Off Staten Island, the brand-new FLANDRE struggles to raise her starboard anchor.
The July, 1952 maiden voyage of FLANDRE was marred by a series of debilitating mechanical difficulties. The first sign of trouble occurred when her fuel line filters became clogged by impurities in the oil, causing the liner to become 'dead in the water' for four hours while her fuel filters were cleaned-out and her boilers restored to normal operation. This process had to be repeated later during the crossing, after which FLANDRE's captain elected to reduce speed for the remainder of the voyage. Upon arrival at the Quarantine Station at New York, the liner experienced a short circuit in her main electrical switchboard, causing a near-complete loss of power. Nearly three hours later she regained sufficient power to raise the port anchor. Three additional hours were required to raise the starboard anchor.
Unlike the maiden arrival of most ocean liners, which include a fireboat welcome while sailing under their own power, FLANDRE and her 634 passengers arrived in New York Harbor under tow by four Moran tugs. Initially blowing her whistle, when even that power was lost, the captain had to respond to the salute of harbor craft by sounding FLANDRE's emergency siren. Manhattan dock workers, who had been waiting in the July heat for hours, unsympathetically dubbed the new liner 'FLOUNDER'. New York's French Line officials were mortified.
FLANDRE's return voyage was delayed in order to allow time for engineers to repair her engines. Upon arrival back in France, the remainder of the new liner's 1952 sailings were cancelled, and she returned to her builders for repairs that took six months. FLANDRE did not return to service until 1953.
Off Staten Island, the brand-new FLANDRE struggles to raise her starboard anchor.
The July, 1952 maiden voyage of FLANDRE was marred by a series of debilitating mechanical difficulties. The first sign of trouble occurred when her fuel line filters became clogged by impurities in the oil, causing the liner to become 'dead in the water' for four hours while her fuel filters were cleaned-out and her boilers restored to normal operation. This process had to be repeated later during the crossing, after which FLANDRE's captain elected to reduce speed for the remainder of the voyage. Upon arrival at the Quarantine Station at New York, the liner experienced a short circuit in her main electrical switchboard, causing a near-complete loss of power. Nearly three hours later she regained sufficient power to raise the port anchor. Three additional hours were required to raise the starboard anchor.
Unlike the maiden arrival of most ocean liners, which include a fireboat welcome while sailing under their own power, FLANDRE and her 634 passengers arrived in New York Harbor under tow by four Moran tugs. Initially blowing her whistle, when even that power was lost, the captain had to respond to the salute of harbor craft by sounding FLANDRE's emergency siren. Manhattan dock workers, who had been waiting in the July heat for hours, unsympathetically dubbed the new liner 'FLOUNDER'. New York's French Line officials were mortified.
FLANDRE's return voyage was delayed in order to allow time for engineers to repair her engines. Upon arrival back in France, the remainder of the new liner's 1952 sailings were cancelled, and she returned to her builders for repairs that took six months. FLANDRE did not return to service until 1953.