We did two dives on the P29, one with Sergey and a group of Russian divers, and one with Publio and two Maltese divers (Stephanie and Joseph) who now live in Ipswich, where the water pressure is apparently quite good!
The visibility we experienced during the four dives (the other two were on the Rozi) we did at Cirkewwa was the best of all the locations we dived around Malta, showing off the wrecks there to their best advantage. The light penetrates sufficiently that posodonia grows right down to 30 metres.
The hatches and doors on the vessel were removed before it was scuttled, and penetration of the wreck is possible. We did not go into any overhead environments, but dropped down into one of the holds which is open to the sea (and as cold as a refrigerator). We also stuck our heads into lots of dark places!
The P29 is not actually that large (53 metres long, 7 metres wide), but somehow seems quite imposing as it stands on the sand. Its relatively small size meant that we could explore it entirely in a single dive. When we took a tour of the Grand Harbour in Valetta, we were able to see some of the other patrol boats that the Maltese Armed Forces use to police their territorial waters.
Dive date: 6 August 2011
Air temperature: 31 degrees
Water temperature: 19 degrees
Maximum depth: 30.5 metres
Visibility: 30 metres
Dive duration: 50 minutes
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