SS Iberia (1954)
Encyclopedia
SS Iberia was a Himalaya
-class ocean liner
for the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company
(P&O) built in 1952. Along with her sister ships Himalaya, Arcadia
and Chusan
, Iberia mainly provided passenger service between the United Kingdom
and Australasia
.
Iberia was constructed in two years by British shipyard Harland and Wolff
and originally provided service between London and Sydney via the Suez Canal
, as well as shorter trips in the Mediterranean Sea
. Later, Iberia went on to carry passengers across the Pacific Ocean
, as far as San Francisco
. Iberia eventually ran into numerous problems, including collisions with other ships, frequent machinery breakdowns, and fuel leaks. For this reason, Iberia was taken out of service in 1972, a full year before her sister ships were decommissioned; all of them were scrapped at a breaker in southern Taiwan
.
, several passenger ships of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company had been sunk carrying troops for the Allies
. After the war, four ships were commissioned by P&O to provide replacements for the lost ships. Of these, Iberia was the last to be constructed, ordered in late 1951, a few months after Arcadia. Although of the same class, Iberia and Arcadia were more similar to each other than to the earlier Chusan and Himalaya. Iberia was laid down in Harland and Wolff
shipyards in Belfast
, Northern Ireland
on February 8, 1952. Her name was derived from an earlier ship that was built around 1833, in turn named after the Iberian Peninsula
, the westernmost portion of the European subcontinent. Iberia was launched on January 21, 1954, underwent sea trials in early September, and began sailing for P&O on September 10.
Iberia was the second largest (by weight) of the four Himalaya-class ocean liners. She was , 718.8 feet (219.1 m) long with a beam
of 90.1 feet (27.5 m). Her passenger capacity was roughly 1,414, with 679 in first class and 735 in second (tourist) class. Her crew numbered 711, and cargo capacity was approximately 239800 ft3. There were twelve main lifeboat
s, with six on either side of the top deck. Iberia had twin single-reduction geared steam turbine
s and twin propellers rated at 42,500 horsepower
each, that could power the ship at a speed of 24.9 knots (48.8 km/h) with a normal operating speed of 21 knots (41.2 km/h).
on September 28, 1954. From there, she crossed the Mediterranean Sea
and through the Suez Canal
into the Red Sea
, traversing the Indian Ocean
to call at Fremantle, Western Australia
, Adelaide, South Australia
, and Melbourne, Victoria, before arriving at Sydney
in New South Wales, Australia on November 1. Iberia would operate on this route for most of her working life. Like her sister ships, she would also run on shorter routes between ports in the Mediterranean Sea. On 27 March 1956, while on her standard itinerary from London to Sydney and offshore of the island of Sri Lanka
, she collided with the tanker
, resulting in a gash amidships in her upper port decks, as well as damage to the bow of Stanvec Pretoria. Fortuitously, neither of the ships was put in danger of sinking. It was only after 17 days of repairs at Sydney that Iberia resumed on her normal schedule.
In 1958, the P&O and the Orient Steam Navigation Company
ran a joint venture called the Orient and Pacific Line, which extended Iberias route from Sydney to ports on the other side of the Pacific, as far as San Francisco, California
and Vancouver, Canada. Full ownership of Iberia was taken by Orient in May 1960, one year after the ship suffered a grounding accident in the Suez Canal. Along with Chusan, Iberia was remodeled in 1961 by John I. Thornycroft & Company
in Southampton
, Hampshire
, UK ,where she also was fitted with air conditioning
, then new on ocean liners. Just a few months after the restoration Iberia had a blackout near Auckland, New Zealand, and in 1962, grounded again in the Suez Canal, damaging her port screw. In 1964, her port stabilizers
(a technology pioneered by Chusan) broke down, causing her to nearly roll over. Through the rest of her working life, Iberia continued to suffer one accident after another.
