Three Irish naval vessels decommissioned in one day

The decommissioning on Friday of LÉ Eithne (pictured) and the two inshore patrol vessels LÉ Orla and LÉ Ciara will free up some of the skeleton crews who have been maintaining them to work on other ships. File picture: Dan Linehan

Three Naval Service ships have been decommissioned at the same time, with speculation mounting about what is next for the vessels.

It is an unprecedented move and questions remain as to whether they will be gifted to foreign governments, sold privately, or even converted into public amenities.