Cunard orders a new Queen

Cunard has signed an order with Fincantieri to build a new 2,092 passenger ocean liner, at an all-in cost of approximately ??¬500m. The 92,000gt vessel, to be called Queen Elizabeth, will be the second largest Cunarder ever built and is scheduled to enter service in the autumn of 2010. In making the announcement, Cunard’s president and md Carol Marlow, said, ???Cunard already owns and operates the two most famous ocean liners in the world, Queen Elizabeth 2 and Queen Mary 2, and a third – Queen Victoria – is due to be delivered in December of this year.

???The decision to order another ship for Cunard Line has been taken as a result of the strong booking response to the new Queen Victoria, and we are extremely pleased that Cunard will once again become a three-ship fleet so soon after the departure of the much-celebrated QE2 in November next year. Furthermore, we are delighted that Her Majesty The Queen has given her blessing to our calling this new Cunarder “Queen Elizabeth,” after our first vessel of that name.???

Queen Elizabeth will fly the Red Ensign with her homeport Southampton, as is the case with the other ships in the Cunard fleet.