USS Indra
Landing Craft Repair Ship · United States · Lost 1992 · The Outer Banks
A WWII landing craft repair ship that served off Vietnam, later sunk as a shallow, beginner-friendly artificial reef near Emerald Isle.
The Vessel and Her Loss
Laid down in February 1945 as LST-1147 and completed as the Achelous-class repair ship Indra, she supported occupation duty at Tsingtao in 1947 and later served as a tender in Vietnam in 1968. Struck from the Naval Vessel Register in 1989, she was sunk on August 4, 1992 as part of North Carolina's artificial reef program. The wreck now sits upright in relatively shallow water popular with novice divers.
Vessel
- 1945
- ARL-37
- Chicago Bridge & Iron Co.
- Seneca, Illinois
- Steel
- 328 ft
- 50 ft
- 2125
- Diesel, single screw
- U.S. Navy
Loss
- August 4, 1992
- Intentional sinking
- Approximately 10 miles off Emerald Isle, North Carolina
- Atlantic Ocean
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
- Not established
The Wreck Today
- 40-65
- Sits upright; bow and stern sections remain intact while the midsection has collapsed over the decades.
- Upright
- Not established
- North Carolina artificial reef program (AR-330)
Position
- 34.56° N 76.85° W
- Approximate position
- Emerald Isle, North Carolina
Approximate position drawn from published bow/stern loran-derived coordinates.
Evidence
Overall confidence: Documented (85/100)
nc-wreckdiving.com (citing Naval History and Heritage Command)
Build, naval service history, sinking date.
Depth, sinking date, dive conditions.
