Key Aspects:
- A federal judge has denied a temporary restraining order filed by a preservation group seeking to halt the sinking of the SS United States.
- The ruling cited the lack of a verified complaint or supporting affidavit and noted that any future filing should include a bond to cover the expenses of keeping the ship docked.
- There has been no change in the timeline for the SS United States to be towed out of Mobile Bay on November 9 and sunk on November 12.
Just two days after a preservation group filed a request for a temporary restraining order to halt the movement and planned sinking of the SS United States, a federal judge has denied the request and the sinking is set to move ahead on schedule.
The SS United States Preservation Foundation filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, Pensacola Division, on Tuesday, November 3, followed by an emergency motion for a preliminary injunction and temporary restraining order on Wednesday, November 4.
According to AL.com, on Friday, November 6, 2026, U.S. District Judge M. Casey Rodgers ruled against the motion for a restraining order.
“The docket is void of a verified complaint and/or any affidavit attesting to the truthfulness of the facts set forth in the complaint and motion,” Rodgers wrote in her ruling.
Rodgers also noted that the plaintiffs’ request did not address the “obvious substantial expense” that would be associated with the injunction, including berthing, storage, and other costs if the SS United States were to remain docked for additional time.
The judge did allow for the possibility of a future filing for a temporary restraining order, but such a filing must account for those costs.
“Any subsequent TRO motion must propose a bond amount sufficient to cover these expenses, supported by a reasonable factual basis,” she said.
New filings are possible, but as of the close of business on Friday, no such new suits or filings have been recorded.
The SS United States Preservation Foundation has not publicly responded to the denial, nor updated its social media accounts after their original statement announcing the initial filings.
Will the Ship Still Be Moved Next Week?
At this time, there is no change to the proposed schedule for towing the SS United States out of the recycling and reclamation facility, through Mobile Bay, and to her final sinking coordinates roughly 22 nautical miles southwest of Destin-Fort Walton Beach, Florida.
The ocean liner is expected to begin moving on Monday, November 9 and will be anchored temporarily at her reefing coordinates until the sinking begins at 10 a.m. on Thursday, November 12. All dates and times are weather-permitting.
Okaloosa County is hosting a public sendoff ceremony for the ship on Wednesday, November 11 at 1:30 p.m. at the Destin-Fort Walton Beach Convention Center, while AJ’s Seafood and Oyster Bar in Destin is hosting a live viewing party for the reefing beginning at 9 a.m. on Thursday. The reefing will also be livestreamed for viewers all over the world.
If the SS United States were to remain in Mobile, work at the Modern American Recycling & Repair Services of Alabama (M.A.R.R.S.) facility would get more complicated with a new arrival expected just after the ocean liner’s sinking.
According to South Alabama News, the decommissioned hull of the former USS Enterprise nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was towed out of Newport News, Virginia on Monday, November 2, 2026, bound for the facility and expected to arrive on approximately Friday, November 13. The carrier will be dismantled and its materials recycled or disposed of as necessary, a project that is expected to be complete in 2030.
