Ship Photo of the Day – Ex-USS Saratoga Under Tow

Today’s ship photo comes to us from the Atlantic Oceean where the aircraft carrier ex-USS Saratoga (CV-60) is under tow off the coast of North Carolina.

The decommissioned Saratoga departed Newport, Rhode Island last week bound for Brownsville, Texas where the ship will be dismantled.

The Saratoga is being towed by the Signet Warhorse III, a beast of a tug with 135.44 metric tonnes bollard pull. Signet purchased the Warhorse III from Harvey Gulf International Marine in May 2014 as part of Signet’s acquisition of Harvey Gulf’s offshore towing vessel fleet, which included eight tugs ranging in size from 75 to 153 metric ton bollard pull.

Interesting footnote, this photo was taken by Lt. Cmdr Scott Moak, aka “Smoke”, who is one of the last active duty Saratoga sailors still serving.

The choppy seas in the photo are being produced by Hurricane Cristobal, which on Wednesday the National Hurricane Center listed as a Category 1 with maximum sustained winds of 65 knots. In the latest update, the NHC was tracking Cristobal as it passed between Bermuda and Cape Hatteras, moving north-northeast at 13 knots.

Photos of the Saratoga departing Newport can be found HERE.

U.S. Navy Photo

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