Prins Bernhard
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The Prins Bernhard was a double-ended ferry of the Dutch shipping company Provinciale Stoombootdiensten in Zeeland , which used the ship in ferry traffic on the Scheldt .
history
The ferry designed by De Schelde was ordered in November 1939. The construction of the ship became necessary due to the increasing traffic. Larger and heavier vehicles than the shipping company's previous ferries could also be transported with the ferry. For the construction of the ferry 1.3 million guilders were estimated.
Construction of the ferry began under construction number 215 at the De Schelde shipyard in Vlissingen . The keel was laid on October 2, 1940, the launch on July 5, 1941. To prevent the ferry from falling into the hands of the German occupation forces, construction was delayed again and again. The unfinished shell was sunk in 1944 by the occupying troops in the course of their retreat in the Buitenhaven. The wreck was lifted in late 1946. For this purpose, the shell was divided into three parts. The two ends were used for the construction of the ferry from 1947, the middle part was rebuilt. The ferry was launched again on November 19, 1949 as hull number 215II. The completed ferry was finally handed over to the Provinciale Stoombootdiensten in Zeeland on May 5th, a year later than the sister ship Koningin Juliana , which was built according to the same design and was put into service in 1949.
The Prins Bernhard , named after Bernhard zur Lippe-Biesterfeld , was used by Provinciale Stoombootdiensten in Zeeland on the ferry route between Vlissingen and Breskens .
In 1958 the Prins Bernhard was replaced by the newly built Prinses Beatrix . It was subsequently used on the route between Kruiningen and Perkpolder.
In the winter months of 1962/1963 the ferry was rebuilt at the De Schelde shipyard and lengthened by around 13 meters. During the renovation, the headroom on the vehicle deck was also increased. Most of the superstructure had to be removed for this. The deck superstructures have been rebuilt in a greatly modified form, giving the ferry a completely new look. The two wheelhouses were retained and were put back on the new deck superstructure.
In May 1963 the ferry was put back into service. It was used between Kruiningen and Perkpolder until 1970 and remained with the shipping company as a reserve until 1985. Between February and May 1985, the Prins Bernhard was used together with the Queen Juliana again between Vlissingen and Breskens. During this time, the infrastructure in the ports was adapted for new ferries with two car decks. During the renovations, the ferries previously used on the route could not be used. The lower capacity of the two ferries compared to the ferries normally used on the route led to considerable delays.
Technical data and equipment
The ship was four four-stroke - seven-cylinder - diesel engines of the manufacturer Sulzer (Type: 7DDH32) driven. The engines, which were built by De Schelde, worked via gears on the controllable pitch propellers at both ends of the ferry. The motors also drove generators to produce electricity. In addition, two diesel generator sets were available, but usually only one of them was currently in use. The diesel generator sets each consisting of a four-stroke cycle six-cylinder diesel engine is the manufacturer Sulzer (type: 6DDH22), each with 240 hp power . The motors, also built by De Schelde, each powered a generator.
The ferry was equipped with a continuous vehicle deck of 500 m². Four lanes were available on the vehicle deck, two together 6 m wide lanes in the middle and one side lane on each side of the ferry. The wide, middle lane was about 1.5 m higher than the two side lanes. The clearance height was 3.5 m, the maximum axle load in the middle area of the ferry was 20 t. The vehicle deck was closed at both ends by roller doors to protect against the weather and water overflowing. The roller doors were opened and closed with electric motors. The renovation in the 1960s increased the deck to 734 m². The ferry could now carry 48 cars.
Above the car deck was the deck with the lounge areas for passengers and side promenade decks, which were divided into first and second class . A total of around 400 seats were available here. The wheelhouses were located above this deck at both ends of the ferry. In addition to the engine room, rooms for the ship's crew were also housed under the car deck.
The ship was equipped with a lifeboat attached to a davit in the midship area on each side . The lifeboats could each hold 27 people. Life rafts and vests were available as life- saving equipment for the majority of the passengers .
Whereabouts of the ship
The ferry was sold in July 1986, but then initially laid up in Vlissingen . In the spring of 1987 the ship was sold to the Maltese shipping company Gozo Channel Company, which had it fitted with ramps and operated as a Cittadella on the Gozo Channel Line between Malta and Gozo until April 1995 . The ferry was then launched as a citta before being sold to Aliağa in Turkey in 1997 for scrapping .
literature
- J. Blokland Visser, A. de Vos: Motorveerboten “Prins Bernhard” a “Koningin Juliana” from the Provinciale Stoombootdienst op de Wester-Schelde. In: Schip en Werf , Volume 17, No. 14, July 7, 1950, pp. 303-310.
Web links
- Veerboot Prins Bernhard , website about the PSD ferries