How do you dismantle a megaconstruction? US wants to destroy its nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz
The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) belonging to the U.S. Navy was first commissioned in 1975, and after nearly 50 years of activity, it will put end of service in 2026.
CVN 68 will be scrappedDespite the U.S. Navy’s experience in dismantling nuclear-powered ships, the scrapping of this aircraft carrier is a real challenge regarding bureaucratic and technical issues.
In addition, Israel News notes that “the Navy’s shipyards are overworked, making it difficult to provide the necessary maintenance to active warships, let alone dismantle obsolete ones.”
The scrapping process
The U.S. Navy announced that shipbuilding division Newport News from Huntington Ingalls would have to define the requirements logistical, environmental and economic requirements to carry out the scrapping. Also, a report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office states that such an action would cost more than $1 billion and would even take several years to complete.
Regarding the more complicated parts of the dismantling, the experts would have to dismantle the two Westinghouse A4W nuclear reactors, reduce the volume of radioactive waste and find the perfect means of transport to move all the waste to a safe place.
All this process would be monitored by the Department of Defense and escorted by members of the Navy and Coast Guard, and the Navy would take advantage of the work of private shipyards in Virginia, Alabama, or Texas to handle the entire process.
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