After being banned from entering Turkish territorial seas, the former aircraft carrier ‘São Paulo’, from the Brazilian Navy, is on its way to the port of Rio de Janeiro.
The vessel, which is being towed by the Alp Centre, arrived in the vicinity of the Strait of Gibraltar, but ended up changing its course back to the Southern Hemisphere after the Turkish government revoked authorization for the decommissioned aircraft carrier to be dismantled by the company Sok Denizcilikve Tic.
The Ministry of the Environment required documents from the Brazilian government that listed the amount of toxic substances on the ship, including asbestos. Days later, IBAMA, the Brazilian environmental authority, also demanded the return of ‘São Paulo’ to Brazil.
According to Marine Traffic, which tracks vessels around the world, the tug and decommissioned aircraft carrier are expected to arrive in Rio de Janeiro on October 4th. This Sunday, the two ships are near Cape Verde, in the Atlantic Ocean.
After serving as FS Foch in the French Navy, the Clemeanceu-class aircraft carrier was sold to Brazil for $12 million.
In the Brazilian Navy, the vessel had numerous technical problems and remained only 206 days on the high seas in 17 years of service. For now, the fate of the former São Paulo after arriving in Brazil is uncertain.
