ROYAL
CARIBBEAN INTERNATIONAL addressed allegations of
wrongdoing in the disappearance of George Smith IV, the honeymooner
who vanished during a cruise of the Brilliance of the Seas in July.
In a strongly worded 11-page document, the line outlined events
leading up to and following Smiths disappearance, including an
extensive rebuttal of coverup allegations raised by Smiths wife,
Jennifer Hagel Smith, who claimed she was treated harshly and
abandoned in Turkey by the cruise ships staff following an
investigation by local officials.
THE RCCL
REPORT STATES that Hagel Smith was found sleeping in a
corridor shortly after 4:30 a.m. on the night of the disappearance.
The cruise line said she was taken back to her cabin in a
wheelchair by two security guards and a female supervisor. Her
husband was not in the room, and nothing appeared amiss, the report
states. The report also says that Hagel Smith told ship officers
that her husband may have slept elsewhere and had done so at least
one other night during the cruise.
NORWAY-BASED
SHIPBUILDER AKER YARDS and French conglomerate Alstom
announced a proposed merger between Aker and Alstoms marine
division that would create one of the worlds largest cruise
shipbuilding companies. The deal would create a new company out of
Alstoms France-based shipyards in Saint-Nazaire, where its
Chantiers de lAtlantique yard is based, and Lorient, and give Aker
a 75% stake.
HOLLAND
AMERICA LINE nearly doubled capacity on its
Seattle-to-Alaska sailings this year. A third ship, the
1,432-passenger Zaandam, joins the Oosterdam and the Westerdam on
the route and brings HAL to 61 Seattle departures between May 5 and
Sept. 22. Last year the line served the route with 37 seven-day
cruises.
NCL CORP.
NAMED the Norwegian Pearl and the Norwegian Gem, two ships
under construction at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Germany. The
ships will be Norwegian Jewel-style vessels and are slated for
delivery in February 2007 and October 2007,
respectively.