The Life of SS France/Norway #history #ship #oceanliner #cruise #france #norway #passengership

Launched: 11 May 1960 Maiden voyage: 3 February 1962 Decommissioned: 25 October 1974 Maiden voyage (As SS Norway): 6 May 1980 Decommissioned: 23 May 2005 Fate: Scrapped in 2006 SS France was a Compagnie Générale Transatlantique (CGT, or French Line) ocean liner constructed by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard at Saint-Nazaire, France & put into service in February 1962. From the time of her construction in 1960 until the construction of the 345 m (1,132 ft) RMS Queen Mary 2 in 2004, the 316 m (1,037 ft) vessel was the longest passenger ship ever built. France was purchased by Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) in 1979, renamed SS Norway & underwent significant modifications to refit her for cruising. She was fully scrapped in late 2008. France was constructed to replace the line's other ageing ships including SS Ile de France & SS Liberté, which were outdated by the 1950s. Hull G19 was built by Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard, in Saint-Nazaire, France, her keel being laid down on 7 October 1957. She was blessed by the Bishop of Nantes, Monseigneur Villepelet & launched on 11 May 1960, at 4:15 pm, by Yvonne de Gaulle, wife of the president & was named France, in honour both of the country & of the two previous CGT ships to bear the name. France then undertook her sea trials on 19 November 1961 & averaged an unexpected 35.21 knots (65.21 km/h; 40.52 mph). France's maiden voyage from Le Havre to New York via Southampton, took place on 3 February 1962, with many of France's film stars & aristocracy aboard. On 14 December 1962, France carried the Mona Lisa from Le Havre to New York, where the painting was to embark on an American tour. She sailed the North Atlantic run between Le Havre & New York for 13 years. But, by the beginning of the 1970s, far faster & increasingly more comfortable & fuel-efficient commercial jet aircraft had made long-distance transoceanic air travel more popular than the ocean liners, putting financial stress on European ship lines like the CGT that had derived much of their revenue from the trans-Atlantic market. When the French government, at the end of the Trente Glorieuses, realised that keeping France running would necessitate an additional 10 million dollars a year, it opted instead to subsidize the then Concorde supersonic aircraft currently in development. Without this government money, the French Line could not operate, and it was announced that France would be withdrawn from service on 25 October 1974. In response the crew decided to take matters into their own hands: an eastbound crossing on 6 September 1974, her 202nd crossing, was delayed several hours while the crew met to decide on strike action. Their mission failed & the night of the takeover proved to be the ship's last day of service for the CGT. It took over a month for the stand-off to end, and by 7 December 1974, the ship was moored at a distant quay in Le Havre. The mothballing of France was met with dismay by much of the French population, resulting in a song by Michel Sardou, titled "Le France". The ship sat in the same spot for approximately 4 years, with the interiors, including all furniture, still completely intact. There were no plans to scrap the ship, or to sell it. The ship was sold in 1979 to Knut Kloster, the owner of Norwegian Caribbean Line for $18 million for conversion into the world's largest cruise ship. By August of that year Norway was moved to the Lloyd shipyards in Bremerhaven, Germany, where she underwent renovations at a cost of US$80 million. Norway was registered in Oslo & was re-christened on 14 April 1980. She was the only purpose-built transatlantic ocean liner that was remodeled to be employed exclusively in luxury cruise service. She began her maiden voyage to Miami that same year. Destined for retirement, Norway sailed out of Manhattan's west side piers for the last time on 5 September 2001, on yet another transatlantic crossing to Greenock, Scotland & then on to her home port of Le Havre. Her passengers learnt of the terrorist attacks on New York & Washington 6 days later, while in mid-ocean. As the cruise industry reeled from the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, the ship's owners decided to place her back into service. On 25 May 2003, after docking in Miami at 5:00 a.m., Norway was seriously damaged by a boiler explosion at 6:37 a.m. that killed 8 crew members & injured 17 as superheated steam flooded the boiler room & blasted into crew quarters above through ruptured decking. No passengers were injured. The National Transportation Safety Board determined that "the probable cause of the boiler rupture on the Norway was the deficient boiler operation, maintenance & inspection practices". NCL Chief Executive Colin Veitch announced on 23 March 2004 "Norway will never sail again". In July 2008 the legendary SS Norway was dismantled at the ships’ graveyard of Alang, India.

#SS Norway#SS France#Ocean liner#France#Passenger ship#Chantiers de l'Atlantique#Le Havre#Ship