Santi Find the Eagle team launches new attempt to solve the mystery of lost WW2 submarine ORP Orzel

Santi Find the Eagle team launches new attempt to solve the mystery of lost WW2 submarine ORP Orzel

The search for the legendary submarine ORP Orzeł (Eagle), lost in 1940, goes on. Without doubt, the disappearance of the vessel is one of the greatest mysteries of World War II.

Although the Santi Find the Eagle project – named after the diving equipment specialist company Santi – has been active for nine years, the team remains as determined as at the start to reach its goal. Preparations for this year’s expedition have been going on for a considerable time. After a three-year break, mainly caused by the pandemic and problems with accessing the archives, the Polish crew is returning to the North Sea. At the beginning of August 2023, the tenth Expedition to Find the Eagle sets off from the port of Ijmuiden in the Netherlands, aimed at finding the wreck.

The expeditions have tested many hypotheses, including the so-called “friendly fire” theory of a possible accidental sinking of ORP Orzeł by the British Airforce. For some time, the Santi Find the Eagle team has been focusing on an area of the North Sea around the A3 zone – this is where the submarine should have been in the first days of her patrol.

“We are very much convinced that Orzeł sank in the first days of the patrol, because it is very unlikely that communications would have remained silent for almost two weeks. Let’s remember that the submarine’s main task was to report on enemy movements and in previous patrols she did this very regularly. This time no reports were sent after leaving port at Rosyth. Hence the hypothesis that something bad must have happened at the beginning of the patrol,” said Tomasz Stachura, diver and head of the project.

Tomasz Stachura photographed during 2019 expedition.

Santi’s team has already been to this area twice. They have managed to find and explore several hundred wrecks, including HMS L10, a British World War I submarine whose position was previously unknown.

This year, the expedition will focus mainly on searching a further area and verifying previous assumptions. “We know more and more about the wrecks lying on the bottom of the North Sea; we have already done a lot of work. During the previous years we managed to find 400 wrecks, including three previously unknown submarines. We push further and this year we will focus mainly on the area north-east of the A3 zone, where there were German minefields. We will be located approximately 100 miles from the coast of the Netherlands. Thanks to cooperation with Gert Normann and the Sea War Museum Jutland, we know that this search area has been very poorly researched so far. There are no pipelines, no offshore investments, which gives us high hopes,” said Tomasz Stachura.

“Our next expedition focuses on a new area based on surveys of the routes taken by other Allied submarines operating in the North Sea in May/June 1940, including those that unexpectedly deviated from their assigned patrol areas. Additionally, anecdotes circulating after the disappearance of ORP Orzeł suggest that the Polish submarine may have also strayed off course during its last mission. These are just anecdotes, but they support our new area of research. After testing the more likely theories, the theoretically less likely hypotheses that could lead to success should also be tested,” said Piotr Michalik, a historical researcher and member of the Santi team.

The area of this year’s search was based, among other factors, on information about the route of the British submarine HMS Taku, which set out on patrol immediately after ORP Orzeł. During this vessel’s time in the A3 zone, an explosion was recorded which might relate to the disappearance of the Polish submarine. In addition, it is documented that HMS Taku left A3 and patrolled eastwards, cutting through German minefields for reconnaissance, then returned to A3.

This year, exploration in the North Sea will be carried out using the M/Y Tonijn, 34.24 m long and 7 m wide.

The costs of the charter are covered entirely by the Santi company, and all participants in the expedition work as volunteers.

The team includes hydrographers Benedykt Hac, Karol Jacob, and Michał Niemkiewicz; divers Tomasz Stachura and Marek Cacaj; and historical researcher Piotr Michalik. Six full days of exploration in the North Sea planned.

Karol Jacob said: “The Santi Find the Eagle Expedition for 2023, uses the most up-to-date hydrographic technology. Thanks to Norbit, a world-class manufacturer of multi-beam echo sounders (MBES), we will be able to obtain even more detailed bathymetric data on verified positions. In addition, thanks to TopWave, a manufacturer of satellite positioning systems, we will obtain very accurate location data. The list of potential wrecks is large, as it includes about 100 of them. We will do our best to check as many as possible. In fact, we don’t need so many of these positions, one is enough! The one in which the wreck of the ORP Orzeł lies.”

Submarine ORP Orzeł off Gdynia, February 10, 1939.

ORP Orzeł was lost during World War II in 1940. Since then, many researchers, historians and military enthusiasts have tried to find its wreck, but all attempts so far have failed. The Santi Find the Eagle team hopes that thanks to modern technology and their great experience, they will be able to find the remains of the historic unit.

Finding ORP Orzeł would be an important step in advancing Polish maritime history and honouring the memory of the servicemen involved.

Previous expeditions and 2023 search area.

The Santi Find the Eagle project is grateful to all sponsors and individuals who are contributing to the achievement of the expedition’s goals, especially the main sponsor, the Santi company. It is their commitment and huge financial contribution that enables the research and efforts to find the ORP Orzeł to continue.

www.santifindtheeagle.com – project website

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