Tuna
Sunday 28 April 2024
We headed off to downtown and to see the USS Midway. Parking is free in downtown on Sunday’s so it made sense. We got there early, just before opening which was good as there weren’t too many cars and people around. It also meant that The Albatross could do a couple of laps around the block easily when I failed to recognise a great parking spot the first time.
The USS Midway (CV-41) is a huge aircraft carrier that was built for the second world war and was finally commissioned 8 days after the war ended. It housed 4,500 crew, was too big to fit through the Panama Canal, served for 47 years before being decommissioned in 1992 and was opened as a museum in San Diego in 2004. Another really cool big boat that we spent nearly 3 hours exploring.
We did notice that there were a couple of aircraft carriers docked on the other side of the bay. USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) and USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72), both Nimitz class nuclear air craft carriers back in their home port for a rest. The entire Pacific Fleet call San Diego home. Nuclear air craft carriers go for 25 years before they need ‘refuelling and a service’ and then another 25 years, before being decommissioned. We obviously couldn’t see them from where we were yesterday.
Our footies were a bit tired by this stage so we headed home and booked the rest of our accommodation in the US and somewhere to stay when we land in Singapore.