During the night of October 23 to 24 the longest ocean liner worldwide, the QUEEN MARY 2, will be docked at dry dock ELBE 17 of Blohm + Voss Repair, a company of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems. At about 11:50 pm on October 23, the QUEEN MARY 2 will be at the entrance of dry dock ELBE 17 ready to be manoeuvred into the dock. At about 0:50 am, October 24, when the tide has reached its highest level, the ocean liner will be floated into the dock.

The ocean liner will stay in the dock until November 13, for the „Refit 2008“. Among others, the four Mermaid propulsion pods – two of them fixed and the other two azimuthing – will be partly disassembled and subjected to a general overhaul. In addition, the four stabilizer units and three bow thrusters will be maintained. Various other works as required by the classification society as well as a comprehensive preservation program will be completed as well. Upon completion, the QUEEN MARY 2 will be fit for service once again for the next five years.

On November 13, at about 4 pm, the QUEEN MARY 2 will leave the dock for Southampton to start the next transatlantic passage to New York on November 15, at 5pm.

Schedule for the docking of the QUEEN MARY 2 at Blohm + Voss Repair on October 23 / 24, 2008 (Date: October 20, 2008):

· Oct 23, 2008 / 10:00 am ETA*                Arrival at „Elbe 1“
· Oct 23, 2008 / 10:50 pm ETA*               Turning of the ship at the entrance of ELBE 17
· Oct 23, 2008 / 11:50 pm ETA*                Start of floating into ELBE 17

· Night high tide on Oct 24, 2008: 0:50 am

ETA = Estimated Time of Arrival

In the event that the high tide level is not sufficient, the QM2 will be temporarily berthed at the Grasbrook terminal and docking will then take place on October 24, 2008 at 1 pm (high tide at noon).

Principal data:

QUEEN MARY 2
Length:                           345.00 m
Breadth:                           41.00 m
Height:                             72.00 m
Passengers:              2,620 (max. 3,090)
Gross tonnage:            148,528 t

Dry dock ELBE 17
Length:                                  351.00 m
Breadth:                                  59.00 m
For ships up to:                  360,000 t
Capacity:                            240,000 m³
Duration of „Flooding“:                2 hrs
Duration of „Emptying“: approx. 8 hrs (depending on the size of the ship)