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FAIRSEA (1956)
Service dates: 1988-2000
Official number: 2975
Shipping lines: SITMAR CRUISES INC.; PRINCESS CRUISES INC.; P&O LINES
Ship type:
Passenger Ship.
Career
- 14.12.1955
- Launched by HRH The Princess Margaret.
- 06.1956
- Delivered as Carinthia for The Cunard Steam Ship Co Ltd, Liverpool. Her original specifications were 21,957 grt, 8,500 dwt, 154 first class, 714 tourist class passengers. She was one of four ships for Cunard’s UK/Canada service.
- 27.06.1956
- Maiden voyage Liverpool/Montreal.
- 12.1956
- Christmas and New Year cruise to the Caribbean from New York.
- 01.1961
- Held in dry-dock for 4 months by a strike of ship repair workers at Liverpool.
- 30.08.1962
- Involved in a collision with Canadian cargo ship Tadoussac in fog in the St Lawrence River.
- 13.10.1967
- Sailed on Cunard’s last scheduled voyage Liverpool/Canada.
- 01.1968
- Sold to Fairland Shipping Corporation, Liberia, and renamed Fairland. Intended for Sitmar Line’s UK/New Zealand service, but its emigrant contracts ended in 1970 so she was laid up at Southampton instead, pending a decision on her future.
- 21.02.1970
- Arrived at Trieste, Italy, for conversion into a cruise ship. 21,916 grt.
- 1971
- Ownership transferred to Fairsea Shipping Corporation, Liberia, and renamed Fairsea.
- 07.1972
- Remodelled for US cruising. Now 16,627 gt. Passenger capacity now 884.
- 1980
- Ownership transferred to Sitmar Cruises Inc (Shipping Management SAM (V Ships), managers, Liberia).
- 1984
- Refurbished at Norshipco, Los Angeles. Capacity now 906 passengers.
- 01.09.1988
- Sitmar Cruises purchased by The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company Ltd (P&O Lines Ltd, managers). Operators now Princess Cruises Inc. Renamed Fair Princess.
- 01.09.1989
- Owners Sitmar Cruises Liberia renamed Princess Cruises Liberia Inc.
- 31.12.1990
- Re-measured. Now draught 8.94m, deadweight 6,819 tonnes. Capacity 1,050 passengers. Speed 19.5 knots.
- 09.03.1992
- Managers P&O Lines Ltd renamed P&O Cruises Fleet Services Ltd.
- 01.07.1992
- Re-measured. Now deadweight 6,742 tonnes.
- 20.04.1993
- New certificate after re-measurement. Now 24,799 gt, 12,228 nt.
- 01.01.1994
- Management transferred from P&O Cruises Fleet Services Ltd to Princess Cruises Fleet Services.
- 10.1995
- Laid up after proposed sale to Regency Cruises failed.
- 25.06.1996
- Overhauled at San Diego prior to transfer to Australian market to replace Fairstar.
- 22.11.1996
- Ownership transferred from Princess Cruises Liberia Inc to P&O Holidays Ltd.
- 07.02.1997
- Maiden voyage for P&O Holidays, marred only by an engine breakdown and a fire on board!
- 1998
- Management transferred back to Princess Cruises.
- 06.09.2000
- Sold by P&O Holidays Ltd to Emerald Cruises Inc, Georgetown, Barbados, and immediately bareboat chartered back to P&O Holidays.
- 23.10.2000
- P&O Princess Cruises plc demerged from The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company. Shortly afterwards sold to China Sea Cruises, Monrovia, Liberia.
- 2000
- Renamed China Sea Discovery and used as a Far Eastern gambling ship.
- 2005
- Briefly renamed Sea Discovery for her voyage to the shipbreakers.
- 18.11.2005
- Broken up at Alang, India, although during the demolition, a fire broke out in the engineroom injuring nine people.