Oceanic (unfinished ship)
A digital drawing of RMMV Oceanic by Anton Logvynenko.
| |
History | |
---|---|
United Kingdom | |
Name | Oceanic |
Owner | White Star Line (intended) |
Operator | White Star Line (intended) |
Ordered | 18 June 1928 |
Builder | Harland and Wolff, Belfast (keel laid only) |
Yard number | 844 |
Laid down | 28 June 1928 |
Fate | Construction halted on 23 July 1929; cancelled and dismantled on slipway, 1930 |
General characteristics | |
Tonnage | 70,000 - 85,000 GRT (estimated) |
Length | 1,050 ft (320.0 m) (intended) |
Beam | 120 ft (36.6 m) (estimated) |
Draught | 38 ft (11.6 m) (intended) |
Decks | 12 (intended) |
Installed power | Diesel-electric drive; 44 six-cylinder, exhaust turbo-charged, four-stroke, single-acting diesel generators; 275,000 IHP (200,000 SHP) |
Propulsion | Quadruple propellers |
Speed | 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph) (service speed); 32.5 knots (60.2 km/h; 37.4 mph) (max. speed) |
Oceanic was the planned name of an unfinished
After several years of study, the construction began in June 1928 in the Harland & Wolff shipyards in Belfast. However, the work was carried out at a slow pace and ceased in June 1929, probably because further studies relating to the propulsion were needed. The Great Depression which began the same year and the financial affair which sent Lord Kylsant to prison in 1931 put a definitive end to the construction, for which the government refused to advance funds.
Within the White Star Line fleet, the planned Oceanic was replaced by two smaller ships, MV Britannic and MV Georgic.
Birth of the project
By the early 1910s, the
It was in August 1926 that a press release about a project from the company appeared for the first time, indicating the imminent construction of a 25-knot ship to replace Homeric. This ship must then, according to the press releases, be of a profile close to that of the Olympic-class vessels.
On 14 April 1927, construction of a fleetmate
Economic crisis and cancellation
However, construction was proceeding at a very slow pace, to such an extent that a year later, the keel was still not completed.
Further work on Oceanic was postponed after which the keel was coated in preservative oil in hopes construction would resume but the project was later cancelled due to the Great Depression and the collapse of the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company, owners of the White Star Line, as a result of the financial problems of Sir Owen Philips, Lord Kylsant.[12] The Royal Mail Case, as it was known, led to the imprisonment of Kylsant, and to substantial changes in accounting and auditing practice.[13] Loans backed by the governments of England and Northern Ireland intended for the construction of Oceanic were diverted to complete the construction of Britannic, as well as to start construction of a sister ship to Britannic named Georgic. These two liners were partially built with steel plates ordered for Oceanic, whose partially built hull was subsequently dismantled and reused on Britannic and Georgic after the aforementioned diversion of funds.[14][15]
Legacy
In total, of the estimated cost of £3.5 million, £150,000 was spent on Oceanic's design and start of construction.
However, these two liners could not replace large ships like Majestic and Olympic. The construction of a large liner therefore remained on the agenda. The Cunard Line also had to stop the construction of its own large liner because of the economic crisis.
Appearance-wise, the planned Oceanic had certain features that make it akin to the liner SS Normandie, including the three packed funnels that contrasted with the tall pipes of older ships. Designed shortly after Oceanic, Normandie was the first to exceed the symbolic barrier of 300 meters in length and 30 knots in speed that the White Star Line was aiming for.[22]
References
- ^ Chirnside 2004, p. 308
- ^ Chirnside 2004, p. 110
- ^ Homeric of 1914
- ^ The texts of the time spoke of a "family resemblance". However, the project was still very vague and was totally modified when the proportions of the ship were increased in the years that followed.
- ^ Williams & de Kerbrech 1982, p. 90
- ^ Chirnside 2004, p. 114.
- ^ a b "Britannic". Harland and Wolff. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
- ^ Williams & de Kerbrech 1982, pp. 90–91
- ^ White Star's Proposed MV Oceanic III
- ^ a b Williams & de Kerbrech 1982, p. 91
- ^ Williams & de Kerbrech 1982, p. 89
- ^ Chirnside 2004, p. 118
- ^ An Era Ends: The Final Demise of the White Star Line
- ^ Williams & de Kerbrech 1982, p. 92
- ^ a b c Eaton & Haas 1989, p. 233
- ^ Williams & de Kerbrech 1982, p. 94
- ^ Chirnside 2004, p. 122
- ISBN 9781349023905.
- ^ "Georgic - Chris' Cunard Page". Retrieved 11 December 2014.
- ^ "The Cunard White Star Liners 'Britannic ' and 'Georgic'". liverpoolships.org. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
- ^ Morrow, Edward A (13 November 1960). "Cruise to Ireland will make the Britannic only a memory". The New York Times. p. 368. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
- ^ Williams & de Kerbrech 1982, p. 80.
Bibliography
- Chirnside, Mark (2004). The Olympic-Class Ships. Stroud: ISBN 978-0-7524-2868-0.
- Eaton, John; Haas, Charles (1989). Falling Star, Misadventures of White Star Line Ships. Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1-85260-084-5.
- Williams, David; de Kerbrech, Richard (1982). Damned by Destiny. Brighton: Teredo books. OCLC 10284842.