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MAX DEPTH: 270 fsw

The B-36 lies in nearly 270 ft of water off mission beach. The visibility as reported by Steve Donathan is usually around 30-40 ft and currents are common in the area. The wreck itself is in not so great of shape and it is spread over large distances; i.e., the wings and engines fell off well east of the final resting place of the B-36. This is a huge wreck with a wingspan of 230 ft and 162 ft from nose to tail. Here is a write up from our very own Tyler Stalter and a video from Shane Thompson to the right:

B-36
(B-36D-25-CF 49-2661A)

The date was August 5th, 1952. It was a care free summer day in San Diego, the skies were clear and the weather was warm. The eight member crew of the B-36 had just concluded the planes first test flight after it was converted with two jet engines under each wing. They started their decent to land at Lindbergh Field when the plane shuddered; first engineer Walt Hoffman screamed through the intercom "Dave we have a problem, the number 5 engine has fallen off the wing and we have a fire." The pilot, 40 year old Dave Franks made a critical decision, he turned the plane ninety degrees toward the ocean in an effort to minimize casualties on the ground.

Dave gave the command “Bail Out!” and the crew quickly donned their parachutes and one by one started jumping out of the burning plane. First out was Roy Summers, followed by Don Maxion and then Roy Adkins. Once they were safely out Willard Wilson and Jack Rogers were next. Just before Jack departed the doomed plane he yelled at Dave Franks to follow him out, then jumped. The last person to leave the plane was William (Tex) Ashmore, but it’s not for certain. There are several reports of how many chutes were spotted from land. Unfortunately the pilot Dave Franks and first engineer Walt Hoffman were never seen alive again. It’s uncertain whether or not Walt bailed out, but if he did it was too late. Dave Franks stayed at the controls of the plane until it impacted the water several miles off Mission Beach.

The navy conducted one dive to the wreckage but the diver had a close call of his own and any further diving operations were deemed too dangerous. The body or bodies were never recovered. The B-36 sat at the bottom the ocean forgotten for more than 50 years until it was rediscovered circa 2003 by Steve Donathan. The wreck was documented for the first time in 2004 by a team of divers assembled by Donathan, they were Joel Silverstein, Dan Crowell and Ed Szostak. Several other teams had tried to find the wreck but with no luck; however, one team believes they saw the tail. The wreck is spread out over many miles, from an engine in 60 ft of water off Bird Rock, the tail in 300 ft of water off Mission Beach to the fueselage in 260 ft also off Mission Beach. Steve Donathan conducted the most research and dives on the plane but unfortunately he was killed in a diving accident in June 2005, and all of his research died with him. Whenever we visit this plane I say a little prayer for the crew that didn’t make it, their families and lastly for our fallen friend Steve Donathan.

We are very fortunate to be able to dive this wreck and I give thanks to many people for helping us in our quest to document and map this wreck. No artifacts from the B-36 will be removed. Only a lucky few have ever laid eyes on this wreck and it truly is a remarkable sight. The sheer size of the B-36 alone makes it a very cool dive, couple that with the great tale of heroism behind it and the amount of life the wreck and you have every hardcore divers dream, right here in our own backyard.

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The B-36 lies in nearly 270 ft of water off mission beach. The visibility as reported by Steve Donathan is usually around 30-40 ft and currents are common in the area. The wreck itself is in not so great of shape and it is spread over large distances; i.e., the wings and engines fell off well east of the final resting place of the B-36. This is a huge wreck with a wingspan of 230 ft and 162 ft from nose to tail. Here is a write up from our very own Tyler Stalter and a video from Shane Thompson to the right:

B-36
(B-36D-25-CF 49-2661A)

The date was August 5th, 1952. It was a care free summer day in San Diego, the skies were clear and the weather was warm. The eight member crew of the B-36 had just concluded the planes first test flight after it was converted with two jet engines under each wing. They started their decent to land at Lindbergh Field when the plane shuddered; first engineer Walt Hoffman screamed through the intercom "Dave we have a problem, the number 5 engine has fallen off the wing and we have a fire." The pilot, 40 year old Dave Franks made a critical decision, he turned the plane ninety degrees toward the ocean in an effort to minimize casualties on the ground.

Dave gave the command “Bail Out!” and the crew quickly donned their parachutes and one by one started jumping out of the burning plane. First out was Roy Summers, followed by Don Maxion and then Roy Adkins. Once they were safely out Willard Wilson and Jack Rogers were next. Just before Jack departed the doomed plane he yelled at Dave Franks to follow him out, then jumped. The last person to leave the plane was William (Tex) Ashmore, but it’s not for certain. There are several reports of how many chutes were spotted from land. Unfortunately the pilot Dave Franks and first engineer Walt Hoffman were never seen alive again. It’s uncertain whether or not Walt bailed out, but if he did it was too late. Dave Franks stayed at the controls of the plane until it impacted the water several miles off Mission Beach.

The navy conducted one dive to the wreckage but the diver had a close call of his own and any further diving operations were deemed too dangerous. The body or bodies were never recovered. The B-36 sat at the bottom the ocean forgotten for more than 50 years until it was rediscovered circa 2003 by Steve Donathan. The wreck was documented for the first time in 2004 by a team of divers assembled by Donathan, they were Joel Silverstein, Dan Crowell and Ed Szostak. Several other teams had tried to find the wreck but with no luck; however, one team believes they saw the tail. The wreck is spread out over many miles, from an engine in 60 ft of water off Bird Rock, the tail in 300 ft of water off Mission Beach to the fueselage in 260 ft also off Mission Beach. Steve Donathan conducted the most research and dives on the plane but unfortunately he was killed in a diving accident in June 2005, and all of his research died with him. Whenever we visit this plane I say a little prayer for the crew that didn’t make it, their families and lastly for our fallen friend Steve Donathan.

We are very fortunate to be able to dive this wreck and I give thanks to many people for helping us in our quest to document and map this wreck. No artifacts from the B-36 will be removed. Only a lucky few have ever laid eyes on this wreck and it truly is a remarkable sight. The sheer size of the B-36 alone makes it a very cool dive, couple that with the great tale of heroism behind it and the amount of life the wreck and you have every hardcore divers dream, right here in our own backyard.