Queen Victoria delayed docking in Cape Town

[NE John]

4 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

That is not what Andy said.  He stated that the two ships are designed differently.  There is no "overhaul" that can change the Neptune from shafted propellers to azipods.  You will notice that he did mention that Neptune did not have variable pitch propellers nor "high lift" rudders.  I've been on ships with shafted propellers, that were variable pitch, and did have high lift rudders, and these were very nearly as maneuverable as azipod propelled ships.  What the design decisions to have the current propulsion/maneuvering system on the Viking ships, is something only discussed in Viking's boardroom.

 

Secondly, he said nothing at all about the Viking ship being less "ocean worthy" than the Cunard ships.  He stated that they had different handling characteristics while maneuvering at low speeds (docking/undocking), but they also have differing handling in high winds due to the relative sizes of the two ships.  98% of the ships in the world are not as maneuverable as the Cunard ships when docking, and rely on tugs to make up for it.  Whether or not the harbormaster would have allowed the Viking ship to depart with tug assist is something none of us know, nor will know.  Whether the decision to not depart with tugs was a financial decision or a safety decision (the company's SMS, as Andy points out), is also something none of us will ever know.

I defer to you on things nautical engineering and maybe “Ocean Worthy” was a misused term on my part. He was pointing out Neptune’s struggles to move in a dock during high winds vs ocean worthy. There was other frustrated Viking posters mentioning the lack of dock maneuverability. They, like me, are also armchair captains…I do find it interesting the interplay of a ship’s master and the harbor authorities and when one takes the lead. Usually the captain yields to harbor master. 
However on a separate post, even though I don’t know his technical terms, the industry vet said below. To me, this sounds like an overhaul? : I'll suggest the Viking ships need high-lift rudders and double/triple the HP in stern thrusters and a little more thruster capacity at the bow. This would require an additional DG in each E/R. Even with high lift rudders, they require more power on each shaft, as they have about the same as my last command, which was about 1/2 the gross tonnage and 200' shorter. 

 

Edited April 14 by NE John

[bluemarble]

QV has arrived at the Walvis Bay Anchorage. It's approaching 7:00pm local time. Don't know any further details. Perhaps @roscoe39 can provide an update.

[chengkp75]

10 minutes ago, NE John said:

However on a separate post, even though I don’t know his technical terms, the industry vet said below. To me, this sounds like an overhaul? : I'll suggest the Viking ships need high-lift rudders and double/triple the HP in stern thrusters and a little more thruster capacity at the bow. This would require an additional DG in each E/R. Even with high lift rudders, they require more power on each shaft, as they have about the same as my last command, which was about 1/2 the gross tonnage and 200' shorter. 

No, this would be a complete redesign of the vessel.  That would be new rudders to start with.  Then, to double/triple the power of the thrusters would require gutting and renewing everything from the motors to the size of the tunnels for the thruster propellers (and getting space inside for the larger motors and ancillary equipment).  Getting room for an additional diesel generator to power these more powerful thrusters would be nearly impossible.

 

I would say that changing to variable pitch propellers, and high lift rudders, instead of up-powering the thrusters would be far more doable and have the same, or better effect.  I've been on ships that converted from fixed pitch to variable pitch, and the space requirements for the new equipment are minor, and don't require cutting into or modifying the hull.

[sogne]

45 minutes ago, bluemarble said:

QV has arrived at the Walvis Bay Anchorage. It's approaching 7:00pm local time. Don't know any further details. Perhaps @roscoe39 can provide an update.

picking up some overlanders I think

[roscoe39]

We arrived in time  to meet a boat containing some entertainers and couple of passenger's who apparently had done an overland, i dont remember an over land that finished in walvis bay so they must have been independent. Intriguing…. 

We are now underway again our champagne corks flying and the ghostly sound of a string quartet following us in a ethereal flume through the fog ofwhich has enveloped us.

i must say, i live a good fog horn..

[NE John]

On 4/14/2024 at 2:46 PM, roscoe39 said:

We arrived in time  to meet a boat containing some entertainers and couple of passenger's who apparently had done an overland, i dont remember an over land that finished in walvis bay so they must have been independent. Intriguing…. 

We are now underway again our champagne corks flying and the ghostly sound of a string quartet following us in a ethereal flume through the fog ofwhich has enveloped us.

i must say, i live a good fog horn..

Hey Roscoe…I’ve been enjoying your WC blog and, if it’s not too personal to ask, are you staying in one of those forward PG squarish suites on 5 Deck in this WC? If so, do you still like that location near the front out in open oceans? You spoke highly of them recently. I did grab one of those unique suites on QE for a voyage coming up in June. 
I do agree with you that I could spend three months at sea without touching land (DW will probably beg to differ on that one though…). It’s all mesmerizing.  

[roscoe39]

2 hours ago, NE John said:

Hey Roscoe…I’ve been enjoying your WC blog and, if it’s not too personal to ask, are you staying in one of those forward PG squarish suites on 5 Deck in this WC? If so, do you still like that location near the front out in open oceans? You spoke highly of them recently. I did grab one of those unique suites on QE for a voyage coming up in June. 
I do agree with you that I could spend three months at sea without touching land (DW will probably beg to differ on that one though…). It’s all mesmerizing.  

Hi john so

congratulations to you! , no i wasn't able to snaffle either of them this year much to my great disappointment however i did get a very good suite on deck 5 midships that is on the pushed out section with a curved balcony so i can look forward as well as out. Its slightly smaller but well worth it and i can thoroughly recommend it.

[BRYNOS]

Can I quickly hijack this topic to ask a question on immigration in Cape Town as it would appear that there are a number of people on here who recently experienced it on either QM2 or QV.
Specifically I am interested in how long it takes to get off the ship and clear immigration before you can access any private tour arrangements that have been made.
Is this a long drawn out process that can take a half a day or possibly more or is it all over and done with in a couple of hours due it it being a one on one with an immigration officer?
Many thanks for any clarification.

[Windsurfboy]

Depends, ours was pretty quick , 30 mins , coming from UK. If you are coming from East most likely done SA immigration in Durba.