Most former BLASCO ships aren't faring too well, unfortunately. Let's see:

FEDOR SHALYAPIN: Laid up at Ilichevsk, Ukraine. She's a mess after a rebuild was stopped in '98.

TARAS SCHEVCHENKO: Also laid up at Ilichevsk.

LEONID SOBINOV: Scrapped in India, 1999.

IVAN FRANKO: Scrapped in Alang, India, 1997 as FRANK

ARMENIYA: scrapped a few years ago, after a rebuild was halted.

The PYOTR PERVYJ hasn't changed name, I think.

The DMITRIY SHOSTAKOVICH is sailing under the name PALOMA, in the German cruise market.

A picture of the Paloma:

AJL

I am a BLASCO-specialist and it´s a pleasure for me to inform you about the current status of the different BLASCO-vessels.

1) GRUZIYA: is now sailing under the new name VAN GOGH for Eltek Shipping Company, Kingstwon, formed by Blasco in 1999. It is chartered to Nouvelles Frontières for French passengers.

2) BELORUSSIYA: is now sailing as the DELPHIN for Dolphin Maritime Ltd., Malta, which was formed as a privated subsidiary of Blasco with German money. It is chartered to Delphin Seereisen and managed by MTC Marine Trade Consulting for German passengers.

3) AZERBAYDZHAN: is currently laid up in the Caribbean after the charter-company Commodore Cruises has ceased operations due to bankrupty. Blasco is currently looking for a new operator.

4) KAZAKHSTAN: is sailing as the ISLAND ADVENTURE under charter of New SeaEscape Cruises on daily cruises from Fort Lauderdale, mainly for Americans looking for gambling cruises. Owner: Blasco

5) KARELIYA: is sailing as OLVIA for Kaalbye and Olvia Shipping Company, Odessa, a privated subsidiary of Blasco. It is mainly chartered to Japanese operators.

6) LEV TOLSTOY: sailing as PALMIRA for PSM Shipmanagement, Schaffhausen (CH) and chartered 50% to Neckermann Seereisen. Still sailing with ukrainian crew and flag.

7) DIMITRIY SHOSTAKOVICH: sailing as PALOMA for PSM Shipmanagement and chartered to Hansa Touristik for German passengers. Still ukrainian crew and passengers.

8) PYOTR PERVYJ: is laid up in Jabel Ali, owned by Sovereign Maritime Ltd., Malta, formed by Blasco. It was long time an eye-hospital in Gibraltar before being transfered to Jabel Ali in the Arabian Emirates.

9) ODESSA: currently still laid up in Naples. I am negotiating to take her over as a cruiseship for German passengers with ukrainian crew in the near future by a new company formed by myself and a collegue. Very good chances to see her back in service soon !

10) TARAS SHEVCHENKO: is still laid up in Ilychevsk and owned by Ukrainian Passenger Fleet (Blasco). The ship will most probably follow the steps of SHOTA RUSTAVELI which is sailing as the ASSEDO already (this is currently discussed by Blasco management)

11) FEDOR SHALJAPIN: still laid up in Ilychevsk. Still owned by Blasco and future is unknown.

12) IVAN FRANKO: was scrapped in Alang in 1997 after a deal with Orient Lines to purchase the vessel as a fleetmate for MARCO POLO (ex ALEKSANDR PUSHKIN) has failed.

13) ARMENIYA: was scrapped in 1995 as the ARM after having sailed a while as the ODESSA SPRING for Odessa Sun Ltd. in Malta

14) ADZHARIYA: was scrapped in 1996

Regards

to Paulo: Blasco has recently recieved new financing-support for their privated subsidiaries. This allowed them to bring back the SHOTA which is currently the best ship in the laid-up trio. TARAS and FEDOR did not recieve security certificates yet and still some work has to be done. The FEDOR is already old, a comeback could be possible but is not discussed that much yet that coming back with TARAS.

to HomeLines: The TARAS SHEVCHENKO and SHOTA RUSTAVELI are sisterships of MARCO POLO. The further sister MIKHAIL LERMONTOV sank in 1985 and the first on of this series, the IVAN FRANKO, was scrapped in 1997.

Van Gogh was booked for 2 calls at Amsterdam, but the calls were deleted in the Amsterdam cruise ship list. And as I was at Amsterdam on 24.05., a man who works for the port said to me that the calls were cancelled.

The ILIYCH was bulid in 1973 as BORE I for Bore Steamship Company, Helsinki. It became the SKANDIA in 1981 for Finska Angfartygs A/B EFFOA before being transfered to their brand Stena A/B and renamed STENA BALTICA. 8 days later it was sold to Blatic Shipping Company and renamed ILIYCH. It served long time on the so-called ScanSov Line.
After the collapse of Baltic Shipping Company in 1997, the ship was sold to KS Windward Venture and placed under bare-boat-charter to Estonian Shipping Company / Estline. It was renamed BALTIC KRISTINA and is successfully cruising, together with her former Baltic Line fleetmate ANNA KARENINA (now REGINA BALTICA) in the Baltic Sea.

and in the same place the same day, the Mikhail Sholokhov:

AJL

Do you have contact information for Blasco? I have some interested parties that might have a service for the Shota or one of her sisters.

Black Sea Shipping Company
ul. Lanjeronovskaya 1
ODESSA 270026
UKRAINE

Tel.: 00380 482 252 160
Fax: 00380 482 605 733

manager: Mr. Boris Tscherbak

representative-office in Germany:
Rolandia Schiffahrtsgesellschaft mbH
Schlachte 31
D-28195 Bremen
GERMANY

Tel.: 0049 421 1764 200
Fax: 0049 421 1764 205

Wish I had thought of this before, do you have contact information for the current owners of the Lubov Orlova and Mariya Yermontlova? They are the ships that Marine Expeditions was using down in Antarctica until they went bust.

1, ul. Svobody
Novorossiysk 353900
Russiya
Tel.: 007 8617 253 126
Fax: 007 8617 279 113 / 279 133 / 279 153
e-mail: novoship@novoship.ru www.novoship.ru

MS LYUBOV ORLOVA belongs to Far Eastern Shipping Company but is managed entirely by the subsidiary Lyubov Orlova Shipping Company

Address:
LOSCO (Lyubov Orlova Shipping Co.)
3, Independence Square
La Valletta
Malta

sorry, no phone numbers, but contact in Russia:
Tel.:007 4232 4411 432
Fax: 007 4232 413 037
e-mail: uef@fesco.ru

Your extraordinary, thanks much