Did they fix Nieuw Amsterdam's azipod or is she sailing with one operational?

[510picker]

We are considering booking a February 1 cruise on the NA for a quick winter getaway. I need a fully accessible room and the NA is the only ship that has an accessible room available. Reading through this thread makes me hesitant to book it.

[3rdGenCunarder]

14 hours ago, NavArch64 said:

Since we can now again see the display in the Crows Nest, compliments of Sunshineliving, there is less an issue of HAL hiding the facts as chengkp75 pointed out. Also, HAL Seattle has slowly evolved toward telling the truth as well. Then, what is the remaining issue(s)? Only 3 issues from my perspective … first, the small risk associated with a possible failure of the port azipod unit while NAdam is at sea, second, the possible increased vibrations, mainly aft,  from this abnormal operating condition, and third, the effect on guests booked on a particular future voyage when HAL decides that repair/replacement of the starboard azipod unit is necessary at that point. I have a feeling, regarding the latter, that HAL will operate the ship as is throughout the winter season, until March 28, the last week of her season, when she will go to the shipyard in Freeport to make sure that the ship is ready for her T/A  crossing on April 4.

 

9 hours ago, Crescent0 said:

I’ve talked with Guest Services today and was told that NA will continue to sail until probably February. They didn’t  know exactly when, but they were  positive it would go into dry dock before the T/A crossing. I,too, have a feeling the ship will continue  to operate until the winter season ends. 
 

As far as the vibrations go, I honestly have not felt anything unusual.On the contrary, the cruise has been very smooth so far. 

 

Please don't post suppositions (and that includes guesses from Guest Service). People with NA cruises in the near future are nervous enough about it as it is. 

Edited January 2, 2020 by 3rdGenCunarder

[DeeniEncinitas]

53 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

 

Please don't post suppositions (and that includes guesses from Guest Service). People with NA cruises in the near future are nervous enough about it as it is. 

OMGOSH I so agree with your comment!!!!

If I read this on CC and had an up coming cruise on her I would be so worried and up till the cruise would be sweating the WHAT IFS!! 
Denise😊

[NavArch64]

Naval Architects and Marine Engineers engaged in ship design and ship operations deal with probability distributions all the time from expected sea states to hull structural response to machinery overhaul cycles … yes, and even propeller design and vibration analysis. Understanding this complex world in which we live is not simple … it is a constant challenge. I can only imagine what is going on in Seattle in the conference rooms regarding the Nieuw Amsterdam situation. There is a lot of money at stake. For those booked on NA in the next few weeks, of course there are similar, but more personal concerns. We wish everyone, from Orlando Ashford to Motor City well in the days ahead.

[heimdall]

2 minutes ago, DeeniEncinitas said:

OMGOSH I so agree with your comment!!!!

If I read this on CC and had an up coming cruise on her I would be so worried and up till the cruise would be sweating the WHAT IFS!! 
Denise😊

 

Unfortunately, this is exactly the position that I'm in.  Am on the January 11th sailing and following this thread with bated breath.

 

Of course, if HAL was a bit more transparent with their plans, that stress would go away.  I find it very difficult to believe that after a week+ that they're still "winging" it, and don't already have a good idea when parts will arrive, dry dock will be available, estimated repair times, and what their contingency plans are for booked guests.

[HappyInVan]

9 minutes ago, NavArch64 said:

Naval Architects and Marine Engineers engaged in ship design and ship operations deal with probability distributions all the time from expected sea states to hull structural response to machinery overhaul cycles … yes, and even propeller design and vibration analysis.

 

Mariners with On-The-Job experiences can provide valuable insights. That said, I would rather read an executive summary from a naval architect. That's someone who is familiar with the theory and practice of ship building.

 

 

[NavArch64]

First real challenge for the Captain …. approaching Cozumel berth PM3 …. no tugboats in sight.

[NavArch64]

He is being very, very careful.

[NavArch64]

I'm nervous …. and I'm just sitting at my laptop.

[chengkp75]

7 minutes ago, NavArch64 said:

First real challenge for the Captain …. approaching Cozumel berth PM3 …. no tugboats in sight.

Wind is 11 knots from SE (away from the berth and shore), and its the outboard berth, and Cozumel doesn't have tugs, and unless the port required them, they would not be brought in for NA.

[JRG]

I sympathize with those who may have upcoming cruises and are wondering how it may feel.  Here is our feedback.

 

We just experienced this in May on a Princess ship that lost power in one pod and had to limp home to Vancouver.  We started in LA and the pod gave out somewhere off the coast of Oregon or Washington...

 

It felt like this.....

 

1 big jerk to the left....followed by another

1 big jerk to the left....followed by 

1 little jerk to the left.....

 

And you kept expecting the jerk back to the right to offset things and create the rocking motion but.....

It kept jerking you to the left so it became awkward after a while and affected just about everything on board.

 

 

Hopefully the Caribbean is smoother sailing and this doesn't happen, but there may be some risk....

 

 

 

 

 

 

[NavArch64]

This is taking an unusually long time to berth at PM3 … but better to be more careful, than less, with no starboard azipod and no tugs.

[NavArch64]

She is almost in … all is well.

