The Bismarck plaque is laid

Rob White reports

Late yesterday evening, after a successful day's filming, we brought our ROV - Remotely Operated Vehicle - back to the surface for some maintenance.

The intense pressure at 4000 metres, following some 16 hours deep in the ocean, had taken its toll on one of her systems.

The Plaque on deck

The Oceaneering Technologies team worked flat out to put her right, and she was soon back in the water today.

And she had an important task to fulfil. Months back, Search Director David Mearns had two plaques made - to commemorate those who lost their lives in the sinking of both the 'Hood' and the 'Bismarck'.

Cast from bronze, the plaques are identical and designed to be laid at an appropriate place at each wreck site.

It was important to include Rolls of Honour on the plaques. That called for a special solution - because any memorial large enough to display a full list of the names of those who died would be far too large for any ROV to carry.

Laid on the superstructure

So, instead, a formal copy of the Roll of Honour for each ship was recorded onto a CD. This was then sealed in a clear, pressure-resistant casing on the front of each plaque.

We laid the plaque at what we feel will be an especially appropriate place for the veterans and their families - directly onto the wreckage of the superstructure where their highly respected Captain, Ernst Lindemann, led his crew into their final action against the Royal Navy.

More picture of the Bismarck are available in the gallery section.