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30 • MarineNews • January 2006 PASSENGER VESSEL ANNUAL By Larry Pearson When it comes to building overnight passenger vessels, no shipyard has been as successful as Chesapeake Shipbuilding. Located on the Wicomico River in Salis- bury, Md. the yard has built three such vessels in the last five years for American Cruise Lines (ACL), Haddam, Conn., In total, the yard has built eight overnight vessels. ACL specializes in eight-day cruises out of east coast ports with the cruise beginning and ending from the same port. The company also performs repositioning cruises of up to 14 days when moving from one area of the east coast to another. Chesapeake's latest delivery is a 214-ft. by 42.5-ft. passenger vessel called Ameri- can Spirit. The vessel made its debut in May of 2005 with a series of eight day cruises out of Baltimore with stops along both shores of Maryland's Chesapeake Bay and as far south as Williamsburg, Va. From there, the vessel repositioned to New England for Cruises in the summer and fall. Meanwhile ACL's other two vessels, American Eagle and American Glory were conducting cruises out of other ports. ACL has nine itineraries for the three vessels ranging from Maine Coast and Harbors in the North to Okeechobee & Southern waterways in the south. The American Spirit is the largest ves- sel in ACL's fleet with 51 staterooms. The other two cruise ships each have 31 state- rooms. The American Spirit has staterooms on three enclosed decks with the top deck open for observation. There are private balconies on some of the second deck cab- ins aft and all of the cabins on the third deck have balconies. An amidships elevator serves all four decks. There are four lounges on the boat and dining is aft on the main deck. State- rooms average 240 sq. ft. each, the largest in the industry and all cabins have satellite TV by Seatel. In the hull is a pair of MTU Series 200 engines developing 1,070 hp each of propulsion power. Gears are by ZF and they power a pair of 48- x 48-in. props enabling the American Spirit to travel at 14 knots. Steering is electro/hydraulic by Kobelt. To aid maneuverability in many of the small ports visited by the American Spir- it, a 200 hp Thrustmaster hydraulic bow thruster is a part of the propulsion pack- age. Electrical generation for ships power and the hotel load are handled by a pair of Series 60 S Detroit Diesels rated at 250 kW each and a 160 kW Onan unit. The vessel can make its 3,500 gallons of potable water per day with a watermak- er that supplements the 15,000-gallon fresh water tank in the hull. The hull also has tankage for 2,300 gallons of fuel oil. An Omnipure sewage treatment plant handles waste from the 50 staterooms and the crew quarters. "Since the first cruise in May, the vessel has been very well received by our pas- sengers, and it has been a huge success," said marketing director Timothy Beebe. The American Spirit has been such a success that Chesapeake Shipbuilding has began a sister ship for ACL. The keel was laid on August 8, 2005 and delivery is expected in early 2007. "The new vessel will have Caterpillar C-32 engines as main propulsion and smaller engines as gensets," said Tony Severn, manager of the yard. Ship layout will feature multiple lounges, an observation deck and one large dining salon that will allow all pas- sengers to dine in a single seating. "The staterooms will be the largest in the indus- try and will feature Internet access, large picture windows, satellite TV, individual climate control and many with private verandas," Beebe said. The vessel will also feature an exercise room, library and a smaller launch vessel that can visit more out of the way ports. Chesapeake also built a pair of 31-ft. aluminum passenger launches for the two new vessels. The 40-passenger outboard- powered boats have side load and bow ramps and will be used for passengers to tour hard to reach, shallow water attrac- tions as a part of their cruise. The building of the American Spirit and its sister ship is a milestone of sorts for the American shipbuilding industry. Only one other company, American West Steamboat on the west coast has successfully built and marketed overnight cruise vessels in the last few years. Both the Queen of the West and Empress of the North are suc- cessful operations on the northwest Rivers and on cruises to Alaska. The bankruptcy of American Classic Cruises and their two large cruise ships and two smaller overnight vessels immediately comes to mind when thinking about building overnight vessels in this country. Based on the early acceptance of the American Spirit, coastal cruises on the east coast seem viable as well. To handle construc- tion of larger vessels, Chesapeake Ship- building has expanded its east wet dock to 275 ft. by 66 ft. to compliment the exist- ing west dock that is 210-ft. by 56-ft. Chesapeake Shipbuilding employees between 30 and 60 shipbuilders and is a full service shipyard building ferries, restaurant/gaming boats and other work- boats. Chesapeake Shipbuilding Prospers The flagship of the American Cruise Lines fleet, American Spirit. The vessel has met with considerable customer enthusiasm during its first few months of operation. The Main Deck Lounge of the American Spirit is a convenient congregation area after a day of cruising. JANUARY MN2006 4(25-32).qxd 1/4/2006 8:11 PM Page 30
