This
website has no connection with any shipping company, cruise line,
boat operator or other commercial organisation
MSC Cruises
Mediterranean
Shipping Cruises
Starlauro
Cruises
These pages
are devoted to postcards and photographs of the Mediterranean
Shipping Cruises fleet (MSC), plus predecessor Starlauro Cruises.
A new page has now been added covering the earlier Achille Lauro
owned period as Flotta
Lauro.
The table below,
links to complete postcard career histories of selected ships. Below this, I have
a Fleet
List
of the complete Mediterranean Shipping Cruises fleet in the current
livery, which also includes the final series of Starlauro cards.
MSC had bought Flotta
Lauro
in 1987, renaming the fleet Starlauro Cruises. The fleet was
renamed again as Mediterranean Shipping Cruises in 1995, following
the fire and loss of the famous Achille Lauro in 1994.
More recently, the company has styled itself as MSC Crociere
Italiane.
Achille Lauro was the most famous
member of the Flotta
Lauro
fleet, mainly due to her hijacking in 1985. She joined the fleet
in 1966, originally as an emigrant carrier. She was restyled
as a cruise ship in 1973. In 1987, the Swiss-based Mediterranean
Shipping Company bought Lauro, and re-launched them as Starlauro
Cruises. Achille Lauro was lost, after a fire in 1994.
The company was then re-launched again as Mediterranean Shipping
Cruises, and the blue hulls were lost.
This
is the first official Starlauro card of Achille Lauro.
The
second official Starlauro card of Achille Lauro.
Monterey
(StarLauro:
1989-1995 - MSC: 1995-2007)
Mariposa
(3)andMonterey
(3)
were built in 1952, as the fast cargo ships Free State Mariner
and Pine Tree Mariner. Matson Line bought them in 1955
for their Oceanic subsidiary, but they were rebuilt as the 14,799
ton passenger ships Mariposa (3) and Monterey (3)
for their South Pacific service. In 1970 they were sold to Pacific
Far East Lines. In 1989, Monterey was acquired by StarLauro
Crociere, passing to MSC in 1995. She remained in service in
2006, and was scheduled to run a series of cruises from South
Africa in their 2006/2007 summer, but mechanical problems caused
her withdrawal and scrapping.
Postcard
of Monterey at Funchal, Madeira, in latest colours applied
2004.
Angelina Lauro (2)
(StarLauro:
1989-1991 - chartered)
Between 1989-91,
Starlauro chartered Attika Cruises' Arcadia, which was renamed
Angelina
Lauro (2) during the charter. She then reverted to the name
Arcadia, and in 2000 was being operated by
Golden
Sun Cruises.
Giacomelli
card NE04, showing the Angelina Lauro (2) in Venice in
1990.
In 1994, Starlauro
acquired the Enrico
Costa,
which became their Symphony. In 2000 she was chartered
to
Golden
Sun Cruises
as Aegean II then AegeanSpirit.
Scan
of postcard of Cunard Countess under charter, supplied
by Dimas Almada
Cunard
Countess
became the Rhapsody; this is the official Starlauro card.
Following
the Achille Lauro tragedy, the company reorganised as
Mediterranean Shipping Cruises very soon after the purchase of
Rhapsody. This is the official MSC card in the new colours.
Official
MSC card of Rhapsody.
Nelson
de Barros Pereira postcard of Rhapsody published in Brazil
in late 2000.
This
is the first official MSC card of Melody, a poorly retouched
version of a Premier Cruises card.
The
second official MSC card of Melody.
A more
recent official MSC card of Melody.
A later
official MSC card of Melody.
Scan
supplied by Staff Captain Walter Bonazza
MSC
postcard of MSC Melody in new colours.
MSC Lirica (2003- )
MSC Lirica was delivered in 2003
from Chantiers de l'Atlantique, St Nazaire. She is 58600grt,
251m long, and has a lower berth capacity of 1590 passengers.
The design is a modified version of the enlarged "Mistral-Class"
vessels delivered to Festival Cruises. Building slots became
available when Festival decided not to proceed with two outstanding
options with the builders. Her sistership MSC Opera is due to be delivered
in 2004.
MSC Armonia and
MSC Sinfonia
were the
European
Vision
and European
Stars
respectively of Festival
Cruises.
They were bought at auction in 2004 after the collapse of Festival,
for €215 million and €220 million. Both ships were
completed in 2001 by Chantiers Atlantique.
MSC Armonia and
MSC Sinfonia
were the
European
Vision
and European
Stars
respectively of Festival
Cruises.
They were bought at auction in 2004 after the collapse of Festival,
for €215 million and €220 million. Both ships were
completed in 2001 by Chantiers Atlantique.
