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The U.S. Navy Is Having a Hell of a Time Dismantling the USS Enterprise
Popular Mechanics ^ | 8/9/18 | Kyle Mizokami

Posted on 08/16/2018 10:52:50 AM PDT by Rebelbase

Nobody has ever disposed of a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier before. Turns out it's not easy.

Six years after decommissioning USS Enterprise, the world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the U.S. Navy is still figuring out how to safely dismantle the ship. The General Accounting Office estimates the cost of taking apart the vessel and sending the reactors to a nuclear waste storage facility at up to $1.5 billion, or about one-eighth the cost of a brand-new aircraft carrier.

[snip] Now, according to a new General Accounting Office report (PDF), the Navy has two options. The first is to have the Navy manage the job but let the commercial industry do the non-nuclear work. The Navy would allow industry to scrap the non-nuclear parts of the ship but preserve a 27,000-ton propulsion space containing the reactors. The propulsion space would then be transported to Puget Sound Naval Base, where the reactors would be removed and sent to Hanford. This is the most expensive option, costing a minimum of $1.05 billion up to $1.55 billion and taking 10 years to complete, starting in 2034.

The second option: let commercial industry do everything, with a reactor storage location to be determined. This would cost $750 million to $1.4 billion and would take 5 years to complete, starting in 2024. In either event, most of the ship gets turned into razor blades and flatware. (By comparison, a squadron of 10 F-35C Joint Strike Fighters costs $1.22 billion, and a brand new Burke-class guided missile destroyer costs $1.7 billion.)

(Excerpt) Read more at popularmechanics.com ...


TOPICS: Extended News; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: usnavy; ussenterprise
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Tear out the propulsion unit and make the rest of her a reef.
1 posted on 08/16/2018 10:52:50 AM PDT by Rebelbase
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To: Rebelbase

Admiral Kirk did it in sixty seconds.....MARK!


2 posted on 08/16/2018 10:53:49 AM PDT by RandallFlagg (They all get down, and arm up. Ready to take down tyrrany. The magnificient Seven.)
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To: Rebelbase

It’s cheaper to keep her...


3 posted on 08/16/2018 10:55:14 AM PDT by Pocketdoor
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To: Rebelbase

Meh. Just nuke it ‘till it glows. Is’nt that Bikini Atoll still around?


4 posted on 08/16/2018 10:55:59 AM PDT by cuban leaf (The US will not survive the obama presidency. The world may not either.)
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To: Rebelbase

Turn it into a bed and breakfast and anchor it at Cape Cod.


5 posted on 08/16/2018 10:58:26 AM PDT by NormsRevenge (Semper Fi - Monthly Donors Rock!!!)
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To: Rebelbase

*cough* Marianas trench *cough* *cough*


6 posted on 08/16/2018 10:59:04 AM PDT by BBQToadRibs
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To: Rebelbase

Why don’t they just tow it to Murmansk and beach it?


7 posted on 08/16/2018 10:59:06 AM PDT by SeeSharp
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To: Rebelbase

Park it off of Los Angeles. Instant homeless community and $1.5 billion to lavish them.


8 posted on 08/16/2018 11:00:51 AM PDT by Lurkina.n.Learnin (Wisdom and education are different things. Don't confuse them.)
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To: Lurkina.n.Learnin

What aboutthe lead paint?


9 posted on 08/16/2018 11:01:22 AM PDT by bert ((K.E. N.P. N.C. +12) Sanctuary is Sedition)
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To: Rebelbase

Maybe she could be repurposed.

The big thing now in cruising is extreme sports.

Climbing walls.....rope courses.....wind tunnel flying.....botulism....

Imagine putting seats on the catapults and shooting teenagers into the sea!

I’d pay good money to watch this!


10 posted on 08/16/2018 11:02:06 AM PDT by blueunicorn6 ("A crack shot and a good dancer")
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To: bert

The meth counteracts that.


11 posted on 08/16/2018 11:02:40 AM PDT by Lurkina.n.Learnin (Wisdom and education are different things. Don't confuse them.)
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To: Rebelbase

Sell it to the Chinese for $10 billion as part of trade deficit negotiations. Then use the money for us to build a new one. They already got our secrets (thanks to dems), and it’s old tech. If scrapped, it would end up as Chinese cars. If sold to them, it’s their problem to clean it up (cheaper by them as they don’t care about environmental and safety concerns).


12 posted on 08/16/2018 11:03:53 AM PDT by roadcat
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To: Rebelbase

I'll bet these guys could do it for a lot less.

13 posted on 08/16/2018 11:05:11 AM PDT by CodeJockey (Trump... The exorcist of Cultural Marxism)
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To: Rebelbase
Decommissioning ships takes money, which is why so many were left to float and rot after WWII, which only served to stretch the expense out. You obviously can't do that when nuclear power plants are involved. This is a good thing to keep in mind when proggies demand that we "slash" defense spending by cutting the number of carrier battle groups. It won't be cheap to "save" all that money.

Large-ticket items such as aircraft carriers are (very roughly) thirty-year investments, with construction costs, operating and maintenance costs, and shutdown costs all a necessary part of the overall project. If this wasn't budgeted in from the beginning, somebody was cheating.

14 posted on 08/16/2018 11:05:45 AM PDT by Billthedrill
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To: Rebelbase

Ultimately, according to the GAO, it may take Congress to make a decision.


from the article.


15 posted on 08/16/2018 11:07:10 AM PDT by PeterPrinciple (Thinking Caps are no longer being issued but there must be a warehouse full of them somewhere.)
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To: Rebelbase

I read somewhere that the construction method of a carrier, making it hard to sink, is a trade secret.


16 posted on 08/16/2018 11:07:10 AM PDT by JohnnyP (Thinking is hard work (I stole that from Rush).)
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To: RandallFlagg

[Admiral Kirk did it in sixty seconds.....MARK!]

“Code zero zero zero. Destruct. Zero.”


17 posted on 08/16/2018 11:07:50 AM PDT by ObozoMustGo2012 ("Be quiet... you are #fakenews!")
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To: blueunicorn6

Let the Indian ship breakers have her. They will beach her and attack with a horde of workers armed with hammers and cutting torches. She’ll be gone in a month or two.


18 posted on 08/16/2018 11:07:54 AM PDT by Taylor42 (Autism - the ignored epidemic)
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To: Billthedrill

If this wasn’t budgeted in from the beginning, somebody was cheating.


The budgeting happened how long ago...…………………..


19 posted on 08/16/2018 11:08:29 AM PDT by PeterPrinciple (Thinking Caps are no longer being issued but there must be a warehouse full of them somewhere.)
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To: NormsRevenge

Turn her into a time-out resort for deranged Liberals.


20 posted on 08/16/2018 11:08:32 AM PDT by ExTexasRedhead
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