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Italian Line

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Italian Line
Founded1932
Defunct2002
HeadquartersGenoa, Italy

Italian Lineand from 1992Italia Line,whose official name wasItalia di NavigazioneS.p.A.,was a passengershipping linethat operated regulartransatlanticservices betweenItalyand the United States, and Italy and South America. During the late 1960s the company turned to runningcruises,and from 1981 it became a globalfreightoperator.

History

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House flagused by Italian Line

The company was founded in 1932 through a merger of theGenoa-basedNavigazione Generale Italiana(NGI), theTurin-basedLloyd Sabaudo,and theTrieste-basedCosulich STNlines, encouraged by the Italian government. The new company acquired the Cosulich-owned shipsSaturniaandVulcania,the Lloyd Sabaudo-ownedConte Rosso,Conte BiancamanoandConte Grandeand the NGI-ownedGiulio Cesare,Duilio,RomaandAugustus.The same year two previously orderedocean linerswere delivered to the company:Rex,that won theBlue Ribandin 1933, andConte di Savoia.

Giulio Cesare,built in 1923, in Italian Line service 1932–1937

In World War II the company lost many ships, includingRexandConte di Savoia.Others were captured by theUnited Statesand converted intotroopships;four of them survived the war:Conte Biancamano,Conte Grande,Saturnia,andVulcania.

Commercial service was resumed in 1947 under the company's new nameSocietà di navigazione Italia.In addition to the four vessels returned to the company by the United States, two new vessels,Andrea DoriaandCristoforo Colombowere commissioned in 1953 and 1954. In 1956,Andrea Doria,the company's three-year-old flagship collided with theSwedishshipStockholmnearNantucketand sank, with passenger deaths estimated at 46 or 55. The company replacedAndrea DoriawithLeonardo da Vinci,which went into service in 1960. This ship was based on the same design asAndrea Doria,but was larger, and featured technical innovations.

In the late 1950saircraftpassenger travel had yet to have a noticeable effect on ocean-going passenger numbers between the United States and theMediterranean.The Italian Line, therefore, ordered two new ships:MichelangeloandRaffaello.Building the ships took longer than expected, and they were not delivered until 1965. Being late into service, they were unable to compete profitably on the North Atlantic route. Although planned for cruising as an alternative, the ships had several design flaws that made their use as cruise ships problematic.

Despite huge financial loss, the Italian Line operated the transatlantic route until 1976, after which theLeonardo da Vinciwas withdrawn from service; theMichelangeloandRaffaellohad been sold the previous year. TheCristoforo Colombowas also withdrawn from service at this time. TheLeonardo da Vincibecame a cruise ship in 1977–78, after which it was withdrawn due to high fuel costs. In 1979 and 1980 the company operated two ex-Lloyd Triestinoliners,Galileo GalileiandGuglielmo Marconi,as cruise ships, but this again proved unprofitable.

Because of the unprofitability of the cruise business, the Italian Line turned to freight shipping. It operated its principalcontainer servicesbetween theMediterranean,the west coast of North America, and Central and South America, carrying about 180,000twenty-foot equivalent units(TEU) of freight in 2001.

Previously owned by the Italian government, the company was privatized in 1998 when sold tod'Amico Società di Navigazione.In August 2002, it was acquired byCP Ships,and in 2005 theItalian Linename ceased to exist following CP's one-brand strategy. CP Ships itself was bought-out in late 2005 byTUI AG,and merged withHapag-Lloydin mid-2006.

International identifiers

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SCAC Code:ITAU
BIC Code (Container prefixes):ITAU

