Battered Cole begins long journey home

The USS Cole leaves the Yemeni port of Aden on Sunday morning

From CNN Senior International Correspondent Walter Rodgers

ADEN, Yemen (CNN) -- With her crew smartly saluting to the strains of the American national anthem, the bomb-scarred USS Cole left the Yemeni port of Aden on Sunday morning bound for a repair trip to the United States.

Two Yemeni tugboats began pulling the $1 billion destroyer out of Aden about 9:30 a.m. local time. Naval officials said it would take several hours for the tugs to lead the 505-foot Cole out to a floating Norwegian dry-dock vessel, on which it will be placed for the voyage to the United States.

Although it could not leave on its own power, the Cole flew an American flag signifying it was underway. The sounds of "The Star Spangled Banner" drifted across the water from the ship's missile deck.

GALLERY New photographs give closeup view of Cole damage     INTERACTIVE 'Shipboard terrorist threatcon measures' US Defense Department Threat Conditions Timeline: The attack on the USS Cole See a 3-dimensional image of the USS Cole Get the plugin Animation of a transport ship conducting a recovery procedure at sea     MESSAGE BOARD USS Cole attack

Suspected terrorists riding aboard a small boat loaded with explosives struck the Cole on October 12 as it sat in Aden. The ship was in port for refueling.

Ship will return to service

The massive blast killed 17 sailors and blew a hole 40 feet by 40 feet (12 meters by 12 meters) in the ship's midsection. The explosion seriously damaged the Cole's No. 1 engine as well as some berths and the petty officer's mess.

U.S. naval officials have vowed the ship will return to service after it is repaired. For naval authorities, it's a point of pride that the suspected suicide terrorists failed to send the giant warship to the bottom of the harbor.

Two investigations are being conducted into the source of the bomb blast.

Technicians with the Federal Bureau of Investigation are studying forensic evidence collected from the scene to trace who was responsible for the bombing. Evidence includes fragments of the small boat, collected by divers from the harbor floor.

Yemeni authorities also are interviewing scores of people about their knowledge of the blast. So far more than 2,000 including some eyewitnesses have been questioned about the explosion.

No one has been charged.

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