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The first divers to inspect a A World War One German U-boat off the coast of Shetland, a group of islands between Scotland and Norway, say it's "in remarkably good condition".

The SM UC-55 submarine was sunk by the British Royal Navy in 1917.

The U-boat had been laying mines in the area before being forced to surface due to a technical fault.

The wreck site had been known about since the mid-1980s when scanning equipment picked it up, but Hazel Weaver, the organiser behind the dive, said that 10 years of planning had gone into the dive.

U-boats were used by Germany in both world wars, inflicting a heavy toll on merchant ships and military vessels.

Despite their prevalence, only four remain intact today, while many, such as the SM UC-55, lie on the ocean floor.

(Photo shows picture of torpedo in world war one German submarine off the Shetland Islands. Credit Jacob Mackenzie from Thomas Guy Sub Aqua Club)