List of shipwrecks in the Indian Ocean

This is a partial list of shipwrecks which occurred in the Indian Ocean. The list includes ships that sank, foundered, grounded, or were otherwise lost. The Indian Ocean is here defined in its widest sense, including its marginal seas: the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, the Great Australian Bight, the Mozambique Channel, the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, the Strait of Malacca, and the Timor Sea.

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Ship	Flag	Sunk date	Notes	Coordinates
Aden	United Kingdom	9 June 1897	A P&O steamship that was wrecked on the island of Socotra off the coast of Yemen.
Albert Gallatin	United States	2 January 1944	A Liberty ship torpedoed 60 nautical miles (110 km; 69 mi) off the Arabian Peninsula by the Japanese submarine I-26.	21°21′N 059°58′E
Berwyn	United States Navy	6 September 1920	A cargo ship that was wrecked near the Khuriya Muriya Islands.	17°44′N 056°38′E
E.G. Seubert	United States	22 February 1944	A tanker that was torpedoed by U-510.^[1]	13.50°N 48.93°E / 13.50; 48.93 (SS E.G. Seubert)
Georges Philippar	France	19 May 1932	An ocean liner that caught fire and sank near Mukalla, Yemen.	14°20′N 50°25′E
John A. Poor	United States	19 March 1944	A Liberty ship carrying mail and a variety of cargo that was torpedoed by U-510.^[2]	13°58′N 70°30′E
John Barry	United States	28 August 1944	A Liberty ship that was torpedoed by the German submarine U-859 off the coast of Oman.	15.10°N 55.18°E / 15.10; 55.18 (SS John Barry)
Kadakkarapally Boat	Unknown	11–12th century	A wreck that was discovered in a coconut grove near Kadakkarappally, Kerala, that dates from around 1020–1160 AD.
PNS Khaibar	Pakistan Navy	4 December 1971	A Battle-class destroyer that was sunk by he Indian Navy missile boat INS Nirghat south of Karachi, Pakistan.
INS Khukri	Indian Navy	9 December 1971	A Blackwood-class frigate that was torpedoed by the Pakistan Navy submarine PNS Hangor off Diu, India.	20°16′38″N 70°59′37″E
MOL Comfort	Bahamas	17 June 2013	A container ship that broke apart in bad weather on 17 June 2013. The stern section took on water and sank on 26 June; the bow was taken under tow, but caught fire and sank on 11 July.	14°26′N 66°26′E, 19°56′N 65°25′E
Montanan	United States	3 June 1943	A cargo ship that was torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-27 150 nautical miles (280 km; 170 mi) south of Masirah Island, Oman.	17°05′04″N 58°05′00″E
Tarifa	United States	7 March 1944	A merchant ship carrying cargo, mail and soldiers from Australia and New Zealand that was torpedoed by U-510.^[3]	12°N 48°E

Ship	Flag	Sunk date	Notes	Coordinates
Automedon	United Kingdom	11 November 1940	A refrigerated cargo ship sunk by the German auxiliary cruiser Atlantis northwest of Sumatra.
Braut Team	Norway	7 June 1991	The cargo ship, a 15-year-old vessel, sank east of Sri Lanka. Water began flooding the cargo holds on 6 June. The cargo included ferro silicum and a new Chinese steam locomotive bound for the United States. All 17 crewmen were rescued.^[4]^[5]^[6]	6°4′N 88°51′E
Daisy Moller	United Kingdom	14 December 1943	A cargo ship that was torpedoed by Japanese Navy submarine RO-110.^[7]
HMS Hermes	Royal Navy	9 April 1942	The world's first purpose-built aircraft carrier, sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft about 39 nautical miles (72 km; 45 mi) northwest of Batticaloa, Ceylon.	7°35′N 82°5′E
PNS Ghazi	Pakistan Navy	4 December 1971	A Tench-class submarine that sank in unknown circumstances off Visakhapatnam, during the Indo-Pakistani War.
Indus	United Kingdom	10 September 1914	A steamship captured and scuttled by the Imperial German Navy light cruiser SMS Emden.	11°00′N 83°45′E
Ro-110	Imperial Japanese Navy	11 February 1944	A Ro-100-class submarine sunk by the Royal Indian Navy sloop HMIS Jumna and the Royal Australian Navy corvettes HMAS Ipswich and HMAS Launceston 200 nautical miles (370 km; 230 mi) northeast of Madras, India.	17°25′N 083°21′E
Selma City	United States	7 April 1942	A cargo ship sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft about 25 nautical miles (46 km; 29 mi) off from Vizagapatam (now Vishakhapatnam), India.	17°11′N 83°20′E
HMAS Vampire	Royal Australian Navy	9 April 1942	A V-class destroyer sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft off the coast of Ceylon.	7°35′N 82°5′E

