This is a partial list of shipwrecks which occurred in the Indian Ocean. The list includes ships that sank, foundered, grounded, or were otherwise lost. The Indian Ocean is here defined in its widest sense, including its marginal seas: the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal, the Great Australian Bight, the Mozambique Channel, the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea, the Strait of Malacca, and the Timor Sea.
Arabian Sea Ship Flag Sunk date Notes Coordinates 9 June 1897 A P&O steamship that was wrecked on the island of Socotra off the coast of Yemen.2 January 1944A Liberty ship torpedoed off the Arabian Peninsula by the Japanese submarine . 6 September 1920A cargo ship that was wrecked near the Khuriya Muriya Islands. 22 February 1944A tanker that was torpedoed by . 19 May 1932 An ocean liner that caught fire and sank near Mukalla, Yemen.19 March 1944A Liberty ship carrying mail and a variety of cargo that was torpedoed by . 28 August 1944A Liberty ship that was torpedoed by the German submarine off the coast of Oman.Kadakkarapally BoatUnknown11–12th centuryA wreck that was discovered in a coconut grove near Kadakkarappally, Kerala, that dates from around 1020–1160 AD. PNS Khaibar4 December 1971A that was sunk by he Indian Navy missile boat south of Karachi, Pakistan. 9 December 1971A that was torpedoed by the Pakistan Navy submarine off Diu, India. 17 June 2013A container ship that broke apart in bad weather on 17 June 2013. The stern section took on water and sank on 26 June; the bow was taken under tow, but caught fire and sank on 11 July., Montanan3 June 1943A cargo ship that was torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine south of Masirah Island, Oman.7 March 1944A merchant ship carrying cargo, mail and soldiers from Australia and New Zealand that was torpedoed by .
Bay of Bengal Ship Flag Sunk date Notes Coordinates 11 November 1940A refrigerated cargo ship sunk by the German auxiliary cruiser northwest of Sumatra. 7 June 1991 The cargo ship, a 15-year-old vessel, sank east of Sri Lanka. Water began flooding the cargo holds on 6 June. The cargo included ferro silicum and a new Chinese steam locomotive bound for the United States. All 17 crewmen were rescued.14 December 1943A cargo ship that was torpedoed by Japanese Navy submarine . 9 April 1942The world's first purpose-built aircraft carrier, sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft about northwest of Batticaloa, Ceylon. 4 December 1971A that sank in unknown circumstances off Visakhapatnam, during the Indo-Pakistani War. 10 September 1914A steamship captured and scuttled by the Imperial German Navy light cruiser . 11 February 1944A sunk by the Royal Indian Navy sloop and the Royal Australian Navy corvettes and northeast of Madras, India. 7 April 1942A cargo ship sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft about off from Vizagapatam (now Vishakhapatnam), India. 9 April 1942A V-class destroyer sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft off the coast of Ceylon.
Central Indian Ocean Ship Flag Sunk date Notes Coordinates Dutch East India Company12 February 1662An East Indiaman that ran aground on the Saint Brandon Rocks.20 August 1944A merchant ship that was torpedoed by . 22 February 1944A cargo ship that was sunk by a Japanese submarine. 23 October 1942A merchant steamer that was torpedoed by off East London, South Africa. 12 August 1943A cargo steamship that was torpedoed by U-181 off Madagascar. 9 September 1940A passenger ship that was sunk by the .21 September 1943A Liberty ship that was carrying 2,910 tons of steel and 300 tons of gum arabic that was sunk by .5 April 1942A heavy cruiser that was sunk by Japanese dive bombers in the Easter Sunday Raid.IRIS Dina4 March 2026An frigate that was sunk by a torpedo by a US submarine off the coast of Sri Lanka during the 2026 Iran War of the coast of Sri Lanka. It was the first ship sunk by a torpedo of an American vessel since the end of World War 2.5 April 1942A heavy cruiser that was sunk by Japanese dive bombers in the Easter Sunday Raid. 17 October 1942A cargo ship that was torpedoed by about south of Cape Town, South Africa. 7 August 1944A cargo ship that was torpedoed by about east of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. 2 November 1944A T2 tanker that was torpedoed by .19 September 1943A North Sands-class cargo ship that was torpedoed by . 57 out of the 57 onboard died in the sinking with two crew members surviving after being at sea for 143 days before coming ashore to Sumatra where they were taken prisoner by the Japanese. 27 September 1957A cargo ship that ran aground east of East London, Eastern Cape, Africa.2 July 1943A passenger ship that was torpedoed by . 12 February 1944A Type B1 submarine sunk by the British destroyers and . 17 January 1942A Kaidai 3B-type submarine sunk by the British destroyer south of the Sunda Strait. 8 March 1943A Liberty ship that was torpedoed by about northeast of Durban, South Africa. 12 February 1944A steamship that was torpedoed by , with 1,297 deaths. 5 October 1881An ocean liner that sprang a leak and sank east of the Seychelles. 19 November 1941A merchant raider that sank off Western Australia near Carnarvon due to damage sustained in combat with the Australian light cruiser . 27 February 1942A seaplane tender scuttled south of Tjilatjap, Java, after sustaining damage in an attack by Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft. 31 July 1898A unprotected cruiser wrecked during a storm on the coast of Madagascar at Anosy. 24 August 1810A that ran aground off Mauritius in the Battle of Grand Port. 4 March 1943A cargo ship that was torpedoed by . 8 May 1942A sunk by the Royal Navy destroyers and off Diego-Suarez, Madagascar, during the Battle of Madagascar. 4 August 1991A cruise ship that sank off Coffee Bay, South Africa. 1 March 1942A sunk by Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft south of Java. 20 September 1914A protected cruiser that sank in the harbor at Zanzibar due to damage sustained earlier in the day in combat with the Imperial German Navy light cruiser during the Battle of Zanzibar. 8 May 1941An auxiliary cruiser that was sunk by . 3 October 1952A obliterated in the Monte Bello Islands off Western Australia by the detonation of an atomic bomb within her hull in Operation Hurricane, a British nuclear test. 27 February 1941An auxiliary cruiser that was sunk by in the action of 27 February 1941.9 July 1943A Liberty ship that was torpedoed by . Originally it was believed that it was sunk by a Japanese surface raider. There would be no survivors of the ship from the sinking. 23 August 1810A frigate that ran aground off Mauritius in the Battle of Grand Port. 19 November 1941A light cruiser that sank off Western Australia near Carnarvon due to damage sustained in combat with the German merchant raider . Texanita21 August 1972An oil tanker that collided with Oswego-Guardian off Stilbaai, South Africa. 26 March 1944A cargo ship that was torpedoed by . Royal Indian Marine14 January 1897A troopship that hit a rock and was wrecked off Réunion.
