Wreck Dive, Comino
The P31 began in East Germany as a Kondor-Class boat built in the 1960's. The P31 was a minesweeper and was given the name "Pasewalk" (GS05) by the Germans. In August 1992, the P31 left Germany and took 3 weeks to reach Malta due to climbing enormous waves and braving through force 9 winds. Her last patrol in Malta was in September 2004 and then sold to the Maltese Tourism Authority.
In 2004 she was bought and decommissioned by the Malta Tourism Authority who cleaned and officially scuttled her as an artificial dive site in 2009. The P31 now lies on a white sandy bottom off the island of Comino in a depth of 22m. This dive site is only reachable by boat.
The P31 is a sister ship of the P29, another wreck that lays on the sandy bottom in Cirkewwa.
The Marine Life
The Marine life on this wreck is great. You can find Nudibranch, Morey Eels, scorpionfish, Octopus and if you have a search over the sand bed, you can even spot small stingrays.
If you take a look in the pipes with a torch, within the hatches you will find 1 or 2 Conger eels or even some Moray eels if you lucky. There is an abundance of damsels swimming around, playing with divers bubbles, and Amber Jacks on the hunt
Because of the shallow depth of the wreck, it will show a lot of colors, a good opportunity to take lots of pictures for your dive album.
Experience Needed
You must be certified to dive to a depth of 18 meters to dive this site. If you wish to penetrate the wreck you will be required to have a Wreck Diver certification. We would also recommend Nitrox Diver.
DIVE SITE SPECIFICATION: The P31 Patrol Boat
- Location: Comino
- Type Of Dive: Boat Dive
- Max Depth: 20m
- Minimum Certification: PADI Open Water Diver
- For Penetration Dives: PADI Wreck Diver
- Recommended: PADI Nitrox Diver