Turkish Maritime Lines - MV KaraDeniz

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With Reuben Goossens

Maritime Historian, Cruise‘n’Ship Reviewer, Author & Lecturer

Please Note: All ssmaritime and my other related ssmaritime sites are 100% non-commercial and privately owned sites. Be assured that I am NOT associated with any cruise or shipping companies or travel/cruise agencies or any other organisations! The author has been in the passenger shipping industry since May 1960 and is now semi-retired, but continues to write article on classic liners and cruise ships in order to better inform cruise and ship enthusiasts for their pleasure!

Turkish Maritime Lines

(Denizcilik Bankasi Turk Anonim Ortakligi)

MS Karadeniz

Page Two

New – Including the MV Izmir & her sisters

Karadeniz postcard

From the Ata Bilgili collection

MV Karadeniz was the second of a pair of identical ships to be built, but they were part of the Turkish rebuilding plan at the time and were two of a total of five ships built at the same time by the A.G. Weser Shipyards in Bremen/Bremerhaven, Germany.

The Karadeniz and her slightly younger sister Akdeniz were the larger ships of the five and were 8,809 GRT, whereas the three Izmir class ships were only 6,041 GRT. However, the Izmir ships were almost identical with only very minor differences in their appearances; however the big differences was that the Izmir class ships only had a single screw and sailed at a slower service speed of just 14 knots.

Karadeniz seen in 1956, a looks a solid and a sturdy ship!

*¹ A. Duncan photo from the author’s private collection

Karadeniz had a pair of M.A.N. diesel engines and sailed at a respectable service speed of 18.s knots. Although the Akdeniz was the first to be delivered in December 1955, the Karadeniz followed by her sister within months in 1956 and commenced service on the North and South Mediterranean service.

For details of her public rooms, and cargo capacity etc, as well as her specifications, I suggest that you visit Page One of this four-page Turkish Maritime feature: You will find the link located at the INDEX at the bottom of this page.

A fine black and white shot of the Karadeniz

*¹ A. Duncan photo from the author’s private collection

Sadly, in 1984 MV Karadeniz suffered a fire in her engine room whilst she was at Izmir, although details are sketchy I believe that she never recuperated from the event and she was eventually sold and broken up at Aliaga in 1987.

Photographs

I believe that this is a postcard, and the name of Karadeniz was removed to make it a suitable

one to be sold on both ships – the enlargement clearly shows the name Karadeniz

From the Ata Bilgili collection

A fine photograph of the Karadeniz

Photograph by & © Ali-Bozoglu

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MV Ezmir

And her two sisters MV Ege & Marmara

MS Izmir the 1stiof three smaller sister ships

*¹ Author’s private collection

Although I will not be writing extensively on these three ships, I thought I would just provide some general details as they have so many similarities to both the Akdeniz and Karadeniz! To look at them you would think that they are identical, although they are considerably smaller by just over 2,500 GRT. These ships were also built by A.G. Weser in Germany at the same time 1955 and 56.

In this item I will concentrate on the MV Izmir. Sadly she collided with SS Howell Lykes whilst in Izmir Bay on February 3, 1957 and as her damage was substantial she was laid up. In 1958 she was taken to Bremen Germany where she was repaired in the very shipyard that built her just several years earlier. Upon completion she returned to her regular duties.

Here we see the Izmir sailing north bound at the southern entrance of Bosphorus in 1973

Photograph by & © Hurol Hekimbasi

Izmir is seen here at the Istinye dry-docks at, Istanbul in 1975

Photograph by & © Hurol Hekimbasi

1969 MV Izir Sailing schedule

From the collection of Björn Larsson

www.timetableimages.com/maritime/index.htm

Postcard of the MV Izmir

From the Ata Bilgili collection

MV Ege

This image was taken from a rather blurred postcard, but better something than nothing!

From the Ata Bilgili collection

Izmir is seen here at the Istinye dry-docks at, Istanbul in 1975

Photograph by & © