(as published on Mad Mariner)

Born on the river Clyde, in the John Brown Shipyard, the Queen Elizabeth II was launched by a young queen of the same name in 1967. When she first went to sea the following year, the QE2 was powered by great steam boilers.

After four decades of service and 5.5 million nautical miles – the equivalent of 13 round trips to the moon – the world’s most traveled vessel will make her final passage.

The Cunard line’s most famous queen will make her final departure from Southampton on Nov. 11 and head slowly southeast, arriving a little more than two weeks later at the port of Dubai World. As she glides to a stop at the quay, her modern diesel-electric power plant, capable of lighting the entire city of Southampton, will gradually still itself.

There she will cease her role as an ocean-going passenger vessel and be refurbished and adapted for her new home. In 2009 the vessel will be berthed at a specially-constructed pier at The Palm Jumeriah, the world’s largest man-made island, to create a floating luxury hotel, retail and entertainment destination.

The fact that her sponsor, Queen Elizabeth II, outlasted her may be testament to the British Monarch’s royal constitution, but the ship will retire with quite a legacy of her own, one that spanned generations of both technology and customers.

A QUEEN EMERGES

By the late 1950s, it was clear that the Queen Mary (1934) and Queen Elizabeth (1938), were showing their age, and there was a great deal of debate over whether a new liner was the right investment, given the recent boom in jet air travel. The British government was originally set to support two new liners but eventually settled on one, with a government subsidy reported at 18 million pounds Sterling (about $35 million at current rates).

Though the original design called for a ship of 75,000 tons, the final plan was slightly smaller – just more than 70,000 tons – to facilitate transits through the Panama and Suez canals, and cost approximately 29 million pounds, or about $57 million.

QE2’s official maiden voyage, from Southampton to New York, began on May 2, 1969, just two months before the first Moon landing. The ship was outfitted in the best of the Cunard tradition of luxury and comfort. The interior design of the time was known as Space-Age Décor, and reflected a taste for all things modern.

While other ocean liners were being withdrawn from service at the time – the United States, the fastest liner ever, left service just months after QE2 began and France, the largest liner of the day, never overcame the massive cost overruns associated with her construction – QE2 proved to be a magnet for those seeking the old-world luxury of a five-day passage between the United States and Great Britain.

LEGACY OF COMMODORES

Cunard’s Commodore William E. Warwick was on the bridge that inaugural day, accompanied by HRH Prince Charles. The Warwick family shares a lot of history with QE2. Commodore Warwick was the ship’s first master, and his son grew up to command the same ship. Warwick’s grandson, Samuel, maintains a tribute website to the QE2. (more…)

Rendering of the new Nordic Tugs 49

BURLINGTON, Wa. – In the 1990s, a 32-footer was the best seller in the Nordic Tugs line. The company added a 42 when it was time to expand – and learned a lesson in the balance.

“It became apparent that the 10-foot jump in size was too much for some of our customers,” said Jim Cress, president of Nordic Tugs. A 37-foot model was created to bridge the gap.

It was similar thinking that led to the development of the new Nordic Tugs 49, the latest addition to the trawler-style model line, which is still under construction at the company plant here. The 49 is designed to bridge the gap between the 42- and 54-foot models. “We did it again,” said Cress, laughing as he told the story. “We launched the 52″ [now the 54] and created another 10-foot gap.”

Nordic TugThe 49 has two cabins, with the master amidships. Still, the company has high hopes for the 49. I got a good look at Hull No. 1 at Nordic Tugs factory here last week, where systems are still being installed. The hull has a beautiful merlot shade of deep red gelcoat, not a traditional Nordic color but still very attractive. And that was not the only thing worth seeing. (more…)