Ex-trawler turned treasure hunter back in port for refit

The ship, formerly the Farnella, recently located the shipwreck of the SS Gairsoppa, which sank in 1941 about 300 miles off the coast of Ireland, carrying a reported cargo of up to seven million ounces of silver, worth £132m at today’s prices.

She later found the SS Mantola, which reportedly carried 600,000 ounces of silver.

The ship, which has been having a refit at Dunston’s on William Wright Dock, was built back in 1972, and already had a fascinating history before becoming a pioneer in the field of deep-ocean shipwreck exploration. She was requisitioned as a minesweeper during the Falklands War and renamed HMS Farnella. Afterwards, she was involved through the Hull firm J.Marr in charting the US “final frontiers” – its Exclusive Economic Zones – which extend to up to 200 miles off the coast.

The vessel is now fitted with state-of-the-art technology, including side-scan sonar and remotely operated vehicles to recover shipwrecks which were once considered too deep to salvage. The former editor of Trawling Times, John Davis said: “In her own way she is one of the most historic ships we have.”