AN ICONIC wooden car has been discovered in the wreckage of the famed US warship, downed by a Japanese submarine during WWII.
Historians are baffled as to why the 1940-41 black Super Deluxe Woody was aboard the aircraft carrier – now 16,650 feet below the surface.
The aircraft carrier, USS Yorktown, famously sank during the Battle of Midway in 1942 – fought between the US and Japan.
While the ship was first rediscovered 1998, it is reported that no one had noticed the vintage car among the wreckage until now.
The baffling discovery was made on April 19, when NOAA Ocean Exploration sent a remotely operated camera into the vast wreck.
The historic shipwreck is located roughly 1,000 miles northwest of Honolulu in Hawaii.
Footage shows the remains of the 809-foot-long aircraft carrier – known to host about 2,200 personnel and 90 aircraft.
Right beside the shipwreck, near the carrier’s elevator three, sits the vintage classic – upright.
Its distinct boxy, upright shape, canvas top, chrome bumper and spare tire on the back are visible – in spite of over 80 years of decaying.
A closer look through the camera revealed flared wheel arches, traces of a fabric roof, chrome detailing, rectangular rear windows, parking lights above the headlights and a split windshield, researchers said.
“Why is there a car on this boat?”; a researcher can be heard saying on a live-stream of the expedition,the Miami Herald reported.
It is unclear why the car was on board the Yorktown.
One theory is that the car was parked on the deck of the USS Yorktown while the ship was docked at Pearl Harbor for emergency repairs after the Battle of the Coral Sea.
Historians have also guessed that it could have been the car of someone important, like Rear Admiral Frank Fletcher, who was the operational task force commander at the battles of the Coral Sea and Midway.
NOAA Ocean Exploration suspects the car is a “1940-41 Ford Super Deluxe ‘Woody’ in black.”;
“It has a license plate on the front that can be partially read saying ’SHIP SERVICE’ at the top, but the lower part is illegible due to corrosion,”; NOAA reports.
“Evidently staff of the Ford Super Deluxe model were common with the Navy and Army ashore; however, as of yet, they haven’t been able to find a ‘Woody’ in service for staff officers, so that is potentially unique for this ship.”
The front plate of the car was discovered in the hangar of USS Yorktown during the seventh dive of the PapahÄnaumokuÄkea ROV and Mapping expedition on April 20.
This has led historians to suspect that it may have been there for transportation or repairs during the ship’s time in port.
The expedition by NOAA Ocean Exploration is said to be the first time cameras were sent inside the wreck.
