Cheers fellas! Does anyone of you know how many of the Essex class carriers that is still waiting for their destiny, or are they all scrapped by now?
Lucky -
Three ESSEX / TICO Class ships remain as museums, all others have been "Stricken" and were sold for scrap. A couple are in varying states of scrapping because it takes a long time, and EPA laws keep making it harder.
One, EX-ORISKANY, was recently sunk, on purpose, to make a coral reef for divers. The Navy would like to continue on with this if it builds in popularity with the public.
The sinking was also beneficial, because engineers were able to compare their estimates to reality when the ship sunk, and it turns out that where they choose to install the explosives, how large they were, and their sequencing all were a great "lab experiment". The fact that she went down in 30 min is misleading - the explosive pattern and sizes were very specific, on purpose, and of course there was no one aboard to carry out good old Navy damage control procedures.
As for the three museums - groups can request a stricken warship to make into a museum - it is decided by the Secretary of the Navy if one is going to be "donated". However, Congressional Law also says that the group must prove that they have the intent and financial means to maintain the ship in a "dignified state" - no letting it turn into a disgraceful rust bucket.
Decommissioned ships are typically maintained at the Navy Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility (NISMF) in Philadelphia befor disposal. A few are scattered alsewhere, especially nuke subs.
