Fixing the Oosterdam

[bepsf]

First because the manufactor of the azipod has to ship make and ship a new one to where ever she may go into dry dock. That could take several weeks.

 

 

...or they might/could grab the one that's been built for Queen Victoria (A modified Vista-hull being built at Fincantieri w/ the same propulsion system.) and ship that over to the West Coast. *If they only shiped over the innards that require replacement, it might be able to be flown over as Air-Cargo, in which case it could take only 2 days from Italy to San Diego or San Francisco (we have plenty of drydock space up here and the folks here have done numerous pod repairs for X ships...)

[LAFFNVEGAS]

...or they might/could grab the one that's been built for Queen Victoria (A modified Vista-hull being built at Fincantieri w/ the same propulsion system.) and ship that over to the West Coast. *If they only shiped over the innards that require replacement, it might be able to be flown over as Air-Cargo, in which case it could take only 2 days from Italy to San Diego or San Francisco (we have plenty of drydock space up here and the folks here have done numerous pod repairs for X ships...)

 

 

Brian, that just may be the answer:) Gee, maybe HAL should read this HAL board and pay you a consultant fee;)

[bepsf]

Brian, that just may be the answer:) Gee, maybe HAL should read this HAL board and pay you a consultant fee;)

 

Thanks Lisa!

I'll take my fee in shipboard credits and upgrades please...

;)

[RevNeal]

I know this is strange, my DH called me from home, he uses Explorer to go into CC while I use AOL at home and work. He is getting the same strange message, yet I always see the picture. I just used the same search engine I always used under images, just like many of us do:confused: If someone does not want the picture used they should not post on the internet or they should block it from being copied or put a copyright across the picture.

 

Lisa, sometimes one doesn't want to ruin a picture that one is sharing by putting a copyright notice on it. And, it's not necessary to do so ... so long as the html page where it is displayed contains a copyright notice it is protected. Indeed ... it's protected even without the notice. But the notice is nice to have.

 

Sometimes one doesn't mind sharing a picture ... but they DO mind giving away expensive BANDWIDTH. You displaying an image on CC by pulling it from someone's webserver via a link costs THEM bandwidth each and every time the image is displayed on CC (i.e., each and every time someone's web-browser pulls the image fresh from the host server and not from a browser's cache). Not too long ago a major travel company decided they were going to "borrow" some of my photos of the Noordam for their website. They didn't download the images from my site, then upload them to theirs and display them. Had they done this I might never had known they had "borrowed" my photos. No ... they put display links on their html pages which pulled the images from my server. This travel company receives hundreds of THOUSANDS of hits per week, which means that the images they "borrowed" from me were displayed hundreds of thousands of times over the course of several weeks before I discovered the "borrowing" in the form of a bill from my serverhost for ~$340 in bandwidth overcharges.

 

And ... yes ... the company "made-good" and has re-imbursed me for the charges their "borrowing" cost me. It was part of an agreement whereby I would not press charges and I would also grant them permission to use my photos IF they would (1) host the images they're using on their server, and (2) give me credit on their page.

[jhannah]

That's good to know, Greg. Thanks for the info. I would imagine copyright violations happen every day. I have probably been guilty a time or two, now that I think about it. Generally, if I get a picture somewhere it's for my own private use to fill in a missing "hole" in my own series of photographs. I shall be careful to not post a link, or a downloaded picture, without first obtaining the permission of the owner.

[RevNeal]

That's good to know, Greg. Thanks for the info. I would imagine copyright violations happen every day. I have probably been guilty a time or two, now that I think about it. Generally, if I get a picture somewhere it's for my own private use to fill in a missing "hole" in my own series of photographs. I shall be careful to not post a link, or a downloaded picture, without first obtaining the permission of the owner.

