SS Dolphin IV explained
| -- commercial vessels --> | +SS Dolphin IV| Ship Image: | Aankomst van het schip SS Zion in de haven, Bestanddeelnr 255-2157.jpg | | Ship Caption: | SS Dolphin IV as SS Zion |
| Ship Name: | - Zion (1956–1966)
- Amelia De Melo (1966–1972)
- Ithaca (1972–1978)
- Dolphin IV (1978–2003)
| | Ship Owner: | - Zim Lines (1956–1966)
- Sociedade Geral de Commercio (1966–1972)
- Ulysses Line (1972–1984)
- Dolphin Cruise Line (1984–1995)
- Cape Canaveral Cruise Line (1995–2003)
| | Ship Builder: | Deutsche Werft | | Ship Launched: | 15 July 1955 | | Ship Completed: | 12 February 1956 | | Ship Maiden Voyage: | 1956 | | Ship In Service: | 1956 | | Ship Out Of Service: | September 2000 | | Ship Fate: | Scrapped in 2003 |
| Ship Tonnage: | - (1956–1967)
- (1967–1972)
- (1972–)
| | Ship Length: | 501feet | | Ship Beam: | 65.1feet | | Ship Draft: | 27.5feet | | Ship Power: | Steam turbine | | Ship Propulsion: | Single screw | | Ship Capacity: | - 312 passengers (1956–1967)
- 355 passengers (1967–1972)
- 780 passengers (1972–)
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SS Dolphin IV (formerly
Zion of
Zim Lines), was built in
Germany as
war reparations for
Israel in 1956.
[1] She subsequently sailed as
Amelia De Melo and
Ithaca. In 1978, the ship was renamed
Dolphin IV when she sailed under sales and marketing agreement for Paquet Ulysses Cruises, which was part of Paquet French Cruises. The owners of Ulysses Cruises/Florida Nautica made the decision in 1984 to handle the sales and marketing for the ship. This is when
Dolphin Cruise Lines was created. The ship has retained her name through her most recent sale to Cape Canaveral Cruise Line in 1995.
The ship remained in operation for Cape Canaveral Cruise Line until September 2000 when it was forced out of service because it needed 3.5 million dollars in required maintenance.[2] The cruise line was unable to secure another vessel and it was unable to afford or receive funding for the needed repairs. As a result, the ship was forced to lay up at Freeport, Bahamas for three years awaiting repairs. Due to the state of disrepair of fresh water and sewage holding facilities, the ship was sold for scrap in 2003.
Notes and References
- Web site: Zion . Simplon Postcards . 8 February 2012.
- Web site: Verrier . Richard . Cruise Line Hopes To Reassure Passengers . Orlando Sentinel . 1 January 2019.
