Award for Underwater Archaeology

Divers from the Gibraltar Museum's Underwater Research Unit(URU) and the Joint Services Dive Club have collected an award from the United Kingdoms Nautical Archaeology Society(NAS)at the society's annual conference held at the University of Portsmouth in November.

to award the first prize to the Gi braltar Museum/Joint Services Dive Club team for their research into the wreck of an armed trawler that was sabotaged during World War (I whilst berthed on the De tached Mole.

Things I Found on the Way to Looking Up Something Else....

• compiled by Reg Reynolds

An Amazing Escape From Certain Death

"While based at Gibraltar I was on High-Speed Rescue Launch 2583 when we were called out to a position midway between Gi braltar and the North African Coast.

The NAS launched the Adopt a Wreck Scheme with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency in 2001, with the intention of helping divers develop a sense of purpose in the survey and preservation of wrecks. This scheme has been supported by the Gibraltar Museum,and Gibral tar had the first overseas Adopted site registered later that same year. The introduction of an annual award was developed this year to further encourage and reward those groups of divers who are par ticipating in the Adopted Wreck scheme.

A panel composed of the Mari time and Coastguard Agency, the British Sub-Aqua Club(BS-AC),the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) and the SubAqua Association (SAA), decided

Members of the Gibraltar Mu seum URU, Mrs Geraldine Finlavson and Dr Darren Fa and Mr Phil Smith (also members of the Joint Services Dive Club), flew to Portsmouth to receive the award, which was presented by celebrity Time Team archaeologist Phil Harding. The team was congratu lated by the panel for their project, which had achieved an extremely high standard. They were pre sented with the trophv that will re main in NAS headquarters and a ships decanter that will shortly be on display at the Gibraltar Mu seum.

The work by the Gibraltar Mu seum Underwater Research Unit continues not only with research but also with training for local divers, and the team, all of whom are also NAS tutors, organise NAS training courses and other activities such assurveys in Gibraltar several times a year.

All ships in the area had been alerted, a Lancaser had taken off from Gibraltar on her way to England and the controls had gone so that she could not at tempt to land and the crew had to bale out. The aircraft was fly ing in a wide circle over the Strait of Gibraltar and slowly losing height. Wc saw a number of parachutes drop on land near Algeciras but there was still one more man to bale out.

"When the aircraft was down to less than 1,000 feet it passed close to us and we could see a man sitting in the aft hatch wav ing. The next time the aircraft approached us it was obvious that it was at the point of ditch ing. At that moment the air crew man doubled up into a ball and rolled out of the aircraft."

— Seamiui Ted Shute