In 2019, Jordan sank a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar in waters up to 92 feet deep; three years later, its fuselage and wings sheltered corals, sponges, octopuses and pufferfish

A jet is a strange sight on the ocean floor, but that's precisely where one can be found off the coast of Aqaba, Jordan, and in the Red Sea, where it has transformed into something close to a coral garden. According to this NOAA overview of artificial reefs, submerged structures such as shipwrecks commonly become new homes for corals, sponges, and fish once they settle on the ocean floor. The Jordanian TriStar shows the same process on an unusual structure: a retired passenger jet serving as a substitute for a ship.

Why would Jordan sink a passenger jet?

The Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) intentionally sank the TriStar on August 26, 2019, near the Aqaba Underwater Military Museum diving site. The aircraft sat unused at King Hussein International Airport for years before ASEZA purchased it. Before it went under, they removed hazardous materials such as fuel residue and wiring, which is a standard step for any vessel or aircraft intended as an artificial reef. The plane now rests at depths of about 50 to 92 feet, with the cockpit closer to the surface and the tail lying deepest. This range places most of the wreck within reach of recreational divers, not just technical divers. It is one reason it attracted attention from underwater photographers soon after it sank.


What moved in once the plane settled on the seabed

Three years after the TriStar aircraft hit the sand, the transformation had already taken place. Sponges and small corals had already started attaching themselves to the plane's fuselage and wings, while the structure itself attracted the reef fish, octopuses, and puffer fish seeking shelter. This scenario is completely normal for marine life. According to research by NOAA's National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science on shipwrecks and artificial reefs along the southeastern United States coast, these artificial structures serve as habitats for fish communities and bottom-dwelling creatures, providing shelter comparable to natural rock reefs.

Notably, the area where the TriStar was sunk had no coral reefs before the aircraft was deployed there. The site was covered with sand and patches of seagrass, so the fuselage and wings provided marine animals with hard surfaces to inhabit. These structures can host creatures quickly, unlike the years required for coral reefs to form naturally.

How a sunken plane actually turns into a living reef

Once placed on the seabed, the TriStar's structure created currents around it, triggering plankton blooms almost immediately. Small fish soon began to appear, attracted by the food source. Algae and invertebrates followed, taking root on the aircraft's fuselage. Larger predators soon found their way to the small fish that had shown up. According to a study published in Scientific Reports, "Artificial structures can facilitate rapid coral recovery under climate change," which analyzed data on coral cover over 30 years, building breakwaters can bring coral reef ecosystems considerable benefit. Even under the stress of ocean warming, these reefs can withstand bleaching and sometimes recover if local natural reefs have been damaged. All this applies to the TriStar, creating a rich habitat for wildlife. This artificial reef is not a dead end on the seabed, but a living organism that transforms over time, and every year new species of marine life can find a habitat there.

What divers can actually see today

The TriStar wasn't the first aircraft added to the underwater museum. It is located at Aqaba's Underwater Military Museum, where decommissioned tanks, armored cars, and anti-aircraft guns were displayed to tourists before the jet was downed. The site was joined by a Lockheed C-130 Hercules jet, sunk earlier that year, which has since become home to schools of fish and various coral species. Each addition to the museum gives local divers a new dive site and provides more surfaces for marine life to attach to in an area lacking natural ones, apart from patches of seagrass.

Aqaba's underwater museum keeps expanding

The TriStar wasn't the first aircraft added to the underwater museum. It is located at Aqaba's Underwater Military Museum, where decommissioned tanks, armored cars, and anti-aircraft guns were displayed to tourists before the jet was downed. The hangar flooded after a Lockheed C-130 Hercules jet was sunk earlier that year and has since become home to schools of fish and various coral species. Each addition to the museum gives local divers a new dive site and provides more surfaces for marine life to attach to in an area lacking natural ones, apart from patches of seagrass.

For a country with a small Red Sea coastline, this has proved invaluable to the struggling Jordanian diving industry. According to the Central Intelligence Agency, Jordan has a mere 26 kilometers of coastline along the Gulf of Aqaba. So every addition to the underwater museum provides new opportunities for divers to explore, and for marine life to colonize. Three years after its sinking, the effects of the TriStar's addition to the museum can be seen by any diver who takes a look around. What was once a redundant jet plane on the ground is now a thriving ecosystem, home to many species that would not be present otherwise.