What is the Sapphire Princess?
A: Sapphire Princess is a
cruise ship owned by Princess Cruises.
What did it cost to build?
A: $400 million.
When was it christened?
A: 10 June 2004 in Seattle
What is its tonnage?
A: 115,875 GT
How long is it?
A: 290 m (951 ft 5 in)
How wide is it?
A: 37 m (121 ft 5 in)
How many decks does it have?
A: 13
How many passengers does it carry?
A: 2,670 passengers
How many crew members are there?
A: 1,100
In what country was the Sapphire Princess built?
A: In Japan.
Who built it?
A: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
What is her only sister ship?
A: The Diamond Princess, with whom she swapped names during construction.
She and her sister ship were the largest cruise ships
to be built by Mitsubishi since what?
A: Since the Crystal Harmony in 1991.
Why did the name swap occur?
A: Because a major fire swept through the original Diamond during
construction, leading to a construction delay.
Both sister ships were being constructed at the same
time, so the original Sapphire did what?
A: Assumed the role of Diamond.
This name swap assisted in what?
A: Keeping the delivery date of Diamond Princess on time.
It also kept the Sapphire Princess on schedule as it
was what?
A: Nearing completion early.
Despite being technically similar to her Grand-class
sister ships, she lacks what?
A: The "wing" across the rear and above the stern that housed the Skywalkers
Nightclub.
Her diesel-electric plant includes four diesel
generators and a what?
A: A gas turbine generator.
The diesel generators are Wärtsilä 46 series common
rail engines, two of the straight 9-cylinder configuration, and two of what?
A: The straight 8-cylinder configuration.
The 8- and 9-cylinder engines can produce approximately
how much power?
A: 81⁄2 and 91⁄2 MW of power respectively.
These engines are fueled with what?
A: Heavy fuel oil (HFO or bunker c) and Marine Gas Oil (MGO) depending on
the local regulations regarding emissions.
MGO produces much lower emissions but is what?
A: Much more expensive.
The gas turbine generator is a GE 2500, producing how
much peak power?
A: 25 MW of power and being fueled by MGO.
This generator is much more expensive to run than the
diesel generators, and is used mostly where?
A: In areas, such as Alaska, where the emissions regulations are strict.
It is also used when top speed is required for what?
A: To make it to a port in a short time period.
There are two propulsion electric motors which drive
what?
A: Fixed-pitch propellers and six thrusters used during maneuvering; three
bow and three stern.
The two motors are each rated to 20 MW and have a
maximum speed of what?
A: 154 rpm.