Cummins-Powered 'Grand Romance' Begins Excursion Service On St. Johns River In Florida

The 136-foot, triple-decked excursion vessel "Grand Romance" recently began excursion service on the St. Johns River between Sanford and Jacksonville, Fla.

Designed by John Brever, an associate of Florida Naval Architects, Inc. of East Palatka, the 600-passenger vessel was constructed by Freeport Shipbuilding & Marine Repair.

Powered by a pair of fuel-efficient NT-855-N Cummins engines with two NT-855G/GC2 Cummins generators—all supplied by Cummins Alabama, Inc.—the Grand Romance replaces its predecessor, the 110-foot "Rivership Romance," that operated out from Sanford for seven years.

The steel-hulled Grand Romance has a 46- foot beam and a draft of four feet 6 inches when fully loaded. Other features include Miocro Commander electronic engine controls, a Hydro- Electric dual steering system, Twin Disc reduction gears, 4-inch Aquamet 18 shafts, and five-blade, 40-inch pitch, 42-inch-diameter propellers supplied by Bird-Johnson.

On an enclosed fourth level wheelhouse, the captain has a Ratherscan 16-3 radar unit at his disposal, along with two Raytheon 33 all channel VHF units, a pair of 2600 digital Raytheon depth sounders, a 12-inch Ritche compass, a 410 Talkback Raytheon loud hailer, and a Miner channel whistle.

In addition to U.S. Coast Guard-approved running and navigation lights, the Grand Romance is equipped with two Carlisle & Finch 500-watt searchlights; two Crown BH-71, 60 PSI bilge/ballast/fire pumps; two Tait #5 SAS jet pumps; a Quincy D-325 air compressor; and a 10,000-gallon holding tank.

For free literature on the facilities of Freeport Shipbuilding and Marine Repair, C i r c l e 55 on Reader Service Card For free literature on Cummins engines, Circle 56 on Reader Service Card

Maritime Reporter Magazine, page 48,  Dec 1989

Read Cummins-Powered 'Grand Romance' Begins Excursion Service On St. Johns River In Florida in Pdf, Flash or Html5 edition of December 1989 Maritime Reporter

Other stories from December 1989 issue

Content

Maritime Reporter

First published in 1881 Maritime Reporter is the world's largest audited circulation publication serving the global maritime industry.