The Bonhomme Richard, commanded by John Paul Jones, sank somewhere off Flamborough head after winning a sea battle against the British warship, the Seraphis, in 1779. For decades historians have argued over the exact location of the wreck. But now, the US Navy has joined forces with scientists and other experts, to pinpoint the precise position of the wreck on the seabed. | "We know it's somewhere off the Flamborough Head area but the exact spot is yet to be determined." | | Dr. Bob Nieland, US Navy archaeologist |
Dr. Bob Nieland is the US Navy's leading archaeologist, he explained why they are so keen to find the old warship. "John Paul Jones, the captain of Bonhomme Richard, used to be referred to as the father of the US Navy. "He was certainly one of the most prominent figures in the US Navy's history and his body lies in the crypt at the Naval Academy. So this is probably the most important wreck to the US Navy." Navy officials and scientists will arrive in Bridlington in June 2006 and will spend six weeks scanning the seabed for signs of the Bonhomme Richard. "We know it's somewhere off the Flamborough Head area but the exact spot is yet to be determined." Said Dr. Bob Nieland. "The technology for surveying shipwrecks and finding them is advancing very rapidly. We hear of new shipwrecks being found almost weekly.  | | The US Navy are confident in pinpointing the wreck |
"Basically, we will use state of the art technology, marine magnetometer, new types of sonar beams and survey the most promising area with the highest probability. "The first phase would be to survey an area and analyse the information and compare it to any wrecks that we find. An 18th century shipwreck, magnetically and with the sonar imagery, should look a lot different from a WW2 sunken vessel." added the doctor. If the wreck is found, items could be recovered from it and taken to the US Naval academy in Maryland. Retired US Navy captain Jack Ringelberg, who will lead the expedition, said he is confident that they will find the wreck ending years of speculation over where it actually lies. "We've probably put the best team together in this area and as far as their ability is concerned, I'm very confident and optimistic that they will find something." | 
