Question Why was the Oriskany NOT sunk off of Key Largo?

[Dirt Pineapple]

I'm trying to understand this. Why sink a massive aircraft carrier in an area not known for diving, extremely far off shore and too deep? It would have made a million times more sense to sink it off Key Largo and boost tourism even more. It would have made Key Largo a 'must do' site for even the most international divers across the world.

It cost millions of dollars to sink that ship. I doubt that investment has been made back yet in local revenue for dive shops and tourism in Pensecola vs a ship like the Spiegel Grove in Key Largo, in which countless divers from all around the country fly to in order to dive it.

Imagine if it was sunk shallower in Key Largo with the flight deck at 115' and the hanger at 150' instead of 145' and 175'.

I don't even know how to dive it because none of the charters seem to be reliable based on what I read along with conditions being so varied.

 

[Rob9876]

I'll be curious to see if anyone else knows exactly why it was sunk there -- perhaps in part because there is a Navy base in Pensacola? Also, unlike the Keys there are really not many natural reef structures off of the Florida Panhandle - so it's definitely needed more there, and also there's not much natural structure to mess up (they had to do an extensive environmental impact study).

As far as "an area not known for diving" I don't think I'd say that. While the viz is not like SE Florida and there are not many natural reefs, the Florida panhandle has been doing an amazing job of sinking ships and other structures, and installing artificial reefs. This map of artificial reef sites is a bit slow to load for me but pretty cool once it does.

Also worth checking out: Florida Panhandle Wreck Trail & Reefmaker Facebook Page showing deployments.

It really is great they are putting in this much effort to create sea life habitats for divers, fishermen, and some near-shore artificial reef snorkeling/diving as well. And while the viz is not as good as SE Florida, there really is a lot to see there for divers (and a very robust spearfishing community also).

As far as how to dive the Mighty O, I'd suggest booking a long weekend of diving in Pensacola (say, Memorial Day weekend) and hope the weather works out. That's what I did, and we got blown out our first day, were able to do near-shore the next day, and lucked out with great conditions on the Oriskany the 3rd day. I do feel lucky, as I've heard of people being blown out on several trips and not being able to dive the Oriskany.

 

[happy-diver]

With the insistence on the right to an opinion no matter how stupid the more stupid we become

 

[Divin'Papaw]

Who do you think buys & sinks artificial reefs in Florida? Hint … it’s not the state.

The sinking was funded by a group that wanted it sunk exactly where it lies. The last thing that group wanted was to spend their money to drive more tourism to Key Largo!

 

[Wookie]

Duh.

Wrecks are not sunk for divers. Divers are cheap bastards and won’t pay the bazillions it costs to clean a wreck for sinking.

Wrecks are sunk for fishermen. Fishermen want to create habitat in otherwise marine deserts so they can fish.

Follow the money to see why wrecks are placed where they are.

Besides, to get deep enough for a wreck like the Oriskany in Key Largo, you’d have to be out in the middle of the fast water.

 

[broncobowsher]

As for the too deep part...
What I understand is the ship sank deeper into the sea bed than was expected. It's not like there is a lot of experience of sinking ships this big. The flight deck was supposed to be at recreational depths.
And if it didn't sink deep enough, they would have to cut the top off to keep it from being a hazard to navigation. There was a plan, in the end it sank deeper than the plan.

 

[Lorenzoid]

Good question. Lots of articles can be found with a quick Google search. Some mention reasons for how the site was chosen. Here's an excerpt from one:

In 2004, the Navy offered the ship to Florida, which eagerly accepted the gift. Some Floridians wanted it sunk off Fort Lauderdale, but others sought to sink it in the gulf off Pensacola, the "cradle of naval aviation." Not all sailors liked the idea of sinking a warship on purpose. McCain said at the time that he had hoped his old ship would be turned into a museum, but he added that its new use would "provide a lot of recreation" and "as long as people like me are alive, the memory of the ship will be alive."

There are few natural reefs in this part of the Gulf of Mexico. The bottom is as sandy as a desert. To create habitat for coral and fish, anglers and divers have sunk all sorts of things—old cars, busted culverts, washing machines. I have been diving on a number of these artificial reefs, and it is marvelous to see a column of fish circling above a pile of old rubble while, all around, there is nothing but smooth sand and empty water. Even the smallest reef attracts an improbably vast and diverse amout of life. And nothing would approach the Oriskany. In fact, it would be the largest artificial reef in the world.

R.I.P., Mighty O

A fabled aircraft carrier sunk deliberately off the coast of Florida is the world's largest artificial reef

www.smithsonianmag.com

 

[Altamira]

With the insistence on the right to an opinion no matter how stupid the more stupid we become

Is that your opinion?

 

[DanBMW]

I'm pretty sure it was a group in Pensacola funded most the cleanup and sinking.

 

[tursiops]

From Wikipedia:

As was intended, the ship came to rest lying upright. The flight deck was at a depth of 135 ft (41 m), and its island rose to 70 ft (21 m).[12] Following Hurricane Gustav in 2008, the ship shifted 10 feet deeper leaving the flight deck at 145 feet (44 m).[13] The island structure is accessible to recreational divers, but the flight deck requires additional training and equipment.[13] It is now popularly known as the "Great Carrier Reef",[14] a reference to Australia's Great Barrier Reef.​

We did a tech-oriented trip to her in 2007 as part of a TDI Advanced Trimix class. 9 dives over 7 diving days. Depths in my log ranged from 140 to 203. My memory (17 years ago!) is that you could have stayed at 130 and above and easily done/seen the flight deck...just with not much bottom time. For shallower/longer rec dives there was plenty to see higher up on the island.
We tried to go back in 2008 (before H.Gustav) but our chartered boat blew an engine.