French submarine that disappeared with 52 sailors on board in 1968 found

A French Navy submarine which inexplicably disappeared off the Toulon coast in the Mediterranean on January 17, 1968 has finally been rediscovered over five decades later.

The Minerve disappeared without a trace with 52 sailors on board, amid speculation that a faulty rudder, a possible collision with another vessel, or even a torpedo or missile explosion sank the ship, killing all on board.

© STF / AFP

"It's a success, a relief and a technical feat," French Defense Minister Florence Parly announced on Monday. "I am thinking of the families who have waited for this moment for so long."

Parly announced a new mission to locate the missing sub in early 2019 amid renewed demands from the families of the deceased sailors. 

There had been multiple failed searches over the decades since the sub went missing, but thanks to new technology and techniques, which included modelling the tides and currents of the Mediterranean and poring over seismic records which pointed to the likely moment the submarine struck the seabed, the stricken vessel was finally discovered.

© STF / AFP

Despite the earlier efforts of the French Navy, it was in fact the Seabed Constructor, which belongs to private US company Ocean Infinity, that discovered the missing sub last Tuesday, 45km from Toulon at a depth of 2,370 meters. 

The cause of the accident which sank the sub still hasn’t been publicly announced.

The Seabed Constructor is the same vessel that discovered the remnants of the stricken Argentinian Navy submarine the San Juan, which disappeared in the Atlantic in November 2018. 

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