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Celebrity Cruises on Friday took what it said may be the first virtual delivery of a cruise ship, with officials from the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard giving the line official command of the Celebrity Apex via video conference.
The Apex, the second ship in the line’s Edge class, was originally scheduled to be in England this weekend for its inaugural ceremonies in the Port of Southampton. Celebrity CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo now anticipates that the ship’s first sailing will depart Barcelona on May 20.
Celebrity parent company Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. said last week that it had extended its operations suspension until May 12 because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Lutoff-Perlo said the virtual delivery was “unique just as every ship is unique.”
“While the circumstances are quite unique right now, it’s fitting that such an innovative ship as Celebrity Apex would have a digital-age delivery,” she said.
In keeping with tradition, Celebrity said that Capt. Dimitris Kafetzis ordered the exchange of French and American flags, while each country’s national anthem played in the background.
Source: travelweekly.com