The USS Oriskany's Final Voyage

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Pensacola, FL -
Everything went according to plan…the USS Oriskany aircraft carrier sank quietly to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico. The “Mighty O, ” once one of the Navy’s most heavily used aircraft carriers during the Vietnam War, now lies comfortably on the sea floor, destined for a peaceful existence and an unimagined fate of becoming an artificial reef.

It’s the first time a ship this size has been sunk deliberately to become a reef. Pensacola’s rich history in naval aviation played a major role in the decision to sink the ship off its coast line.

It’s the first time a ship this size has been sunk deliberately to become a reef. Pensacola’s rich history in naval aviation played a major role in the decision to sink the ship off its coast line. In fact, the sinking of the Oriskany is the first in a new Navy program to dispose of surplus vessels by turning them into artificial reefs.

To many saltwater fishermen and sports divers, the term “reef” usually brings to mind a scene of a picturesque tropical coral reef with schools of brightly colored fish swimming through clear waters and a maze of intricate coral heads, swaying sea fans and large sponges. Large predatory fish such as grouper, barracuda and snapper hide in shadowy crevices or feed in wide-open areas on the abundant supply of smaller fish and invertebrates on the reef. In this setting, both anglers and divers are able to harvest or simply observe a wide variety of animals from fish to lobsters, often within several hundred yards of shore.

On the other hand, an artificial reef is a man-made, underwater structure, typically built for the purpose of promoting marine life in areas of generally featureless bottom. Artificial reefs may also serve to improve hydrodynamics for surfing or to control beach erosion. Several different methods are used to create these reefs-by scuttling ships (such as the USS Oriskany), or by deploying rubble, tires or construction debris. Other reefs are purpose built from PVC and/or concrete; but regardless of the construction method, artificial reefs are generally designed to provide hard surfaces to which algae and invertebrates such as barnacles, corals, and oysters attach. The accumulation of attached marine life in turn provides intricate structure and food for assemblages of fish.

The Oriskany Reef will be a major habitat for marine life and scuba divers and fishermen are expected to flock to the site. The 150’ tall ship is a fantastic fishing and diving venue…lying perfectly erect on the sea floor and pointing due south, 24 miles off Pensacola Florida-a world-class artificial reef by any standard, attracting a quantity and diversity of marine life rarely seen in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Created on May 17, 2006 before hundreds of spectators, it only took 500 pounds of C4 explosives to rupture the ship’s hull and initiate the sinking of the Gulf’s newest and most spectacular artificial reef. This most important and final voyage took 37 minutes. May the Oriskany rest in peace!