For a long time, unwanted ships have been destined for shipbreakers’ yards. However, this activity is now considered potentially harmful to the environment if carried out in the old-fashioned way, and too expensive if performed in an environmentally and politically acceptable way. One possible solution for the US Navy is therefore to sink old ships in order for them to serve as an underwater reef and a home for aquatic creatures.

Indeed, it is proposed to sink the former USS Oriskany aircraft carrier this summer off the coast of Florida. All hatches and doors will be removed, and explosives will breach the hull of the 32 000-tonne vessel to allow it to sink in 212 feet of water some 40 kilometres off the US coast at Pensacola.

The Oriskany was built in 1950 and retired in 1975; held in reserve before being sent to shipbreakers in 1995, the company that was supposed to dismantle the carrier backed out of the deal two years later and the vessel has remained tied up until now. If no untoward complications emerge, it is possible that more decommissioned US warships will receive the same treatment.