Navy Won’t Try To Recover Old Seaplane

The Navy has given up its effort to recover a seaplane that sank in Lake Washington 47 years ago, saying it’s too fragile to preserve.

“It was old and decrepit when the plane went into the lake and now it’s an even older, more decrepit plane,” said Navy spokesman Ensign Fred Kuebler.

Navy divers had worked for two months to prepare the plane to be raised 70 feet to the surface. But the effort was scrapped Wednesday after the tail section of the PBM Mariner broke into three pieces when divers tried to flip the plane right-side-up.

The Navy had hoped to restore the plane for the Naval Museum of Flight in Pensacola, Fla.

Instead, divers will stabilize the plane to make it safe. Ragged edges and loose cables where the tail broke make it dangerous for curious divers.