[Motor City]

33 minutes ago, NavArch64 said:

She is almost in … all is well.

 

So another late port...Will they continue to just operate this way, or do you think they may adjust the future itin schedules to reflect the slower speeds/ports due to azipod failure?

Edited January 2, 2020 by Motor City

[NavArch64]

44 minutes ago, Motor City said:

 

So another late port...Will they continue to just operate this way, or do you think they may adjust the future itin schedules to reflect the slower speeds/ports due to azipod failure?

I think that they will continue to operate this way until March 28. However, any untoward incident, and all bets are off. 

[HappyInVan]

5 hours ago, 510picker said:

We are considering booking a February 1 cruise on the NA for a quick winter getaway. I need a fully accessible room and the NA is the only ship that has an accessible room available. Reading through this thread makes me hesitant to book it.

 

Sailing on a large vessel in the Caribbean (this time of year) is safe. You must put your trust in the Captain and crew because they are professional seamen.

 

The Captain has the final responsibility for your safety and comfort. He will deviate from the schedule if he has doubts. That might mean the cancellation of a port stop, or sailing to an alternate port.

 

Usually, weather related changes to the itinerary requites no compensation. It comes under Act of God. You should receive a refund for port fees, tug boat fees, pilot fees etc.

 

However, where the mechanical condition of the ship is an important factor, HAL should IMO make some kind of compensation.

 

That said, no one knows when the remaining azipod will malfunction. It could run merrily for a year. Or, turn into a lemon next week. Only the company and ABB engineers have access to the service history.

 

As you are mobility limited, this requires additional consideration. Who's accompanying you?

 

All the best..

 

Edited January 2, 2020 by HappyInVan

[510picker]

17 minutes ago, HappyInVan said:

 

Sailing on a large vessel in the Caribbean (this time of year) is safe. You must put your trust in the Captain and crew because they are professional seamen.

 

The Captain has the final responsibility for your safety and comfort. He will deviate from the schedule if he has doubts. That might mean the cancellation of a port stop, or sailing to an alternate port.

 

Usually, weather related changes to the itinerary requites no compensation. It comes under Act of God. You should receive a refund for port fees, tug boat fees, pilot fees etc.

 

However, where the mechanical condition of the ship is an important factor, HAL should IMO make some kind of compensation.

 

That said, no one knows when the remaining azipod will malfunction. It could run merrily for a year. Or, turn into a lemon next week. Only the company and ABB engineers have access to the service history.

 

As you are mobility limited, this requires additional consideration. Who's accompanying you?

 

All the best..

 

 

Thanks for the detailed reply. My only real concern is the azipod issue, of which I know no one has an answer to. It just causes me to be hesitant to book the cruise and the flights to get there. My wife will be accompanying me.

[robear14]

Just boarded the Nieuw Amsterdam and received this notice:

[Jersey42]

55 minutes ago, robear14 said:

Just boarded the Nieuw Amsterdam and received this notice:

Good to know.  We are boarding on January 11th and if we get some minor changes to the itinerary and a $50pp OBC, we will be happy.  We booked this trip fairly last minute and the ports/port times are not really critical for us as we have visited all of them many time before.  In 2017 we had a similar situation with a Caribbean Princess cruise. The ship had been having "propulsion problems" for awhile and the ship sailed like this for months.  I think we lost a small amount of time in one or two ports and maximum speed was a little less than normal.  With the exception of the minor port changes, if we had not known about the problems, we may have never noticed. I expect we will be happy with our cruise next week.

[Sunshineliving]

Glad you got a reason why. There was no reason given to us about different times. I know we didn't miss ports, but times were changed.

[NavArch64]

As we have said earlier, it is much better that HAL is now open and honest about the condition of the ship, and its impact on itineraries. What remains unknown, is which, if any, of the weekly sailings this winter season are to be cancelled to allow for the repair/replacement of the starboard azipod unit prior to the April 4 T/A.

[Sunshineliving]

5 minutes ago, NavArch64 said:

As we have said earlier, it is much better that HAL is now open and honest about the condition of the ship, and its impact on itineraries. What remains unknown, is which, if any, of the weekly sailings this winter season are to be cancelled to allow for the repair/replacement of the starboard azipod unit prior to the April 4 T/A.

I think they know, but are not sharing it yet for whatever reason.

[fatcat04]

We are also fine with the change. We will have a good cruise. I actually appreciate the transparency very much. 

[molemaui]

Many of us have traveled enough to roll with the punches when they may occur. We sail February 15 with a somewhat easy itinerary (doesn't go to and past San Juan). By then HAL will likely determine whether continuing is doable  before the major repair or not. My only "fear" is we are due back on the 22nd and boarding a Celebrity ship on the 23rd. If we get stuck somewhere, it could be a problem. From a personal standpoint, I'd rather they cancel as it gives me more options but whatever happens, happens. All is good if this is our biggest concern. Hope everyone's sailing goes smoothly before ours. 

[retafcruiser]

35 minutes ago, Sunshineliving said:

I think they know, but are not sharing it yet for whatever reason.

It isn't even certain that it will be repaired prior to the transatlantic. It could sail to a drydock in Barcelona.