USS Missouri is moored on Ford Island. The world's last battleship. 3 years in construction. In 1989 she became centre stage for Cher's music video location which there after became the ships unofficial anthem.
This thing is huge and I guess you don't get many chances to walk around a battleship. What was surprising was we could wander around alone and even without hardhats etc, although we were constantly warned of knee knockers and head butters!
Twice as wide as a basket ball court and 3 times as long as a football pitch, a small town at sea. This thing is so big it houses its own bakery, barbers, post office and even a fully stocked library. Holding 2800 men in four high bunks although some chose to sleep in hammocks. In hotter countries the guys would sleep out on deck as it would reach over 100 degrees down in the lower decks. This was pre- aircon! You could step into most locations on the ship. One of the ships 16 inch gun turrets was open at the back end. You can't imagine how many buttons!
World War II was mankind's most destructive wars with over 50 million people killed. In March 1992, with running costs of a million dollars a day, she was decommissioned. So the colours were lowered, the bugler sounded the taps and that was that. She then spent 6 years moth balling but then finally in 1998 she returned to Hawaii to act as a museum. She was opened to the public in January 1999. The 50th anniversary of her original launch.
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