Cruise from the PastPullmantur CruisesRoyal Caribbean GroupRoyal Caribbean International (RCI)

MV Monarch (Ex Monarch of the Seas) – Cruise from the Past

IMO Number: 8819500

MV Monarch

ex Monarch of the Seas

© Cees Bustraan
© Cees Bustraan

Steel twin screw “Sovereign Class” motor vessel built in 1991 by Chantiers de l’Atlantique, St Nazaire, France (Yard No A30) as a Passenger (Cruise) Ship for Royal Caribbean International 

Technical Data

  • Original Cost: $300 million
  • Length: 268.32m (overall) 236.0m (between perpendiculars)
  • Breadth: 32.20m
  • Depth: 9.70m
  • Draught: 7.550m
  • Tonnage:  73,937 gross/47,508 net/8600t deadweight
  • Engines: Four 9-cyl, Pielstick-Alsthom 9PC20L400 diesels
  • Power: 21844 kW/29,719 HP
  • Speed: 21.6 knots (service)
  • Passenger Decks: 11
  • Capacity: 2,674 (Monarch of the Seas), 2,744
  • Crew: 858
  • Call Sign: LAMU4, 9C6FZ, 9HA3314
  • IMO Number: 8819500
  • Official Number: N01131
  • Port of Registry: Oslo/Norway 🇳🇴, Nassau/Bahamas 🇧🇸, Valletta/Malta 🇲🇹
  • Sister-Ship: Majesty of the Seas (B30), Sovereign of the Seas (A29)

History

July 31st 1989: Keel laid.

September 22nd 1990: During building suffered a fire which delayed her delivery for 6 months. Launched as “Sovereign Class“ Cruise Ship.

October 15th 1991: Delivered to Monarch Of The Seas Inc, (Management Royal Caribbean Cruises), Oslo, Norway.

© Wil Weijsters © Wil Weijsters  

© Wil Weijsters

November 11th 1991: Maiden voyage in the Caribbean.

December 15th 1998:

“After evacuating a sick passenger at Philipsburg, St. Maarten, the Netherlands Antilles grazed a reef while departing, opening a gash along the starboard hull 40 by 2 metres (131.2 by 6.6 ft) in size. The ship started taking on water and began to settle by the head. Three of its watertight compartments were completely flooded and several others partially flooded.

It was intentionally grounded on a sandbar to prevent further sinking. All passengers were evacuated by crew members and local tender operators. No lives were lost. The grounding breached two of the ship’s diesel fuel tanks and an overflow tank causing a small fuel spill of approximately 100 US gallons (380 l; 83 imp gal). There was also severe damage to the ship. A joint investigation by the Norwegian Maritime Investigator and the United States Coast Guard found that the accident was due to “…a myriad of human performance deficiencies.” Reports also indicate that navigation out of the port was done visually rather than using of electronic navigation and that the relocation of a vital buoy was not reflected on charts.

The ship was dry docked for repairs for three months at Atlantic Marine’s Mobile, Alabama facilities. One hundred fourteen of the ship’s compartments had to be cleaned. The work also included replacement of machinery, 460 tons of shell plating, and 18 miles (29 km) of electrical wiring”.

March 14th 1999: Returned to service.

August 2005: “While docked at the port of Los Angeles, maintenance on a sewage pipe caused a small amount of raw sewage and an unknown amount of hydrogen sulfide gas to escape. Three crew members were killed and 19 others were injured. Reports said that the deaths were almost instantaneous as the crew members were not wearing breathing apparatus at the time”.

April 2013: Sold to Pullmantur Cruises Monarch Ltd, Spain and renamed MONARCH.

© Cees Bustraan © Cees Bustraan © Cees Bustraan © Cees Bustraan

© Cees Bustraan

July 13th 2020: “Arrived in Aliaga, Turkey where she will be dismantled…………SOVEREIGN will also be scrapped”

July 22nd 2020 (10.332 hrs): Beached for scrapping.

© Selim San
© Selim San

All information is believed to be correct and no responsibility is accepted for any errors or omissions. All items included in this article are subject to © copyright. We would like to take this opportunity of thanking: Cees Bustraan, Selim San and Wil Weijsters for their assistance in producing this feature.

Article © Nigel Thornton and Ray Goodfellow (Dover Ferry Photos Group)

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