SS President Coolidge

The SS President Coolidge wreck on Espiritu Santo is among the greatest diving experiences in the world — a 199-meter luxury liner turned troop transport that sank in October 1942 after striking American defensive mines in the harbor of Luganville, and now rests in 21 to 60 meters of crystal-clear tropical water in one of the most accessible and extraordinary dive environments on Earth. Dives to the deeper stern sections of the Coolidge — down to the maximum depth of 60 meters — enter the realm of technical diving where decompression obligations become significant and gas management is critical, requiring technical certification and appropriate equipment. At these depths the ship's scale becomes truly imposing: the hull rises above the diver like a steel cliff face, the propellers visible at depth on the stern section, and the overwhelming size of the vessel creates an almost architectural experience of being inside an enormous underwater building. The deeper sections of the ship reveal different artifacts and compartments than the shallower areas: engine room access, deep holds, and the mechanical spaces of a major ocean liner are accessible to technically prepared divers with appropriate guide support from Luganville's specialized operators. The marine life throughout the Coolidge is superb regardless of depth section: soft corals and sea fans colonize the exterior hull, nudibranchs work the encrusted surfaces, large coral trout occupy stable positions near hatches and openings, and the schooling fusiliers and chromis that fill the water column above the wreck create a living frame for the vast steel structure below. The SS President Coolidge is justifiably considered one of the world's great wreck dives at any accessible depth.