Sinking:
In January 1996, the Calypso sank in the port of Singapore after colliding with a barge. Although it was refloated, this accident was the beginning of a series of disputes, both over the ownership of the ship and over who should be in charge of the repairs. In the meantime, the ship spent 10 years in the port of La Rochelle (France), degrading rapidly.

Restoration another problem:

Finally, in 2005, the Calypso became the property of the Cousteau Foundation. In 2007, its reconstruction began at the Piriou shipyard in the French town of Concarneau.

Since 2009, the reconstruction has been suspended due to lack of funding and the Calypso wreck is awaiting the declaration of national heritage, in order to access public funds that would mean its salvation.

A popular petition in 2013 for the French government to take on the restoration of the ship was unsuccessful.

TURKEY 2016

El original yate explorador Calypso, que perteneció en su día al difunto Jacques Cousteau, ha iniciado un proyecto de restauración de dos años en Turquía.

Francine Cousteau, presidenta de la Sociedad Cousteau, ha designado al ex regatista de la Copa América Patrice Quesnel para coordinar la reconstrucción de este superyate clásico de 43 metros.

El casco del Calypso se trasladó de Francia a Turquía en marzo de 2016 y el proyecto comenzó oficialmente a principios de este mes con la instalación de las primeras costillas de gulam en un cobertizo climatizado construido a medida en las instalaciones de FryCo Yachts en Estambul.

Otras piezas originales que permanecen intactas son la timonera, las hélices, los ejes y los motores Volvo del Calypso, mientras que los elementos clave del equipamiento del laboratorio y la cocina se encuentran actualmente almacenados en Estados Unidos.

2017 FIRE

On Tuesday, September 12, 2017 at 2:30 a.m., a fire damaged the legendary Calypso, inside the shipyard in Turkey where she has been undergoing refit since 2016.

A police investigation is currently underway to determine the origin of the fire. Fortunately, the fire has not caused any human casualties and the extent of the damage is still being assessed.

It appears that only the newly installed wooden parts of the vessel were affected, not the original structure. All historical elements of the ship are intact.

The fire occurred at a crucial time, when the wooden decking of the hull had just been completed, after months of passionate and meticulous work by the carpenters.

This incident will cause delays in the refurbishment of the Calypso, a global symbol of environmental protection, but will not derail the refit process.

Work then continued at Tuzla Shipyard in Istanbul, Turkey.

SALUDOS!!!!

More info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RV_Calypso

Thanks Gena

http://www.shipspotting.com/gallery/photo.php?lid=208104 CALYPSO - IMO: 5200473.

One of the highlights of my life was to meet Jacques Cousteau and Falco the Captain, a real hard case.

After going down into the forepeak observation point, I realised how important good navigation is and you crawl in on your stomach and feel like a rat jammed in a drainpipe !