Ex-USS JFK departure delayed as decommissioned aircraft carrier prepares to leave Philadelphia
One of America's newest aircraft carriers has been named after JFK and will enter service this year.
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Big changes are coming to the Philadelphia Navy Yard.
The former USS John F. Kennedy is expected to leave its South Philadelphia home and begin its final journey to Brownsville, Texas.
The move was scheduled to happen on Wednesday but has now been delayed until Thursday, officials told Action News.
The aircraft carrier conducted US Navy missions worldwide for more than 39 years.
The ship conducted 18 deployments including to the Mediterranean, Tyrrhenian, Ionian, Ligurian, Aegean and Adriatic seas, during a period of escalating tension in the Middle East and North Africa, often while under the surveillance of Soviet ships.
It is also the last conventionally-powered aircraft carrier built for the U.S. Navy.
The military decommissioned the ship in 2007 and it has been in Philadelphia ever since.
You will be able to see the large ship make its transit along the Delaware River through the Delaware Bay and into the Atlantic Ocean.
Once it reaches the Gulf Coast of Texas, crews will dismantle the Kennedy.
One of America's newest aircraft carriers has been named after JFK and will enter service this year.
The departure of the USS JFK comes amid delayed plans for another massive ship to move out of South Philadelphia.
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The SS United States was slated to leave its berth in November but has been delayed indefinitely. Officials previously said the delay is due to "logistical details" and procedures to maintain ideal conditions for the move.
