Decommissioned aircraft carrier to be sunk as artificial reef off Florida

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April 05, 2004

Decommissioned aircraft carrier to be sunk as artificial reef off Florida

By Christopher Munsey
Times staff writer


Navy officials announced Monday that the decommissioned aircraft carrier Oriskany will be transferred to the state of Florida for sinking this summer as an artificial reef in the Gulf of Mexico off Pensacola.

Florida’s proposal was selected by Naval Sea Systems Command from four different offers made by five states last year, said NavSea spokeswoman Pat Dolan.

The Pensacola proposal calls for sinking Oriskany in 212 feet of water more than 22 nautical miles from shore, with its island superstructure intact, as a fishing reef for charter boats and recreational diving attraction, a Florida environmental official said.

Oriskany is currently undergoing environmental cleaning at a facility in Corpus Christi, Texas, as part of a $2.2 million Navy contract, to clean remove heavy metals, fuel oil and other toxic materials.

Last year, the Navy was granted authority to transfer decommissioned ships to states for sinking as artificial reefs as part of the 2004 National Defense Authorization Act. Navy officials have identified 24 decommissioned Navy ships available for reefing, including the aircraft carriers Forrestal, Independence and Constellation, Dolan said.