Here is todays CSE announcement.

Louis plc announces the purchase of cruise ship M/V “OPERA” for the amount of $49 million.

M/V “OPERA” was build in 1992 , its capacity is 25.611 tons and carries 1.278 passengers in 483 cabins and suites. Opera has all amenities of a modern cruise ship and fills the strict prescriptions of USA Coast guard and Sanitary Authorities.

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Originally posted by PamM:
Excellent.. so why has the charter of Ocean Countess [Ruby] just been announced too? 2 ships for one?

Pam

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you might see her history over here:

http://www.faktaomfartyg.se/sally_albatross_1992.htm

So next thing - when will she depart Tilbury?

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Originally posted by Carlos Fernandez:
I think that's a beautiful ship. I remember seeing this ship as a kid when it belonged to Norwegian docked in the port of miami. If I had $50 million I would've bought the ship and made my own cruise line. Is the ship in good condition today?

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quote:

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Originally posted by Carlos Fernandez:
I think that's a beautiful ship. I remember seeing this ship as a kid when it belonged to Norwegian docked in the port of miami. If I had $50 million I would've bought the ship and made my own cruise line. Is the ship in good condition today?

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[ 05-10-2007: Message edited by: TampaMike ]

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Originally posted by TampaMike:
She has had quite a challenging past, burn out, grounded, multiple owners. And now her fate is to replace Sea Diamond? I am not the superstious type, but I'd be wary.

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Yes, this seems to be a jinxed ship--I sailed on her 6 or 7 times in the '90s as LEEWARD. One morning at sea, enroute back to Miami from Mexico, the ship lost power and drifted for a few hours. There was no lighting or air conditioning on board, and conditions rapidly deteriorated for the passengers. During this crisis, an elderly gentleman dropped dead of a heart attack right in front of us in the Lobby, tremendously adding to the drama!

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Originally posted by Linerrich:

, an elderly gentleman dropped dead of a heart attack right in front of us in the Lobby, tremendously adding to the drama!

Rich

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Rich,

What WERE you doing that made the poor soul drop dead in front of you?

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Originally posted by Carlos Fernandez:
I think that's a beautiful ship. Is the ship in good condition today?

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"The Sally Albatross grounded off Helsinki on 4 March 1994. It was a 25,000 GRT passenger ferry, built in 1992 from the hull of an earlier Ro-Ro ferry. It was entering Helsinki from Tallinn with 1101 passengers and 158 crew. Conditions were severe wind and ice, with temperature –5 C. The ship was off course due to the crew’s unfamiliarity with the ship’s new automatic chart system. The instruction manual was incomplete, the crew had received little training, and the officer of the watch was used to a different system. The ship struck a rock at 19 knots at 14:45, causing a 6 x 1m hole, which pierced the ship’s double skin and flooded the engine room. It tried to refloat under its own power and sent a Mayday at 16:35. The passengers and crew were then evacuated in 2 hours through the stern onto other vessels as the ship trimmed and reached a 25 o heel. Two icebreakers transferred the passengers to the passenger/Ro-Ro ferry Saint Patrick II. Some hours later, the ship nearly sank and was towed further onto the rocks to prevent this. It was eventually refloated on 18 April and towed to port. [Comment: 3 helicopters brought sea rescue staff but did not evacuate any passengers]"

After the major repair work there was a bad downturn in the Baltic with the Estonia disaster in Nov that year. She was chartered to NCL as Leeward in '95.

Let's hope those engines can be fully renovated and aren't going to cause problems.

Pam

[ 05-11-2007: Message edited by: PamM ]

Between 1999 and 2002 this ship was named Superstar Taurus and operated by Star Cruises.

It is possible at this time some work was done to make her engines more reliable.

I hadn't realized that as SALLY ALBATROSS, she had been entirely rebuild from a previous ship!