 

Jim, I'm guilty of "borrowing" images myself. Most people don't mind one borrowing a picture ... just so long as it's not flagrant in terms of volume and frequency or bandwidth. And, if one gives CREDIT (with a link) for the picture and actually hosts it on their own site (so as to not cost the owner bandwidth charges) most people (myself included) don't have a problem with sharing.

[barbon2]

We are also on the Dec. 2 sailing. As the previous poster stated, if they are going to do a drydock and cancel a sailing they should advise booked passengers ASAP so alternative plans can be made.

Barbara

[bigred12]

The ms Oosterdam has been repaired and is continuing its sailings to

Mexico.

 

This is what Hal told me today by e-mail

I do not believe HAL

[LoboJ]

The ms Oosterdam has been repaired and is continuing its sailings to

Mexico.

 

This is what Hal told me today by e-mail

I do not believe HAL

 

That would be great news if it turns out to be true!

 

I know that there are some regulars on this board who are on the current sailing and should be able to verify this. I'll definitely be keeping my eye out.

 

I hope it's true, and either way, I hope that the current passengers are having a blast and staying clear of hurricane troubles....

[fcorey]

The ms Oosterdam has been repaired and is continuing its sailings to

Mexico.

 

This is what Hal told me today by e-mail

I do not believe HAL

 

dont give up hope just yet, if its humanly possible to repair that ship without a drydock you can darn sure bet they will. Mr. Deering said it costs 10's of millions of dollar when they have to drydock the ship, not to mention all the inconvenienced passengers that will result in negative publicity. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for you :) .

[duck tune]

DH and I are scheduled on the December 16 cruise and if that get's cancelled there is no way we could rebook anytime soon. I booked this trip 12/24/05 and have a guarantee SY with no cabin assigned yet.

 

I wonder if National Steel and Ship Building in San Diego would have a dry dock open that the Oosterdam could use? Seems like something could happen quickly there if the part was available. I would hope that HAL would contact those of us booked on the O if there is a chance of cancellation.

[SueOverend]

Final payment is made for our Jan 6th sailing - we're travelling all the way from England for this trip and unlike US Airlines, our airline tickets are non changeable, so if we were the unlucky ones to have our cruise cancelled, there is no way that we could go on an alternative sailing. Fingers crossed for everybody that they can sort this without cancelling any sailings. I'm particulary worried about our sailing as the prices are as low as they get, which indicates that this date has been slow to sell! Just wish they could find a solution so that we all know what is happening one way or another. I know how much we all count off the days to our cruise and we are all now sharing a certain amount of uncertainty.

[MauiMermaid]

I too was worried about this, since we are on the 1/13 sailing. My TA contacted HAL and received this reply: The ship was immediately repaired after that itinerary. The azipod is no longer an issue for the Oosterdam.

Maybe there was a last-minute miracle....RevNeal???;)

MM

[AZjohn]

The ms Oosterdam has been repaired and is continuing its sailings to

Mexico. This is what Hal told me today by e-mail

I do not believe HAL

 

LOL… Well, I guess that someone in the PR department interpretation from that statement could be somewhat true. I guess you can say the azipod has been repaired by taking it offline and removing the propellers, and yes it is sailing to Mexico but they didn’t elaborate on running at a slower speed on one azipod and cutting the times at port short.

Because the latest first hand report was Saturday morning, I too would like to hear from some current passengers. I feel bad for them because they are likely getting hit with a double whammy with avoiding Hurricane Paul.

I know none of us scheduled for an Oosterdam cruise in the next month or two want to have it cancelled if she has to be dry-docked. But at lease it won’t come as a total surprise as I learn more from this site.

John

[wheretocruise]

Brian, I happen to be chatting with another fellow cruise critic member that I smoke with. He mentioned that he knew you "Tedson". I am also a cruise critic member - wheretocruise. We met today at 1:00. Small world!!

 

Bernice

[Brad1185]

We are also scheduled for Dec 2nd. I contacted HAL today and they said nothing was wrong with the Oosterdam.

