Ovation & Encore Maximum Speed

[SKP946]

The mooring lines actually broke

If you look carefully you can see the lines snapping

http://gcaptain.com/incident-video-brand-new-luxury-cruise-ship-breaks-moorings-crashes-into-vessel-in-new-zealand/

 

Engineer was not quick enough to hit the start button for the engines

Only one of the four engines would have been running to supply electricity and the engine room would only have a skeleton staff on duty while moored. It would take a while to start another engine.

 

Some of the lines broke AFTER one of the bollards pulled out of the dock. The Encore was released quick smart after the Port Authority realised it was their problem, not Seabourn's.

[Thecat123]

You are correct after Googling

[Able Seaman H]

Only one of the four engines would have been running to supply electricity and the engine room would only have a skeleton staff on duty while moored. It would take a while to start another engine.

 

Some of the lines broke AFTER one of the bollards pulled out of the dock. The Encore was released quick smart after the Port Authority realised it was their problem, not Seabourn's.

 

Just to clarify your use of the word "engines" for our noble readership.

 

Encore has 4 diesel generators which between them produce around 23,000 kw. This is used to power the 2 electric propulsion motors (rated at up to 6,000 kw each) and also the hotel requirements.

 

The hotel needs power for climate control, cooking, refrigeration, lighting, hair dryers and recharging your phone / laptop / camera / tablet. It also needs a little bit of power for emplification when the singers are performing :)

 

Hot water is available onboard as a byproduct of the generators running. They need cooling and that cooling water passes through a heat exchanger which warms up your shower / bath tub water.

 

When tied up alongside the ship's propulsion motors won't be running so you reduce requirements and fewer generators are needed. In reality even when cruising it is rare that all 4 generators will be required. My understanding is that 2 or 3 generators are usually run when under way.

 

Henry :)

[SKP946]

You are quite correct Henry, I was trying to keep it simple for the non-technical amongst us :)

[baytraller]

For what ever reason Seabourn cruises at lower speed then most other cruise lines

 

When on the Odyssey during bad weather several guest commented about slow speed

 

Meaning that the slower the speed the more time you have to suffer from rough seas

 

When back home compared cruise time between ports on other cruise lines with similar ships Azamara and Oceania

 

Athens to Mykonos Seabourn 15 hours others 10 hours

 

Red Sea between Aqaba to Salalah - Seabourn about 5 days others 4 days

 

We have two Australia and New Zealand cruises booked with Seabourn and Azamara

 

Cruise time on Seabourn 1/3 longer between Australia and New Zealand

[Mr Luxury]

You can't rush a good thing

 

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[Able Seaman H]

For what ever reason Seabourn cruises at lower speed then most other cruise lines

 

When on the Odyssey during bad weather several guest commented about slow speed

 

Meaning that the slower the speed the more time you have to suffer from rough seas

 

When back home compared cruise time between ports on other cruise lines with similar ships Azamara and Oceania

 

Athens to Mykonos Seabourn 15 hours others 10 hours

 

Red Sea between Aqaba to Salalah - Seabourn about 5 days others 4 days

 

We have two Australia and New Zealand cruises booked with Seabourn and Azamara

 

Cruise time on Seabourn 1/3 longer between Australia and New Zealand

 

You raise a number of points.

 

In bad weather there is a balancing act between travelling fast enough for stabilisers to work but slow enough for comfort. Generally the faster you travel in extreme weather the worse and potentially more dangerous the journey.

 

The larger the ship the better it copes so by default the smaller ships of Seabourn need a more delicate touch. I've seen 85 knots across the bow of a huge Royal Caribbean ship and you wouldn't know we were even at sea !

 

On a smaller Seabourn ship you may need to slow down for dinner service and the show. Larger ships might be less affected and dare I say it their operators might see their clients as cargo rather than individuals.

 

Have you noticed the ship moving around more as the ship speeds up again whilst we sleep?

 

As mentioned previously planning itineraries is a multi - faceted process so if Seabourn take longer on a particular route there will be a reason.

 

Henry :)

[SLSD]

Henry, I HAVE noticed the ships moving around more very late at night during sleeping time. Thank you for the explanation.

[Able Seaman H]

Henry, I HAVE noticed the ships moving around more very late at night during sleeping time. Thank you for the explanation.

 

My pleasure :)

 

Henry

[Skysurfr]

15 to 17 knots is the cruising speed...I was on a Bridge tour of the Ovation a few days ago and that's what I recall. The big bulb keel sticking out the front helps the ship gain about 1 knot of speed.

