casofilia Posted March 28, 2017 #976 Share Posted March 28, 2017 We are thinking of booking Star in May for Greek Isle from Venice itinenary. This thread has been quiet since Feb end. Can we presume everything is OK with Star? I would assume that too; if there had been a problem this thread would have been bombarded with posts and other threads started. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomberly Posted March 28, 2017 #977 Share Posted March 28, 2017 I would assume that too; if there had been a problem this thread would have been bombarded with posts and other threads started. Current reviews on CC for NCL Star all indicate that the problem has been fixed. My DH and I are looking forward to sailing on her in September. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B35 Posted March 28, 2017 #978 Share Posted March 28, 2017 I would assume that too; if there had been a problem this thread would have been bombarded with posts and other threads started. For the 11nights we were on the Star from Singapore both Azipods were working excellently, I had regular looks over the back. Unfortunately my wife took ill and we had to leave the ship early 7 days before the end of the cruise :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joluvscruzin Posted March 29, 2017 #979 Share Posted March 29, 2017 Current reviews on CC for NCL Star all indicate that the problem has been fixed. My DH and I are looking forward to sailing on her in September. We were on the Star for the cruise after the "Cruise to Nowhere" from Auckland to Singapore with no problems. I asked the captain about the repairs at the Q&A and he explained how the needed parts from Italy were installed in Melbourne. He said the mechanics climbed down inside the azipods to replace the faulty parts. He was very relieved to have her fully functional again after all of the problems. BTW Singapore is a fascinating country with so much to see. Definitely plan a trip if you haven't been there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicmastimagic Posted March 30, 2017 #980 Share Posted March 30, 2017 Thanks for all the reassurance! We made our reservation today :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casofilia Posted March 30, 2017 #981 Share Posted March 30, 2017 Thanks for all the reassurance! We made our reservation today :D Enjoy your cruise. If the same staff are there who were there when we were on it from Rome to Singapore they were excellent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birder1 Posted March 31, 2017 #982 Share Posted March 31, 2017 I'm currently on the Star & no issues at this time. Seas have been smooth & we're sailing past Yemen as we speak! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rscales2 Posted March 31, 2017 #983 Share Posted March 31, 2017 I hope the Stars is Okay! I am taking my cruise credit and rewards to the Epic on the April 1 & 14 cruise!!!!! Sent from my iPad using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opmet Posted April 27, 2017 #984 Share Posted April 27, 2017 There will be a formal investigation - it will be interesting to read. Unfortunately these things take months. http://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/2017/mair/329-mo-2017-003/ A preliminary report was out today.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MargateKev Posted April 27, 2017 #985 Share Posted April 27, 2017 A preliminary report was out today.... Thanks, interesting to read that both the first two azipod failures were the same issue, not what we we led to believe by NCL. Maybe the initial repair was flawed for the third failure and ABB must bear some liability. Look forward to reading the final report. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herdingdogmom Posted April 27, 2017 #986 Share Posted April 27, 2017 A preliminary report was out today..http://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/...9-mo-2017-003/ .. Agree with MK, very interesting that the azipod failures are likely the same issue and the modification didn't work properly in the first repair. Hopefully, ABB knows what to look for now since these were not the usual failures they encounter. We really lucked out with the calm seas and weather when we were adrift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chengkp75 Posted April 27, 2017 #987 Share Posted April 27, 2017 And very interesting to me. After the first failure, I would have expected the ship or ABB to have checked the insulation condition of the other exciter winding (port unit) to see if the starboard failure was atypical or whether it indicated an age condition that needed to be addressed by more frequent preventative maintenance. If this was done at the time of the first failure, and the port unit was found in good condition, then this would indeed be a freak incident, but I suspect that it might not have been caught at the time. The class societies (insurance underwriters for ships), the maritime safety agencies around the world (like the ATSB) and the shipping companies all pretty much rely on the manufacturer's recommendations of maintenance schedules and periodic replacements, since they are the ones who have field data from the various customers who have their equipment around the world. So, when the "pros from Dover" from ABB show up, the engineers onboard tend to listen to them, and follow their lead. Whether ABB has any historical data regarding failures of the exciter windings on other ships, I can't say, but the second failure would certainly point at least in their direction. I don't really blame NCL for trying the modification, as this was obviously proposed by ABB, and may have been an variant design from the start, so again, ABB shoulders some of the responsibility here. It sounds from the report that the ABB tech reps were onboard when the ship sailed from Melbourne, and the repairs to the port unit were being done underway (though that's not clear). As to why the starboard modification failed, it sounds like either the structure of the modification was insufficiently strong or something came loose due to vibration. Again, the structural support possibility is on ABB, while the possible vibration loosening is on both ABB for not recommending a periodic check after installation, and on NCL for not considering this as good engineering practice. But for the larger picture of folks blaming poor maintenance, or deferred maintenance as the reason the Star has had so many azipod problems, this doesn't tie into that real well. Past issues have been seals and bearings, not electrical problems. Now, routine, scheduled testing of insulation on major electrical equipment is standard marine practice, so whether or not NCL conducted this on a regular basis, would go a long way in determining who bears the most responsibility for this recent series of failures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Son of a son of a ... Posted April 27, 2017 #988 Share Posted April 27, 2017 Maybe the dingo ate your azipod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casofilia Posted April 27, 2017 #989 Share Posted April 27, 2017 I wonder if NCL has emailed a copy of the report to everyone who was affected by the problems. If not, why not? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chengkp75 Posted April 27, 2017 #990 Share Posted April 27, 2017 I wonder if NCL has emailed a copy of the report to everyone who was affected by the problems. If not, why not? I don't understand why they would, or should. If an airplane has a failure and is pulled from service and causes delays and missed flights to lots of people (and even ripple effect due to loss of equipment at further airports), do the airlines send out reports of what was wrong with the plane to everyone affected? I just don't get why cruise lines are supposed to be held to more transparency than other industries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
herdingdogmom Posted April 28, 2017 #991 Share Posted April 28, 2017 It sounds from the report that the ABB tech reps were onboard when the ship sailed from Melbourne, and the repairs to the port unit were being done underway (though that's not clear). Thanks for your input chengkp - always interesting. On the Sydney to Melbourne adrift at sea cruise, the HD said at the M & G that more ABB technicians came on board in Australia - Darwin I think. As far as we could tell, the issue was worked on when the ship was at the re-scheduled overnight ports. The first time we were in Melbourne, the Captain said they were working on the repairs so they must have received the 2nd modification parts by then. We left Melbourne before the second repair was complete and then the first repair failed that night. We chose to leave the ship and continue with our New Zealand vacation. Just glad it is all behind us at this point and that the Star has had no further problems with the azipod modifications/repairs since leaving Melbourne on Feb. 14. She's now doing med cruises out of Venice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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