P&O once again took ownership of Iberia in 1966, reducing her passenger capacity slightly to 651 in first class and 733 in second, and increasing the crew to 718. On June 10, 1966, her turbine couplings failed off the coast of Kobe
, Japan
, and in 1967, in Funchal
, Madeira Island, Portugal
, she collided with a dock. In 1968, in the same port, Iberia suffered the same blackout incident she had had in Auckland, New Zealand. P&O switched the London-Sydney route to a Southampton-Sydney route, and on her first run from Sydney to Southampton, Iberia caught fire, went through a third electric blackout, had an engine failure, and suffered a fuel leak. At Southampton, she was temporarily laid for repairs. In 1969, she had a second stabilizer breakdown. In 1971, Iberia sailed on a last voyage from Southampton to Sydney. Because of her frequent breakdowns and mechanical problems, Iberia was taken out of service in 1972, a year earlier than Chusan and Himalaya. In October 1973, she was scrapped in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, alongside Chusan. Arcadia remained in operation until 1979.
SS Himalaya
SS Himalaya was built at Barrow-in-Furness by Vickers Armstrong and launched 5 October 1948. She began her service on the Tilbury-Bombay-Australia route in 1949 following her departure from the local shipbuilding yard in the August...
-class ocean liner
Ocean liner
An ocean liner is a ship designed to transport people from one seaport to another along regular long-distance maritime routes according to a schedule. Liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes .Cargo vessels running to a schedule are sometimes referred to as...
for the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company
Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company
The Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, which is usually known as P&O, is a British shipping and logistics company which dated from the early 19th century. Following its sale in March 2006 to Dubai Ports World for £3.9 billion, it became a subsidiary of DP World; however, the P&O...
(P&O) built in 1952. Along with her sister ships Himalaya, Arcadia
SS Arcadia (1954)
SS Arcadia was a passenger liner built for P&O in 1954 to service the UK to Australia route. Towards the end of her life she operated as a cruise ship, based in Sydney, until scrapped in 1979.-History:...
and Chusan
SS Chusan
The SS Chusan was a British ocean liner and cruise ship, built for the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company 's Indian and Far East Service in 1950. She was named after Chusan, a small island off China. A smaller version of the SS Himalaya, the Chusan had a gross register tonnage of...
, Iberia mainly provided passenger service between the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Australasia
Australasia
Australasia is a region of Oceania comprising Australia, New Zealand, the island of New Guinea, and neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term was coined by Charles de Brosses in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes...
.
Iberia was constructed in two years by British shipyard Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries is a Northern Irish heavy industrial company, specialising in shipbuilding and offshore construction, located in Belfast, Northern Ireland....
and originally provided service between London and Sydney via the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
, as well as shorter trips in the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
. Later, Iberia went on to carry passengers across the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, as far as San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. Iberia eventually ran into numerous problems, including collisions with other ships, frequent machinery breakdowns, and fuel leaks. For this reason, Iberia was taken out of service in 1972, a full year before her sister ships were decommissioned; all of them were scrapped at a breaker in southern Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
.
Background and construction
During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, several passenger ships of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company had been sunk carrying troops for the Allies
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
. After the war, four ships were commissioned by P&O to provide replacements for the lost ships. Of these, Iberia was the last to be constructed, ordered in late 1951, a few months after Arcadia. Although of the same class, Iberia and Arcadia were more similar to each other than to the earlier Chusan and Himalaya. Iberia was laid down in Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff
Harland and Wolff Heavy Industries is a Northern Irish heavy industrial company, specialising in shipbuilding and offshore construction, located in Belfast, Northern Ireland....
shipyards in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
on February 8, 1952. Her name was derived from an earlier ship that was built around 1833, in turn named after the Iberian Peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
, the westernmost portion of the European subcontinent. Iberia was launched on January 21, 1954, underwent sea trials in early September, and began sailing for P&O on September 10.
Iberia was the second largest (by weight) of the four Himalaya-class ocean liners. She was , 718.8 feet (219.1 m) long with a beam
Beam (nautical)
The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point. Generally speaking, the wider the beam of a ship , the more initial stability it has, at expense of reserve stability in the event of a capsize, where more energy is required to right the vessel from its inverted position...
of 90.1 feet (27.5 m). Her passenger capacity was roughly 1,414, with 679 in first class and 735 in second (tourist) class. Her crew numbered 711, and cargo capacity was approximately 239800 ft3. There were twelve main lifeboat
Lifeboat (shipboard)
A lifeboat is a small, rigid or inflatable watercraft carried for emergency evacuation in the event of a disaster aboard ship. In the military, a lifeboat may be referred to as a whaleboat, dinghy, or gig. The ship's tenders of cruise ships often double as lifeboats. Recreational sailors sometimes...
s, with six on either side of the top deck. Iberia had twin single-reduction geared steam turbine
Steam turbine
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into rotary motion. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Parsons in 1884....
s and twin propellers rated at 42,500 horsepower
Horsepower
Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
each, that could power the ship at a speed of 24.9 knots (48.8 km/h) with a normal operating speed of 21 knots (41.2 km/h).
