Found this article online and thought it interesting. A shame we're getting rid of these fine work horse ships.
The Navy plans to sink 15 decommissioned ships and scrap an additional 24 in the next five years, according to the latest shipbuilding plan.
In fiscal 2009, the Navy will sink the Yellowstone-class destroyer Acadia, the Spruance-class destroyer Conolly and the acoustic research ship Hayes. The Hayes is still active and will be decommissioned sometime this year, according to the Navy. The service requested $5.4 million to sink the three ships in the fiscal 2009 budget presented to Congress in early February.
Two ships in the current plan are slated to sink and become artificial reefs, the plan notes: the Spruance-class destroyer Arthur W. Radford, which rests in Philadelphia, and the auxiliary aircraft landing training ship and former carrier Forrestal, currently berthed in Newport, R.I. Specific sink dates have not been set for these two ships because plans must be coordinated with Congress and other government agencies, the plan states.
The Radford was named after the first Navy admiral to hold the position of chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and was decommissioned in March 2003 after about 26 years in service. The Forrestal spent 38 years in service. The ship was the first of its class of aircraft carriers, and was known unofficially as the
Topic: US NAVY PLANS TO SINK MORE DECOMMISSIONED SHIPS (Read 3825 times)