Divers get a look at sunken carrier
PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) -- Navy divers got the first underwater look at the USS Oriskany on Thursday, reporting that the retired aircraft carrier had settled upright on the ocean floor to become the world's largest manmade reef.
The Navy blew holes in the ship Wednesday, sending it to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, where it will attract divers and marine life.
Navy divers said the ship settled into the sand 24 miles off the coast of Pensacola with its flight deck at a depth of 150 feet. That news came as a disappointment to some because it put the deck out of range of recreational divers.
"We'd hoped it wouldn't go below that, but there will be plenty of superstructure along the wheel house for sport divers," said Eilene Beard, a dive shop owner who donated $25,000 to promote the project.
Divers who go below 132 feet must take additional training and breathe a special combination of gases to reach greater depths, she said.
Divers also reported that they could see the ship's tower from the surface, said Harry White, a spokesman for Pensacola Naval Air Station.
The Oriskany was the first warship sunk under a pilot program to dispose of old Navy vessels by making them into artificial reefs.
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