Just
weeks after the centennial anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic,
Australian billionaire Clive Palmer announced he's set into motion a
plan to build a high-tech replica of the Titanic, dubbed Titanic II,
which he says will sail its maiden voyage in late 2016, England to
New York City, to commemorate the 1912 voyage of the original RMS
Titanic.
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Palmer,
Australia's fifth wealthiest person at an estimated $5.2 billion, has
signed a letter of understanding with CSC Jinling Shipyard in China
to build the cruise ship. The design phase is currently underway, as
ship architects sift through historical documents and plans in an
effort to recreate the century-old luxury liner that sank on April
15, 1912.
In
1907 American billionaire industrialist and financier J. Pierpont
Morgan had initial discussions with J. Bruce Ismay about building
three luxury cruise ships. Morgan's company, the International
Mercantile Marine Co., owned White Star Line which was headed by
Ismay. The ships discussed would eventually become the RMS Olympic,
the HMHS Britannic, and the RMS Titanic.
Construction
on the RMS Titanic, the second in the new luxury fleet of passenger
ships designated as "Olympic-class ocean liners," got
underway in Belfast, Ireland in 1909 and was completed in 1911 by
Belfast shipbuilders Harland and Wolff.
The
new Olympic-class ships were the most luxurious and largest at the
time, capable of carrying more than 3,200 passengers and crew.
Well-heeled passengers who chose first class accommodations found
themselves in luxury cabins, some of which had their own bathrooms;
unheard of at that time. The two largest cabins on the ships had
their own private decks.
The
ships themselves were equipped with a grand staircase, large dining
rooms, smoking rooms, cafes decorated with palm trees, a swimming
pool, a Turkish bath, at least one gymnasium, and several other
places that offered food and entertainment.
Sadly,
two of the three Olympic-class ships had very short existences. The
Titanic, of course, went down on its maiden voyage when it struck an
iceberg in the North Atlantic. The Britannic, launched on February
26, 1914 met her fate at 8:12 A.M. on November 21, 1916 when she
struck a mine deployed by a German U79 submarine and sank.
Unlike
the Titanic, which took the lives of 1,517 people with her when she
sank, catastrophe was avoided aboard the Britannic where 1,036 people
were saved aboard the Britannic and only 30 people perished. A
tragedy nonetheless, the lessons learned from the sinking of the
Titanic saved lives aboard the Britannic.
A
century of modern advancements in marine technology and approaches to
manufacturing should lead to a long and fruitful life for the new
Titanic II. Sonar technology alone will make quick work of avoiding
icebergs and other potential hazards. Titanic II will be made to the
specifications of the original Olympic-class cruise liners, which by
today's cruise ship standards isn't particularly huge.
In
fact, the largest cruise ships in service today are nearly 300 feet
longer than the Titanic and can accommodate more than 2,000
passengers. The Titanic II is set to carry 1,680 passengers, but it
plans to do so in complete luxury.
Today's
cruise industry is based on economies of scale, which require the
ability to handle large amounts of passengers so the costs and
savings can be spread around. For a ship to only accommodate less
than
1,700
passengers it has to rely on the ability to market itself to
wealthier passengers as a truly luxurious experience, perhaps one
unmatched in the entire industry.
With
a name like Titanic II, at least for a period of time, the worldwide
appeal to book passage will be tremendous. In fact, it's got to be a
marketing company's dream come true. Talks of rates and other
specifics, particularly for its maiden voyage which will exactly
match the intended route of the original Titanic's first trek into
open seas, are premature, but keeping an eye on developments over the
next several years will be fun and interesting.
Let
it never be said that having billions of dollars is overrated, makes
you uptight, or can only be used for evil and world domination.
Cheers to Clive Palmer for getting done what others haven't been able
to pull off in several other attempts.
Tim
is a writer for cabletv.com. If you would like to follow up on this
article he can be reached on Twitter. @Cabletvcom
Originally posted at Popgive.com.![]()