Ships

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Passenger ships

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Image Built Name Tonnage[1] Shipyard Operated Notes
1908 SSTel Aviv 08,312 GRT8,312 GRT Russell & Co.,Scotland 1932–1934 FormerCosulich Lineship; scrapped 1934
1917 SSColombo 12,003 GRT Palmer S&E Co Ltd,Jarrow on Tyne 1932–1941 Refurbished in passenger vessel by Cantieri Baia Napoli. Scuttled atMassaua,3 April 1941
1922 SSGiulio Cesare 21,848 GRT Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson, Ltd,UK 1932–1937 transferred to Lloyd Triestino
1923 SSConte Verde 18,765 GRT William Beardmore & Co.,Scotland 1932–1940
1923 SSDuilio 24,281 GRT Ansaldo Shipyards,Italy 1932–1937 transferred to Lloyd Triestino, scrapped 1948
1925 SSConte Biancamano 24,416 GRT William Beardmore & Co., Scotland 1932–1940
1947–1960
1926 SSRoma 32,583 GRT Ansaldo Shipyards, Italy 1932–1939
1926 MSVulcania 23,970 GRT Cantiere Navale Triestino,Italy 1932–1940
1947–1965 		sold toSiosa Lines
1927 MSSaturnia 23,940 GRT Cantiere Navale Triestino, Italy 1932–1940
1946–1965 		scrapped 1965
1927 SSConte Grande 25,661 GRT Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino,Italy 1932–1940
1947–1961 		scrapped in 1961
1927 SSConte Rosso 18,017 GRT William Beardmore & Co., Scotland 1932–1940 torpedoed and sunk byHMSUpholder,24 May 1941
1928 MSAugustus 32,650 GRT Ansaldo Shipyards, Italy 1932–1939 largest diesel-engined liner of her time
1932 SSConte di Savoia 48,502 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico,Italy 1932–1940 scuttled in Venice by retreating German forces, 11 September 1943. Raised 1945 and scrapped.
1932 SSRex 51,062 GRT Ansaldo Shipyards, Italy 1932–1940 bombed and sunk offTriestebyRAFandSAAFbombers, 8 September 1944
1932 MSNeptunia 19,475 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico, Italy 1937–1940 torpedoed and sunk byHMSUpholder,18 September 1941
1932 MSOceania 19,507 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico, Italy 1937–1940 torpedoed and sunk byHMSUpholder,18 September 1941
1951 MSGiulio Cesare 27,078 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico, Italy 1951–1973 scrapped 1973
1951 MSAugustus 27,090 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico, Italy 1952–1976 scrapped 2012
1951 SSAndrea Doria 29,083 GRT Ansaldo Shipyards, Italy 1953–1956 capsized and sank on 25 July 1956 after colliding withMSStockholm
1953 SSCristoforo Colombo 29,191 GRT Ansaldo Shipyards, Italy 1954–1977 scrapped 1982 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan
1960 SSLeonardo da Vinci 33,340 GRT Ansaldo Shipyards, Italy 1960–1980 burned and capsized 4 July 1980, raised and scrapped 1982
1951 MSRossini 13,225 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico - San Marco Trieste,Italy 1963 scrapped 1977
1951 MSDonizetti 13,226 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico - San Marco Trieste, Italy 1963 scrapped 1977
1951 MSVerdi 13,226 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico - San Marco Trieste, Italy 1963 scrapped 1977
1963 SSGuglielmo Marconi 27,905 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico, Italy 1975–1981 scrapped 2002
1963 SSGalileo Galilei 27,888 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico, Monfalcone, Italy 1979-1983 Caught fire and sank on 21 May 1999
1965 SSMichelangelo 45,911 GRT Ansaldo Shipyards, Italy 1965–1975 scrapped 1991
1965 SSRaffaello 45,933 GRT Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico, Italy 1965–1975 sunk 1983

Container ships

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Built Name Tonnage Capacity Shipyard IMO number Call sign Flag Status/Comments
1985 Aquitania 17702 GT 1077TEU Stocznia Szczecinska S.A.,Poland 8300975 HPUE Panama 1991 chartered, 1993 purchased from Cyprus
1989 Cristoforo Colombo 32630 GT 3632TEU Fincantieri-Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A.,Italy 8618449 ICYS Italy 2002 tod'Amicoshipping Italia
1989 Amerigo Vespucci 32630 GT 3632TEU Fincantieri-Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A.,Italy 8618451 ICBA Italy 2002 to d'Amico shipping Italia
1991 S. Caboto 15783 GT 1268TEU Fincantieri-Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A.,Italy 8618413 ICMS Italy 2002 to d'Amico shipping Italia
1992 California 17123 GT 1410TEU Naikai Zosen Corp., Japan 8901743 ICFC Italy 2002 to d'Amico shipping Italia
1994 Cielo del Cile 15778 GT 1512TEU Thyssen Nordseewerke GmbH,Germany 9046253 ELVB3 Liberia 2002 to d'Amico shipping Italia
1997 Dollart Trader 16165 GT 1608TEU MTW Schiffswerft GmbH, Germany 9162356 V2OD5 Antigua & Barbuda 2002 to d'Amico shipping Italia
1998 Cielo di San Francisco 25359 GT 2474TEU Volkswerft Stralsund GmbH,Germany 9153408 DGZO Germany 2002 to d'Amico shipping Italia
1998 Cielo del Canada 25361 GT 2470TEU Meeres-Technik-Wismar, Germany 9138290 V2PE2 Antigua & Barbuda 2002 to d'Amico shipping Italia
2000 Cielo del Caribe 13066 GT 1302TEU Flensburger Schiffbau-GesellschaftMbH & Co. KG, Germany 9202053 ELXN2 Liberia 2002 to d'Amico shipping Italia
2002 Cielo d'America 25580 GT 2462TEU Thyssen Nordseewerke GmbH, Germany 9239733 ICCV Italy 2002 to d'Amico shipping Italia
2002 Cielo d'Europa 25535 GT 2462TEU Thyssen Nordseewerke GmbH, Germany 9236664 ICCP Italy 2002 to d'Amico shipping Italia

References

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  1. ^GRTisgross register tonnage

Further reading

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  • Italia Line:Official website– page offline – please refer toHistory of CP Ships
  • Bureau International des Containers(Container prefix codes, now linking Italia Line units to Hapag-Lloyd due to the merger)
  • CP Ships: Press release –CP Ships Completes Acquisition of Italia Di Navigazione,6 August 2002
  • CP Ships: Press release –CP Ships Adopts a Single Brand,28. April 2005
  • Miller, William H (1999).Picture History of the Italian Line, 1932–1977.Dover Publications.ISBN978-0-486-40489-9.
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