Mega-machines are quite simply the largest man-made
mechanical objects ever built, designed to carry out tasks that even a century
ago would have seemed like fantasy. From ferrying hundreds or thousands
of passengers and cargo by air and sea, clearing thousands of tons of earth
with apparent ease, or transporting vast payloads bound for space,
mega-machines have redefined the course of modern industry. But when they
become surplus to requirements, removing their immense bulk swiftly from the
landscape becomes a task almost as challenging as their inception. Many
thus remain abandoned for years, as illustrated by these six varied
examples from around the world.
Abandoned 747 Jumbo Jet “Juan T. Trippe” Restaurant, Seoul, South
Korea
We’ve seen mighty 747s converted into backpacker hostels and
even houses, but this dejected Jumbo Jet in Namyangju-Si near Seoul, South Korea,
was probably the only one to become a restaurant.
The second 747 ever built and
the first to fly commercially, it was named after legendary airline
entrepreneur and Pan American World Airways founder Juan T. Trippe. Pan Am
operated the Jumbo until the airline’s collapse in 1991, after which it went to
the boneyards of California
to await its fate.
After a spell baking under the scorching desert sun, the
mothballed jet was bought in 2001 by the owners of a noodle restaurant (located
where the right wing should be!), dismantled and shipped to Korea in 62
massive containers. It was finally converted to a restaurant but the sheer cost
of the project meant it was tough to turn a profit and, with much reluctance,
the giant jet was abandoned.
After almost a decade dominating the surrounding
landscape, the 747 was finally scrapped in 2010. Perhaps in time, the
latest generation of giant airliners will also foster a new breed of abandoned
aerial mega-machines.
Wreck of SS America/SS American Star, Fuerteventura, Canary Islands
To many, the SS America was the most beautiful liner to fly
the American flag. Designed by naval architect William Francis Gibbs and built
in 1940 for the United States Line, the ship accomodated 543 passengers in
cabin class, 418 in tourist class, 241 in third class, and 643 crew. Renamed
USS West Point for troop transport duties during World War Two, the liner
carried several names during her 54 year life including the Greek-flagged SS
Australis.
SS America was sold for scrap in the late 1980s but her fortunes
changed when the scrappers defaulted on payment and she was then slated to
become a five-star hotel ship off Phuket,
Thailand,
renamed American Star. But stormy weather while she was under tow to Southeast
Asia in 1994 broke the tow lines and the ship ran aground off Fuerteventura in
the Canary Islands. Battered by the waves, the wreck had almost entirely
collapsed into the sea by 2010.
An interesting event befell SS America in 1941,
when the liner carried two Nazi spies from the Duquesne Spy Ring – the largest
espionage case in U.S.
history – among her crew. Both men were charged by the FBI and imprisoned.
Russian Space Shuttle Transporter, Kazakhstan
This colossal platform once transported the Russian space
shuttle orbiter Buran, complete with solid rocket boosters, from the hangar
assembly facility to the launch pad. But with Buran completing only one
unmanned flight in 1988, it seems fair to say that the transporter has not seen
much use. The Russian shuttle was destroyed when its hangar in Kazakhstan
collapsed in 2002 due to poor maintenance.
But although only one vehicle
achieved space flight, eight full-scale test articles were built and five
“space Burans” were reportedly under construction. For
now, though, this massive mega-machine that relied on several diesel trains to
drag it, is going nowhere fast.
Giant Bucket-Wheel Excavator, Russia
Giant bucket-wheel excavators are immense machines designed
to remove thousand of tons of earth in surface mining and civil engineering
projects. These industrial behemoths differ from other forms of large-scale
mining equipment due to their use of a large wheel (which almost looks like a
saw from a distance) containing a continuous system of buckets designed to
scoop material as the wheel turns.
The primary function of bucket-wheel
excavators is to serve as continuous digging machines in large-scale open pit
mining operations.
Such objects define the term “mega-machines” and the biggest
one ever built, Bagger 293, holds the record for the largest land vehicle in human
history. Left to rust in a cold corner of Russia, this giant bucket-wheel
excavator looks almost alien on the landscape.
Mothballed Oil (Accomodation) Rig, Belfast, Northern Ireland
You might think of them more as structures than machines per
se, but oil rigs definitely fall into the mega category when it comes to size.
The rig above is configured as an accomodation platform rather than an oil
drilling rig, re-built in Belfast
in the late 1990s. Mothballed as opposed to completely abandoned, the rig
stands alongside the derelict area of the old Harland and Wolff shipyard. This
patch of wasteground is probably one of the most famous in maritime history,
being the construction site of the RMS Olympic and her sister ship Titanic. Today modern redevelopment is breathing new life into the area, as the Titanic
Quarter rises from the birthplace of its famous namesake. As for
abandoned oil rigs, how about turning them into luxury sustainable hotels like
these examples on The Design Blog.
Stranded River Princess, Goa
Hardly what the local authorities want blighting a tourist
hotspot, the massive River Princess lies abandoned on Candolim
Beach in Goa
after it was washed-up in a fierce storm. It was said that the local government
couldn’t afford the enormous cost of removing the vessel, instead leaving it to
rust immediately offshore.
While we urge against it, the water is apparently so
shallow that it’s almost possible to wade out to the stranded ship. A massive
hole cut into one side of the vessel has allowed sand and water flowing into
its cavernous hull to prevent it from drifting into the busy shipping lanes. A
report in the Times of India indicates that the River Princess may finally be
removed.
Source : http://www.urbanghostsmedia.com
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