 

The variance in speed would be a few knots to economize or time a port arrival reservation etc.

[Frank5]

I had a captain tell me on a different cruise line that his company places considerable emphasis on planning its schedules on permitting their ships to travel at the most fuel efficient speed. This was a new Holland America ship and much larger than any of the Seabourn ships. He said that the most fuel efficient speed of this ship was 17 knots but this can vary from vessel to vessel. I was mildly surprised when he said that this ship is the most fuel efficient in their fleet when it travels at 17 knots.

[Frank5]

Correction: He said that the most efficient causing speed was 17 knots. I assume that slow speeds used for entering and exiting ports use less fuel.

[Able Seaman H]

Correction: He said that the most efficient causing speed was 17 knots. I assume that slow speeds used for entering and exiting ports use less fuel.

 

Actually possibly not. You have to remember how the ships are powered. There are 4 generators which are essentially on or off. They can each produce up to a certain power.

 

Between the hotel and the propulsion motors you need to decide how many generators are going to be required with a bit of margin just in case suite 1016 decides to straighten their hair even though they will going swimming in an hour :)

 

If you use less than is available from the generators by running the electric drive motors slower the available electricity effectively gets wasted.

 

I suspect the optimum speed derives from 3 generators being run which allows heating, ventilating, air-conditioning and all the other hotel and ships systems to run whilst powering the drive motors.

 

The ship's hull design will have a sweet spot above which relatively more power is needed for increased speed. The bulb on the front is a well proven design which alters the way waves form and act on the hull. It will be particularly effective towards the upper end of the operating range speed wise.

 

Seabourn place passenger comfort very high on their list of priorities. Encore and Ovation for instance have built in redundancy which ensures passenger comfort in the event of an emergency.

 

You may remember rather harrowing scenes a few years ago when fire struck a cruise ship and rendered many of the hotel facilities such as air conditioning, toilets, water, refrigeration and cooking facilities useless. Passengers were put through hell waiting for the ship to get towed into port.

 

Encore and Ovation go way beyond Safe Return to Port requirements. As an example the design spec was for all toilets in safe zones (those not affected by fire or flooding) to remain functional rather than just the minimum required 1 toilet per 50 guests.

 

It is this design and technology that gets ignored on here with discussions about Seabourn allegedly cost cutting by not fitting a laundry and so on.

 

I would much rather travel at 15-17 knots in a ship of Encore / Ovation's safety design than a minimum compliance SRtP ship at 19 knots.

 

Henry :)

[SLSD]

Very good points Henry. I am interested in the technical aspects of ships as I enjoy them so much. Would you tell us more about how you gained your expertise and knowledge of ships and sailing?

[Able Seaman H]

I'm commercially endorced Yachtmaster for motor boats. My licence won't allow me to take charge of anything the size of a cruise ship but in a last man standing situation I'm not a bad bloke to have on the team. I'll get us home safely :)

 

In a Lifeboat I'm your man to the point where I cringe seeing the close quarters handling when tendering ashore :)

 

Many of the principles are the same on larger ships to my smaller boats and you have to think in a similar way particularly when it comes to passenger safety and comfort iwhen we have guests on board.

 

Henry :)

[SLSD]

Henry, On our SB voyage last September, crew told us how many passengers could fit on a tender in an emergency situation. It was a VERY large number, but I don't remember what it was. Do you know?

[Frank5]

I was surprised that the most fuel efficient speed would not be lower than 17 knots but this shows that I no nothing about this subject.

[Able Seaman H]

Henry, On our SB voyage last September, crew told us how many passengers could fit on a tender in an emergency situation. It was a VERY large number, but I don't remember what it was. Do you know?

 

Lifeboats aren't what you would call luxurious I'm afraid and in general terms deploying them is an absolute last resort. You want to stay on the mother ship for as long as possible. It keeps everyone together and facilities are much more comfortable.

 

The 4 largest lifeboats have a maximum capacity of 120 when used as tenders, 150 when used as liferafts. There are 2 additional lifeboats with a capacity of 120 and 16 smaller liferafts that can take up to 35 people.

 

One of the things which you will see Seabourn doing a lot is crew training for emergency situations. They are extremely well drilled and every crew member has an emergency role which they take very seriously. You will have heard emergency fire drills for instance and the ship is designed to contain any emergency in dedicated zones so the chances of having to use lifeboats in anger is rare. You are far more likely to encounter them heading ashore for a couple of lobsters on the beach day. :)

 

Henry :)

[SKP946]

When Quest was struck by lightning as she sailed across the River Plate from Buenos Aires to Montevideo on November 29, 2014 the Gyro Compass circuit boards were "zapped " ( so I was reliably informed)

We diverted to Porto Madryn in Argentina so replacements could be flown in from Italy.

