As hundreds of veterans looked on solemnly, Navy divers blew holes in a retired aircraft carrier, the "Mighty O",  and sent the 888-foot USS Oriskany to the bottom of the sea Wednesday, forming the world's largest deliberately created artificial reef. The "Mighty O" went down in 212 feet of water, about 24 miles off Pensacola Beach.

The Oriskany, commissioned in 1950 and named after an American Revolutionary War battle, saw duty during the Korean War and was home to John McCain when the Navy pilot and future senator served in Vietnam. McCain was shot down over Hanoi in 1967 after taking off from the Oriskany and was held as a prisoner of war for five years.

It was also among the ships used by President Kennedy in a show of force during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. It was decommissioned in 1976.

The Oriskany became the first vessel sunk under a new Navy program to dispose of old warships by turning them into reefs that can attract fish and other marine life.

Local leaders hope the reef brings a long-awaited economic infusion from sport divers and fishermen. A 2004 Florida State University study estimated Escambia County would see $92 million a year in economic benefits