Ship	Flag	Sunk date	Notes	Coordinates
Arnhem	Dutch East India Company	12 February 1662	An East Indiaman that ran aground on the Saint Brandon Rocks.
Berwickshire	United Kingdom	20 August 1944	A merchant ship that was torpedoed by U-861.^[8]	30°58′S 38°50′E
Chivalry		22 February 1944	A cargo ship that was sunk by a Japanese submarine.	0°50′S 68°0′E
City of Johannesburg		23 October 1942	A merchant steamer that was torpedoed by U-504 off East London, South Africa.	33°20′S 29°30′E
Clan Macarthur		12 August 1943	A Cameron-class cargo steamship that was torpedoed by U-181 off Madagascar.	23°S 53.11°E / -23; 53.11 (SS Clan Macarthur)
Commissaire Ramel	France	9 September 1940	A passenger ship that was sunk by the German auxiliary cruiser Atlantis.	28°25′S 74°23′E
Cornelia P. Spencer	United States	21 September 1943	A Liberty ship that was carrying 2,910 tons of steel and 300 tons of gum arabic that was sunk by U-188.^[9]	2°08′N 50°10′E
HMS Cornwall	Royal Navy	5 April 1942	A County-class heavy cruiser that was sunk by Japanese dive bombers in the Easter Sunday Raid.	1°54′N 77°54′E
IRIS Dina	Islamic Republic of Iran Navy	4 March 2026	An County-class frigate that was sunk by a torpedo by a US submarine off the coast of Sri Lanka during the 2026 Iran War of the coast of Sri Lanka. It was the first ship sunk by a torpedo of an American vessel since the end of World War 2.^[10]^[11]
HMS Dorsetshire	Royal Navy	5 April 1942	A County-class heavy cruiser that was sunk by Japanese dive bombers in the Easter Sunday Raid.	1°54′N 77°45′E
Empire Chaucer	United Kingdom	17 October 1942	A cargo ship that was torpedoed by U-504 about 450 nautical miles (830 km; 520 mi) south of Cape Town, South Africa.	38°12′S 20°04′E
Empire Day	United Kingdom	7 August 1944	A cargo ship that was torpedoed by U-198 about 200 nautical miles (370 km; 230 mi) east of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.	7°06′S 42°00′E
Fort Lee	United States	2 November 1944	A T2 tanker that was torpedoed by U-181.	27°35′S 83°11′E
Fort Longueuil	United Kingdom	19 September 1943	A North Sands-class cargo ship that was torpedoed by U-532. 57 out of the 57 onboard died in the sinking with two crew members surviving after being at sea for 143 days before coming ashore to Sumatra where they were taken prisoner by the Japanese.^[12]	10°00′S 68°00′E
Frontier	South Africa	27 September 1957	A cargo ship that ran aground east of East London, Eastern Cape, Africa.
Hoihow	United Kingdom	2 July 1943	A passenger ship that was torpedoed by U-181.^[13]	19°30′S 55°30′E
I-27	Imperial Japanese Navy	12 February 1944	A Type B1 submarine sunk by the British destroyers HMS Paladin and HMS Petard.	01°25′N 72°22′E
I-60	Imperial Japanese Navy	17 January 1942	A Kaidai 3B-type submarine sunk by the British destroyer HMS Jupiter south of the Sunda Strait.	06°19′30″S 104°49′20″E
James B. Stephens	United States	8 March 1943	A Liberty ship that was torpedoed by U-160 about 150 miles (240 km) northeast of Durban, South Africa.	28°53′S 33°18′E
Khedive Ismail	United Kingdom	12 February 1944	A steamship that was torpedoed by I-27, with 1,297 deaths.	01°25′N 72°22′E
