The unsinkable can’t sink twice, can it? Australian businessman Clive Palmer certainly hopes not. His replica Titanic, called Titanic II, is due to set sail in 2018 with the ship’s maiden voyage taking a less treacherous path than her predecessor, sailing from Jiangsu in Eastern China to Dubai. The route through the South China and Arabian Seas and the Indian Ocean are supposedly iceberg free.
Palmer originally floated the idea for the project in 2012, with planning beginning immediately, but the scheme has since been subject to delays, pushing the launch date to 106 years after the original Titanic’s maiden excursion.
Unlike the original, which used some 3 million rivet bolts to join the hull (of which some in the cold conditions broke upon contact with the iceberg), the Titanic II will have a welded hull and be approximately four yards wider.
Another disparity that will be welcome news to passengers will be that it will have a 2,700 lifeboat capacity for its 2,435 member crew, unlike the original which controversially carried lifeboat capacity of 1,178 for its 2,223 passengers due to aesthetic reasons.
“The new Titanic will of course have modern evacuation procedures, satellite controls, digital navigation and radar systems and all those things you’d expect on a 21st century ship” said James McDonald, marketing director, Blue Star Lines.
Like the original, first, second, and third-class tickets will be available to purchase with segregated dining and living spaces corresponding to the tiered ticketing scheme. The vessel will cost $429 million, have a top speed of 24 knots (one knot more than the original) and be able to accommodate 2,400 passengers, (an increase of 177) and 900 crew.