"Our U.S.-flag start-up costs have obscured, for the past two years, the attractive financial returns on the international fleet of ships that we have built since Star Cruises bought NCL," Veitch said.

"All our growth from now on will be in this strongly profitable sector of our fleet, and will take us well past the goal we set ourselves of having the youngest fleet in the industry and a transformed financial profile by 2010."

I take it to mean that there will be no additional money spent on or expansion of NCL America until 2010 or later as they're now going to focus on these new ships.

I can't help seeing it as a verbal nail in the coffin for the Big U project.

[ 09-08-2006: Message edited by: Malcolm @ cruisepage ]

Tim, working in the business, do you really think they will return her to service? Can she compete with newbuilds?

I think that information is the result of too many NCL pundits wanting to speak to hear themselves talk under the guise of "expertise".

No one else wanted the ship as no one else wanted to take the risks NCL was taking and they wouldn't be willing to spend the money on the US.

Look at the logical FACTS - NCL has spent an enormous amount of money to maintain the ship and has spent even more money hiring experts, conducting surveys, drawing up plans and conducting feasbility studies. You don't undertake a project like that and spend that amount of money if you're not serious.

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Originally posted by Tim in 'Lauderdale:
Look at the logical FACTS - NCL has spent an enormous amount of money to maintain the ship and has spent even more money hiring experts, conducting surveys, drawing up plans and conducting feasbility studies. You don't undertake a project like that and spend that amount of money if you're not serious.

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Tim, as a layman, I have no idea if NCL have spent 10 million dollars or 10,000 dollars on her. Nothing seems to have happened and it looks like nothing is going to happen for years to come, if ever.

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Originally posted by Malcolm @ cruisepage:

(Did Veitch not say a while back that after the recent spate of newbuilds, that the SS United states project was next - no mention of 2x new mega ships!)

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Veitch may well have said that, but neither he nor NCL control the purse strings for the operation. I'm sure those ultimate decisions come from Star.

They all tendered bids to rebuild the BigU and SSNorway.

Ships are no longer built the way they were with camber, shear, and tumblehome. It is hard to find shipwrights who still know how to work on a mid-century liner.

The costs are high due to the labor and risk involved.

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Originally posted by mec1:
A rebuild that was like the conversion of Alexander Pushkin to Marco Polo would be fantastic and - heaven forbid - they could even rename her. Christopheer Columbus perhaps????

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That's a valid point--by the time the UNITED STATES was rebuilt for practical cruising purposes, it would seem pointless to keep the same name, being unrecognizable from the original ship. She would no more resemble her original self than the EMERALD resembles the SANTA ROSA!

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Originally posted by Linerrich:

That's a valid point--by the time the UNITED STATES was rebuilt for practical cruising purposes, it would seem pointless to keep the same name..

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Norway II

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Originally posted by mec1:
You know I think Pascale has just said the most brilliant and exciting thing about the US that anyone on here has said for YEARS. A rebuild that was like the conversion of Alexander Pushkin to Marco Polo would be fantastic and - heaven forbid - they could even rename her. Christopheer Columbus perhaps????

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What Orient guests love is the SIZE of the ship and the ambiance it creates, not so much the physical ship itself. The US is much too large for Orient and if they were to use a ship of that size, they would simply transfer the Spirit or the SuperStar Virgo to Orient.

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Originally posted by Ernst:
- but the only reason to use her is her heritage and her name -

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The only scenario which might make sense is to capitailze on her past and reputation. This will probalby not be reconstruction but a refit like mentioned above - but still a 'connection' to her past. Anything else just does not make sense. (I still beleive that it is inprobalbe the she will sail again)

[ 09-09-2006: Message edited by: Ernst ]

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Originally posted by Ernst:
The only scenario which might make sense is to capitailze on her past and reputation.

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Originally posted by Tim in 'Lauderdale:

What Orient guests love is the SIZE of the ship and the ambiance it creates..

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Originally posted by Malcolm @ cruisepage:

By the time NCL get around to doing something with the SS United States she will be a SMALL ship in comparison to 95% of the other tonnage out their.

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Indeed Malcolm,

regardless she is still a big ship. It's impossible to mimic the ambiance and camraderie of an 850 passenger ship on one that will/would carry upwards of two thousand passengers; roughly the equivilant size of the Norway.

In fact, Orient had a tough time "selling" the one thousand pax Crown Odyssey to Marco Polo die-hards.

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Originally posted by Tim in 'Lauderdale:
..regardless she is still a big ship. It's impossible to mimic the ambiance and camraderie of an 850 passenger ship on one that will/would carry upwards of two thousand passengers; roughly the equivilant size of the Norway.

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