quarta-feira, 28 de setembro de 2016

A Pewter ORIANA

As with many ships past and present ORIANA has often been the subject of the model maker from the enthusiast making small scale model to add to their collection or a larger waterborne model to companies making model for retail such as the ceramic models currently sold on board.
One such example of a production run model is one from a model company called Skytrex.
Made in pewter the model is a 1:250 scale replica of ORIANA with some attempt at adding detail such as deck chairs on the stern terraces as can be see in the images below.


It is also of note that the model's interpretation of some of ORIANA's features are a little inaccurate including the radomes above the Crow's Nest being out of proportion with the rest of the model.

quinta-feira, 8 de setembro de 2016

One fleet many changes

Since April 1995 the P&O fleet has seen one constant in the form of ORIANA 'The First Super Liner Built For Britain' joining an ageing fleet of the venerable CANBERRA and VICTORIA.
Two years later in September 1997 CANBERRA made her emotional farewell after 36 years in service to be replaced by ARCADIA (former STAR PRINCESS) in 1998.
ORIANA & CANBERRA together in Funchal, Madeira 

ORIANA docked with ARCADIA (III) in Funchal,Madeira, Copyright: Nuno Jesus
With the dawn of the 21st Century ORIANA  was joined by perhaps the only ship which is comparable to her from the same yard of Meyer Werft AURORA joined the fleet in May 2000.
ORIANA docked with AURORA in Southampton, Copyright: Vitor Francisco
More changes came in 2002 when VICTORIA Bid farwell and Princess's SEA PRINCESS and OCEAN PRINCESS were renamed ADONIA and OCEANA respectively.
The following year ARCADIA made her final cruise with P&O becoming the lead ship of the then just founded Ocean Village brand, it was also in 2003 that P&O Princess PLC merged with Carnival Corp and in 2005 the first non P&O group designed new build joined the fleet as the fourth ARCADIA and the former ROYAL PRINCESS joining the fleet as ARTEMIS who served until 2011.
ORIANA and ARCADIA in Funchal, Madeira 21st December 2009 Copyright: João Abreu
Since 2008 the fleet has continued to expand with the Crown class VENTURA followed two years later in April 2010 with AZURA and a second ADONIA a former R class ship joining in 2011 to replace ARTEMIS.
ORIANA with AURORA,ARCADIA and VENTURA during P&O's 175th anniversary celebrations, July 2012
Copyright: Simon Jones
Last year reaching her 20th year in service ORIANA received the largest of her fleetmates BRITANNIA based off of the Princess's Royal Class.
Earlier this week P&O annouced that a new arrival to debut in 2020 one of the first in a new breed of LNG powered 'green' ships of 180,000 tons