"Minas Gerais" was decommissioned on 16 October 2001: the second to last of the World War II-era light aircraft carriers to leave service, with the other being the 1959-commissioned (former ) which was ordered during the war but not completed and was the oldest aircraft carrier still in service in the world until it was decommissioned in 2017. At the time of her decommissioning, she was the second oldest active aircraft carrier in the world (a title passed on to the 1961-commissioned ) Also at the decommissioning ceremony was 87-year-old Admiral Hélio Leôncio Martins who was the first commander of the aircraft carrier. Also there was crew who had served on the Minas Gerais at different times The carrier was marked for sale in 2002, and was sought after by British naval associations for return to the United Kingdom and preservation as a museum ship, although they were unable to raise the required money. Just before Christmas 2003, the carrier was listed for sale on auction website eBay by a user claiming to be a shipbroker representing the owner. Bidding reached £4 million before the auction was removed from the website under rules preventing the sale of military ordnance. An auction in Rio de Janeiro in February 2004 also failed to sell the ship. Sometime between February and July 2004, the carrier was towed to the ship breaking yards at Alang, India for dismantling.