Power failures on QM2

[navylark]

We were on the QM2 world voyage leg from Capetown to Fremantle this Jan / Feb. I forget the actual day but there was a complete power failure for about an hour one morning and I was told there was a further one during the night prior to Fremantle - but am not sure about this.

However as a retired marine engineer I am a member of the Institute of Marine Engineers - ( the IMarEST ). In the Institute magazine of February 2012 there is an extensive article quoting from an investigation by UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch into earlier power failures on QM2. The article is headed 'RWS Queen Mary 2 - Catastrophic Capacitor Failure'. The article goes into great detail and does not make comfortable reading. I quote two extracts from the article.

 

"The vessel has a history of HF capacitor failures at an average rate of one per year."

 

"The vessel's alarm logs were found to contain early warnings about the impending failure aprox 36min before the accident. However as the vessel's alarm systems regularly logged more than one alarm every minute, this information was not seen and could not be acted up on"

 

I found the article quite worrying - particularly the reference to an alarm every minute! I wonder if other passengers have experienced similar power failures at sea on the QM2?

 

Navylark

[capnpugwash]

We were on the QM2 world voyage leg from Capetown to Fremantle this Jan / Feb. I forget the actual day but there was a complete power failure for about an hour one morning and I was told there was a further one during the night prior to Fremantle - but am not sure about this.

However as a retired marine engineer I am a member of the Institute of Marine Engineers - ( the IMarEST ). In the Institute magazine of February 2012 there is an extensive article quoting from an investigation by UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch into earlier power failures on QM2. The article is headed 'RWS Queen Mary 2 - Catastrophic Capacitor Failure'. The article goes into great detail and does not make comfortable reading. I quote two extracts from the article.

 

"The vessel has a history of HF capacitor failures at an average rate of one per year."

 

"The vessel's alarm logs were found to contain early warnings about the impending failure aprox 36min before the accident. However as the vessel's alarm systems regularly logged more than one alarm every minute, this information was not seen and could not be acted up on"

 

I found the article quite worrying - particularly the reference to an alarm every minute! I wonder if other passengers have experienced similar power failures at sea on the QM2?

 

Navylark

 

See http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1568331 and http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1502187 and http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1537376

[Chunky2219]

I trust and hope that the OP doesn't get accused of having an agenda for mentioning this because he's only got 23 posts to his name. The last chap to raise this issue (a mere handful of posts under his belt) got all manner of brickbats thrown at him - wholly unwarranted, opinionated and ill informed. You can't see the full extent of it because most of the main culprit's accusations were deleted from the thread.

 

At least Navylark can claim to have the qualifications to speak from a position of experience or expertise.

 

For information, there is a link somewhere on the forum to the full, official investgation of a previous failure which if I remember correctly was near Barcelona when QM2 was still under the British flag. It makes interesting reading for anyone who has any experience of high power electrical drives such as marine engineers or those from heavy manufacturing industry. Do a search if you want to find it.

.

.

[BlueRiband]

The MAIB report is linked here:

http://www.maib.gov.uk/publications/investigation_reports/2011/qm2.cfm

 

I'd be interested in knowing if the QM2 is particularly vulnerable to these power problems or if it is endemic to cruise ships in general. If the first case is true, sail on another line. If the second is true, buy an airline ticket.

 

Really, if somebody is "worried" and "troubled" why continue to go back to Cunard for yet more worry and trouble? Spend your money elsewhere unless and until they resolve their safety and engineering deficiencies. This isn't hard people!

[Cruachan]

I'd be interested in knowing if the QM2 is particularly vulnerable to these power problems or if it is endemic to cruise ships in general.

 

Well, I don't know about the power failures, but it appears that fires aren't exclusive to QM2:

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/seychelles/9108902/Costa-Concordias-sister-ship-adrift-off-Seychelles-after-fire.html

 

J

[Ray66]

Well, I don't know about the power failures, but it appears that fires aren't exclusive to QM2:

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/seychelles/9108902/Costa-Concordias-sister-ship-adrift-off-Seychelles-after-fire.html

 

J

 

The ship is adrift and it sounds like it could be a few hours until the rescue boats reach it. Not good.

 

30 Brits on board and thankfully no-one injured.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-17183134

[Cruachan]

The ship is adrift and it sounds like it could be a few hours until the rescue boats reach it. Not good.

 

30 Brits on board and thankfully no-one injured.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-17183134

 

Good photograph of her on that item, Ray. It pretty clearly betrays her origins as a container ship. Quite a strange looking vessel all round.

 

J

[bazzaw]

And P&O only a few days ago cancelled Arcadia's port visit in March to Port Victoria in the Seychelles due to pirates in the area. Not a good place to be floating around :)

 

Barry

[BlueRiband]

According to SkyNews, a group of Italian Marines was airlifted on board due to the ship drifting in pirate territory.

 

This sounds like the Carnival Splendor fire..was an official report yet released on that situation? That ship was supposed to have redundancy in her power systems but it clearly didn't work as designed.

[Pushka]

It is a very unattractive vessel. Hope they are all ok, hopefully the Pirates vessels are slower than the rescuers.