Koning der Nederlanden	Netherlands	5 October 1881	An ocean liner that sprang a leak and sank east of the Seychelles.	5°14′S 64°7′E
Kormoran	Kriegsmarine	19 November 1941	A merchant raider that sank off Western Australia near Carnarvon due to damage sustained in combat with the Australian light cruiser Sydney.	26°05′46″S 111°04′33″E
USS Langley	United States Navy	27 February 1942	A seaplane tender scuttled 75 nautical miles (139 km; 86 mi) south of Tjilatjap, Java, after sustaining damage in an attack by Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft.	08°51′04.2″S 109°02′02.6″E
Lapérouse	French Navy	31 July 1898	A Lapérouse-class unprotected cruiser wrecked during a storm on the coast of Madagascar at Anosy.
Magicienne	French Navy	24 August 1810	A Magicienne-class frigate that ran aground off Mauritius in the Battle of Grand Port.
Marietta E	United Kingdom	4 March 1943	A cargo ship that was torpedoed by U-160.	31.49°S 31.11°E / -31.49; 31.11 (SS Marietta E)
Monge	French Navy	8 May 1942	A Redoutable-class submarine sunk by the Royal Navy destroyers HMS Active and HMS Panther off Diego-Suarez, Madagascar, during the Battle of Madagascar.
Oceanos	Greece	4 August 1991	A cruise ship that sank off Coffee Bay, South Africa.	32°07′15″S 029°07′13″E
USS Pecos	United States Navy	1 March 1942	A Kanawha-class fleet replenishment oiler sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft south of Java.	14°27′S 106°11′E
HMS Pegasus	Royal Navy	20 September 1914	A Pelorus-class protected cruiser that sank in the harbor at Zanzibar due to damage sustained earlier in the day in combat with the Imperial German Navy light cruiser SMS Königsberg during the Battle of Zanzibar.	06°08′54″S 039°11′36″E
Pinguin	Kriegsmarine	8 May 1941	An auxiliary cruiser that was sunk by HMS Cornwall.	3°30′0″N 57°48′0″E
HMS Plym	Royal Navy	3 October 1952	A River-class frigate obliterated in the Monte Bello Islands off Western Australia by the detonation of an atomic bomb within her hull in Operation Hurricane, a British nuclear test.
Ramb I	Regia Marina	27 February 1941	An auxiliary cruiser that was sunk by HMNZS Leander in the action of 27 February 1941.	1°0′N 68°30′E
Samuel Heintzelman	United States	9 July 1943	A Liberty ship that was torpedoed by U-511. Originally it was believed that it was sunk by a Japanese surface raider. There would be no survivors of the ship from the sinking.^[14]	9°00′S 81°00′E
HMS Sirius	Royal Navy	23 August 1810	A frigate that ran aground off Mauritius in the Battle of Grand Port.
HMAS Sydney	Royal Australian Navy	19 November 1941	A Leander-class light cruiser that sank off Western Australia near Carnarvon due to damage sustained in combat with the German merchant raider Kormoran.	26°14′31″S 111°12′48″E
Texanita	Liberia	21 August 1972	An oil tanker that collided with Oswego-Guardian off Stilbaai, South Africa.	34.80°S 21.40°E / -34.80; 21.40
Tjisalak	Netherlands	26 March 1944	A cargo ship that was torpedoed by I-8.	2°30′S 78°40′E
RIMS Warren Hastings	Royal Indian Marine	14 January 1897	A troopship that hit a rock and was wrecked off Réunion.