 

From what I am reading, a cruise will have to be cancelled to get it fixed. Hopefully we will hear the truth soon.

[herb]

Final payment is made for our Jan 6th sailing - we're travelling all the way from England for this trip and unlike US Airlines, our airline tickets are non changeable, so if we were the unlucky ones to have our cruise cancelled, there is no way that we could go on an alternative sailing. Fingers crossed for everybody that they can sort this without cancelling any sailings. I'm particulary worried about our sailing as the prices are as low as they get, which indicates that this date has been slow to sell! Just wish they could find a solution so that we all know what is happening one way or another. I know how much we all count off the days to our cruise and we are all now sharing a certain amount of uncertainty.

 

Sue, hopefully everything will be ironed out by the time we sail on Jan 6th. It's a pity that everyone who contacts HAL gets a different answer to their question. I wish everyone who worked for the company would somehow be equally informed of any situation that arises!!

[RevNeal]

HAL's Public Relations Department (i.e., Rose Abello ... if you're reading this, head's UP!) needs to realize that, thanks to internet sites like CC, some people can and DO find out if there are issues with the ships they're about to sail. True, the mishap with the Oosterdam went unreported in the mainstream media, but it was VERY WELL COVERED on this board. While HAL's response wasn't exactly a lie it WAS an obfuscation and could be construed as misleading, and that's simply unacceptable. The next person to call HAL should ask "When will the damaged azipod be repaired and back in use?" Don't give 'em any wiggle room.

[Tinknock50]

I have always found calling HAL a hit and miss proposition as far as getting accurate information.......why would this situation be any different?:rolleyes:

 

Generally, you have to use the "six call" method......add up all the different responses and hopefully sift out the truth.

[Redheart]

Ahoy! We are on the Oosterdam right now and take it from me the azipod is NOT repaired. We were late getting into Cabo for which we received a $25 OBC. We are pretty much circling around avoiding Paul and the itenerary is totally in the air. Mazatlan is out, PV not even mentioned. We are watching whitecaps and it is very cloudy and breezy and warm. I have received so much good info and advice from this board and I knew you would want to know.

[herb]

HAL's Public Relations Department (i.e., Rose Abello ... if you're reading this, head's UP!) needs to realize that, thanks to internet sites like CC, some people can and DO find out if there are issues with the ships they're about to sail. .

 

Not only HAL but all the other cruiselines should realize that people do not get their cruise information from the brochures handed out at the Travel Agency anymore!! The internet gets the "real" info out much sooner than "they" would like us to get it.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Ahoy! We are on the Oosterdam right now and take it from me the azipod is NOT repaired. We were late getting into Cabo for which we received a $25 OBC. We are pretty much circling around avoiding Paul and the itenerary is totally in the air. Mazatlan is out, PV not even mentioned. We are watching whitecaps and it is very cloudy and breezy and warm. I have received so much good info and advice from this board and I knew you would want to know.

 

urg...second try dreaded white screen

 

Redheart, thanks so much for updating us on what is happening on the Oosterdam. It does not surprise me from what I have been reading about Hurricane Paul. It is too bad you are missing Mazatlan but hopefully they can get you into PV which looks to be considerably south of the hurricane. I know that the Captain will steer clear of the hurricane. Unfortunately one can never predict Mother Nature. Please keep us posted when you can. I am sure many appreiciate this information.:)

[AZjohn]

Thank you Redheart for checking in. I know a lot of us have been wishing you and your cruise mates the best with Hurricane Paul (and the one azipod). I too hope you can make it to PV but hope everyone is enjoying the time onboard in the mean time. Please keep us updated if you can.

John

[Atomica]

Redheart, thanks for keeping us updated. I was wondering about the Oosterdam's itinerary after seeing that Royal Caribbean altered the itinerary for Vision of the Seas.

[sail7seas]

Are you sure the azipod has not been repaired and that your delays (cancellations) are not weather related?

 

Has the Captain actually reported the azipod to still require repairs?