Queen Mary 2

The Queen Mary 2 (“QM2”) is a Transatlantic liner British of the Cunard brought into service in 2004 to ensure the regular line Europe-America of North. It was with its construction largest Paquebot of the world.

The idea

In May 1998, the leaders of Carnival Cruises, the first company of world Cruising, require of the naval architect Stephen Payne to think of the design of a transatlantic giant, equipped with installations completely new and intended to replace, within the fleet of their Cunard subsidiary company, celebrates it Queen Elizabeth 2 . Very quickly, Stephen Payne, impassioned large liners of the years 1930, defines the general line of this ship of exception, quite simply the largest steamer of the world with its 345 meters length, 41 meters broad and 72 meters height (either the equivalent of 23 stages).

The architect withdraws the best aspects of last and translates them at the present: the break-blade of the front beach is inherited that, very elegant, of the Normandy . The frontage, it, is very inspired by that, in the shape of staircases, of the Queen Mary of origin. But the “steps” yielded the place to a soft slope. The Queen Mary was provided with open ailerons of footbridge: they are taken again but closed to make it possible to better face the bad weather in the Northern Atlantique. The Queen Mary 2 borrows from the Queen Elizabeth 2 its Timonerie and the general line of its chimney. However, new the cunarder is indeed a boat of XXIe century which Marie at the same time advantages of a boat of cruising and those of a liner.

Design

At the beginning, these two designs are opposed: a cruise ship is very open on outside and makes it possible its passengers to enjoy a unspoilable view on the sea. On the other hand, it is very badly armed to face the storm. A liner , on the other hand, is conceived to resist the attacks of the waves but it is, in fact, very closed. The challenge thus consists in making QM2 gravitational for cruisings. The passengers being very sensitive to the presence of Cabin S with balconies, Stephen Payne creates the very many ones. But, to prevent that the opening of some of them are not found under water in the event of bad weather, it takes care to place them rather high on board. Consequently, the public buildings of the Queen Mary 2 occupy of the bridge S unusually low on a steamer, in order to get a better stability with the ship - being given the size of the big rooms than one discovers on board - and to release sufficient space to arrange above three bridges with balconies outcries: the cabins which are arranged there of course have the sight on the sea but they are protected from it by large openings spared in the wall from the ship. This provision points out that adopted on the Rotterdam , pertaining to Holland America Line (HAL), another subsidiary company of Carnival.

The back of QM2 has a a little odd form: the round-off, drawn to point out the aspect of the traditional ships, stops with the Water line and overcomes a flattened form, pertaining to a modern ship. This mode of treatment, already used on the Eugenio C , is well adapted to the “pods liners”, QM2 being mû by four pods of each one 21 megawatts. Advantages: the engines and the line of trees not being more inside the liner, acquired space makes it possible to increase the number of cabins, therefore the Rentabilité with each voyage. Let us note that QM2 produced its energy (116 Mégawatt S is what to light a town of 200.000 inhabitants) thanks to two diesel engine and a Gas turbine, a solution which allows an effect “booster rocket”, therefore a sudden and sharp acceleration of the ship, where necessary. The speed, given for 29,35 node S, can in makes reach 30 nodes.

Construction

The question arose of knowing with which to entrust the realization of this giant ship. At the end of November 1999, Cunard puts various European building sites in Concurrence. Belonging to the group Alstom, the Building sites of the Atlantic, Saint-Nazaire, compete to gain this fabulous market, of almost 800 million dollars. A whole research department enters in action to work out a general plan of the very precise ship and to imagine the relevant technical solutions to allure Cunard. Mid-March 2000, Cunard and Alstom Marine get along: QM2 will be born where the Normandy and the France (become Norway ) were born. Three years of a keen work - including one whole devoted to the reflection of the engineers and the studies - will be necessary to concretize the largest steamer of the world, equipped with the most luxurious emménagements that one ever saw!

The November 15th 2003, whereas the ship is opened with the visit of the families of the personnel and the population of Saint-Nazaire, the collapse of a footbridge which connects the quay to the Queen Mary 2 in the course of armament in the great shape of the Building sites of the Atlantic with Saint-Nazaire made 16 dead and 29 wounded.

Delivered officially to its ship-owner by the Building sites of the Atlantic on December 22nd 2003, after successive and crowned trial runs success with broad of Belle-Ile, QM2 , officially baptized with its Majesty the queen Elisabeth II, begin its first great crossing the January 12th 2004 between its Home port of Southampton and Fort Lauderdale in Florida. It is ordered by the captain Ronald Warwick.

The function

Conceived to take again the mythical line of the North Atlantic, the Queen Mary 2 ensures this service from April in December, with nearly thirty rotations between Europe (from Southampton, sometimes also Le Havre or Cherbourg, or another European port) and North America (New York, sometimes Miami) voyage accomplished into five or six days. From January to April, the steamer carries out the round the world tour, generally is in west (it is possible to travel there only on one section, Japan-France, for example) Enfin, in addition to these voyages, cruisings are proposed on board the Queen Mary 2 .

Interior

As of the loading, the passengers are accommodated in the Great Lobby, a atrium of about fifteen panoramic meters height served by four Ascenseur S: guaranteed effect! Here all is with the disproportion of the project. In the Britannia restaurant, 1347 guests can be restored at the same time and attend the ballet of the Masters of hotel and waiters which inlassablement survey the 41 meters of width of this 9 height meters room, decorated of largest the Fresque ever realized on a steamer.

On board, one finds also a Planétarium in which 473 people can attend the spectacle of the reconstitution of the sky on a semi-spherical screen 13 meters in diameter and 8 meters depth. The magic is also with go in the theater Royal Court. Under the eyes of the 1094 spectators, the orchestra pit is retracted, the scene swivels and the steps, mobiles, appear or disappear, the whole bathed by the light of a battery of projectors of all the colors. The stability of the unit, in spite of the Swell, completely makes forget with the passengers who they are in fact right in the middle of the ocean. A Library of 8000 works, more the big room of Ball ever installed on board a ship, very many restaurants and even a center of Thalassothérapie complete to give an exceptional aspect to the substitute of the Queen Elizabeth 2 .

However, it still anything is not compared with the incredible luxury that one finds in Forward Suites, laid out under the footbridge and served by their own private elevator and in the five Duplex arranged on the back of the steamer. Two of these continuations offer each one 209 m ²! This immense space is still flexible: it is enough for that to make slide the separations! On QM2 , the most modest cabins the passengers reach 18 m ², which is quite higher than surfaces met on board other ships. On the whole, 2620 passengers can embark, been useful by 1254 team members, which confers on QM2 the largest ratio spaces/momentary in the world.

Interior installations and entertainment

1.310 cabins (including 955 with balcony, also of the duplex and the attics known as “penthouses”)
Five swimming pools
Eight Jacuzzi S
a score of Restaurant S, bars, clubs, rooms of relaxation and festival.
a Veterinary
a Theater “Royal Court” of a capacity of 1.094 places
a space “Illuminations” with a planetarium projecting of films in 3D
a wintergarden
a garden of summer
a casino
a Nightclub
a Bookstore
a library
a Cinema in the open air
a center of thalassotherapy (50 employees)
300 works of art of a value of 4,4 million Euro S
17 bridges for the passengers

The surface of the public buildings is of 26.800 m ²

See too

External bonds

an article of the newspaper '' Ouest France '' on the steamer
the site of the company '' Cunard ''
the site of the company '' Cunard ''
RMS Queen Mary 2

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