It is its twin and it has the same livery as the Ocean Albatros, which came the day before on a commercial stopover in Caen, but it is indeed another boat which went up the canal from Ouistreham to Caen on Tuesday April 30. Unlike its predecessor, the Ocean Victory did not arrive with passengers, as part of a cruise, but to settle in Caen, where it will remain immobilized for several months awaiting a new charter. He also found another boat from the same series, the Ocean Explorer, which arrived at the Hérouville basin in March and which briefly left its post, alongside the old ocean liner Ocean Atlantic, also demobilized, to let the ship pass. ‘Ocean Victory before taking his place again.
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The Ocean Victory going up the canal from Ouistreham to Caen on April 30.
The Ocean Victory sailing up the canal towards Caen on April 30.
The Ocean Victory arriving at the Hérouville basin, with the Atlantic Ocean on the left.
The Ocean Explorer, which was alongside the Ocean Atlantic, moved aside to let the Ocean Victory pass.
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The Ocean Victory docks in Caen.
Commissioned in 2022, the Ocean Explorer and Ocean Victory are among the seven expedition ships ordered by the American group Sunstone Maritime from the Chinese shipyard CMHI, which delivered six between 2019 and 2023, the latest being the Ocean Albatross while the seventh in the series is under construction. These 104 meter long ships, with 71 to 95 cabins, are placed on the charter market, Sunstone’s plans having been disrupted by the disappearance in 2023 of one of its main clients, the American Vantage Travel, which chartered two of these boats, including the Ocean Explorer. And other operators sometimes encounter filling difficulties, leading to cancellations of cruises, or even entire seasons. Hence the presence in Caen of the Ocean Victory, which will leave in September to begin its season in Antarctica for the benefit of Albatros Expeditions, which uses it in winter in addition to the Ocean Albatros operated all year round. The Ocean Explorer should also leave in September to begin a new long-term charter with Quark Expeditions, unless activity is found for it this summer.
In all cases, the two ships must have left Caen by September 15 at the latest since the Ouistreham locks will be closed from the next day, for two to three months, while maintenance work is carried out.
This deadline should also be that of the Ocean Atlantic, decommissioned in the Hérouville basin since October. Former Soviet ferry launched in 1986 in Poland under the name Konstantin Tchernenko and having initially sailed in the Sea of Japan, then in the Baltic, it was converted into a cruise ship in 2010. 139.5 meters long and able to accommodate up to 198 passengers, the Ocean Atlantic was positioned on polar cruises thanks to its reinforced hull (ice class 1B). It was for a while, and until 2022, operated on behalf of Albatros Expeditions, which stopped chartering it after technical incidents in Svalbard. Put up for sale by its owner, the Ocean Atlantic has reportedly found a buyer. The project, which has not yet been formalized, would involve bringing the old ship back into service for a dual function, with both passengers on board, but also scientific teams carrying out research projects around the ocean and of the climate.
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