Last February we posted “Will the SS United States Sail Again? Crystal Cruises Tosses a Life Line.” Crystal Cruises had signed an option to purchase the ship and was undertaking a feasibility study to determine whether the ship could be economically put back into service. In the mean time, Crystal Cruises would cover the ship expenses of $60,0000 per month for nine months. The feasibility study is now complete and Crystal Cruises has said, “Thank you, but no thank you.” From the press release: “Crystal Cruises today determined that while the SS United States is structurally sound, the technical and commercial challenges associated with returning the historic liner to service as a modern cruise ship have unfortunately proven insurmountable.” While Crustal Cruises will not exercise their option to buy the ship, they will contribute $350,000 to aid in the SS Unted States Conservancy’s ongoing mission to save the ship.
Why wasn’t the ship attractive enough to Crystal Cruises? It would have been a very difficult restoration/conversion. As we wrote last February:
If Crystal Cruises moves forward, they have a huge job ahead of them…. SS United States operated from 1952-1969. In 1984, the ship’s interior, including furniture and fitting, was sold at auction. In 1994, what was left of the interior was stripped out when the ship’s asbestos was removed in a Turkish shipyard. … All of the ship’s mechanical and electrical systems will need to be replaced. All cable, electrical equipment such as capacitors and transformers, as well as gaskets. which contain toxic PCBs, will have to be removed and disposed of.
Crystal Cruises would essentially be buying the shell of a historic ship, which could, at least potentially, make the conversion to a modern cruise ship easier. The plan is to keep the iconic profile. As reported by the New York Times: A concept rendering of the S.S. United States makeover shows a ship with its signature twin red, white and blue stacks and the same number of decks, a spokesman said, in contrast with the top-heavy silhouette of some modern cruise liners. The decks, however, are extended and expanded to accommodate rooms with balconies, something the original design never had.
Thanks to Irwin Bryan for contributing to this post.
For the life of me I do not understand why Crystal Cruises got involved with this destroyed ship. One suspects an alternative motive behind the scenes to achieve a business end.
After the lessons learned (hopefully) with the “France” becoming the “Norway” trying to utilize these old ships is really not feasible. I was involved with the “Norway” on a weekly basis for over a year at the Port of Miami, Florida so know her condition quite well including the engineering spaces where the accident happened that caused death and injury to crewmembers that lead finally to her ceasing operation.
Good Watch
There is so much Maritime history around the Port of Philadelphia, it is a shame that funding to create coherent museum and preserve the ships is probably impossible. The core of the collection is already here. Exhibits could include warships that were close to state of the art around the beginning, middle and end of the last century – USS Olympia, USS New Jersey & one of the AEGIS cruisers currently moldering in the reserve fleet in the Navy Yard basin. Other USN ships, including the USS Becuna, USS JFK and various amphibs. There are ships representing the end of the commercial sail and commercial passenger liner eras – Moshulu, United States. The exhibits and active tall ship of the Independence Seaport Museum could be included. It would probably be relatively cheap to acquire a few other ships to provide a more complete collection – say a retired warship built by the USSR for a then client state, the ex USN DE-99 currently active in the Philippine Navy, a smaller commercial vessel or two representing more current technology, a junk & a dhow.
Maintaining this history is probably impossible to fund. Even iconic ships such as the United States and the Olympia are not likely sustainable pas the short term.
Thanks to Crystal Cruises for finally making a decision in favor of the SS United States. Undoubtedly she would have been flagged foreign, not the kind of outcome we would have wished for. Wanting to preserve jobs for seamen on ships flying their national flag is an old concept. In the novel “Newton Forster orThe Merchant Service” author Captain Frederick Marryat R.N. states the following in writing about Bombay Marine: “At the same time, every East India ship should be compelled to take onboard her whole complement of English seamen, and not be half manned by Lascars and Chinamen.” Perhaps a reef somewhere in US waters is the answer now.
Frederick Marryat was another bigoted racist who lived from 10 July 1792 to 9 August 1848 and served in the British Navy. His wife was American and they had 11 children, 4 boys and 7 girls. With a co-author he wrote a rather vicious satire on abolitionism. As regards the Bombay Marine it was formed in India and had that name, one of a series over the years, in 1686 eventually becoming today’s Indian Navy.
One would suggest using these comparisons in 2016 with regard to the now destroyed S.S. United States is factitious. It was the prohibitive cost of operating the vessel under a contract to your Maritime Unions which was one of the principle factors in the vessel being laid up.
Finally I have been an Officer in British ships manned by “Lascars and Chinamen” who made excellent crews and an interesting pleasant life at sea, I doubt you have had that experience.
Good Watch.