Celebrity Infinity

GTS Celebrity Infinity (formerly Infinity) is a Millennium-class cruise ship operated by Celebrity Cruises, a subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Group. She measures 90,940 GT and 294 m (965 ft) long, and holds a capacity of 2,170 passengers across 12 decks. After Royal Caribbean signed a letter of intent with French shipbuilder Chantiers de l'Atlantique in February 1998, she was floated out in June 2000 and delivered in February 2001, making her the second Millennium-class ship to join the fleet following Celebrity Millennium.

Celebrity Infinity
Celebrity Infinity docked in Lerwick, 2014
History
Malta
Name
  • 2001–2007: Infinity
  • 2007–present: Celebrity Infinity
OwnerRoyal Caribbean Group
OperatorCelebrity Cruises
Port of registry
OrderedFebruary 1998[1]
Builder
Yard numberS31[3]
Launched9 June 2000[4]
Sponsored bySolveig Wilhelmsen[5][6]
Christened29 April 2001[5]
Acquired25 February 2001[7]
Maiden voyage3 March 2001[8]
In service2001–present
Identification
General characteristics
Class and typeMillennium-class cruise ship
Tonnage
Length964.6 ft (294.0 m)
Beam105.6 ft (32.2 m)
Draught26 ft (8 m)
Decks12
Installed power
Propulsion2 × 19 MW Rolls-Royce/Alstom Mermaid azimuth thrusters
Speed24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph)
Capacity2,170
Crew999

Construction

In February 1998, Royal Caribbean signed a letter of intent with French shipbuilder Chantiers de l'Atlantique to build two new ships, with an option for two more, that would make up a new class of ships, dubbed the Millennium class.[1] Designed to be an evolution from Celebrity's Century-class ships, the two ships were initially planned to measure 85,000 GT, have a guest capacity of approximately 1,900, and be delivered in June 2000 and January 2001, respectively.[1]

In March 2000, Celebrity announced the second Millennium-class ship would be named Infinity.[9] On 9 June 2000, she was launched from the shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France.[4] On 25 February 2001, Celebrity took delivery of Infinity in Fort Lauderdale, Florida after she embarked on a transatlantic crossing from Saint-Nazaire.[7] Formal naming festivities were held on 29 April 2001 in Los Angeles, where Infinity was christened by Solveig Wilhelmsen.[5][6]

Service history

The ship's maiden voyage was originally scheduled for 3 February 2001, a 14-day cruise from Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale through the Panama Canal before arriving in San Diego for her inaugural season.[9] However, the voyage was later postponed by one month to 3 March 2001.[8][7] Her inaugural season also included cruises to Hawaii[10] before she headed to Alaska in summer 2001, joining fleet-mate Mercury.[11]

Since 2002, she has also cruised to South America,[12] Antarctica,[13] the Caribbean from San Juan, Puerto Rico[14] and Fort Lauderdale,[15] and Europe from Harwich[16] and throughout the Mediterranean.[17]

On 3 June 2016, while docking in Ketchikan, Alaska, the ship crashed into the dock on her port side, causing a 10-to-15-foot scrape along her bow above the waterline and heavily damaged the dock.[18][19] Winds were reportedly gusting to 45 miles per hour from the ship's starboard side at the time of the accident, which accelerated the ship's approach. There were no reported injuries or pollution caused by the incident.[18][19] In addition to the damage to the ship, the collision caused $2–3 million in damage to the dock.[20] The ship was quickly repaired and resumed sailing following the collision.[21]

In summer 2020, Celebrity Infinity was scheduled to sail in the Mediterranean,[22] but the COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the season.[23] Following the cruise line's pause in operations, she is scheduled to resume sailing from Port Everglades on 25 June 2022, sailing weekly Caribbean voyages.[24] Beginning in summer 2023, the ship will be stationed year-round in the Mediterranean, making it the first time Celebrity will have a year-round operation in the region.[25]

COVID-19 pandemic
Further information: COVID-19 pandemic on cruise ships

On 23 March 2020, two crew members reportedly tested positive for the coronavirus, raising concerns among crew members of their safety while on board.[26][27] On 14 April 2020, nearly two weeks after a crew member died aboard the ship, a class action lawsuit was filed on behalf of over a thousand Celebrity employees over the company's allegedly inadequate response measures to outbreaks aboard its ships.[28]

Design and specifications

Along with her sister ships, Infinity is equipped with a turbo-electric COGAS power plant.[3] The COGAS plant consists of gas and steam turbines, with the latter being driven by steam generated using the heat from the exhaust of the gas turbines.[3] In this way, some of the otherwise lost energy is reclaimed and the specific fuel consumption of the plant is decreased.[3] Propulsion is provided by two "Mermaid" azimuth pod-propulsion units from Kamewa and Cegelec (now Alstom).[3] The ship also has three bow thrusters.[3]

Recurring pod-propulsion issues

Infinity and her sister ships have experienced problems with the pod-propulsion system. Months following her delivery, Celebrity reported Infinity began experiencing problems with a faulty ball bearing in the ship's starboard propulsion unit; it necessitated an emergency dry dock repair in June 2001 in Victoria, British Columbia, which resulted in cancelled sailings.[29][30] In April 2002, more dry dock repairs were made to the ship's propulsion pods, as they were reportedly showing premature wear, preventing her from cruising at maximum speed.[31] In a third dry dock in February 2003, Celebrity had all ball-bearing units on Infinity replaced, forcing the cancellation of two sailings.[32] A fourth dry dock took place in April 2004 to replace a thrust-bearing propulsion unit.[33][34] A fifth dry dock was held in March 2005 to replace the ship's starboard thrust bearing unit.[35] A sixth dry dock was performed in September 2006 to repair one of the ship's propulsion pods.[36]

