Inevitable future spectacular catastrophe in the making seen here.

[Mutara Nebula 1967]

There is a line in THE TOWERING INFERNO from Steve McQueen that goes "Someday we're going to kill 10,000 in one of these things." referring to sky scrapers.

I fear the same thing can be said about cruise ships. Maybe not this particular ship but someday we could loose several thousand people in one of these things. People can talk all they want about safety stabilizers etc. but man vs waves and water has been losing battle since the first cave-man found himself drowning when his primitive dugout capsized.

Unpredictable rogue or "freak"waves are a part of every ocean in the world. The SS Waratah ocean liner missing since 1909 was possible a victim of a freak wave according to one theory on its complete disappearance.

If one of these gets knocked over and I'm not talking a gradual roll over like the Costa Concordia or the Andrea Doria but a sudden swift roll we could be looking at a 9/11 scale tragedy.

 

[scotpens]

Holy crap. That doesn't even look like a ship. It looks like a hotel plopped on top of a boat hull.

I'm sure that thing isn't as top-heavy as it looks. But it's ugly as shit.

 

[MacLeod]

You can't possible regulate for a freak occurance. Sure you design and test ships to withstand servere weather and maybe a little more. But what do you class a freak wave as occuring 1 in a million, 1 in a 100 000 ec..?

 

[Peach Wookiee]

That is one big-ass ship.

 

[sojourner]

I've worked on ships that big and helped finish out one in the shipyard (admittedly, computer systems). Everything heavy is at the bottom of the ship. Engines, oil, water, it's all under the water line. The lower half of the ship is made of steel while the higher decks are aluminum. I've seen some of those ships go to 45 degrees with no problem.

Also, very few cruiseships spend time in the open ocean. Mainly Atlantic and Pacific crossings, which are minimized to as few as possible. Contrary to the popular image the cruise industry is not in the business of transoceanic travel. Ninety-five percent of the time these ships are in the relatively calmer settings of the Caribbean and Mediterranean seas providing vacations. You'll notice that even Alaskan cruises tend to stay in the inner passages as much as feasible. Cruiseships steer well around storms. Heck, once a ship I was on delayed entering Tampa bay by 6 hours due to fog.

Most of the accidents (not including the obvious individuals going overboard for various reasons) involving cruise ships come down to poor maintenance/training and ego, as demonstrated by the Cost Concordia's captain. The ships themselves are marvels of engineering and much safer than you think.

As stated by other posters, freak occurrences like rogue waves can only mitigated to a point. Look how well Japan was prepared for earthquakes/tsunami and yet they still had a major catastrophe. It's just part of living on planet Earth.

 

[MacLeod]

Isn't the QM2 the only ocean liner in the world?

 

[publiusr]

Cruise ships and ocean liners are different:
http://misunderstoodmariner.blogspot.com/2009/07/ocean-liners-vs-cruise-ships.html

Life left here I hope
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_United_States

In case any of you have ladies who would love to replicate the 'flying' scene on the bow in the Cameron movie TITANIC--don't!!

Hit a swell, and you can fall off the bow--get caught in the slipstream about the hull--and be swept straight into the props, the the mouths of the "ship-followers" behind.

Then too, folks who only want their spouses insurance policies have probably already thought of that. It takes a lot to turn a liner:
http://thenauticalsite.com/NauticalNotes/Manouev/MyMan-Lesson01-TurnCircle.htm

I don't know why folks think this is so funny
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_to_Avoid_Huge_Ships

 

[JarodRussell]

Freak waves are like earthquakes. And nobody stops building big houses just because of a little shakin' here and there.

In 2005, the Norwegian Dawn, a 2200 passenger ship, got hit by a 20 meter wave. A couple of broken windows and 4 injured.

 

[sojourner]

Then too, folks who only want their spouses insurance policies have probably already thought of that. It takes a lot to turn a liner:
http://thenauticalsite.com/NauticalNotes/Manouev/MyMan-Lesson01-TurnCircle.htmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_to_Avoid_Huge_Ships

Modern cruise ships have asipods and thrusters that give them the ability to turn in place if needed. If you ever visit Miami, go to the harbor one morning (very early) and watch the cruise ships arrive. They have to stop and do a 180 before they can pull up to the dock. And forget that tugboat stuff. Tugboats haven't been used for normal operations for 20 years.

 

[Haggis and tatties]

Looks like something designed with lego bricks. lol

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

But it's ugly as shit.

Yes.

 

[YellowSubmarine]

Is that a ship or are we already selling apartments located in international waters?

 

[Captrek]

Life left here I hope
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_United_States

SS United States is a luxury passenger liner built in 1952 for United States Lines designed to capture the trans-Atlantic speed record.

People want to cross the Atlantic on a cruise ship designed to make the crossing in record time? How can "cruise ship designed to capture the trans-Atlantic speed record" not make people think of Titanic?

 

[sojourner]

^Because when people think of Titanic they think "unsinkable".

 

[137th Gebirg]

Didn't I read, not long ago, that someone was thinking of building a new Titanic? Like going so far as building it off the original blueprints, but using updated technology, and even naming it the Titanic (or Titanic II)?

Somehow I get the feeling this guy is going the path of Icarus.

 

[Pavonis]

Why? Because the name Titanic is cursed? Superstitious much?

 

[Deckerd]

The tolerances for these modern cruise ships is very high spec. Just because it looks like a container ship with windows doesn't mean it's any less seaworthy. Moreso in fact because the rules for passenger ships is even more rigorous than for container ships. You have to ask the question though, who would want to travel in that? I know the reason they're being built is because cruise holidays are hugely profitable and the demand grows exponentially ever year, but if I was forking out for a cruise holiday I would choose something slightly more elegant to travel in.

 

[Pavonis]

Does it really matter what the outside looks like, if the amenities inside are great?

 

[Deckerd]

Well yes, to me it does.

 

[TheSeeker]

I went for a cruise on Freedom of the Seas back in 2008 and at the time it was the biggest cruise ship in the world. It was pretty amazing.

The Oasis of the Seas is another big one which I would love to sail on one day: