Meyer Turku began the float out today of Mein Schiff 5 for TUI Cruises at their Turku (Finland) yard amid a snow storm and freezing temperatures. TUI Cruises is the German-based line that is a partnership between German travel company, TUI travel and Royal Caribbean Cruises.
Ferdinand Strohmeier, VP of Operations for TUI Cruises, and Dr. Jan Meyer, the president of Meyer Turku, opened the valve that began flooding the drydock with some 300 million liters of water. Despite the 10-degree temperature (-12 Celsius), the water flowed, and once the dry dock is filled tomorrow, the 99,000-ton ship will be towed upstream to the outfitting pier where it will be finished over the next six months.
The complete story appeared in the January 15 edition of Cruise News Daily.