Lifeboats/Tenders Breaking down

[Fireplacegirl]

Hello everyone,

 

After a bad experience tendering in Maui on Star Princess last week, I am curious how often tenders break down. We had multiple boats fail and it made me a tad uncomfortable for the return trip.

 

Thanks!

[paul929207]

We have never had a problem.

[CruiseQueenB]

Never had a problem, but I'm sure it's not unheard of

[OCruisers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

Happily, we've never had a tender break down. :)

[chengkp75]

Ship's tenders or shore tenders? How many boats broke down, and what was the problem (general terms)?

[IDsailor]

Iv'e never had one break down but, some have sounded near a breakdown. As a salt water boat owner I know that breakdowns will occur. They can maintain the tenders on board the ship.

[skynight]

I'm sure they must has problems at times. I have seen boats being lowered at some ports for drills, so I assume there is a required schedule of maintenance and testing the goes on all the time.

[Fireplacegirl]

Ship's tenders or shore tenders? How many boats broke down, and what was the problem (general terms)?

 

We had three out of the six ship lifeboats (being used as tenders) break down. One group floated around in fairly rough waters for 20-45 minutes depending on who you spoke too. There were never any more boats dropped and some people were not able to leave ship at all. Almost three hour wait for us to get a tender back to ship.

[chengkp75]

We had three out of the six ship lifeboats (being used as tenders) break down. One group floated around in fairly rough waters for 20-45 minutes depending on who you spoke too. There were never any more boats dropped and some people were not able to leave ship at all. Almost three hour wait for us to get a tender back to ship.

 

There wouldn't have been any more boats dropped, as the lifeboats are not designated to be used as tender boats. I'm hoping its just bad fuel, but as the boats need to be put in the water and run around at least monthly, and engine running is more frequent, I'm a bit surprised that that many boats had a problem.

[cb at sea]

As long as a lifeboat floats...that's all that matters! Tenders are not generally the "lifeboats"....

[icat2000]

Hello everyone,

 

After a bad experience tendering in Maui on Star Princess last week, I am curious how often tenders break down. We had multiple boats fail and it made me a tad uncomfortable for the return trip.

 

Thanks!

Sorry. Multiple??? Never in all my cruises with Princess have I had one, let alone several.

Edited May 17, 2016 by icat2000

[chengkp75]

As long as a lifeboat floats...that's all that matters! Tenders are not generally the "lifeboats"....

 

Actually, the tenders are the lifeboats, and in an emergency are used just like the other boats. You will usually see two capacities on a tender, one for tender, one for lifeboat.

[Amtrack Springfield]

Never on any of our cruise. We have been cruising for 25 years.

[Lucky TGO]

We have cruise on five different cruise lines and it never happened to me.

Tony

Edited May 17, 2016 by Lucky TGO

[rebeccalouiseagain]

I've been on 38 cruises and a lifeboat has never broken down. I've sailed princess 8 times and never had a lifeboat break down. The only experiences I've had where it took ages to get back on the ship was with Norwegian. One year we were on the return tender from the private island and had to keep circling the ship because the surf was too rough. By the time we were able to tie up to the ship- we had been bobbing around for approximately 1 hr. I was on the tender solo with my then 3 month old ( yep NCL once allowed 3 mo. olds). When we finally hooked up with the ship- the passengers looked at me and said "Get off!" because they were all terrified for my infant (I was fine- I knew we'd get on eventually and my baby slept through the whole ordeal).

 

I had a similar experience on Norwegian in 2005. We were on a two story ferry (tender) and we had to keep circling the ship. We got right up to the ship and the crew hooked the ferry up to the metal ball thingy on the side of the ship. The surf and the weight of the boat must have been too much because that metal ball ripped right off. The crew member who was trying to tie it up fell between the ferry and the platform on the ship. Two crew members quickly lifted him up by his armpits. The (ferry) tender smashed up against the platform. That crew member would be dead if not for the quick reactions of his mates. Again, same baby (now 5) was asleep in the stroller while all this was going on. When the ship finally hooked up to the ship- everyone ran to get off- but I just stayed where I was until everyone got off. And then got off.

 

Tendering sucks.

Edited May 17, 2016 by rebeccalouiseagain

[Fireplacegirl]

Actually, the tenders are the lifeboats, and in an emergency are used just like the other boats. You will usually see two capacities on a tender, one for tender, one for lifeboat.

 

Thank you for this and previous explanation as to why no more boats were dropped. I know see the difference between the two. While the tender may serve double duty the lifeboats do not.

 

This was our third tendering experience, the first two being Cabo and Hoona, and it was the very worst. Pitching seas, waves flooding us and a very rough landing back at ship.

 

Interesting note, if you do the math, there are not enough seats with

combined tender/lifeboat for the full capacity of ship. Who gets to choose the two hundred or so that get left behind?

 

We are salt water boaters in our own right and this particular situation caused us some concern. We had moderate seas and it makes you wonder how the people in charge would be able to navigate these craft in really rough waters.

 

Thanks again!

[wheezedr]

Thank you for this and previous explanation as to why no more boats were dropped. I know see the difference between the two. While the tender may serve double duty the lifeboats do not.

 

This was our third tendering experience, the first two being Cabo and Hoona, and it was the very worst. Pitching seas, waves flooding us and a very rough landing back at ship.

 

Interesting note, if you do the math, there are not enough seats with

combined tender/lifeboat for the full capacity of ship. Who gets to choose the two hundred or so that get left behind?

 

We are salt water boaters in our own right and this particular situation caused us some concern. We had moderate seas and it makes you wonder how the people in charge would be able to navigate these craft in really rough waters.

 

Thanks again!

 

Actually you need to rework your math Current cruise ships have lifeboat capacity for all souls on board including some of he inflatables which I suspect you did not count or were not aware of

[idahospud]

37 Princess cruises and no tender breakdowns.

 

And yes, the math is way off. There is more than what you see on the outside of the ship. Princess has tenders + lifeboat tenders + MES (Marine evacuation system) + overcapacity rafts. There are plenty of extra seats. For example on the Royal/Regal the maximum passenger/crew capacity is 5600 and the survival craft capacity is 7377.

[happysnapper]

Multiple breakdowns sounds like bad fuel.

[Putterdude]

We have never had a tender break down. I have seen regular maintence bring done on them so am surprised the op had one break down.

[RDC1]

Thank you for this and previous explanation as to why no more boats were dropped. I know see the difference between the two. While the tender may serve double duty the lifeboats do not.

 

This was our third tendering experience, the first two being Cabo and Hoona, and it was the very worst. Pitching seas, waves flooding us and a very rough landing back at ship.

 

Interesting note, if you do the math, there are not enough seats with

combined tender/lifeboat for the full capacity of ship. Who gets to choose the two hundred or so that get left behind?

 

We are salt water boaters in our own right and this particular situation caused us some concern. We had moderate seas and it makes you wonder how the people in charge would be able to navigate these craft in really rough waters.

 

Thanks again!

 

How do you know that the tender broke down? Did the pilot say so? Did they have to tow it back to the ship? Did they take it back on board the ship and not use it again?

 

The reason why I ask that is because I have been on tenders where they have cut the engine and drifted because the sea was too rough to offload at the ship, running the engine just enough to maintain a holding position. Waiting for a break in the waves to offload.

 

I have been on a tender where part of the steering mechanism sheered a pin and we had to get towed back to the ship.

[Keith1010]

I have seen tenders break down from time to time.

 

They are tested regularly.

 

Tenders are also used as lifeboats.

 

Keith

[GUT2407]

Once they had a bit of a struggle to start one tender.

 

And saw one tender having its motor stripped. (Wasn't in use).

[chengkp75]

Thank you for this and previous explanation as to why no more boats were dropped. I know see the difference between the two. While the tender may serve double duty the lifeboats do not.

 

This was our third tendering experience, the first two being Cabo and Hoona, and it was the very worst. Pitching seas, waves flooding us and a very rough landing back at ship.

 

Interesting note, if you do the math, there are not enough seats with

combined tender/lifeboat for the full capacity of ship. Who gets to choose the two hundred or so that get left behind?

 

We are salt water boaters in our own right and this particular situation caused us some concern. We had moderate seas and it makes you wonder how the people in charge would be able to navigate these craft in really rough waters.

 

Thanks again!

 

Star Princess has a maximum capacity of 3100 passengers. I haven't been onboard, but looking at images, she has 20 lifeboats or lifeboat tenders. That works out to an average of 155 per boat, which is what those size boats are rated for (156 is a typical size). The 1205 crew use liferafts. Adding the pax and crew, gives a maximum souls onboard of 4305, so the ship needs a total lifesaving capacity (boats and rafts) of 5381. Taking out the boat capacity, that means rafts totaling 2261, or 46 50-person liferafts. The ship will also usually carry spare rafts and training rafts.

 

Lifeboats are not designed to be "navigated" at all. The stories of great voyages by people in lifeboats are rare, exceptional, and in today's world, just plain wrong in 95% of the cases. The idea is to remain together, and as near to the spot where the ship was abandoned as possible. An EPIRB beacon was activated either automatically or manually when the ship was abandoned, and that is where SAR assets will start their search, so the closer you stay, the better.

 

As for tendering, in rough weather, it is suspended.

[chengkp75]

How do you know that the tender broke down? Did the pilot say so? Did they have to tow it back to the ship? Did they take it back on board the ship and not use it again?

 

The reason why I ask that is because I have been on tenders where they have cut the engine and drifted because the sea was too rough to offload at the ship, running the engine just enough to maintain a holding position. Waiting for a break in the waves to offload.

 

I have been on a tender where part of the steering mechanism sheered a pin and we had to get towed back to the ship.

 

I tend to agree that this was probably more a case of waiting out the weather, than breaking down.

 

At Fanning Island with NCL, I had to get on one of the island's tenders when her steering broke down and the boat couldn't be steered with any confidence through the lagoon inlet. There I am, head down and feet up about 6" above the water, in the Pacific ocean, while the boat driver tries to hold us in a position where seas won't come over the stern and drown me and flood the steering space.