PEARL HARBOR, Oahu, Hawaii -- U.S. Navy divers and their counterparts from Japan got a sense Wednesday of what they'll face during the planned search of a Japanese fishing vessel sunk by a U.S. submarine.

Divers tested out dry suits that they will be wearing for the operation that's expected to begin late this month or early September.

The Navy has contracted with private firms to move the Ehime Maru from the 2,000-foot-deep waters where it now rests to shallower waters off Honolulu International Airport. Once there, divers will be allowed to safely search for the remains of nine men and teenage boys who were killed when the vessel was sunk by the USS Greeneville on Feb. 9.

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In drills at Pearl Harbor, divers submerged 35 feet in the dry suits and helmets that tether them to support crews above, with some of them practicing underwater cutting and welding.

"It's been unlike anything I've been involved with in my 22 years (in the Navy)," Chief Warrant Officer George Primavera said. "I can tell you, by far, it's been one of the most professional operations I've ever had the pleasure of being involved in."