A former naval minesweeper which sank earlier this year with its skipper on board has now been dismantled.

The Yarmouth Navigator, which had submerged in the Cattewater at Plymouth was yesterday being taken apart by heavy machinery on Howard's Quay.

Cattewater Harbour Master, Capt Tim Charlesworth, said the ship, one of only seven surviving vessels to have taken part in the D-Day landings, would now be sold for scrap with as much as possible being recycled. Commander Robert Tallack, 67, from Somerset, was killed when the vessel sank on her last trip after sailing from Dartmouth. Tributes were paid to Cdr Tallack after his death with friends describing him as a "warm and generous" sailor.

He was trying to renovate the historic ship at the time of its sinking on January 30.

The 90ft Yarmouth Navigator dated back to 1943 and was one of 7,000 ships that participated in the Normandy landings in 1944. She was part of a flotilla of small ships that cleared mines on and after D-Day along the French coast, in harbour approaches, shallow waters and rivers.

The 60-year-old wooden vessel, which used to be named the MFV – motor fishing vessel – 1502, was one of the last Royal Navy ships to go into battle fitted with sails.

She had been listed by the National Historic Ships Committee on its register of vital ships but unlike listed buildings, there is no official Government protection for ships.