A history of bad luck for Aurora after naming ceremony bottle failed to smash (From Daily Echo)
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A history of bad luck for Aurora after naming ceremony bottle failed to smash
12:20pm Saturday 28th March 2009 in News
AURORA has had a chequered history since she was launched in 2000.
At her naming ceremony, by the Princess Royal, the champagne bottle did not break as the vessel was blessed which was considered a bad omen.
On her maiden voyage, the ship broke down in the Bay of Biscay and had to return to the port. Passengers were compensated to the tune of £6m.
In 2003 the norovirus bug affected a high number of passengers.
And in January 2005 P&O cancelled a much-delayed world cruise of the £200m luxury liner because of propulsion system problems.
The 1,759 passengers on board who had each paid up to £40,000 were all set to leave South-ampton for a 103-day “Grand Voyage of the World”.
But the vessel only made it to the Isle of Wight when engineers found a fault.
Last year hundreds of passengers had to undergo tests on board Aurora to see whether they had contracted a deadly strain of hepatitis.
A health probe was launched after seven passengers tested positive for hepatitis E.
