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Orion Suffers Spontaneous Catastrophic Engine Failure


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Current cruise limping back to port on back up engine, currently scheduled to arrive at least two days late. Friends are onboard, will update if I learn more.

 

 

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Any more information on Orion? I assume it happened in the Antarctic.

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Yes, it happened on the first day after they left the ice and started across the Drake on the 26th. That evening there was some sort of engine problem. Fortunately the Drake was quite smooth. They used backup engines to get back to Ushuaia, arriving two days late early am on the 29th. All were safe and NG/L assisted with rebooking onward travel. I believe they have cancelled several upcoming cruises pending repairs.

 

 

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I was onboard when this happened. It sounds a lot more dramatic than it was. :)

 

We were halfway across the Drake Passage when in the middle of the night we stopped. My husband got up and went up to the bridge. The engine basically blew up. We had to use the auxiliary engine which could only go like 2.5 knots in the wind we had. We were rockin' and rollin' because the stabilizers don't work when you're going so slow.

 

The crew was great. The captain made sure we knew we were safe. The passengers were all great. We were one day late getting into Ushiah. We had to take the zodiacs to get ashore (it was COLD and rainy! lol).

 

Lindblad will reimburse us for all costs associated with being one day late (plane changes, etc). They also reimbursed passengers who were supposed to be on the next cruise AND gave them a free trip. We met one couple in the airport who were supposed to be on that trip and they were THRILLED that they got a free trip...they already booked for next Dec AND are bringing their kids this time. lol

 

There was talk that the rest of the season will have to be canceled, but it all depends on what the insurance people find out about the engine. If they have to replace the entire engine it could be the entire season.

 

The expedition crew was on the plane to Santiago with us, so they got off quickly. The Philippino crew was off the ship the next day. I feel bad for them because they are losing the money they really need. But hopefully they can get the ship fixed and get them all back on board ASAP.

 

Does anyone have any questions? I'm happy to answer anything you want to know!

 

It was quite the adventure, but one thing we were told at the beginning of the trip was that we were on an ADVENTURE...so it was all a part of it. We were never in any danger and besides rolling in the waves, all was normal. :)

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Here is an EXTREME (from what I can tell) close up of when the engine died. You can see we were floating back and forth. :)

There is no scale listed, but when you look at the OVERALL journey, this is barely a blip.

But it LOOKS dramatic. lol

 

http://http://www.cruiselawnews.com/2016/12/articles/power-loss-1/lindblad-expeditions-national-geographic-orion-suffers-power-failure/

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That is something I haven't seen in years. It is known as beating to windward, and is used to travel upwind as it gives them better speed and less motion in high wind or low power situations. And that is everything I remember about learning to sail at summer camp 100 years ago. :)

 

 

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The crazy pattern of NG Orion

 

http://www.cruiselawnews.com/2016/12/articles/power-loss-1/lindblad-expeditions-national-geographic-orion-suffers-power-failure/

 

is simply how the ship drifts while anchored.

 

Any ship would do that sort of pattern while at anchor - if you are not sure, go to http://www.marinetraffic.com and navigate to a port near you, click on a ship that is at anchor and then click on "past track".

 

The crossing of the Drake passage 3-5 knots (~ 4-6 mph) for an extra day was unpleasant, but fortunately the engine failure didn't happen while we were deep into Antarctica, as the evacuation (or trip back) would have have taken at least a week.

Edited by eastsideguy75
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