Landing Craft wreck identified

Southsea BSAC has pinpointed the remains of a World War 2 Landing Craft in the approaches to Portsmouth Harbour.

The active south coast dive club believes the wreck is that of LCT 427, which was returning from Normandy on June 7th 1944.

In the early hours the Landing Craft collided with the battleship HMS Rodney, slicing her in half. 427 quickly sank with the loss of all hands.

Incredibly, the collision went unreported at the time for two whole months, with the LCT simply marked down as ‘missing.’

Not only is the wreck lying in a busy shipping lane, the Solent is also renowned for poor visibility and strong currents. In July, Southsea BSAC gained special permission from the harbour authorities to dive and survey the area.

The branch plans to release full details of their investigations in the new year, but so far has confirmed that LCT 427 lies in 32 metres of water. The wreck is split into two sections, with the bow and stern lying some distance apart.

Southsea BSAC club has been actively surveying D-Day wrecks over the last few years. In 2009 members identified Centaur tanks and armoured bulldozers due to sail for Normandy lost off Bracklesham, West Sussex.