The SS United States, the ocean liner that set a transatlantic speed record on its 1952 maiden voyage, began sinking in the Gulf of Mexico off the Florida Panhandle on Wednesday to become what officials call the world’s largest artificial reef, according to CBS News and FOX Weather.
The controlled, explosive-free sinking is taking place about 22 nautical miles southwest of Destin, Florida, according to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, which is leading scientific research at the site. The ship will rest in roughly 180 feet of water, FOX Weather reported.
The SS United States will be intentionally sunk off Florida's gulf coast to become the world's largest artificial reef.
The sinking date was moved up by one day due to the weather.
The ship that still holds the record for the fastest crossing of the Atlantic was towed from the… pic.twitter.com/smAxYcHe0t
— CBS Philadelphia (@CBSPhiladelphia) November 11, 2026
Moved up a day for weather
The sinking was originally scheduled for Thursday but was moved up because of expected strong winds, FOX Weather reported. Okaloosa County officials told FOX Weather that sustained winds needed to be below 17 mph and waves below 3 feet to sink the vessel safely.
Officials began preparations around 2 p.m. Eastern, using a fireboat to pump seawater into the 990-foot vessel through a hose, FOX Weather reported. Shortly before 5 p.m. Eastern, officials opened two valves that let seawater flow in through the ship’s original intake pipes, and by around 6 p.m. the flooding operation was underway, according to FOX Weather.
A record that still stands
The SS United States set a transatlantic speed record for an ocean liner in 1952 that still stands today, according to CBS News. The ship crossed the Atlantic in 3 days and 10 hours, FOX Weather reported, citing the Historic American Engineering Record. The SS United States Conservancy says the liner reached a top speed of 44 mph in sea trials, according to FOX Weather.
CBS News reported that the ship carried presidents, royalty and celebrities, and that its design was so advanced the Pentagon kept it secret. The liner was retired in 1969 and ended up docked in Philadelphia in 1996, where it stayed for decades, according to CBS News.
From Philadelphia to the Gulf floor
Okaloosa County bought the ship from the SS United States Conservancy for about $1 million in 2024, CBS News reported. The county then sent it to Mobile, Alabama, for a yearlong preparation process that removed environmentally unsafe materials, including wiring and fuel, according to CBS News. Holes were cut throughout the ship so it would stay upright on the bottom, the outlet reported, and the work was coordinated with the Environmental Protection Agency and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
The project cost about $13 million and was paid for with county tourist tax revenue, according to CBS News.
What comes next
Okaloosa County hopes the wreck will give the Florida Panhandle a year-round destination for divers, CBS News reported. The Destin-Fort Walton Beach area already has about 580 artificial reefs off its coast, the most of any region in the country, according to CBS News.
“I think it’s going to be like Disney World,” Jocelyn Collins, general manager for Emerald Coast Scuba, told CBS News. FOX Weather reported the wreck will serve as both a diving attraction and a marine habitat for the region.
Researchers from Woods Hole plan to document the ship’s condition and early marine life within the first month and will collect water samples from 132 locations around the wreck, according to the institution.
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- Original post: CBS Philadelphia (@CBSPhiladelphia) on X, Nov 11, 2026
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