Christmas Island Ship Flag Sunk date Notes Coordinates 20 January 1942A motor vessel torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine at Flying Fish Cove. Janga ("SIEV-221")15 December 2010A fishing boat that hit the rocks at Flying Fish Cove while carrying asylum seekers from Iraq and Iran. 8 January 2012A cargo ship wrecked at Flying Fish Cove.
Cocos (Keeling) Islands Ship Flag Sunk date Notes Coordinates 9 November 1914A collier scuttled while under attack by the Royal Australian Navy light cruiser in the Battle of Cocos. 9 November 1914A light cruiser run aground and wrecked while under attack by the Royal Australian Navy light cruiser during the Battle of Cocos.
Great Australian Bight Ship Flag Sunk date Notes Coordinates Mahomed ShahApril 1853A barque that caught fire on 18 April 1853 and sank several days later. All on board were rescued. 29 March 1929A cargo ship that collided with the steamship southwest of Cape Otway, Victoria, Australia.
Mozambique Channel Ship Flag Sunk date Notes Coordinates 20 June 1817An East Indiaman wrecked on a coral reef. 5 May 1942A sunk by Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm aircraft west of Cap d'Ambre, Madagascar, during the Battle of Madagascar.4 July 1943A merchant ship that was sunk by . 6 August 1944A cargo ship torpedoed by the German submarine off Mocímboa da Praia, Mozambique. 30 June 1942A Type C3-E cargo ship torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine . 7 May 1942A sunk by Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm aircraft off Courrier Bay, Madagascar, during the Battle of Madagascar.11 July 1943A steam merchant ship torpedoed by .14 July 1943A Liberty ship torpedoed by the German submarine .
Persian Gulf Ship Flag Sunk date Notes CoordinatesIran Ajr26 September 1987A landing craft that served as a minelayer during the Iran–Iraq War, captured and scuttled by United States Navy forces.U-53316 October 1943A Type IXC/40 U-boat sunk by British aircraft off Fujairah.
Red Sea Ship Flag Sunk date Notes CoordinatesAida15 September 1957A French-built (1911) lighthouse tender of Egypt's Ports and Lighthouses Administration, driven onto the reef at Big Brother Island in heavy seas on 15 September 1957 while resupplying the island station; all aboard were rescued.6 April 2006A capsized passenger ferry.3 February 2006Capsized passenger ferry. 15 September 1869Ran aground on a coral reef on 12 September, broke in half and sank three days later. 31 people drowned.Chrisoula K31 August 1981A cargo ship that ran aground on a reef.22 April 1876A merchant ship that hit a reef and sank in the Gulf of Suez, close to the Sinai Peninsula.6 February 1970A (pennant 302) sunk by Israeli Air Force aircraft at the Hurghada anchorage during the War of Attrition, in reprisal for an Egyptian frogman attack on Eilat harbour the previous night. Now a recreational dive site, commonly called the "El Mina wreck".19 April 1983A cargo ship that sank with its cargo of timber at Sha'ab Abu Nuhas, north of Hurghada.4 April 1941A torpedo boat sunk in port at Massawa by British aircraft.12 December 1978A cargo ship which sank on at Sha'ab Abu Nuhas, north of Hurghada, when she ran into the reef of Abu Nuhas.15 June 1940A that was scuttled southeast of Port Sudan after the crew became "incapacitated" because of fumes leaking out of the submarine's air conditioning system. 6 April 1941A merchant-passenger ship that was scuttled at Nakura on Dalac Island off Eritrea.Numidia20 July 1901A British Anchor Line cargo steamer wrecked on the reef at Big Brother Island on 20 July 1901 while carrying railway stock from Liverpool to Calcutta; all 97 crew were saved. October 1941A cargo ship bombed two days after the supply ship Thistlegorm—– anchored some away off the Sinai Peninsula — was sunk. She rests north of Hurghada, north of the reefs of Abu Nuhas, in some of water. 17 December 1991The passenger ship ran into a shallow reef and sank south of Hurghada, after the captain took a shortcut on his trip from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to Safaga, Egypt.5 September 1941A cargo ship that was sunk by a German plane.6 October 1941A cargo ship sunk by German bombers near Sharm el-Sheikh.9 June 1940A cargo ship scuttled by her crew near Port Sudan.8 April 1941A torpedo boat scuttled in the harbor entrance at Massawa.22 August 1984Commonly referred to as Kormoran, a cargo ship that sailed from Aqaba with a cargo of phosphate rock and hit Laguna Reef in the Straits of Tiran.
Strait of Malacca