The Pendennis Castle - Union Castle Line
Builder
- Harland and Wolf - Belfast
Total
passengers 670
(197
first class, 473 tourist class)
Length
overall 764 ft
Breadth
83ft 6in
Normal
Service speed 19 knots
Placed into service on January
1, 1959 the Pendennis Castle traveled along the South African route on a regular
basis. Her crew of 418 members - a ratio of less than 2 passengers per crewmember
- ensured that her service was of the best.
PENDENNIS
CASTLE was built in 1958 by Harland & Wolff at Belfast with a tonnage 28582grt,
a length of 763ft 2in, a beam of 83ft 9in and a service speed of 22.5 knots.
She was the largest ship built for Union-Castle as subsequent buildings were
ordered by British & Commonwealth. Due to a dockyard strike she was named
on the 10th December 1957 but not launched until 24th December. Based on the
earlier Pretoria Castle design, but considerd to have an ungainly profile,
her internal layout was the first to differ significantly since the Arundel
Castle set the pattern. She commenced her maiden voyage on 1st January 1959
on the Southampton- Cape Town- Durban mail run and was the first ship to have
Stewardettes - waitresses in the dining room.
A
little know fact is that she caught on fire in about 1973/4 while on route
from Cape Town to Europe.
No serious damage was done - but the passengers, including my father, had
to put on life jackets and assemble on deck!
She
was withdrawn from the mail run on 14th June 1976
Sold
to Ocean Queen Navigation Copr. of Panama, but Philippine owned, she was renamed
Ocean Queen. she left Southampton on April 23 1976 on her final Union Castle
Voyage and arrived in Hong Kong on 9th August 1976 where she was
laid up and
was given a white hull and gold-brown funnel.
In 1978, still laid up, she was sold again and renamed Sinbad by Kinvarra
Bay Shipping Co. of Liberia -
flying the Panamanian flag
and later in the year was renamed Sinbad 1. Four years later, in April 1980,
she arrived at Kaohsiung in Taiwan for breaking up.
