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Maritime Journal Online writes of the QE2 entering port early Tuesday morning:

On its way into its home port at Southampton the ship ran hard aground on a sandbank at Calshot at the top of the Southampton Water approach. Most passengers were asleep at the time and no one was injured. Five tugs, one from Solent Tugs and four from Svitzer, which were all waiting for the QE2’s arrival at Southampton, came rushing to the rescue.

The QE2 was quickly freed by the tugs on the rising tide although, once started on its backwards path, it had a narrow miss with the Hill Head side of the approach. The liner made it safely into Southampton harbour just 25 minutes later than scheduled to be greeted by the Duke of Edinburgh, who led the farewell ceremonies. As divers checked the hull to see if any damage had been sustained, a Tiger Moth dropped a million poppies on the ship to mark the 90th anniversary of the World War 1 Armistice. Passengers who had paid up to £28,000 to be on QE2’s final voyage watched as a single RAF Harrier jet hovered over the vessel and dipped its nose in tribute. Two surveyors from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency fully inspected the ship and, together with the diver’s evidence, concluded it was not damaged and thus safe to undertake its final voyage. [Continue Reading →]

(Image Courtesy of New York Times)

After 40 year’s in service, the famed Q.E. 2 arrived at Pier 90 early this morning for its 710th and final visit to New York.  The New York Times tells us of her arrival:

With shrill blasts from its three Tyfon whistles and a 39-foot-long red paying-off pennant streaming from the mast — a foot for each year at sea — that traditionally marks the end of a ship’s commission, the Queen Elizabeth 2 (only the actual monarchs warrant Roman numerals, not the ships named for royalty) split the predawn darkness to begin a day of festivities and souvenir photos by the Statue of Liberty and berthed at Pier 90 at West 50th Street on the Hudson River, tying up around 6 a.m.

As she entered the harbor, she was trailed by the grander Queen Mary 2. The two queens paraded to the Statue of Liberty before the Queen Mary 2 split off to return to its dockage at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal.

The Q.E. 2, which was sold last year for eventual use as a floating hotel in Dubai, will be retired from active service later this year following her final voyage from her home in Southhampton, England to Dubai.  The Queen Elizabeth 2, along with its two sister ships Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria, is operated by the British shipping company Cunard Lines, one of the oldest transatlantic shipping companies in the world.

Captain Paul Wright, a Cornishman, is a kind of latter day Henry VIII - a master and commander who moves from one queen to the next in quick succession.

He is the first person to command all three Queens in the Cunard fleet - Queen Elizabeth 2, Queen Mary 2 and their “younger sister” Queen Victoria.

His first appointment with Cunard was to Cunard Countess, since when he has served on Cunard Princess, Sagafjord and Cunard Dynasty. In 1999 Captain Wright was promoted to Captain of Cunard’s flagship Queen Elizabeth 2 where he served until construction of the largest liner ever built, Queen Mary 2. He oversaw construction of the ship in St. Nazaire prior to commission, and in 2004 was appointed Master of Queen Mary 2, alternating with the recently retired Commodore Ron Warwick.

Asked what his most memorable moments at sea have been, Captain Wright cites two: when he brought QE2 into New York for the first time after the 11 September attack on the World Trade Center in 2001, and bringing Queen Mary 2 into Hamburg on her maiden call when half a million people turned out to greet the ship.

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This post was written by Richard Rodriguez, Rescue Tug Captain, and US Coast Guard approved instructor for License Training. You can read more of his articles at the BitterEnd of the net.