Numerous unsuccessful repairs led Royal Caribbean to file a lawsuit against Rolls-Royce and Alstom in August 2003 for $300 million to recover lost revenue and the costs associated with the faulty pods on all four Millennium-class ships.[34][37][38] Royal Caribbean settled the lawsuit in January 2010.[39]

References
  1. "Giant Royal Caribbean Ship Order". Cruise Industry News. 3 February 1998.
  2. Asklander, Micke. "GTS Infinity (2001)". Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish). Retrieved 6 February 2012.
  3. Cudahy, Brian J. (2001). The Cruise Ship Phenomenon in North America. Centreville, Maryland: Cornell Maritime Press. pp. 150–228. ISBN 0-87033-529-4.
  4. "Infinity (9189421)". Miramar Ship Index. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
  5. "Celebrity Cruises Welcomes New Infinity". Marine Link. 30 April 2001.
  6. "Celebrity Infinity Fact Sheet" (PDF). Celebrity Cruises.
  7. "Celebrity Cruises Welcomes New Infinity". Marine Link. Maritime Activity Reports, Inc. 26 February 2001.
  8. "Celebrity Cruises delays Infinity launch". Travel Weekly. 11 October 2000.
  9. "Celebrity Cruises selects Infinity name". Travel Weekly. 1 March 2000.
  10. "Travel Weekly's Hawaii E-Letter: June 25, 2001". Travel Weekly. 25 June 2001.
  11. "From yachts to megas: Lines sailing in 2001". Travel Weekly. 29 November 2000.
  12. "Travel Weekly's Cruise E-Letter: March 25, 2003". Travel Weekly. 24 March 2003.
  13. "Celebrity Infinity to sail to Antarctica in 2010". Travel Weekly. 13 May 2008.
  14. "Celebrity to blanket Caribbean for peak season". Travel Weekly. 27 August 2001.
  15. "Celebrity swaps ships on South America, Caribbean itineraries". Travel Weekly. 1 September 2005.
  16. Tunney, Donna (23 February 2012). "Celebrity Infinity headed for England in 2013". Travel Weekly.
  17. "Celebrity Announces 2019 Europe Programs". Cruise Industry News. 17 October 2017.
  18. Shedlock, Jerzy (3 June 2016). "Video: Cruise ship crashes into Ketchikan dock". Alaska Dispatch News. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
  19. Stieghorst, Tom (6 June 2016). "Coast Guard investigating Celebrity Infinity dock collision in Ketchikan". Travel Weekly.
  20. Walker, Jim (4 June 2016). "Celebrity Infinity Crashes Into Ketchikan Dock". Cruise Law News. Retrieved 4 June 2016.
  21. Kalosh, Anne (4 June 2016). "Celebrity Infinity repaired and sailing after striking Ketchikan pier". Seatrade Cruise News.
  22. "Celebrity's 2020 Europe has Apex, Edge, new Lisbon cruises, Turkey return". Seatrade Cruise News. 28 November 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  23. Simms, Richard (23 June 2020). "Royal Caribbean Cancels Cruises Through September 15". Cruise Radio.
  24. "Celebrity Infinity to Sail in Caribbean for Summer 2022". Cruise Industry News. 29 January 2022. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  25. Zelinski, Andrea (4 March 2022). "Celebrity Cruises to sail year-round in the Mediterranean". Travel Weekly. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  26. "Celebrity Infinity Crew Members Tests Positive for COVID-19 | Crew Center". crew-center.com.
  27. Kosik, Alison. "Crew member aboard Celebrity Infinity raises concerns over whether cruise ship unnecessarily put crew at risk". CNN.
  28. Maile, Amanda; Kaji, Mina (14 April 2020). "Employees sue Celebrity Cruises over COVID-19 response". ABC News. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
  29. "Celebrity dry-docks 2 ships due to technical problems". Travel Weekly. 7 June 2001.
  30. "Victoria Shipyard Racks Up Cruise Ship Jobs". Marine Link. 8 May 2002.
  31. "Celebrity cancels Summit, Infinity sailings". Travel Weekly. 20 March 2002.
  32. "Celebrity cancels two Infinity sailings". Travel Weekly. 29 January 2003.
  33. Tobin, Rebecca (12 March 2004). "Pod prob forces Celebrity to swap itineraries". Travel Weekly.
  34. Tobin, Rebecca (24 March 2004). "Pod issues force Celebrity to move Infinity to drydock". Travel Weekly.
  35. "Celebrity pulls Infinity for propulsion fix". Travel Weekly. 23 March 2005.
  36. "Celebrity's Infinity to miss Alaska voyage for propulsion fix". Travel Weekly. 10 August 2006.
  37. "Celebrity Files $300M Suit Against Rolls Royce, Alstom Power Conversion". MarineLink. 7 August 2003.
  38. Stieghorst, Tom (30 August 2013). "Celebrity recounts decisions after Millennium breakdown". Travel Weekly.
  39. Jainchill, Johanna (11 January 2010). "Royal Caribbean and Rolls-Royce reach settlement". Travel Weekly.
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