Major cruise ships are dismantled, scrapped for parts amid pandemic, photos show
Drone photographers captured images of decommissioned ships in Izmir, Turkey
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}These ships are currently worth more for their parts than they are as luxury voyages.
As the cruise ship industry continues to be battered by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, boats once considered to be opulent, top-of-the-line vessels are now being sold for scraps.
The luxury cruise ships were photographed being broked down at the Aliaga ship recycling port in Izmir, Turkey, earlier this month. (Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
This month, a drone captured aerial photos of five decommissioned ocean liners being broken down for scrap metal in Izmir, Turkey. The images, taken on Oct. 2 at the Aliaga ship recycling port, are a visual illustration of the desecration caused to the once-profitable, multibillion-dollar cruise industry as a result of the coronavirus.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}CRUISE LINE ASSOCIATION SAYS ALL PASSENGERS, CREW WILL NEED COVID-19 TESTS BEFORE BOARDING
Although the proliferation of COVID-19 has caused widespread economic fallout, the cruise industry has been among the hardest-hit industries. As a result of the pandemic, some cruise operators have been forced to put ships into early retirement as they cut their losses.
The Aliaga port has been significantly busier than usual as a result, with a 30 percent increase in business this year compared to 2019.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Aliaga port has been significantly busier than usual as a result, with a 30 percent increase in business this year compared to 2019, The New York Post reports. (Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
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The travel and hospitality industries have been hard hit by the pandemic as a result of people wary to travel for fear of both contracting the virus and having to deal with closed borders. The cruise industry, additionally, is reeling from its reputational fallout after staff complained of egregiously mishandled quarantine protocols that left them stranded at sea for months.