El Mina is the wreck of an Egyptian Navy minesweeper (originally a Soviet T-43 class, ~58 m length) sunk by Israeli aircraft during the War of Attrition on 16 May 1970. She lies upright on the sandy bottom at 30 metres in the Hurghada harbour approach, 30 minutes by boat from the marina. The closest wreck to the city, with the upper structure at 18 m and the deck and bridge readable from the outside. We don't penetrate · the war-grave context applies.
- Depth
- 18-30 m
- Visibility
- 10–20 m
- Season
- Apr - Nov
- Boat ride
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- Advanced
Topography and dive profile
Upright on sand, bow pointing roughly south. Length 58 m, beam 8 m. Deck at 22-24 m, bridge tower at 18-20 m, masts at 18 m. The hull is largely intact with characteristic minesweeper sweep gear visible at the stern. Glassfish swarm inside the bridge superstructure (visible from outside through the open hatches). Resident giant lionfish on every railing.
Visibility is variable · the harbour-approach location means silt and runoff can drop it to 8-10 m on bad days. Best in summer when visibility runs 15-20 m. We dive her on calm days when visibility is decent; otherwise we substitute a reef site.
What you'll see
- ◇Glassfish in the bridge
- ◇Big lionfish
- ◇Octopus
- ◇Crocodile fish on deck
Who it suits
PADI Advanced Open Water minimum. Open Water divers can do the upper deck (18-22 m) but the wreck's depth profile and the variable visibility argue for AOW comfort. Wreck Diver specialty divers can request a survey-only dive (no penetration) if interested.
When the captain runs this site
El Mina is one of the closer wreck options the captain may pick on a daily-dive day when visibility is decent (we don't run it if the forecast is under 10 m). Often paired with a Giftun reef site as the shallower second dive of the day. Daily-dive bookings go through the daily diving page · the captain confirms the morning of.