New Cole photos show bomb damage more extensive than thought

	GALLERY
Click to see the latest photographs of the USS Cole Obtained by CNN from unofficial U.S. Navy sources

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- As new photographs of damage to the USS Cole became available Thursday, the U.S. Navy said the size of a hole ripped into the side of the warship by suicide bombers in Yemen is much larger than was previously reported.

The new estimate is 60 feet wide and 40 feet high. Previously, the Navy said the size of the waterline hole on the port side of the destroyer was 40-by-40 feet.

The October 12 terrorist attack in the port of Aden killed 17 U.S. sailors.

At a Pentagon briefing, the co-chairmen of the Cole Commission -- assigned by the Defense Department to review military procedures, protection and intelligence gathering in Yemen -- said they had not yet reached any conclusions.

Retired Army Gen. William W. Crouch and retired Navy Adm. Harold W. Gehman spent time in Yemen gathering information. Their investigation, however, is being conducted separately from the criminal probe being carried out by FBI agents and Yemeni authorities.

VIDEO U.S. Navy video shows the USS Cole being lifted out of the water Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)     INFORMATION More about C-4     ALSO Pentagon: Cole not irreparably damaged     GALLERY Images of Cole being loaded onto transport ship Photographs give closeup view of Cole damage     INTERACTIVE Timeline: The attack on the USS Cole     MESSAGE BOARD USS Cole attack

Photographs obtained by CNN show the extent to which the $1-billion warship was damaged by a boat bomb loaded with several hundred pounds of what law enforcement sources confirm was C-4, a military-style plastic explosive.

The photographs reveal that there was significant crumpling of a large section of the Cole's hull below the waterline. Navy officials said the ship appears not to have suffered any irreparable damage and that repairs will cost between $150 million and $170 million.

That figure is unchanged despite the upward revision on the size of the hole.

The crippled Cole has been placed on the deck of a specialized transport ship, the Blue Marlin, for the trip back to the United States.

The return voyage has not yet begun, however, according to Pentagon officials, who spoke Thursday on condition of anonymity. They said the Norwegian-owned Blue Marlin remains in the Gulf of Aden.

A few crew members will stay with the ship. Plans call for the remaining 217 to be flown Friday to Norfolk Naval Station in Virginia -- the Cole's home port.

The Cole itself is not expected back in Norfolk until around December 10, depending on weather and other variables.

No decision has been made about where the warship will be repaired.

CNN Military Affairs Correspondent Jamie McIntyre contributed to this report.

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