Jakarta: A team of Indonesian and Australian divers has made the shocking discovery that 60 per cent of World War II shipwreck HMAS Perth has vanished, with evidence of large-scale illegal salvaging for scrap metal at the site off the coast of Java.

"This isn't what we were hoping to find," said Australian National Maritime Museum director Kevin Sumption.

"It is with profound regret we advise that our joint maritime archaeologist diving team has discovered sections of the Perth missing."

Mr Sumption said interim reports after a research dive conducted on May 14 to 17 and an earlier remote sensing survey indicated only about 40 per cent of HMAS Perth remained.