Published: Less than 30 min ago
Brazil’s navy has sunk its aircraft carrier Sāo Paulo in the Atlantic Ocean. The nearly 30,000-ton vessel was commissioned by the French military in 1963 and purchased by Brazil in 2000, but decommissioned in 2018.
The Department of Defense had intended to sell the ship to Turkey for scrapping, but Sāo Paulo was deemed too poor a condition and was not even allowed to enter the Mediterranean. Instead, it was decided to sink the ship at a depth of just over 5,000 meters off the coast of Brazil.
Environment Minister Marina Silva has protested and requested that the lowering be stopped for environmental reasons, including risks of asbestos and heavy metals leaking from the wreck.
But the navy says the Sāo Paulo was taking on water, that no ports would allow it to add, and that they had no choice but to scuttle the vessel.