Undersea explorer Tim Taylor and his team at the Lost 52 Project announced that they had located the long-lost submarine about 1,427 feet underwater off Okinawa, Japan. In 2018, researcher Yutaka Iwasaki found that the Navy had originally made an error in translating the Japanese war records that detailed where the Grayback had likely sunk. All this time, the Navy's historical records had listed an incorrect site of the submarine.
With the help of autonomous underwater vehicles, remotely operated vehicles and advanced imaging technology, the team discovered the Grayback about 100 miles from the area where it was originally thought to have gone down. The discovery was officially confirmed by the Navy.
On January 28, 1944, the Grayback set sail from Pearl Harbor for the East China Sea. About a month later, the submarine reported sinking two Japanese ships on February 19. Though the Grayback was scheduled to arrive in Midway on March 7, more than three weeks passed with the submarine out of sight. And on March 30,1944, the Grayback, one of the most successful submarines of World War Ⅱ, was reported lost.
Gloria Hurney, whose uncle Raymond Parks died on the Grayback, said that she wasn't sure that the Grayback would ever be recovered. So when she first learned of the discovery, she felt a mixture of shock, disbelief and sadness. Eventually, though, those feelings turned into relief, comfort and peace. Hurney said in a statement, "I believe it will allow healing as relatives of crew members come together to share their stories. " Neyland, a Navy officer, said in a statement, "Each discovery of a sunken craft is an opportunity to remember and honor the service of our sailors. "