Ship	Flag	Sunk date	Notes	Coordinates
Eidsvold	Norway	20 January 1942	A motor vessel torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-159 at Flying Fish Cove.
Janga ("SIEV-221")	Indonesia	15 December 2010	A fishing boat that hit the rocks at Flying Fish Cove while carrying asylum seekers from Iraq and Iran.	10°25′1″S 105°40′24″E
Tycoon	Panama	8 January 2012	A cargo ship wrecked at Flying Fish Cove.

Ship	Flag	Sunk date	Notes	Coordinates
Buresk	Germany	9 November 1914	A collier scuttled while under attack by the Royal Australian Navy light cruiser HMAS Sydney in the Battle of Cocos.
SMS Emden	Imperial German Navy	9 November 1914	The wreck of SMS Emden A light cruiser run aground and wrecked while under attack by the Royal Australian Navy light cruiser HMAS Sydney during the Battle of Cocos.

List of shipwrecks in the Indian Ocean

Arabian Sea

Bay of Bengal

Central Indian Ocean

Christmas Island

Cocos (Keeling) Islands

Great Australian Bight

Mozambique Channel

Persian Gulf

Red Sea

Strait of Malacca

Timor Sea

References

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Fact Checks

Ship	Flag	Sunk date	Notes	Coordinates
Mahomed Shah	United Kingdom	April 1853	A barque that caught fire on 18 April 1853 and sank several days later. All on board were rescued.	40°10′00″S 119°10′00″E
Selje	Norway	29 March 1929	A cargo ship that collided with the steamship Kaituna 25 nautical miles (46 km; 29 mi) southwest of Cape Otway, Victoria, Australia.

Ship	Flag	Sunk date	Notes	Coordinates
Admiral Gambier	United Kingdom	20 June 1817	An East Indiaman wrecked on a coral reef.
Bévéziers	French Navy	5 May 1942	A Redoutable-class submarine sunk by Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm aircraft west of Cap d'Ambre, Madagascar, during the Battle of Madagascar.
Breiviken	Norway	4 July 1943	A merchant ship that was sunk by U-178.^[15]	21°50′S 37°50′E
Empire City	United Kingdom	6 August 1944	A cargo ship torpedoed by the German submarine U-198 off Mocímboa da Praia, Mozambique.	11°33′S 41°25′E
Express	United States	30 June 1942	A Type C3-E cargo ship torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-10.	23°30′S 37°30′E
Le Héros	French Navy	7 May 1942	A Redoutable-class submarine sunk by Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm aircraft off Courrier Bay, Madagascar, during the Battle of Madagascar.	12°03′45″S 049°03′30″E
Mary Livanos	Greece	11 July 1943	A steam merchant ship torpedoed by U-178.^[16]	15°40′S 40°45′E
Robert Bacon	United States	14 July 1943	A Liberty ship torpedoed by the German submarine U-178.^[17]	15°25′S 41°13′E

Ship	Flag	Sunk date	Notes	Coordinates
Iran Ajr	Islamic Republic of Iran Navy	26 September 1987	A landing craft that served as a minelayer during the Iran–Iraq War, captured and scuttled by United States Navy forces.
U-533	Kriegsmarine	16 October 1943	A Type IXC/40 U-boat sunk by British aircraft off Fujairah.	25°28′N 56°50′E

