Australian billionaire Clive Palmer is attempting to out-James Cameron James Cameron today as he announced plans to build a cruise ship replica of the Titanic called the Titanic II in China, with a maiden voyage set for 2016 (yes, just like that Titanic 2). So, just in case you were planning to take a regular cruise but thought “not scary enough,” mark your calendars.
Its maiden voyage in late 2016 will be from England to New York, just like its namesake planned.
“It will be every bit as luxurious as the original Titanic, but … will have state-of-the-art 21st-century technology and the latest navigation and safety systems,” Palmer said in a statement.
Not to mention, two comedy magicians and a sexy hypnotist! (I assume). Somewhere, Leonardo DiCaprio impersonator Frank Roberts is waiting anxiously by the phone.
He called the project “a tribute to the spirit of the men and women who worked on the original Titanic.”
The diesel-powered ship will have four smoke stacks like the coal-powered original, but they will be purely decorative.
The most obvious changes from the original Titanic would be below the water line, including welding rather than rivets, a bulbous bow for greater fuel efficiency and enlarged rudder and bow thrusters for increased maneuverability, Palmer said.
While the Titanic II would carry around 1,680 passengers, most modern cruise ships create economies of scale by catering for more than 2,000 passengers, he said.
Among the world’s largest passenger ships, Allure of the Seas is 295 feet longer than the 886-foot Titanic and has 2,700 cabins
Palmer announced Monday he has signed a memorandum of understanding with state-owned Chinese company CSC Jinling Shipyard to build it. [WashingtonPost]
And if he doesn’t refer to those workers as “little Orientals,” everything I know about Australian billionaires is wrong.