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REMEMBERING 30 YEARS AGO - August 22, 1979 P&O′s ORIANA Maiden Arrival
Text and Photographs by Theodore W. Scull
P&O′s 41,915grt ORIANA was built at Vickers-Armstrong, Barrow-in-Furness and entered service on December 3, 1960 as the largest ship ever built for a liner service other than the North Atlantic. While P&O′s CANBERRA took the title just six months later measuring 45,270grt, ORIANA was always the faster ship and could easily maintain her 27.5 knot service speed. Her entry into service reduced the Southampton-Sydney via Suez transit by a full week - to three weeks - compared to the previous generation of mail ships such as Orient Lines ORSOVA and P&OS ARCADIA. As a two-class ship, ORIANA carried 638 in First Class and 1,496 in Tourist.
As point-to-point sea travel declined, ORIANA increasingly turned to cruising, first in her original two-class configuration then one class. Her maiden arrival in New York on August 22, 1979 was an example of a longer pleasure voyage from her homeport of Southampton. In November 1981, she sailed out to Australia to become a full-time cruise ship based at Sydney until finally withdrawn from cruise service in 1986. She first resided as a stationary ship in Japan then Chinese ports before being badly damaged in a storm and finally scrapped in 2005.
ORIANA has a piled up midships superstructure and relatively small buff funnel.
ORIANA had most unusual stacked open decks at the stern, with the vertical windows enclosing a former tourist class public room - the Sterm Gallery.
ORIANAs bow shows the ship’s Indian, Goan and European crew. As a former Orient Line ship, she carried a European deck crew, while P&O employed Muslim Indians. The catering staff was primarily Goan on both ships.
ORIANAs amazing flared bow dominates the dockside scene at the West Side Passenger Ship Terminal.
P&O‘s 41,915grt Oriana has arrived in the North River after a transatlantic crossing and is assisted by three Moran tugs, one delivering the docking pilot.
The oval windows bring natural light into the ship’s courtyards which in turn allow light through tall slit windlows into the otherwise interior court cabins.
PISCES belonged to the City of New York’s Board of Education and is on a charter to meet and greet ORIANA’s maiden arrival.
