Jump to content

When will the Caribbean Princess Propulsion issues be fixed


blue cow dog
 Share

Recommended Posts

What are the propulsion issues and how does that affect cruises using that ship??

 

Its been affected for more than a year.

They have changed port times to accommodate the reduced speeds.

During an extensive dry dock next year they have to cut a hole in the side of the ship to get the malfunctioning machinery out in order to replace it.

Port side propulsion is reduced and you can see the lack of prop wash on that side of the wake.

Edited by Colo Cruiser
Link to comment
Share on other sites

What are the propulsion issues and how does that affect cruises using that ship??

 

There have been reports that it is a problem that prevents one of the propeller shafts from going the maximum speed. Therefore the other propeller shaft must be run slower so they both match. The result is that instead of cruising at 21 knots,(24mph) the ship can only go 19 knots, (22mph).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was booked on the Caribbean Princess last June and cancelled my booking and went on the Oasis of the Seas because of the problems on the CP. They changed the original ports we wanted to visit and moved all the ports closer together. They were definitely overpriced for what they were offering with all the problems CP is having.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Its been affected for more than a year.

They have changed port times to accommodate the reduced speeds.

During an extensive dry dock next year they have to cut a hole in the side of the ship to get the malfunctioning machinery out in order to replace it.

Port side propulsion is reduced and you can see the lack of prop wash on that side of the wake.

 

Pretty much what I was told during our Ultimate Ship Tour, it will be a major undertaking to get it done. Sounded like they have teams set up for 24/7 work. They also said that the parts & replacement equipment have been or will be shipped in the very near future. The reps for whomever is supplying the materials/parts/equipment have been onboard to see what is needed and to confirm that what they have is the right stuff. There can be no "OOPS"

 

I noted the difference in the prop wash

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We were on the CB on a west bound TA in the fall of 2016 and the CB was having problems then. The ship had taken on engine experts to assess the problem and fix it before we left for NA without success. Last stop was three ports in Iceland. Each screw has a electrical generator to produce the electrical power for the electric motors that drive the screws. One of the electrical generators is not able to run at full speed and hence produce enough electrical power to run the electrical motor driving one of the screws. Replacing parts of the generator requires a dry dock since a hole as noted has to be cut into the side of the ship to allow extensive repairs. Hopefully this will cure the problem with the CB's propulsion. Happy to hear they are bringing aboard experts to assess the situation before the ship reaches dry dock.

 

I alway got a chuckle when people talk about railroad diesel locomotives. The locomotive itself is driven by electrical motors and the car attached behind is the generator running on diesel fuel generating the electrical power to run the engine. Electrical motors are quite powerful more so than a gasoline/diesel engine.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We were on the CB on a west bound TA in the fall of 2016 and the CB was having problems then. The ship had taken on engine experts to assess the problem and fix it before we left for NA without success. Last stop was three ports in Iceland. Each screw has a electrical generator to produce the electrical power for the electric motors that drive the screws. One of the electrical generators is not able to run at full speed and hence produce enough electrical power to run the electrical motor driving one of the screws. Replacing parts of the generator requires a dry dock since a hole as noted has to be cut into the side of the ship to allow extensive repairs. Hopefully this will cure the problem with the CB's propulsion. Happy to hear they are bringing aboard experts to assess the situation before the ship reaches dry dock.

 

I alway got a chuckle when people talk about railroad diesel locomotives. The locomotive itself is driven by electrical motors and the car attached behind is the generator running on diesel fuel generating the electrical power to run the engine. Electrical motors are quite powerful more so than a gasoline/diesel engine.

 

Well, a let me correct some of the details here. Each propeller does not have a generator to drive the motor that turns the propeller. The CB has six diesel generators, all of which can be used for any purpose, hotel load, or port or starboard propulsion, since they all connect to a common distribution system, from which the propulsion motors draw power. It is not a diesel generator that is currently the problem, but the electrical motor on one propulsion shaft that is the problem. The electrical motor has two windings, each winding providing half the power of the propeller, and each winding if fed from a different section of the common electrical distribution network so that damage to one section will not completely take out that propulsion motor. It is the propulsion motor, not a generator, that needs to be repaired.

 

Now, as for diesel locomotives. The generator is not in the car attached behind the locomotive. The electrical motors that drive the wheels are actually located in the wheel trucks, between the wheels, and there is one motor for each set of wheels on the locomotive. The vast majority of the locomotive is taken up by the diesel engine and its attached generator, and the power distribution and conditioning equipment that takes the AC voltage generated by the generator and converts it to DC power used by the motors. The car behind the locomotive is another identical locomotive, with a diesel engine, generator, and traction motors, just like the first one.