Ship	Flag	Sunk date	Notes	Coordinates
Aida	Egypt	15 September 1957	A French-built (1911) lighthouse tender of Egypt's Ports and Lighthouses Administration, driven onto the reef at Big Brother Island in heavy seas on 15 September 1957 while resupplying the island station; all aboard were rescued.^[18]^[19]	26°19′N 34°50′E
Al-Baraqua II	Djibouti	6 April 2006	A capsized passenger ferry.
al-Salam Boccaccio 98	Egypt	3 February 2006	Capsized passenger ferry.	27.033°N 34.883°E / 27.033; 34.883 (MS al-Salam Boccaccio)
Carnatic	United Kingdom	15 September 1869	Ran aground on a coral reef on 12 September, broke in half and sank three days later. 31 people drowned.^[20]	27°34′N 33°55′E
Chrisoula K	Greece	31 August 1981	A cargo ship that ran aground on a reef.^[21]	27°34′53″N 33°55′55″E
Dunraven	United Kingdom	22 April 1876	A merchant ship that hit a reef and sank in the Gulf of Suez, close to the Sinai Peninsula.^[22]	27.4215°N 34.0730°E / 27.4215; 34.0730 (SS Dunraven)
El Mina	Egyptian Navy	6 February 1970	A T43-class minesweeper (pennant 302, recorded as El Minya) sunk by Israeli Air Force A-4 Skyhawks at the Hurghada anchorage during the War of Attrition, in reprisal for an Egyptian frogman attack on Eilat harbour the previous night. Now a recreational dive site, commonly called the "El Mina wreck".^[23]^[24]^[25]	27°13′55″N 33°51′34″E
Giannis D	Greece	19 April 1983	A cargo ship that sank with its cargo of timber at Sha'ab Abu Nuhas, north of Hurghada.^{[citation needed]}
Giovanni Acerbi	Regia Marina	4 April 1941	A torpedo boat sunk in port at Massawa by British aircraft.^[26]
Kimon M	Panama	12 December 1978	A cargo ship which sank on at Sha'ab Abu Nuhas, north of Hurghada, when she ran into the reef of Abu Nuhas.^[27]	27°34′48″N 33°56′00″E
Macallé	Regia Marina	15 June 1940	A Adua-class submarine that was scuttled southeast of Port Sudan after the crew became "incapacitated" because of fumes leaking out of the submarine's air conditioning system.^[28]	19°13′N 38°09′E
Nazario Sauro	Italy	6 April 1941	A merchant-passenger ship that was scuttled at Nakura on Dalac Island off Eritrea.^[29]
Numidia	United Kingdom	20 July 1901	A British Anchor Line cargo steamer wrecked on the reef at Big Brother Island on 20 July 1901 while carrying railway stock from Liverpool to Calcutta; all 97 crew were saved.^[30]^[31]	26°19′N 34°50′E
Rosalie Moller	United Kingdom	October 1941	A cargo ship bombed two days after the supply ship Thistlegorm—– anchored some 20 nautical miles (37 km; 23 mi) away off the Sinai Peninsula — was sunk. She rests north of Hurghada, north of the reefs of Abu Nuhas, in some 50 meters (164 ft) of water.^[32]^[33]	27°39′03″N 33°46′17″E
Salem Express	Egypt	17 December 1991	The passenger ship ran into a shallow reef and sank 57 nautical miles (106 km; 66 mi) south of Hurghada, after the captain took a shortcut on his trip from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to Safaga, Egypt.	26°38′22.02″N 34°3′39.9″E
Steel Seafarer	United States	5 September 1941	A cargo ship that was sunk by a German plane.^[34]
Thistlegorm	United Kingdom	6 October 1941	A cargo ship sunk by German bombers near Sharm el-Sheikh.^[35]	27°48′51″N 33°55′12″E
Umbria	Italy	9 June 1940	A cargo ship scuttled by her crew near Port Sudan.	19°38′19″N 37°19′38″E
Vincenzo Giordano Orsini	Regia Marina	8 April 1941	A torpedo boat scuttled in the harbor entrance at Massawa.^[26]
Zingara	Italy	22 August 1984	Commonly referred to as Kormoran, a cargo ship that sailed from Aqaba with a cargo of phosphate rock and hit Laguna Reef in the Straits of Tiran.

