A US navy destroyer sunk during World War II has been found nearly 7,00m below sea level off the Philippines, making it the world’s deepest shipwreck ever located, an American exploration team said.

The USS Samuel B Roberts went down during a battle off the central island of Samar on Oct 25, 1944 as US forces fought to liberate the Philippines - then a US colony - from Japanese occupation.

A crewed submersible filmed, photographed and surveyed the battered hull of the Sammy B during a series of dives over eight days this month, Texas-based undersea technology company Caladan Oceanic said.

Images showed the ship’s three-tube torpedo launcher and gun mount.

“Resting at 6,895m, it is now the deepest shipwreck ever located and surveyed,” tweeted Caladan Oceanic founder Victor Vescovo, who piloted the submersible on Saturday.

“This small ship took on the finest of the Japanese Navy, fighting them to the end,” he said.

According to US Navy records, Sammy B’s crew “floated for nearly three days awaiting rescue, with many survivors perishing from wounds and shark attacks”. Of the 224 crew, 89 died.

 - AFP