Fishermen recover US tracking gadget in Zambales waters

SUBIC, Zambales—Fishermen in this town recently found an oceanographic instrument believed to be owned by the United States Navy, according to a belated report.

The object bore the markings, “Naval Oceanographic Office USA,” and weighs about 40 kilograms, said fisherman Romy Abastillas, 54.

Abastillas said he and six other fishermen spotted the object, an electric glider, floating in the water on Feb.14 while he was fishing about 80 nautical miles from the disputed Scarborough Shoal (also known as Panatag Shoal).

The fishermen arrived here on Saturday (Feb. 20) after weeks of fishing in the open sea.

They turned over the object, about 1 foot in length and 10 inches in diameter, to the local police station here on Saturday afternoon.

The telephone number and e-mail address of US Naval Oceanographic Office were etched on one side of the object.

The glider also bore the name of the company, Teledyne Webb Research, that manufactures such instrument.

According to the website webbresearch.com, Slocum gliders are used for “subsurface sampling.”

It further describes the object as “carrying a wide variety of sensors.” The site says the glider would be “programmed to patrol for weeks at a time, surfacing to transmit their data to shore while downloading new instructions at regular intervals, realizing a substantial cost savings compared to traditional surface ships.”