MS Freedom of the Seas
Port Canaveral, Florida in 2016, after her 2015 refurbishment
| |
History | |
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Bahamas | |
Name | Freedom of the Seas |
Owner | Royal Caribbean Group[1] |
Operator | Royal Caribbean International |
Port of registry | Nassau, Bahamas |
Route | San Juan, Puerto Rico & Caribbean |
Ordered | September 18, 2003[1] |
Builder | Aker Yards Turku Shipyard, Finland |
Cost | US$800 million |
Yard number | 52 |
Laid down | November 9, 2004 |
Launched | August 19, 2005[1] |
Christened | May 12, 2006 |
Completed | April 24, 2006[1] |
Maiden voyage | 4 June 2006 (Caribbean) |
In service | 2006–present |
Identification |
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Status | In service |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Freedom-class cruise ship |
Tonnage | |
Length | 338.774 m (1,111.46 ft)[1] |
Beam | 38.60 m (126.64 ft) waterline 56.08 m (184 ft) extreme (bridge wings) |
Height | 63.70 m (209 ft) |
Draught | 9.026 m (29.61 ft)[1] |
Decks | 19 total decks, 15 passenger decks |
Installed power | 6 × Wärtsilä 12V46 (6 × 12,600 kW) |
Propulsion |
|
Speed | 21.6 knots (40.0 km/h; 24.9 mph)[2] |
Capacity |
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Crew | 1,360 |
MS Freedom of the Seas is a cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International. She is the namesake of Royal Caribbean's Freedom class, and can accommodate 3,634 passengers and 1,300 crew [3] on fifteen passenger decks. The vessel also has 4 crew decks below the waterline. Freedom of the Seas was the largest passenger ship ever built (by gross tonnage) from 2006 until construction of her sister ship, Liberty of the Seas in 2007.
Construction
Freedom of the Seas
Freedom of the Seas is 2.4 metres (7 ft 10 in) narrower than QM2 at the waterline, 6 metres (19 ft 8 in) shorter, has 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) less draft, is 8.3 metres (27 ft 3 in) less tall and 8 knots (15 km/h) slower. Freedom of the Seas however is the larger ship in terms of
The ship has four
Incidents
Fire
On July 22, 2015, a fire started in a mechanical area of the ship around 9:15 AM when the ship was en route from Cape Canaveral, Florida to Falmouth, Jamaica. All passengers were sent to their
Death of Chloe Wiegand
On July 7, 2019, 18-month-old Chloe Wiegand died after falling through an open window on the 11th deck while the ship was docked in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Her 51-year-old grandfather, Salvatore Anello, had placed her on a railing and lost his grip while holding her.
Facilities
The ship has an interior promenade 136 m (445 ft) long called the "Royal Promenade".[15]
The ship has three
Service history
The ship docked at
Freedom of the Seas arrived in
On 4 May 2009, Freedom of the Seas moved her home port from the
In winter 2016, Freedom of the Seas repositioned to Port Everglades, from where she undertook cruises in the Caribbean.[20] After homeporting in Barcelona in the spring and summer of 2017, Freedom of the Seas returned to Port Everglades. In May 2018, she commenced sailing Southern Caribbean sailings out of San Juan, Puerto Rico until April 2021.
Freedom of the Seas underwent a $116 million dry dock in early 2020.[21]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g "Freedom of the Seas (25177)". Vessel Register for DNV. DNV. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
- ^ a b "Freedom of the Seas". Royal Caribbean International. Retrieved 2011-02-20.
- ^ a b "Freedom of the Seas Fast Facts". Royal Caribbean Press Center. Royal Caribbean International. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
- ^ "Freedom of the Seas (25177)". Vessel Register for DNV. DNV. Retrieved 8 June 2018.
- ^ United States Coast Guard Maritime Information Exchange, Queen Mary 2 Archived 2013-05-23 at the Wayback Machine, Retrieved 2012-03-26
- ^ Queen Mary 2, inquiry for IMO 924106, Ships in Class (registration required). Lloyd's Register. Retrieved 19 July 2012.
- ^ "Freedom of the Seas". Ship Technology. 2011-06-15. Retrieved 2013-07-21.
- ^ "Wärtsilä 46F". wartsila.com.
- ^ Sampson, Hannah (July 22, 2015). "Cruise to continue after Freedom of the Seas fire in Jamaica". The Miami Herald. Retrieved May 8, 2019.
- ^ Baynes, Chris. "Young girl falls to death from cruise ship 'after being accidentally dropped by grandfather'". The Independent. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
- ^ "Grandfather charged in girl's cruise ship death says colorblindness may have been a factor". CBS News. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
- ^ "Cruise line: Grandpa leaned out window before girl's fall". AP NEWS. Associated Press. 17 January 2020. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
- ^ Scott Stump (2019-12-12). "Parents of toddler Chloe Wiegand speak out on suing Royal Caribbean". Today. Retrieved 2019-12-19.
- ^ Huges, Clyde. "Grandfather to plead guilty in death of girl who fell from cruise ship". UPI. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
- ^ Karen Rubin. "RCL'S DAZZLING FREEDOM OF THE SEAS: Biggest, Most Innovative Cruise Ship Afloat Offers Everything & More". Travel Writers Magazine. Archived from the original on November 10, 2009.
- ^ www.clarissaparish.com Archived 2017-12-08 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved January 2012
- ^ https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=1526 Calder
- ^ "Port Canaveral". portcanaveral.org. Archived from the original on 2008-04-12.
- ^ "Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship Completes Dry Dock, Features New Cabins and Restaurants". Cruise Critic. 26 May 2023.
- ^ "Royal Caribbean announces 2016-2017 Caribbean cruise ship deployments". Cruise Critic. 5 March 2015. Retrieved 24 November 2016.
- ^ "ISLAND HOPPING MEETS CHART-TOPPING THRILLS ON AMPLIFIED FREEDOM OF THE SEAS". www.royalcaribbeanpresscenter.com. Retrieved 2019-08-23.