When you think of a last chance sale item, the idea of a massive top secret Navy stealth ship is pretty far down the list. The Sea Shadow was designed in the 80's to avoid detection on open seas. The ship originally cost $195 million to build and is now being donated to any takers.

So now you're thinking "Why hasn't anybody wanted this? It looks pretty cool", and rightly so. The problem is that this is a twofer offer. In order to get the Sea Shadow you need to also take on the Hughes (as in Howard Hughes) Mining Barge. The Hughes "looks like a floating field house, with an arching roof and a door that is 76 feet wide and 72 feet high. Sea Shadow berths inside the barge, which keeps it safely hidden from spy satellites."

Now you're looking at two massive ships, still doesn't seem like a horrible offer, I mean they are being donated. There may even be some interest...and then you read something like the following:

"But a gift ship from the Navy comes with lots of strings attached to the rigging. A naval museum, the Historic Naval Ships Association warns, is "a bloodthirsty, paperwork ridden, permit-infested, money-sucking hole..." Because the Navy won't pay for anything -- neither rust scraping nor curating -- to keep museums afloat, survival depends on big crowds. That's why many of the 48 ships it has given away over 60 years were vessels known for performing heroically in famous battles."

Even if this does look like something from a Bond or GI Joe movie, it just goes to show you that nothing is free, EVER!

[via WSJ.com]