On the 10th June 2019, PADI Vice President Mark Spiers, Territory Director Jonas Samuelsson and marketing consultant Cathy Evans were invited to attend a Press Conference for the scuttling of a 747 in Bahrain. The Press Conference took place on the banks of a lagoon in Amwaj, where the plane was slowly being lowered into water in the background.
Presented by HE Dr. Mohammed Mubarak bin Daina, Chief Executive Officer of the Supreme Council for Environment, HE Zayed bin Rashid Al Zayani, Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism and Mr Hasan Janahi, an avid Bahraini diver and representative of the local diving community. The conference was held in both Arabic and English.
The main take-away points from the conference were:
- The scuttling of the 747 is part of a larger project; an underwater theme park, covering 100,000 square meters approximately 30 km to the North of Amwaj. The 747 will be the central attraction and the park will also include smaller boats, a sculpture garden, reef balls and a replica of a traditional pearl merchant’s house.
- Environmental impact. The whole project has been conducted considering the environment. The plane wreck and other attractions will provide shelter for fish and marine life, and promote the importance of conservation in the region. The plane itself has been subject to a rigorous decontamination process, which has lasted several months.
- Tourism and heritage. Bahrain has deep roots with diving, one of the oldest industries in the region is pearl fishing, so this project is working to reconnect the region with its traditional heritage. It was also announced that, in conjunction with Air Gulf, Bahrain’s national airline new direct flights will be happening between the Maldives and Egypt, further highlighting this as a dive travel destination.
Jonas took to the PADI Facebook page with a live interview with Hamad Almahmeed, DiveBahrain Project Lead, discussing the project in more detail. Check out the live below to find out more information about this exciting project:
PADI are proud to have been supporting DiveBahrain on this project, and we are excited for the future plans for this area, which will include a site specific PADI Distinctive specialty course.
‘We are really pleased to be associated with this project from the Bahraini government and applaud their commitment to protecting the marine environment and promoting scuba diving, to create a unique opportunity to explore the underwater world.’ Mark Spiers, PADI Vice President of Training and Field Services, Europe, Middle East and Africa
