A Bittersweet Day for USS Philadelphia

by KYW's John Ostapkovich

Say goodbye to Philadelphia, the nuclear attack submarine USS Philadelphia, that is.  It's being decomissioned on Friday afternoon and is a longshot to appear some day as a waterfront attraction here.

It's a bittersweet moment for Ron Kohl, the chief operating officer of the USS Philadelphia Foundation. He's had a 10 year relationship with the boat and its sailors although he was never among its crew.

After the speeches and ceremony, the Philadelphia (commissioned 33 years ago Friday) will still get around:

"They're probably going to take it down to Norfolk first. I imagine they're going to take some of the classified things off the boat. Then it would eventually go around to Bremerton where they would cut a section of the hull out which would be the nuclear propulsion section."

Only then, if Kohl's group can make a good start on raising $65-million, might the Philadelphia have a destiny as a waterfront museum.

(file photo)