Career
Iberia departed London on her maiden voyageMaiden voyage
The maiden voyage of a ship, aircraft or other craft is the first journey made by the craft after shakedown. A number of traditions and superstitions are associated with it....
on September 28, 1954. From there, she crossed the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
and through the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
into the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
, traversing the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
to call at Fremantle, Western Australia
Fremantle, Western Australia
Fremantle is a city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle was the first area settled by the Swan River colonists in 1829...
, Adelaide, South Australia
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
, and Melbourne, Victoria, before arriving at Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
in New South Wales, Australia on November 1. Iberia would operate on this route for most of her working life. Like her sister ships, she would also run on shorter routes between ports in the Mediterranean Sea. On 27 March 1956, while on her standard itinerary from London to Sydney and offshore of the island of Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, she collided with the tanker
Tanker (ship)
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
, resulting in a gash amidships in her upper port decks, as well as damage to the bow of Stanvec Pretoria. Fortuitously, neither of the ships was put in danger of sinking. It was only after 17 days of repairs at Sydney that Iberia resumed on her normal schedule.
In 1958, the P&O and the Orient Steam Navigation Company
Orient Steam Navigation Company
The Orient Steam Navigation Company, also known as the Orient Line, was a British shipping company with roots going back to the late 18th century...
ran a joint venture called the Orient and Pacific Line, which extended Iberias route from Sydney to ports on the other side of the Pacific, as far as San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
and Vancouver, Canada. Full ownership of Iberia was taken by Orient in May 1960, one year after the ship suffered a grounding accident in the Suez Canal. Along with Chusan, Iberia was remodeled in 1961 by John I. Thornycroft & Company
John I. Thornycroft & Company
John I. Thornycroft & Company Limited, usually known simply as Thornycroft was a British shipbuilding firm started by John Isaac Thornycroft in the 19th century.-History:...
in Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, UK ,where she also was fitted with air conditioning
Air conditioning
An air conditioner is a home appliance, system, or mechanism designed to dehumidify and extract heat from an area. The cooling is done using a simple refrigeration cycle...
, then new on ocean liners. Just a few months after the restoration Iberia had a blackout near Auckland, New Zealand, and in 1962, grounded again in the Suez Canal, damaging her port screw. In 1964, her port stabilizers
Stabilizer (ship)
Ship stabilizers are fins mounted beneath the waterline and emerging laterally. In contemporary vessels, they may be gyroscopically controlled active fins, which have the capacity to change their angle of attack to counteract roll caused by wind or waves acting on the ship.The bilge keel is an...
(a technology pioneered by Chusan) broke down, causing her to nearly roll over. Through the rest of her working life, Iberia continued to suffer one accident after another.
P&O once again took ownership of Iberia in 1966, reducing her passenger capacity slightly to 651 in first class and 733 in second, and increasing the crew to 718. On June 10, 1966, her turbine couplings failed off the coast of Kobe
Kobe
, pronounced , is the fifth-largest city in Japan and is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture on the southern side of the main island of Honshū, approximately west of Osaka...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, and in 1967, in Funchal
Funchal
Funchal is the largest city, the municipal seat and the capital of Portugal's Autonomous Region of Madeira. The city has a population of 112,015 and has been the capital of Madeira for more than five centuries.-Etymology:...
, Madeira Island, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, she collided with a dock. In 1968, in the same port, Iberia suffered the same blackout incident she had had in Auckland, New Zealand. P&O switched the London-Sydney route to a Southampton-Sydney route, and on her first run from Sydney to Southampton, Iberia caught fire, went through a third electric blackout, had an engine failure, and suffered a fuel leak. At Southampton, she was temporarily laid for repairs. In 1969, she had a second stabilizer breakdown. In 1971, Iberia sailed on a last voyage from Southampton to Sydney. Because of her frequent breakdowns and mechanical problems, Iberia was taken out of service in 1972, a year earlier than Chusan and Himalaya. In October 1973, she was scrapped in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, alongside Chusan. Arcadia remained in operation until 1979.