Ship	Flag	Sunk date	Notes	Coordinates
Empress of Australia	Australia	23 August 1992	A cruise ship that sank in a collision with the Taiwanese fishing vessel Terfu 51.
Galileo Galilei	Bahamas	21 May 1999	A cruise ship that sank off the coast of Perak following a fire.	4°37′1″N 99°54′6″E
USS Grenadier	United States Navy	22 April 1943	A Tambor-class submarine scuttled off Phuket, Thailand, after Japanese aircraft damaged her the previous day.	06°30′N 097°40′E
Haguro	Imperial Japanese Navy	16 May 1945	A Myōkō-class cruiser sunk by British forces 48 nautical miles (89 km; 55 mi) off Penang in the Battle of the Malacca Strait.
I-34		13 November 1943	A Type B1 submarine sunk 30 nautical miles (56 km; 35 mi) off Penang by the British submarine HMS Taurus.	05°17′N 100°05′E
I-166		17 July 1944	A Kaidai 5-type submarine that was sunk by the British submarine HMS Telemachus off One Fathom Bank.	2°48′N 101°03′E
Jenwin	Malaysia	18 December 1999^[36]
Kuma	Imperial Japanese Navy	11 January 1944	A Kuma-class cruiser that was sunk by the Royal Navy submarine HMS Tally-Ho west of Penang.	5°26′N 99°52′E
Mousquet	French Navy	28 October 1914	An Arquebuse-class destroyer sunk by the Imperial German Navy light cruiser SMS Emden at Penang during the Battle of Penang.
Myōkō	Imperial Japanese Navy	8 June 1946	A Myōkō-class cruiser that was scuttled near Port Klang.	3°5′N 100°40′E
Nichinan Maru	Imperial Japanese Navy	19 November 1944	A cargo ship that was torpedoed by HMS Stratagem 25 miles (40 km) northeast of Bengkalis Islands.^[37]	01°37′N 102°53′E
Sovereign of the Seas	United States	6 August 1859	A clipper that was wrecked on the Pyramid Shoal.
HMS Stratagem	Royal Navy	22 November 1944	A British S-class submarine that was scuttled by her crew after being damaged by depth charges from the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine chaser CH-35. Ten of the crew were captured, three of whom survived.^[38]
Takao	Imperial Japanese Navy	19 October 1946	A Takao-class heavy cruiser that was surrendered to the British and sunk as a target.	03°05′05″N 100°41′00″E
U-181	Kriegsmarine	12 February 1946	A Type IXD2 U-boat that was scuttled near Port Klang.	3°05′50″N 100°42′50″E
U-859		23 September 1944	A Type IXD2 U-boat that was sunk by HMS Trenchant.	5.767°N 100.067°E / 5.767; 100.067 (German submarine U-859)
U-862		13 February 1946	A Type IXD2 U-boat that was scuttled near Port Klang.	3°05′N 100°38′E
UIT-23		14 February 1944	A Liuzzi-class submarine, formerly named Reginaldo Giuliani, that was seized by Germany and was torpedoed by the British submarine HMS Tally-Ho northwest of Pangkor Island.	04°27′N 100°11′E
HMS Vestal	Royal Navy	26 July 1945	An Algerine-class minesweeper damaged by a kamikaze attack and subsequently scuttled.	07°05′N 97°50′E
Yasushima Maru	Imperial Japanese Navy	March 28, 1944	A cargo ship for the Imperial Japanese Army that was torpedoed by the HMS Truculent in the Straits of Malacca.^[39]
Zhemchug	Imperial Russian Navy	28 October 1914	An Izumrud-class protected cruiser sunk by the Imperial German Navy light cruiser SMS Emden at Penang during the Battle of Penang.