Photos of abandoned, stripped cruise ships show how deeply the cruise industry is sinking
Photos of unused cruise ships getting stripped for parts show how the cruise industry is struggling amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Maintaining cruise ships that aren't in use is very expensive, so many cruise companies are selling part of their fleet for scrap.
Since the pandemic hit, the number of cruise ships being dismantled for scrap has increased.
Because many shipyards had to close due to lockdowns, there's a waiting list for cruise ships to get dismantled around the world.
Related: How the Navy's largest hospital ship can help with the coronavirus
The travel industry is hurting as the coronavirus pandemic ravages on, but the US cruise industry, in particular, has been hard hit.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a no-sail order in March, which it changed to a "conditional sailing" one on November 1. This means that cruises could accept passengers, but only after making significant changes to their health and safety protocols. Most cruise companies voluntarily renewed the no-sail order through 2020 as they figure out these new measures.
Ahead of the coronavirus pandemic, Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), the world's largest cruise industry trade association, which represents 95% of the global cruising industry, projected that 32 million passengers would set sail in 2020 and that the industry was creating an economic impact of $53 billion in the US, and $150 billion worldwide.
The CLIA now estimates that "each day of the suspension of cruise operations in the US results in a total loss of approximately $110 million in economic activity and up to 800 American jobs."
For the shipbreaking industry, however, this means big business.
Photos of cruise ships being dismantled into scrap metal at bustling shipbreaking yards around the world illustrate just how deeply the cruise industry is hurting right now.
An aerial view of cruise ships being broken down for scrap metal at the Aliaga Ship Recycling Facility in Turkey. Chris McGrath/Getty Images
The Aliaga Ship Recycling Facility in Turkey is currently dismantling five cruise ships. Chris McGrath/Getty Images
Two of the five cruise ships at the Aliaga Ship Recycling Facility in Turkey have already started getting scrapped. Chris McGrath/Getty Images
Cruise ships are scrapped by hand. Chris McGrath/Getty Images
A worker uses a blowtorch to cut metal from a ship at a shipbreaking yard in Yangon, Myanmar. YE AUNG THU/AFP/Getty Images
Carnival is cutting 18 ships from its fleet as a result of the pandemic. Chris McGrath/Getty Images
Workers at a shipbreaking yard in Jakarta, Indonesia. Anton Raharjo/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Cruise ships are so large they can take many months to break down. Chris McGrath/Getty Images
A side-by-side view of two cruise ships in different stages of demolition at the Aliaga Ship Recycling Facility in Turkey. Chris McGrath/Getty Images
The dismantled steering cabin of a French Navy vessel at the Galloo ship recycling plant in Ghent, Belgium. Francois Lenoir/AP
A worker welds part of a ship at a shipbreaking yard in Mumbai, India. Himanshu Bhatt/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Workers at a shipbreaking yard in Gaddani, Pakistan. AKHTAR SOOMRO/AP
Looking deep into the bowels of a cruise ship in the middle of getting dismantled in Turkey. Mehmet Emin Menguarslan/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images
A makeshift cable carriage at a shipbreaking yard in Gaddani, Pakistan. Akhtar Soomro/AP
The shipbreaking process usually starts in the ship's bow. Chris McGrath/Getty Images
A worker at a shipbreaking yard in Jakarta, Indonesia. Anton Raharjo/NurPhoto/Getty Images
A worker carries a metal sheet dismantled from a ship at a shipbreaking yard in Yangon, Myanmar. YE AUNG THU/AFP via Getty Images
A crane helps dismantle a ship at the Galloo ship recycling plant in Ghent, Belgium. Francois Lenoir/AP
Workers carry a metal sheet dismantled from a ship at a shipbreaking yard in Yangon, Myanmar. YE AUNG THU/AFP/Getty Images
A worker uses a cutting torch on a large block cut from a vessel at the Galloo ship recycling plant in Ghent, Belgium. Francois Lenoir
Workers at a shipbreaking yard in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Maruf Hossain Rafi/NurPhoto/Getty Images
Workers climb down from decommissioned Indian Navy ship at a shipbreaking yard in Mumbai, India. Danish Siddiqu/Reuters
A burning oil tanker at a shipbreaking yard in Gaddani, Pakistan. Akhtar Soomro/Reuters
Workers dismantle a ship at a shipbreaking yard in Yangon, Myanmar. YE AUNG THU/AFP/Getty Images
A worker at a shipbreaking yard in Jakarta, Indonesia. Anton Raharjo/NurPhoto/Getty Images
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