By Greg Milam, US Correspondent
The US Navy has released video of the remarkable operation to scrap a $300m (£197m) warship which ran aground on a world famous coral reef in the Philippines.
It comes as the commanding officer of the USS Guardian was relieved of his duties as punishment for the episode that has embarrassed the superpower.
The minesweeper spent two months stuck on the Tubbataha Reef after the crew reportedly ignored warnings from locals that they were entering a protected area.
Lieutenant commander Mark Rice was fired over the blunder Defence officials decided to slice the vessel into pieces and scrap it rather than try to remove it safely from its delicate perch.
It is estimated that repairs to the Unesco World Heritage Site could cost the US millions of dollars.
Lieutenant commander Mark Rice and three other Guardian crew members were disciplined after an investigation found they "did not adhere to standard US Navy navigation procedures".
An aerial view of the USS Guardian on Tubbataha Reef They were relieved "due to their role in the grounding and a loss of confidence".
It had been claimed that errors on digital charts were to blame for the grounding.
There has been anger in the Philippines at reports that the ship's crew had dismissed concerns about hitting the reef just before they ran aground in January.
Crews spent weeks dismantling the vessel 
Crews have now completed the task of chopping the 1,300-tonne ship into four pieces and carrying it away on barges.
They had feared causing further damage to the reef if they had tried to manoeuvre the ship away.
The salvage work alone is thought to have cost in excess of $50m (£33m).
Joe Sestak, a former US Navy admiral and congressman, said: "We're good custodians and we're also good neighbours. We're just good Americans.
The boat after it aground on the reef "We made a mistake, we hurt something, like a neighbour throwing trash on somebody's lawn, we're going to repair it and fix it.
"I think that is good, it is who we are, and I think we should do that."
The US has been increasing its outreach to the Pacific region under President Barack Obama and attempting to shore up ties with allies like the Philippines.
News of the punishments handed out to the crew came as they were due to take over roles on the minesweeper which has replaced the Guardian.
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