Battleship Cove has decided to scrap the USS Hiddensee. :-(

[Wolfswetpaws]

Battleship Cove has decided to scrap the USS Hiddensee.  😞 

Battleship Cove scraps USNS Hiddensee
Story by Sarah Doiron
https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/battleship-cove-scraps-usns-hiddensee/ar-AA1k7oUg
 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_corvette_Hiddensee

Related opinion-article
Opinion letter: As Battleship Cove removes Hiddensee, fears arise regarding another vessel’s fate
Published October 5, 2023 By Ken Paiva
https://fallriverreporter.com/opinion-letter-as-battleship-cove-removes-hiddensee-fears-arise-regarding-another-vessels-fate/

I learned of this news when I was reminded of the USS Hiddensee by another forum topic created by @tm63au (depicting a Russian ship with a stars & stripes camouflage, contrasted in my mind with the USS Hiddensee being a former com-bloc ship which was eventually purchased by the US Navy for opposing-forces training exercises and eventually became a museum ship).  While I was internet searching for the Hiddensee, to get some website links, I learned of her fate.  😞 

I've visited Battleship Cove a handful of times and have seen the Hiddensee on those occasions. 
But, she was off-limits to tourists because of her being in need of repair(s), so I didn't get to go aboard her.

At least I have a souvenir coffee mug of her, purchased from the Battleship Cove gift shop.  

 

Spoiler

 

[Wolfswetpaws]

WPRI
Battleship Cove scraps USNS Hiddensee

 

[Wolfswetpaws]

But, back in 1997 ...

 

Quote

Battleship Cove gets new warship

Jim Stern, Standard-Times correspondent
https://www.southcoasttoday.com/story/news/1997/05/15/battleship-cove-gets-new-warship/50614372007/
 

FALL RIVER -- For years, Battleship Cove has been a strong tourist stop for visitors and residents.

And it just got stronger.

The Hiddensee, a Russian missile corvette ship, has sailed into Fall River and will retire along side the Battleship USS Massachusetts and the USS Kennedy.

"We are just delighted to have the Hiddensee," said Guy Archambault, Battleship Cove executive vice president. "This makes Battleship Cove one of the major attractions in the world. It's the only Russian-built missile corvette on display in the world."

The missile corvette was first built in the Soviet Union for East Germany to use against NATO, but ended its active service under the flags of Germany and the United States.

According to Mr. Archambault, the ship's original mission was to guard the Warsaw Pact's Baltic coastline, darting out at speeds nearing 50 mph to launch up to four cruise missiles armed with 1,000-pound warheads, and then race back to port.

A year later, Germany offered the ship to the United States, which accepted it, tested it and later used it to help decipher secrets.

The weapons, electronics and chemical weapons aboard the ship are still used today in modern ships.

The ship originally carried 39 people and on her last voyage she was manned by a complement of three ship specialists and two people from Battleship Cove.

In addition to the four long-range missile launchers, the 420-ton ship is armed with a 76mm multi-purpose gun, two six-barreled 30mm remote-control gatling guns and a surface-to-air missile launcher.

The ship also contains search and fire control radar antennas.

Mr. Archambault hopes the former missile launcher will launch a massive visitor spree at Battleship Cove.

"Our guest book is always filled with out-of-state and (foreign) visitors," Mr. Archambault said. "However, the local interest has faded, because there is nothing new to see. We hope this will spark the local citizens to come back and visit."

To acquire the Hiddensee, Mr. Archambault had to bid on the ship, explaining why Fall River deserved it more than other museums.

"We have always had a good track record since 1965," Mr. Archambault said. "Others, like the USS Intrepid (in New York), bid on the ship, but they had to pull out of the bidding because of economic restraints."

The ship was donated by the U.S. Army, but Battleship Cove was responsible for the tow from Chesapeake Bay, which cost $15,000.

The money was taken from the museum's general fund.

"This was a necessity for us," Mr. Archambault said. "In a sense, we had to do this to survive. Now all we need is for the local residents to come and see it."

The Hiddensee is being repaired to eliminate areas where visitors could be injured, and some of the Russian signs are being translated into English. The ship will open to the public on June 14.

Staff photo by Hank Seaman

The Hiddensee docks at its new home, Battleship Cove in Fall River, with 1st Lt. Kenneth Preble on deck.

 

 

[Wolfswetpaws]

 

[Admiral_Karasu]

Yeah, it's sad how bit by bit the past disappears.

[Lord_Slayer]

maintaining one ship can be enough for one organization. Maintaining multiple, you are really scrapping for every dollar you can get. And it doesn't always work.

Battleship Cove has/had 4.

Hiddensee is to be scrapped.
The J P Kennedy requires alot of work done.

Patriots Point had 5/6.

The NS Savannah was taken elsewhere.
USS Comanche was sunk as a reef.
USS Laffey required shipyard repairs and then was leased to Clemson University for several years to pay for it.
USCGC Ingham was taken back by the Coast Guard and is now in Key West.
USS Clamagore, the only surviving Guppy III type, was scrapped.
USS Yorktown will require somewhere in the $40 million range of repairs to the hull.