HMS Ark Royal, the final voyage 20/5/2013.

[T66ORA]

A heads up for anyone in the Portsmouth or surrounding areas tomorrow.
The Ark will be towed out of Portsmouth Harbour at approximately 1300 to that great scrap yard in the sky
I know all ships have a shelf life, but surely this demise is a bit premature??
As i can`t make it tomorrow, i popped done to have a final look, she has been moved from the basin to Victory jetty awaiting her final tow.
Good bye Ark.

[HarryW]

Tony didn't know you cared for old grey war canoes, particularly flat tops. It'll make a lot of razor blades, where is she off too?

[T66ORA]

H, long time no see Hows the Cerb?
As you know i spent a few years on carriers (Hermes/Illustrious) before "boats"
She is off to Turkey i believe, the same destination as the Invincible , sold for £3m a waste.

[castex]

Tomorrow will be a sad day. I watched her being built.

[HarryW]

T66ORA said:

H, long time no see Hows the Cerb?
As you know i spent a few years on carriers (Hermes/Illustrious) before "boats"
She is off to Turkey i believe, the same destination as the Invincible , sold for £3m a waste.

Cerbs still in the garage, been there for 18 months! Just don't seem to have the time nowadays, promised myself I'd get it up this year. You still running the Tam?
£3m seems cheap for the amount of steel in it.

[T66ORA]

HarryW said:

You still running the Tam?

Yes mate, but not very often nowadays.Meeting up with Alan Stamp shortly to catch up, fancy a reunion??

[HarryW]

T66ORA said:

HarryW said:

You still running the Tam?

Yes mate, but not very often nowadays.Meeting up with Alan Stamp shortly to catch up, fancy a reunion??

What's Alan driving these days?

[skirk]

The Ark was my last ship in the mob......a fine ship....a sad day.

[T66ORA]

AND FINALLY, GOOD BYE OLD GIRL

[magpie215]

At least Hermes is still proving a valuable asset for the Indian Navy.

[Kitchski]

Gutted I missed that - I didn't hear about it until last night! Too late by then, but what a sad day.

[perdu]

I am sorry to see her go, of course, but if she has to be rendered to scrap why the hell let her go abroad when we have dockyard chaps with no work?

Why can't we make money from scrap metal ourselves?


cue debate...


And

I wonder if any of our "reduced to razor blades" scrapped vessels ever did become razor blades, I suspect not.

[anonymous-user]

perdu said:

I am sorry to see her go, of course, but if she has to be rendered to scrap why the hell let her go abroad when we have dockyard chaps with no work?

Why can't we make money from scrap metal ourselves?


cue debate...


And

I wonder if any of our "reduced to razor blades" scrapped vessels ever did become razor blades, I suspect not.

i expect it's due to issues with disposing of all the toxic materials. There was a lot of problems when the former French Carrier went to Hartlepool for scrapping a few years ago.

[Dr G]

Seems to be a fair old bit of work involved to scrap/recycle:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22513349

[perdu]

Dr G said:

Seems to be a fair old bit of work involved to scrap/recycle:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22513349

well that answers some of that guys, thanks.


phew!

[Chrisgr31]

Whys the tug at the back facing backwards?

[Johnnytheboy]

perdu said:

I am sorry to see her go, of course, but if she has to be rendered to scrap why the hell let her go abroad when we have dockyard chaps with no work?

Why can't we make money from scrap metal ourselves?


cue debate...

Money, probably.

Our dock workers priced themselves out of anything competitively tendered about 60 years ago.

[Taffer]

Chrisgr31 said:

Whys the tug at the back facing backwards?

To control the arse end of the Ark when she's being towed out.

[Seight_Returns]

Taffer said:

To control the arse end of the Ark when she's being towed out.

Given that RN Capital Ships have a bit of a track record for not giving in without a fight when being towed to the knacker's yard, they clearly weren't taking any chances.

Losing Ark is enough of a tragedy without taking the Still And West with her as well.



http://battleshiphmsvanguard.homestead.com/Deathof...

[T66ORA]

Vanguard looks huge in that over head shot