A 60 foot sport fishing boat sailed into the aspect of the decommissioned USS Halfway on Jul. 18, 2025, with the operator apparently inebriated. No accidents and no main injury to both vessel have been reported.
Footage of the incident was captured each by San Diego Net Cam, in addition to guests on board the USS Halfway on the time.
Video of the affect from Harbor Island. boat vs USS Halfway 11:48AM pic.twitter.com/ZHY3kTjOwP
— San Diego Net Cam (@SanDiegoWebCam) July 18, 2025
An nameless viewer despatched us this video of the M/V Offshore impacting the USS Halfway yesterday.
The remainder of our footage is posted right here: pic.twitter.com/V41GQDcdGW
— San Diego Net Cam (@SanDiegoWebCam) July 19, 2025
With neither vessel taking vital injury, the civilian craft subsequently tried to go away the scene earlier than quickly being intercepted by a police boat. Native police later confirmed to The San Diego Union-Tribune that one individual had been arrested on suspicion of cruising whereas below the affect.
The USS Halfway is berthed throughout San Diego Bay from Naval Base Coronado, which is the homeport of three present U.S. Navy nuclear-powered plane carriers and a lot of U.S. Navy plane squadrons. Halfway was decommissioned in 1992 and subsequently left the Naval Register in 1997. After being towed from Bremerton, Washington, and present process restoration work in Oakland, California, the ship opened because the USS Halfway Museum at its present location in 2004.
To additional make clear – the USS Halfway is a museum ship and NOT a part of the lively fleet. There doesn’t seem like any injury as mirrored in these photos taken on the time as proven. pic.twitter.com/d3Ew3ABxPJ
— WarshipCam (@WarshipCam) July 19, 2025
Commissioned in September 1945, simply weeks after the top of the Second World Battle, the USS Halfway’s service profession encompassed the whole thing of the Chilly Battle and noticed the ship participate in lots of notable occasions. For the primary ten years of its service, the Halfway featured a WW2-style rectangular flight deck. Throughout modernisation work in 1955, the ship was retrofitted with a flight deck extension that allowed using a extra trendy angled flight deck. The ship was additionally kitted out with a brand new elevator in addition to steam powered catapults.
After participating within the Vietnam Battle within the Nineteen Sixties, the Halfway as soon as once more underwent modernisation works, extending the flight deck even additional, bettering the elevators, and changing the catapults with extra highly effective fashions to raised assist ever-growing provider based mostly plane.
USS Halfway CV-41 after her 1970 SCB-110.66 refit, within the second picture you’ll be able to see how the flight deck and elevator structure modifications in addition to look again to her preliminary structure in 1945. #ussmidway #cv41 #flynavy #navalaviation #aviationsafari #aviationpreservation #boneyardsafari pic.twitter.com/a3AD3flzCp
— Boneyard Safari (@Boneyardsafari) Might 28, 2023
Following extra Vietnam missions within the early Seventies, the Halfway led the primary U.S. provider group to be ahead deployed to Yokosuka, Japan. Remarkably, plane from the Halfway had been chargeable for each the primary air to air kill of a MiG fighter throughout the Vietnam Battle, in addition to the final air to air kill of your complete warfare.
In 1986, the provider had the honour of performing the ultimate deck launch of an F-4 Phantom II in U.S. Navy service. They’d get replaced by F/A-18 Hornets – a exceptional reality, provided that the ship was designed with the intention to function piston-driven fighters just like the F4U Corsair. F-14 Tomcats by no means featured as a part of the Halfway’s air wing because of the plane’s measurement, although a minimum of two operated from the ship’s deck after diverting in poor climate.
Shortly earlier than retirement, the Halfway took half in Operation Desert Storm. Its A-6 Intruder strike plane had been the primary provider based mostly plane over Iraqi territory, finishing up the primary carrier-launched strikes of the warfare. No plane from the Halfway was misplaced throughout the battle.
The Halfway Museum immediately reveals off each the ship in addition to a set of over thirty plane organized on the deck and within the ship’s hangar, starting from late WW2 and early jet designs just like the Corsair, Skyraider, and Cutlass, by way of to comparatively trendy plane just like the F/A-18 Hornet, EA-6B Prowler, SH-60 Seahawk, and S-3 Viking.