 

It is not so much that electrical motors are more powerful than diesel engines, but that they are more compact, so can be used in places where a diesel engine wouldn't fit, like in an azipod or between the wheels of a locomotive.

  • Thanks 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

We were on the CB on a west bound TA in the fall of 2016 and the CB was having problems then. The ship had taken on engine experts to assess the problem and fix it before we left for NA without success. Last stop was three ports in Iceland. Each screw has a electrical generator to produce the electrical power for the electric motors that drive the screws. One of the electrical generators is not able to run at full speed and hence produce enough electrical power to run the electrical motor driving one of the screws. Replacing parts of the generator requires a dry dock since a hole as noted has to be cut into the side of the ship to allow extensive repairs. Hopefully this will cure the problem with the CB's propulsion. Happy to hear they are bringing aboard experts to assess the situation before the ship reaches dry dock.

 

I alway got a chuckle when people talk about railroad diesel locomotives. The locomotive itself is driven by electrical motors and the car attached behind is the generator running on diesel fuel generating the electrical power to run the engine. Electrical motors are quite powerful more so than a gasoline/diesel engine.

 

Actually a diesel locomotive does provide power to the wheels through electric motors as you say. The electricity is provided by a very large diesel engine which runs the generator. This setup eliminates the need for complex gearing by the use of electric traction motors instead. I believe the diesel engine takes up at least half the locomotive.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Its been affected for more than a year.

They have changed port times to accommodate the reduced speeds.

During an extensive dry dock next year they have to cut a hole in the side of the ship to get the malfunctioning machinery out in order to replace it.

Port side propulsion is reduced and you can see the lack of prop wash on that side of the wake.

I hope they have a webcam shooting this. I would find this interesting to watch them taking out and replacing the equipment as well as watching them put the opening in the ship.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hope they have a webcam shooting this. I would find this interesting to watch them taking out and replacing the equipment as well as watching them put the opening in the ship.

 

Shipyards don't typically have cameras. This is not a real uncommon repair, so the company nor the shipyard would likely have a reason to make a video. However, there is the one from Oasis of the Seas, where they cut the bottom out of the ship and replaced an engine:

 

https://gcaptain.com/video-oasis-seas-dry-docking/

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hope they have a webcam shooting this. I would find this interesting to watch them taking out and replacing the equipment as well as watching them put the opening in the ship.

 

Yeah hopefully they will.....

I like the ones where they cut the ship in half and float in the extension. :o

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hope they have a webcam shooting this. I would find this interesting to watch them taking out and replacing the equipment as well as watching them put the opening in the ship.

I'd almost bet on it just like the DVD they sold to show the removal of Skywalkers on the Grand.

If there's a dollar to be made Princess will find a way.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd almost bet on it just like the DVD they sold to show the removal of Skywalkers on the Grand.

If there's a dollar to be made Princess will find a way.

 

You can find this on You Tube, just search Removal of Skywalkers from the Grand Princess. Pretty cool.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You can find this on You Tube, just search Removal of Skywalkers from the Grand Princess. Pretty cool.

I did see that.

They also included it in a DVD if you purchased the one of the ships cruise events when on board.

If I recall correctly they also showed it in the Princess theater at one time just after the removal was done.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I saw the removal of skywalkers from the Grand while on a Princess ship. Princess had made the video and talked about several issues to include the removal. The video said that skywalkers had to be removed due to cracks in the infrastructure holding the lounge over the aft. Later grand class ships had their superstructure made out of composite materials unlike the steel used on Grand.

 

Hopefully Princess will make a video of the effort to fix the CB's propulsion problems. I would be interested in watching it. They sometimes show videos of ships in dry dock and add commentary about it. One video I saw showed them installing a stateroom addition on a ship which entailed cutting a hole in the side of the ship and sliding it in. It might have been the Island but I don't remember which ship that was being modified.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On our 2016 west bound TA they had to adjust port times in our North American ports. On our 2018 cruise in the Caribbean they again had to adjust port times and dropped the DR visit due to inability to reach maximum speed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The people on the CB for the Oct 28th cruise don't reach St Thomas until 1:30 PM in the afternoon ! :eek:

That would be unheard of for any other Princess ship.

I'm surprised they could sell that cruise seeing that many people really count on St Thomas as a major port to visit.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We got a break on the 9-1 sailing, had to skip the Cays and went straight to St Thomas, arrived at around 7:30am and left at 10pm. Shops closed at 6pm, but the few bars in Havensight had some good business going. Senor Frog's was still closed, but rumors are it may reopen during the winter season.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share

  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...