Built as a cruise vessel under yard No 6223 by Fincantieri, Monfalcone, Italy for Carnival Plc, Hamilton, Bermuda.
20 October 2011 keel laid down.
16 August 2012 floated out.
Tonnage 142,714 grt, 12,512 dwt, dim. 330 x 38.40 x 8.60m. (draught) length bpp. 306m.
Powered: diesel electric by four Wärtsilä and two Wärtsilä 14V46 diesel engines 62,400 kW connected to two 18 MW SAM electronics motors, twin shafts, speed 23.0 knots. Six thrusters.
Accommodation for 4380 passengers and 1346 crew.
05 June 2013 delivered. Managed by Princess Cruises Lines Ltd. Valencia, California.
MS ROYAL PRINCESS is a cruise ship operated by Princess Cruises, and the third ship to sail for the cruise line under that name. The ship was built by Fincantieri at their shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy. ROYAL PRINCESS is the flagship of the Princess fleet, a designation held up to that point by GRAND PRINCESS.
Princess Cruises ordered ROYAL PRINCESS, as well as the sister ship REGAL PRINCESS both at the time unnamed, on 17 February 2010. The final contract was signed on 4 May 2010.
Construction of ROYAL PRINCESS began on 15 March 2011 at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy when the first plate was cut. The next major milestone in construction occurred on 20 October 2011, when the ship's keel was laid. She was launched in August 2012; fitting out continued, and Fincantieri delivered her to Princess Cruises in spring 2013.
The ship measures 141,000 GT and has a capacity of 3,600 passengers. Her amenities include a pair of public areas cantilevered over the side of the ship on the top deck—a walkway on the starboard side and a bar on the port side. She also has fewer pools than previous Princess Cruises ships and features expanded public areas, including the movie theatre, the "Sanctuary" bar and the central Piazza atrium. The ship will also have more dining options than previous Princess vessels. The ships of this class are one of the first passenger vessels built compliant to the new safe return to port requirements.
On 9 April 2013, it was announced that Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cambridge will name ROYAL PRINCESS in a naming ceremony in Southampton on 13 June 2013. The ceremony upheld British ship-naming traditions including the blessing, a performance by the Royal Marines and the pipers of the Irish Guards. Royal Princess arrived at the Ocean Terminal in Southampton on Friday 7 June, where a series of events commenced for customers and travel agents, including a special naming gala on the evening of Wednesday 12 June. The ship’s inaugural celebrations concluded with her maiden voyage on 16 June.
Maiden Voyage
ROYAL PRINCESS underwent what was marketed as a preview cruise on 9 June 2013, lasting for two nights, going from Southampton to St. Peter Port, Guernsey and back to Southampton. Then it undertook an Iberia Cruise departing on 16 June 2013 from Southampton to Vigo, Lisbon, Gibraltar, Malaga and Barcelona.
Sister Ships
One year after the launch of the ROYAL PRINCESS, Princess Cruises will launch its sister ship, the new REGAL PRINCESS. Dimensions and capacity will be the same, as with other sister ships in the Princess fleet. Also in 2015, Princess Cruises sister brand P&O Cruises will be launching its new vessel BRITANNIA that has many similarities to the Royal class ships.
Incidents and accidents On 22 September 2013, ROYAL PRINCESS suffered a power outage while sailing between Mykonos and Naples in the Mediterranean. The power failure occurred at 1:30 pm local time and emergency generators kicked in to provide hotel services to the passengers.
Prior to the power loss, the anchor motor failed and left 90 feet of anchor hanging for over four hours until a new motor could be installed. It delayed the ship on its trip from Mykonos to Naples.
The second half of the cruise was cancelled and all of the passengers were flown home early with flights out of Rome and Naples. The ROYAL PRINCESS cancelled her visits to Rome, Livorno, Toulon, and sailed directly to Barcelona effecting repairs on the way and embarked her next cruise in Barcelona as planned.
2014 in service, same name and owners, IMO No 9584712.
Central African Republic 2013 3000 F sgMS?, scott?
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Princess_(2013)