Liner SS United States is sunk off Florida to become the world's largest artificial reef

11 November 2026

The ocean liner SS United States was deliberately sunk on Wednesday off the coast of Florida to serve as the world's largest artificial reef. The sinking took place about 20 nautical miles offshore between the Destin-Fort Walton Beach area and Pensacola, without explosives. On its first voyage in 1952 the ship set a transatlantic speed record for an ocean liner that still stands. It was retired in 1969 and lay docked in Philadelphia from 1996. Okaloosa County in Florida bought it in 2024 for about $1 million. Before the sinking, fuel, wiring and other harmful materials were removed in Mobile, Alabama. The reef project cost about $13 million, paid from county tourist tax revenue.