DESTIN, Fl. - The SS United States is being sunk in Destin, Florida to become the world's largest artificial reef.
The ship is 990 feet long and holds the record for the fastest transatlantic trip, which it took in 3 days 10 hours and 40 minutes. It took its first voyage as a luxury travel ship in 1952.
When fully sunk, the top deck of the ship will be at roughly 55 to 65 feet below surface level. The bottom will rest on the seafloor, at around 180 feet below the surface.
Crews say no explosives will be used in the process of sinking the ship, just a controlled flooding tank. This includes cutting holes through the hull to allow water to flow inside.
In the process to make the ship the world's largest artificial reef, crews cleaned 128 tanks and remediated 12 decks. The project itself has been in the works for almost 10 years.
The SS United States rested in Philadelphia for 29 years on the Delaware River, from 1996 to 2025. On it's final voyage, the ship was towed down the Delaware River and passed by the Delmarva coast.
The ship was towed to Mobile, Alabama on the Gulf of Mexico where crews started the process of cleaning. It arrived there in March of 2025. After cleaning, it was taken to the reef site 22 miles off the coast of Destin.
