BOSTON (AP) — At 215 years old, the USS Constitution is the U.S. Navy’s oldest commissioned warship afloat. But it’s not too old to take a quick sail.
For 17 minutes on Sunday, the ship cruised west across Boston Harbor, reaching a maximum speed of 3.1 knots. It was its first sail under its own power since turning 200 in 1997.
The short trip — a distance of 1,100 yards — was to commemorate the Constitution’s victory over a British warship of a similar size in a fierce battle during the War of 1812. The victory earned the ship its nickname, “Old Ironsides.”
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