The publisher of an England-based navy magazine and 27 of its readers from abroad toured the USS Orleck on Wednesday — it was one stop out of many for the group, who are making numerous visits to warships across the United States.

Warship World Magazine prints articles and photographs of “the old and new navy,” the publisher said. It features insight on ship preservation as well.

Doglas Barow, of Portsmouth, England, is an avid reader of the magazine and spent 42 years in the Royal Navy.

“Being on this ship brings back many memories,” said 84-year-old Barow, who spent time on three British battleships in the 1940s. “Being on the Orleck is like coming home, to a certain extent.”

Mike Critchley, publisher of Warship World, said each year he and his readers go around the world visiting ships and historic maritime museums.

He said the group has been to Hawaii to visit Pearl Harbor, the East and West coasts, with the southern part of the U.S. being the last stop. After the Orleck, the group will travel to the USS Kidd in Baton Rouge with the trip ending in Pensacola, Fla., next week.

“We come here and we see a similar group of enthusiastic people that want to preserve some of the American naval history — that’s what it’s all about,” said Critchley, who is from Cornwall, England. “These ships have to generate income because preserving a ship is expensive. Any bills you rack up on board are always big.”

He added that old warships being preserved reminds future generations of the sacrifices the Navy made for the country.

The U.S. has a good record of people putting their hands “deep in their pockets” to be able to fund projects such as the USS Orleck, he said.

“We are extremely pleased that they included the USS Orleck in their itinerary,” said Ron Williams, executive director of the USS Orleck Naval Museum.

Williams said the magazine will give the USS Orleck and Southwest Louisiana international exposure.

(Lance Traweek / American Press)