SS United States is one of the world's greatest
maritime achievements - a bold creation that
proclaimed American supremacy at sea.
The United States smashed all
Atlantic speed records on her maiden voyage in 1952,
making the crossing in a record three days, ten
hours and forty minutes.
This super liner stretches to
990 feet. When she was built, she was
actually too big for the drydock in which she was
constructed and extended above and beyond of the
drydock doors. With spacious accommodations
for 2000 passengers and 1000 crew, each of her sailing was
like a city racing on water.
The
United States was subsidized by the
American government, who in turn required that she
be designed to be useful as a troopship if
necessary. Her propulsion systems were a closely-guarded
government secret!
Although SS
United States remained the fastest vessel on the
North Atlantic, she could not compete with the speed
of jet planes. In 1969, she was laid up near her
birthplace in Hampton Roads, Virginia, for over 12
years. Then, she was purchased for use as a
cruise ship and changed hands several times.
In 1996, she was towed back to
the United States and remained in Philadelphia. In
2003, she was purchased by Norwegian Cruise Lines.
Although refitting her into a modern cruise ship
will probably cost more than building a new vessel,
she has an advantage a new-build cannot obtain: She
was built in the US, which means she can carry
passengers between American ports without calling
abroad.
Though no
longer in service, SS United States remains a proud
icon of American ingenuity and naval engineering.
To this day, the record-breaking crossings of SS
United States have yet to be broken.
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