When they were installed the Captain announced that he had the company's permission to "burn fuel" to make up some of the time lost.

We cruised at 22.5 knots all the way to the Falklands.

There was a certain amount of vibration, but not unbearable.

We then had to dash back across the Drake Passage after our 6 days on the Peninsula and Islands to dodge two weather systems.

Once clear of the ice we cruised at 16.5 knots with a Force 9/10 at about 20 degrees off the Port bow, making it across in 36 hours.

 

Quest handled the 50 foot seas beautifully.

[Isklaar]

When Quest was struck by lightning as she sailed across the River Plate from Buenos Aires to Montevideo on November 29, 2014 the Gyro Compass circuit boards were "zapped " ( so I was reliably informed)

 

 

Quest handled the 50 foot seas beautifully.

 

For some reason, this has scared me to death. I've been on a couple of cruises, both on Sojourn, in pretty bad thunderstorms but didn't actually give any thought to potentially losing instruments in a lightning strike!

Was the strike itself noticeable to guests? (I have a feeling I'm just going to make things worse for myself asking this question)

[Mr Luxury]

Thank Heavens the lightning strike didn't stop production of the bread sticks

 

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[SLSD]

I'm interested to know more as well. It doesn't frighten me--so the more details the better. Were you aware when the lightening struck the ship that it had been struck?

[Isklaar]

Thank Heavens the lightning strike didn't stop production of the bread sticks

 

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Now that really would scare me to death!

[Able Seaman H]

When Quest was struck by lightning as she sailed across the River Plate from Buenos Aires to Montevideo on November 29, 2014 the Gyro Compass circuit boards were "zapped " ( so I was reliably informed)

We diverted to Porto Madryn in Argentina so replacements could be flown in from Italy.

When they were installed the Captain announced that he had the company's permission to "burn fuel" to make up some of the time lost.

We cruised at 22.5 knots all the way to the Falklands.

There was a certain amount of vibration, but not unbearable.

We then had to dash back across the Drake Passage after our 6 days on the Peninsula and Islands to dodge two weather systems.

Once clear of the ice we cruised at 16.5 knots with a Force 9/10 at about 20 degrees off the Port bow, making it across in 36 hours.

 

Quest handled the 50 foot seas beautifully.

 

Sea conditions will be a factor of several influences including wind speed, tide, depth and land mass proximity. Taking waves on the bow at a slight angle would be much better than directly from the side. As mentioned previously you need a certain speed for the stabilisers to work efficiently.

 

Everyone knows the score when booking Antarctica cruises, you do risk a bit of movement.

 

 

The thought of bread stick production being compromised however is horrific :)

 

Henry :)

[SKP946]

For some reason, this has scared me to death. I've been on a couple of cruises, both on Sojourn, in pretty bad thunderstorms but didn't actually give any thought to potentially losing instruments in a lightning strike!

Was the strike itself noticeable to guests? (I have a feeling I'm just going to make things worse for myself asking this question)

When the Captain announced on the P.A. that we were diverting to South America (and that we would miss the Falklands) he told all pax and crew that had we been in the Med we possibly could have carried on without the Gyro Compasses BUT as we were going to Antarctica we needed ALL our instruments in good working order.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyrocompass.

As to the storm; we had sailed out of Buenos Aires on a hot sultry afternoon, with dark clouds building.

My DW and I decided to eat at the Patio Grill so we could watch the sky (we're not "storm chasers" as such but we enjoy nature.

We sat in the open by the pool with a certain Seabourn Corporate guy ( the one with the good head of hair) and a number of Quest' Senior Staff on the next table; I was photographing the monster storm overtaking us from the rear (stern) (and also videoing to try to catch the lightning strikes) when there was a tremendous flash and crash at the same time; all the plates, cutlery and anything else on the tables (including the sacred bread sticks) rose about a foot in the air, then moved sideways and crashed on the deck.

The Corporate guy and I looked at each other in shock, then we all leapt up and quickly moved to the overhang of deck 9.

We found out later that at the same moment a number of the couches at the rear of Seabourn Square had "levitated" overboard, never to be seen again.

We later concluded that we had experienced a "dry microburst"

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microburst

Not realising that we had possibly also been struck by lightning.

 

Edited August 30, 2018 by SKP946