Celebrity Solstice delivered
Germany's Meyer Werft yard at Papenburg has delivered the 122,000gt cruise ship Celebrity Solstice to Celebrity Cruises as the largest cruise ship to have been built in Germany. The first of five similar ships to be built for Celebrity, Celebrity Solstice measures 1,033ft (315 m) by 120ft (36.8m) and accommodates 2,850 passengers in 1,425 cabins, 90 per cent of which are outside.

Revenue cutter ordered
Work on The Irish Revenue Commissioners' second customs cutter started in early September at the shipyard of Uudenkaupungin Tyovene OY (UKI Workboats Ltd) in Uusikaupunki, Finland. The vessel, costing €2.7m, has similar specifications to the first custom-cutter built for the Irish state, the 22.7m RCC Suirbheir. The newbuild will be a frame longer, measuring around 25m, and is expected to be launched in September 2009.

Largest car-carrier christened
Aniara (71,673gt), the newest and largest car carrier in the world, was christened on 30 August in Bremerhaven, Germany. Apart from Zeebrügge, Bremerhaven is the most important car import and export terminal in Europe. The owners of the new, the Swedish Wallenius Lines, had the vessel built by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Engineering in Korea as a LCTC-ship (Large Car and Truck Carrier).

Royal naming at Cromer
Cromer's new £2.5 million 16m Tamar lifeboat Lester was officially named and dedicated at a ceremony at Cromer Pier on 8 September. HRH Duke of Kent did the honours by pressing the button that released the bottle of champagne onto the bow of the new craft before she was launched down the slipway in front of hundreds of people who attended.

New lease of life for Fjord Line
a major change of fortunes for Fjord Line, now the only ferry operator providing an international service from Western Norway. Since being forced to shed its UK route to the Tyne and largest vessel Fjord Norway (1986/31,356gt) in autumn 2006, Fjord Line has been refinanced and merged with Skagerrak operator Master Ferries.

Wight Light's journey ends
Wight Light, the first of three passenger and vehicle ferries being built for Wightlink in Croatia, arrived at Lymington on 1 September, having completed a delivery voyage from the Adriatic in 17 days, several days less than the three weeks first estimated.

Intrepid goes for breaking
Navy assault ship, was taken to the Canada Docks, Liverpool, to be broken up for recycling during September. She had been towed from Portsmouth by the tug Ormesby Cross which was joined by a second tug Thorngarth in Liverpool Bay. Intrepid showed no insignia, apart from her faded funnel crest, though her name was still visible on her side.

Rosyth-Zeebrugge route to resume in spring
Less than a week after Superfast Ferries' last Rosyth-Zeebrugge sailing, Norfolkline announced plans to re-open the route in Spring 2009. Already active on the North Sea and Irish Sea, the A. P. Moller-Maersk Group company will offer three return trips a week for freight, cars and passengers using a vessel on order for UK company Epic Shipping and now building at the Visentini Yard in Northern Italy.

Flower trio to be lengthened
Despite a summer profits warning from DFDS and closure of the North Shields-Bergen passenger route, the Danish ferry giant signed a contract with MWB Motorenwerke, Bremerhaven, to lengthen three of the Flensburg-built 'Flower' ro-ro ferries by 30m.

MSC continues to grow
MSC has contracted Aker Yards for two new ships to be built at St Nazaire and delivered in February 2011 and February 2012 respectively. They will be named MSC Meraviglia and MSC Favolosa and follow MSC Musica, the first of this 89,600gt class in 2006, MSC Orchestra in 2007 and MSC Poesia.

Fun ship to the rescue
Carnival Liberty (2005/ 110,000gt) rescued 44 Haitians from a sinking boat off the north-east coast of Cuba on 22 August while en route from Ocho Rios to Port Everglades on the final day of a seven-day Western Caribbean cruise. Recovered by a ship's lifeboat, the refugees, who had spent 15 days at sea, were given medical attention and later handed over to a Coast Guard cutter.

Navy reverses course
The US Navy has back-tracked on its decision to build only two Zumwalt (DDG-1000) class destroyers. The reversal came following intense political pressure and widespread criticism from the shipbuilding industry. The navy is now expected to order a third DDG-1000, to be built by Bath Iron Works, and more DDG-51 ships. The outcome will avoid a damaging gap in shipbuilding work at the Bath Iron Works and Ingalls shipyards.

Formidable six shooters
The Republic of Singapore Navy has completed its eight-year long New Frigate Programme with the delivery of RSS Supreme on 22 August. The last of six vessels is scheduled to be commissioned along with RSS Stalwart during the first quarter of 2009. The first four Formidable class ships are already operational and participating in combat exercises with foreign navies, such as RIMPAC 08.

Heavy lift for Immingham
In early August Vitali Kozhin (1985/2,295gt) arrived at the Port of Immingham, at the mouth of the Humber, from Rotterdam with a cargo of three pre-fabricated storage tanks for the Lindsey Oil Refinery. The refinery is now the third largest in the country and is jointly owned by Total UK and Fina.

Broström fleet to be bought
Denmark's AP Moller-Maersk group has made an all-cash offer of US$567 million for Swedish owner Broström , which operates a fleet of 94 product tankers ranging in size from 6,500dwt up to 80,000dwt.

Eitzen Gas look for new routes
Due to the increased demand for shipment of Ethylene gas, freight rates have increased, exports from the Middle East have grown and now shipowners are looking at the Europe to the Far East and USA trades. All the exported ethylene gas from the Middle East comes by sea shipment and Eitzen Gas are one company that anticipates an increased demand for its vessels.

Maid's boost
Plans to return the paddle steamer Maid of the Loch (below) to operation have moved forward. The Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) is now satisfied that the 55-year-old vessel can and will meet today's safety standards. It has given approval in principle to the Loch Lomond Steamship Co (LLSC) to allow them to put plans together for the Maid to be returned to steam operation on the loch. The news came just after the Maid received two new masts, made of aluminium to minimise future maintenance, which were a gift from the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society.

Historic vessels face the axe
HMS Handy, a steam-powered, Victorian-era, Royal Navy gunboat, on the National Register of Historic Vessels, will be scrapped unless a last ditch effort can save her. Tipner Regeneration Co says the vessel, which has been at Pounds shipyard at Hilsea in Portsmouth for more than 30 years, is a safety hazard, and disposal is her most likely fate.

Paddle tug lifts off
John H. Amos, the UK's last surviving steam paddle tug, has left the slipway at Chatham she has occupied for many years on the first stage of a journey that will see her eventual restoration. The 77-year-old vessel, owned by the Medway Maritime Trust (MMT), was safely lifted by the floating crane GPS Atlas on 27 March and placed on a transport barge. The weight on the crane was 330 tonnes when the lift started and 225 tonnes after the water had drained, but the complicated operation was a complete success.

Final curtain falls on Bergen route
120 years of ferry connections between north-east England and the Norwegian ports of Stavanger and Bergen came to an end when the DFDS Seaways vessel Queen of Scandinavia sailed from Royal Quays, North Shields on the evening of Saturday 30 August.