Mistral-class cruise ship
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Class overview | |
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Builders | Chantiers de l'Atlantique, St. Nazaire, France |
Operators |
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Preceded by | Renaissance Cruises: R class |
Succeeded by | MSC Cruises: Musica-class |
Built | 1999–2004 |
In service | 2000–present |
Building | 0 ships |
Completed | 5 ships |
Active | 4 ships |
Laid up | 1 fire-damaged |
General characteristics | |
Type | Cruise ship |
Tonnage | |
Length | 216 m (708 ft 8 in)275.25 m (903 ft 1 in) |
Beam | 28.80 m (94 ft 6 in) |
Draught | 6.8 m (22 ft 4 in)Error: has synonymous parameter (help) |
Draft | 6.6 m (21 ft 8 in)Error: has synonymous parameter (help) |
Depth | 6.6 m (21 ft 8 in) |
Decks | 9 (passenger accessible) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion | 2 × Azimuth thrusters (20,000 kW) |
Speed | 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph) |
Capacity | 1,500 to 2,000 passengers |
Crew | 700, 740 (MSC Opera) |
The Mistral class is a class of cruise ships, owned and operated by MSC Cruises and AIDA Cruises. There are currently five active Mistral-class cruise ships, the lead vessel, AIDAmira (1999 as Mistral), MSC Armonia (2001 as European Vision), MSC Sinfonia (2002 as European Stars), MSC Lirica (2002) and the MSC Opera (2003).
History
The lead vessel Mistral was originally ordered by Renaissance Cruises in the summer of 1996, but the order was later withdrawn.[1] The yard and bankers together held ownership of the ship through a company called Auxiliaire Maritime.[1] During construction at Chantiers de l'Atlantique, the order was taken over by Festival Cruises, which would be receiving its first new-build vessel. Two additional newbuilt ships based on an enlarged version of the Mistral design were delivered in 2001 and 2002 as MS European Vision and MS European Stars, respectively.[2] Festival Cruises had an option for two more ships of the enlarged Mistral design, but the company decided not to use the option. Two more Mistral class ships were however built for MSC Cruises as MSC Lirica and MSC Opera.[3]
When Festival Cruises went bankrupt in early 2004, all the company's ships were laid up and subsequently auctioned to other operators; European Stars and European Vision were sold to MSC Cruises and renamed MSC Armonia and MSC Sinfonia respectively,[2][4] while Mistral was sold to Ibero Cruises and renamed Grand Mistral.[2][5] In 2013, Grand Mistral exited the Ibero Cruises fleet and was transferred to sister brand Costa Cruises as the Costa neoRiviera.[6] Costa reportedly invested €10 million into transforming the ship to integrate it into its fleet.[7] In 2014, MSC Cruises announced that the four Lirica-class ships would undergo renovation under the "Renaissance Programme".[8] A 24 metres (79 ft) section was added to each of the vessels in 2015, adding 193 extra cabins and 2400 tonnes to the vessela.[9]
Costa neoRiviera exited Costa's fleet in 2019 and was transferred to sister brand AIDA Cruises as the Aidamira.[10][11][12]
Accidents
On 2 June 2019, MSC Opera allided with the quay and a docked river cruise ship moored at the San Basilio Pier in the Giudecca Canal in Venice, Italy. The cause was later found to be technical difficulties with the engines while undertow. She sustained superficial scratches, while the smaller river vessel was more damaged. Five people were slightly injured,[13]
On 12 March 2021, MSC Lirica caught on fire, the middle section of the ship was damaged, no one died doing this fire accident. There is some proof that the fire was caused by a lifeboat. [14] The area of the fire corresponded to the part of the vessel that was added in her 2015 lengthening and was later repaired. [15]
Ships
- AIDAmira (1999–2005 as Mistral; 2005–2013 as Grand Mistral; 2013–2019 as Costa neoRiviera; 2019–present operated by AIDA)
- MSC Armonia (2001–2003 as European Vision; 2004–present operated by MSC)
- MSC Sinfonia (2002–2003 European Stars; 2005–present operated by MSC)
- MSC Lirica (2003–present) Had fire accident in 2021
- MSC Opera (2004–present; served as the flagship of the company until MSC Musica entered service in 2006)
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MSC Armonia in Split, Croatia (2011)
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MSC Opera in Kiel (2007)
References
- ^ a b Mazorra, Arturo Paniagua (1999-12-14). "Festival Cruises' Mistral". Tutto Crociere: The Cyberspace Cruise Magazine.
- ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference
Simplon
was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Boyle, Ian. "MSC Crociere Italiane > MSC Lirica (2003– )". Simplon Postcards. Retrieved 2008-10-01.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Ward
was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Ward (2006). pp. 380–381
- ^ "Grand Mistral South America Season Cancelled, Ship Transferred to Costa". Cruise Industry News. 2013-08-29.
- ^ Capella, Daniel (9 November 2013). "Costa investe mais de 10 milhões de euros na renovação e manutenção de sua frota".
- ^ "MSC Renaissance Program Begins with Laying Out of Armonia's New Section". cruiseindustrynews.com. 20 May 2014. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
- ^ "New MSC Sinfonia features for 2015 cruises". cruiseshipnews.co.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
- ^ Staff, C. I. N. (25 May 2018). "Costa neoRiviera to Become AIDAmira in 2019". www.cruiseindustrynews.com.
- ^ Kalosh, Anne (2018-05-25). "Costa neoRiviera is transferring to become AIDAmira". Seatrade Cruise News.
- ^ Mathisen, Monty (2019-09-25). "Costa neoRiviera to Become AIDAmira After $55 Million Drydock". Cruise Industry News.
- ^ "Out-of-control cruise ship crashes into tourist boat on busy Venice canal".
- ^ "No injuries reported in fire on MSC Lirica in Corfu (Updated)".
- ^ "Where is the MSC Fleet of Cruise Ships?". 16 April 2021.
Sources
- Ward, Douglas (2008). Complete Guide to Cruising & Cruise Ships (17th ed.). Singapore; London: Berlitz / APA. pp. 456–457. ISBN 978-981-268-240-6. OCLC 271787333.
External links