M.S. AYVAZOVSKIY
Danube Shipping Company
Soviet Union, Ukraine
Picture taken in
Istanbul in 1986.
Built: 1977 by Chantiers Dubigeon-Normandie SA., Nantes, France.
Technical:
Overall length: 121.5 m Beam: 17.5 m Draft: 4.4 m Gross Tonnage: 6717 tons Passengers: 328 Power: 2x5200 hp Service Speed: 18.9 knots Operating Routes: Black Sea cruises between Istanbul, Turkey, and Ismailiya,
USSR, with stops at Bulgaria and Romania. Extensions into Danube River with
river passenger vessels. Also Mediterranean and European cruises. As of December 2001, she is
used in Black Sea, Mediterranean and Indian Ocean on 7 to 14 day cruises out of
Odessa, Ukraine, and Dubai, United Arab Emirates as MS Primexpress Island.. Sister Ships: None Former Names: None Later Names: M.S. Carina (1996), M.S. Primexpress
Island (2000) History and Current Status: She became M.S. Carina (or Karina) in 1996,
operating still under the ownership of Danube Shipping Co.. She was chartered to Phoenix Seereisen of Germany, doing Antalya based Mediterranean cruises. In 1998, she was seized in
Amsterdam, Netherlands, because of the debts of her parent company to Sea Global
Shipping of Cyprus. After Danube Shipping Co. satisfied all financial claims,
she returned to Ismailiya, but was seized again by the Odessa court because of
company debts to PrimeExpress Cruises. In May 2000, Danube Shipping Co. won the case and
decided to sell her. In August 2000, she was sold to Multiway Shipping Ltd. for
2 million 750 thousand USD. Between 2000 and 2001, she was chartered by
Primexpress Cruises and she was renamed
M.S. Primexpress Island, operating in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Due to low booking rates, she got laid up in Limassol, Cyprus. As of May 17th, 2002, she is up for auction by Multiway for 2 million USD, waiting her new owner. She is said to be in perfect condition, ready to sail right away.
(email all info about her to ata.bilgili@dartmouth.edu) Notes: Named after the famous seascape painter
Ivan K.
Ayvazovskiy, this very handsome small vessel at human scale would be a perfect
candiate for one of his marimite chef d'oeuvres. Her unique
funnel gave her a very
distinctive look and it was great pleasure to see her underway in Bosphorus. She was
not a surprise but a very frequent caller at the port of Istanbul during the 1980's
and she provided viewing pleasures throughout the year, even in wintertime when
other cruise ships were scarce. As a big fan of smaller cruise vessels, I consider
M.S. Ayvazovskiy a timeless work of art. Links: Line Drawings:From the book "Soviet Bloc Merchant Ships" by
Bruno Bock and Klaus Bock, 1981. Other Pictures: Postcards from My Collection:
- 1977-2000: Danube Shipping Company, Ukraine.
- 2000-Present: Multiway Shipping Ltd.,
operated by Primexpress Cruises, Odessa, Ukraine.
- Primexpress Cruises.
- A cruise report on MS Ayvazovskiy by
Charles E. Jacobson.
AYVAZOVSKIY
Docked at Karakoy, Istanbul.
1986.
AYVAZOVSKIY
Danube Shipping Company issued.
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