Turkey Sacrifices A300 for Artificial Reef
Joe Cortez June 08, 2016
Local tourism officials hope to draw flyers with underwater aircraft dive.
An Airbus A300 aircraft sank in the Aegean Sea on Saturday, June 4, entirely driven by a man-made plot to bring the aircraft to the bottom of the ocean. Britain’s The Telegraph reports officials sank the retired airframe 50 miles south of the tourist destination of Izmir, on Turkey’s west coast, for use as an artificial reef.
The 177-foot long aircraft, complete with a 144-foot wingspan, is believed to be the largest aircraft destined to become an artificial reef. The former airliner, which belonged to a private aviation firm, was purchased by the Aydin province and stripped in Istanbul. From there, the airplane was sent to the coast, where it met its final resting place.
With their newest attraction now in place, regional officials hope divers and aviation enthusiasts will come to Turkey to visit the underwater feature. The mayor’s goal is bringing in over 200,000 new tourists to the region, despite concerns of regional destabilization and terrorism. At the end of 2015, an explosion at an Istanbul airport killed one person and injured others.
“With this project, the aim is to increase the underwater biodiversity off [the coast of] Kuşadası and to further develop underwater tourism in the area,” said Özlem Çerçioğlu, mayor of Aydin, according to The Telegraph. “With the project [we] will hopefully close this summer with the fewest losses and make the people of [the town] and the people in this business smile.”
Although the A300 is believed to be the largest repurposed aircraft below the water, it is not the only one created by a former commercial jet. According to AquaViews magazine, several Boeing 737 aircraft have been sunk around the world – including off the coast of Florida – to create artificial reefs and diving attractions.
[Photo: An Airbus A300 was sunk in the Aegean Sea of Kusadasi to serve as a reef and attract diving tourists, DEPO PHOTOS/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK]
