![]() ![]() The vessels have been replaced by a next-generation submersible known as the Submarine Rescue Diving Recompression System, still based at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego. While Mystic came to Keyport, Avalon was saved for the Morro Bay Maritime Museum in California. ![]() Mystic and Avalon, it turns out, were never needed for such an emergency. Navy’s primary submarine rescue system for almost 40 years, able to deploy anywhere in the world to rescue survivors of a submarine accident," said museum curator Mary Ryan. "They were also two of the most technologically advanced submersibles in the world and carried out research and object recovery missions in addition to providing rescue capability.” “DSRVs Mystic and Avalon served as the U.S. ![]() Mystic was based in San Diego from 1977 until its deactivation in 2008. Mystic and its counterpart could dive up to 5,000 feet and was on watch to help any submarine in distress in the world, thanks to international agreements. The Navy developed the Deep Submarine Rescue System, or DSRV, as a way to provide a rescue vehicle in an emergency for submerged submarines. Two such vehicles, Mystic DSRV-1 and Avalon DSRV-2, were built. Mystic was developed in the wake of the loss of USS Thresher in April 1963, in which 129 sailors and civilians died off the coast of Massachusetts. "They did a really fantastic job," Sanders said. The restoration work - which included sanding down the degraded fiberglass, resurfacing the hull and finally priming and painting the exterior - was completed in the fall and early winter by Brownsville-based Infocus Marine. "We had to think about how we're going to preserve the vehicle long term," she said. The museum got help from historic aircraft restoration specialists from the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida. It's not exactly the same color scheme the vessel had in its prime, but the museum wanted to ensure it could last as an exhibit for as long as possible. Its hull was restored and painted, thanks to $180,000 in funding from the Naval History and Heritage Command. ![]()
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