MV FORTU

scrapped

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Ship on the beach after long career

The "Song of America" was the largest tourist cruise ship in the world when it was delivered in November 1982 and emblem of Royal Caribbean International, which became an icon of the American industry based in Miami on trips through the Caribbean. The construction number 431 from the Wärtsilä shipyard, Helsinki, was launched on Nov 26, 1981 and on Nov 11, 1982 she was delivered. After crossing the Atlantic, on Dec 5, she began her first voyage from the cruise terminal in Miami In May 1999, as Royal Caribbean expanded with ever larger ships, the ship “Song of America” was sold to Sun Cruises, a subsidiary of Airtours, and renamed “Sunbird”. During this period, it frequently came to the Canary Islands with British tourists. In July 2004, it was resold to Fulmar Shipping Co., a Louis Cruise Line company, and in May 2005 it was chartered to Thomson Cruises, renamed “Thomson Destiny”, being registered in Cyprus and focused on British tourism, with great success in terms of occupancy during its winter campaigns in the Canary Islands. In May 2012 it was registered under the name of the company Destiny Trading Opco Llc, being flagged in Malta and renamed “Louis Olympia” and “Celestyal Olympia” in Nov 2014, when the Louis Cruise Lines rebranded itself, making short trips around the Greek islands. Then came the coronavirus health and financial crisis, and the ship remained moored from March 2020 until June 2021, when it resumed its activity. At the end of 2023, she was moored in the port of Lavrion when Celestyal Cruises announced the acquisition of the “Celestyal Discovery”, formerly “AIDAlaura”, for replacement from March 2024. In January, the “Celestyal Olympia”, flagged in Liberia, was renamed “Bella Fortuna” and moored in Cesme, and in May she traveled to Ras Al Kahimah (UAE) until it was finally decided to scrap her. Report with photos: https://www.puentedemando.com/desguace-del-iconico-song-of-america-el-crucero-de-turismo-mayor-del-mundo-en-1982/

Beached

Beached at Alang 02.02.25 https://www.facebook.com/reel/1600094577314628

arrived Alang Anchorage

arrived Alang Anchorage 01.02.25