Minsk World

Minsk World
明思克航母世界

The main entrance to Minsk World
Location Shenzhen, Guangdong, China
Coordinates 22°33′14″N 114°14′13″E / 22.553772°N 114.237009°E / 22.553772; 114.237009Coordinates: 22°33′14″N 114°14′13″E / 22.553772°N 114.237009°E / 22.553772; 114.237009
Theme Military theme
naval theme
Opened May 10, 2000 (2000-05-10)
Closed February 14, 2016 (2016-02-14)
Visitors per annum 5 million
The flight deck of the Minsk
The actual craft from the starboard side.

Minsk World (Chinese: 明思克航母世界; pinyin: Míngsīkè Hángmǔ Shìjiè) was a military theme park located in Dapeng Bay, Shatoujiao, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. It includes the former Soviet (later Russian) aircraft carrier Minsk, redesigned as a tourist attraction. The theme park opened on 10 May 2000. As of 2005, it had attracted more than five million visitors and generated 450 million yuan in revenue.[1] The park formally closed in February 2016 and the aircraft carrier was moved to Zhoushan for repairs, after which it would be moved to another theme park in Nantong, Jiangsu.[2][3]

History

The aircraft carrier Minsk was part of the Soviet Pacific Fleet. It had to be retired as a result of a major accident which could only be repaired at Chernomorski's facility, located in the newly independent Ukraine. In 1995 it was sold to a South Korean businessman, and later resold to Shenzhen Minsk Aircraft Carrier Industry Co. Ltd., a Chinese company. Until 2006, when the company went bankrupt, Minsk was the centrepiece of a military theme park in Shatoujiao (沙头角) district, Shenzhen called Minsk World. The aircraft carrier was put up for auction on 22 March 2006. No bids at the starting price of 128 million RMB were received, so the carrier was withdrawn from sale.

On 31 May 2006, the Soviet aircraft carrier was finally auctioned off in Shenzhen for 128 million RMB to CITIC Shenzhen,[4] the current operator. It is currently named CITIC Minsk World.

Facilities

In addition to the island, four of the carrier's decks including the flight deck and hangar deck can be visited. Various aspects of the Minsk, such as its living quarters and armament, are set up as exhibits. The staff are dressed in mock military uniforms, while regular choreographed musical performances are held on the flight and hangar decks. It is also possible to take a quick ride around the starboard side of the Minsk via motorboat.

In 2006, Chinese filmmaker Cheng Xiaoxing made a documentary about "Minsk World", broadcast on Arte TV.

Static display

There are a number of military aircraft and armaments on display on the deck and on the mainland area:

See also

References

  1. ↑ Pun, Pamela (2 March 2005). "Business as usual at sunk Minsk World". The Standard. Sing Tao Newspaper Group and Global China Group. Archived from the original on 10 February 2012.
  2. ↑ "因用地问题没谈拢 明思克航母世界关门走人" (in Chinese). house.163.com. 14 February 2016.
  3. ↑ "别了！明斯克航母昨告别深圳 启程前往江苏南通" (in Chinese). China Internet Information Center. 3 April 2016.
  4. ↑ "Former Soviet aircraft carrier sold in China for $16mln". RIA Novosti. 31 May 2006. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
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