds.
Aircraft WreckDarwin Harbour
Catalina A24-1 (Catalina 1)
The RAAF's first Catalina, crashed on take-off in 1945 and left on a mangrove mud bank where its engines show at low tide.
Aircraft WreckDarwin Harbour
Catalina A24-206 (Catalina 3)
An RAAF Catalina sunk by an accidental depth-charge explosion in 1945 that killed two airmen; nose section intact.
Aircraft WreckDarwin Harbour
Catalina A24-69 (Catalina 2)
The most intact RAAF Catalina in the harbour, with its bow and cockpit section still recognisable in 10-12 m.
WreckDarwin Harbour
DSAC Barge
The club's own upturned barge reef, surrounded by a yacht, work boat and concrete structures, with tame fish.
WreckDarwin Harbour
Darwin Princess
The upturned ferry that disappeared with her skipper during Cyclone Tracy and was found only in 2004.
ReefDarwin Harbour
Dudley Point Bommies
A wide field of shallow coral bommies with clownfish and long, easy bottom times.
ReefDarwin Harbour
East Point Reef
A convenient shallow macro site off East Point Reserve, full of sponges, sea whips and small fish.
WreckDarwin Harbour
Kay Lee
An intact, upright steel fishing boat in 14 m with a resident grouper around 1.8 m long.
WreckDarwin Harbour
Kelat
A relaxed 12 m dive on the remains of an 1881 iron sailing ship turned naval coal hulk, sunk after the 1942 raid.
WreckDarwin Harbour
MV Neptuna remnants
Fragments of the munitions ship whose explosion at Stokes Hill Wharf killed 45 people on 19 February 1942.
WreckDarwin Harbour
Mandorah Queen
A Cyclone Tracy ferry lost with three crew, now almost buried in sand but still a magnet for big fish.