Site Resources & Tools

Site Briefing

Boeing 737 Dive Planning

By Eric Askilsrud With Scuba Jess (Source info as of 06/01/26)

Boeing 737 is a dive site in Nanaimo Area . Decommissioned Boeing 737-200 (the Xihuw) intentionally sunk on January 14, 2006 as an artificial reef by the Artificial Reef Society of British Columbia.

Aircraft sits upright on 11-ft support stands off Chemainus, BC (Vancouver Island / Georgia Strait); fuselage top at ~70 ft, bottom at ~80-90 ft. ~100 ft long fuselage, ~100 ft wingspan; all seats/doors removed for safe swim-through the length of the passenger cabin. 'Xihuw' means 'red sea urchin' in Hul'qumi'num.

Access: Boat access from Chemainus Municipal Wharf; 15-20 minute ride to the site. Charter operators from Nanaimo and Vancouver make this a common day-trip.

Marine life: Roughly 100 species reported inhabiting the wreck -- rockfish, wolf eels, octopus, plumose anemones on the fuselage.

Conditions: Depth of 80-90 ft to the seabed puts most of this at advanced-open-water territory. Viz is variable (10-60 ft depending on current/tide); winter often clearer than summer bloom season.

⚠️ Safety & accuracy

Before diving at Boeing 737, always check the site-specific wind/wave forecast, tide/currents, and recent reports ! Reminder: Winds (even offshore winds) can impact slack time.

Briefings may be out of date or have inaccuracies. Dive within your training and experience. The first time diving a site, join someone familiar with the site and/or start on a mild day.

See our currents, tides, wind, and waves guide for help reading charts and planning current-sensitive dives.

The nearest NOAA or XTide current and tide stations within 25 miles are selected by default when available. NOAA stations show charts here; XTide stations link to Dairiki. Click a pin on the map below to choose another station for current, tide, camera, or buoy data (you may need to zoom in or out).

See an issue? Would you suggest a different default station or depth? Suggest briefing updates.