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PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) -- The site of the sunken aircraft carrier USS Oriskany is now open to recreational divers off Pensacola Beach. "The Mighty O," as it's called, was sunk 24 miles off the Florida coastline by the Navy on Wednesday as the world's largest manmade reef. Local diving enthusiasts say it's now among the world's top dive destinations because it's nearly three football fields in length and has a long history as a Korean and Vietnam war battleship. The state officially opened the Oriskany site to recreational divers at one this afternoon. A spokesman for the Florida Fish and...

The ex-Oriskany, a decommissioned aircraft carrier, was sunk 24 miles off the coast of Pensacola, Fla., on May 17 to form an artificial reef. The 888-foot ship took about 37 minutes to sink below the surface. U.S. Navy photos

From Naval Sea Systems Command Public Affairs PENSACOLA, Fla. (NNS) -- The ex-Oriskany, a decommissioned aircraft carrier, became the largest ship intentionally sunk as an artificial reef May 17 when it was sunk approximately 24 miles off the coast of Pensacola, Fla. After 25 years of service to the Navy in operations in Korea, Vietnam and the Mediterranean, ex-Oriskany will now benefit marine life, sport fishing and recreation diving off the coast of the Florida panhandle. The 888-foot ship took about 37 minutes to sink below the surface after strategically placed explosives were detonated at 10:25 a.m. CDT. The Navy...

PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) - Hundreds of Navy veterans who grew to love the famed aircraft carrier USS Oriskany will see their old ship off on her final voyage - a trip to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, where she will become a massive artificial reef. Many, like Boyd Tong of Phoenix, plan to rent boats and watch as the Oriskany is sunk 24 miles off Pensacola Beach on Wednesday morning. "I expect it will be a little emotional," Tong said as a Navy band played "Anchors Aweigh" at Pensacola Naval Air Station tribute for the Oriskany on Saturday...

NAVAL AIR STATION PENSACOLA, Fla. (NNS) -- A pierside press conference was held April 18 aboard Naval Air Station Pensacola to provide details of the final preparations for sinking the decommissioned aircraft carrier ex-Oriskany (CVA 34). With the rusting hulk of Oriskany as a backdrop, Capt. Lawrence Jones, Inactive Ships program manager in charge of the Oriskany project and Resolve Marine’s Vice President Denise Johnston answered questions about the sinking. Resolve-Esco Joint Venture is the contractor for the final work necessary to prep the ship for its ultimate disposition as a reef. This includes pre-ballasting water tanks aboard to get...

Korean War-era ship to be sunk off coast of Florida. The USS Oriskany is scheduled to slip out of the Port of Corpus Christi at first light Monday, headed for Pensacola, Fla., where it will be sunk and made into an artificial reef. The Korean War-era aircraft carrier arrived in January at the port, where it was stripped of hazardous materials in preparation for its sinking. The ship had hundreds of compartments that were filled with oily substances, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and asbestos. The company that stripped the almost 900-foot long ship, Resolve Marine Services of Port Everglades, Fla., initially...

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. ...................................................................................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. Welcome to "Warrior Wednesday" Where the Freeper Foxhole introduces a different...

Navy chooses Pensacola over local site The Korean War-era aircraft carrier that is parked at Texas Docks & Rail will not be sunk off the shores of Corpus Christi, and instead will be sunk off the coast of Pensacola, Fla., Navy officials announced Monday. The fact that the ship is going to Florida also doesn't give Texas an advantage the next time the Navy decides where to sink the 24 other ships that are scheduled to be made into artificial reefs, said Pat Dolan, deputy director for congressional and Navy public affairs. "It will be a competitive process each time,"...

One drove from Missouri, one works here; both say sinking is a fitting end. Want to see it? Call 884-4000 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for information. Jim Wicker drove more than 1,020 miles from his home in Missouri to come to Corpus Christi and see the aircraft carrier that took him on three tours of duty in Vietnam from 1970 to 1973. During summer nights, Wicker said, he would crawl off the bow of the USS Oriskany's flight deck and nestle into a net to sleep in the cool breeze. "It would just get hotter and hotter in...

Ship to be cleaned up here and then made into a reef. Retired sailors and history buffs who have an interest in the USS Oriskany will get a chance to photograph the ship and see it crossing Corpus Christi Bay before it is sunk and made into an artificial reef. The USS Oriskany is scheduled to arrive Saturday at Texas Docks & Rail Co. on the end of the ship channel in Corpus Christi for a six-month cleaning, said Steven Childers, operations manager at Texas Docks & Rail. At 7 a.m. Thursday the Oriskany will be towed out of a...

An 888-foot Korean War-era aircraft carrier will arrive at the Port of Corpus Christi next week to have its innards cleaned of solvents before the ship is sunk offshore to create an artificial reef. Officials haven't announced yet where the ship will be sunk. The USS Oriskany will be towed Tuesday from Beaumont and will arrive later in the week at the Port of Corpus Christi, said Denise Johnston, manager of government contracts for Resolve Marine Services. The company is one of two contracted to clean aircraft carriers. "The tow will commence depending on weather conditions," Johnston said. "It could...