Hawaii Resident Finds WWII P-38 Wreckage off North Shore

A local spearfisherman made a remarkable discovery off Oahu’s North Shore, uncovering what is believed to be the wreckage of a World War II-era aircraft.

Jeff George, who was spearfishing with his son near Kaena Point in 2023, stumbled upon the wreckage about a quarter-mile offshore. Experts suspect the aircraft is a P-38 Lightning, a fighter plane from the Army Air Corps that flew over 130,000 missions during World War II. These planes frequently trained in and around the Hawaiian Islands.

While there are confirmed aircraft wreckage sites across the islands, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has no records of any wrecks off Oahu’s North Shore. Officials estimate there are hundreds, if not thousands, of undiscovered crash sites in the area.

So far, about 50 military aircraft wrecks have been officially confirmed near the main Hawaiian Islands, but over 1,000 others are believed to have crashed but remain lost.

Dr. Hans Van Tilburg, a marine archaeologist, explained that the next steps involve conducting a thorough survey of the area to locate any additional debris and performing an official analysis to uncover the circumstances surrounding the plane’s crash.