SS Europa (1930)
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The SS Europa (later SS Liberté) was one of a pair of fast ocean liners built in the late twenties for the North German Lloyd line (NDL) for the transatlantic passenger service. Her sister ship was the Bremen, and the two were very alike, though not identical (the Bremen was slightly larger, among other differences).
The sisters were supposed to be completed at the same time, but the Europa suffered a serious fire during her fitting-out, and sank to the bottom. She was repaired and refloated, but the incident delayed her completion by several months.
During the war she was in German hands and largely inactive, there were plans to use her as a transport in Operation Sealion, the intended invasion of Great Britain, and later to an aircraft carrier. None of these plans came to pass, and in 1945 she was captured by the allies and used as a troopship. However, after it was discovered that the ship had infrastructural problems from years of neglect (defective wiring and hull cracks), she was pulled from this service.
After the war she was turned over to the French, who began to refit her for passenger service. In 1946 while being refitted, she snapped her moorings during a storm and ran into the wreck of the Paris and sunk[1]. She was raised, and in 1950, made her maiden voyage under her new name, Liberté, to New York. She was laid up in 1961 and scrapped in 1962.
[edit] Specifications
- 49,746 gross tons
- 936.7 ft (283.5 m) overall length, 101.7 ft (31 m) beam.
- Engines: steam turbines geared to four screws 105,000 shp (78 MW), designed speed 26.3 knots (49 km/h).
- 2193 passengers (860 first class, 500 second class, 305 tourist class, 617 third class), 965 crew.
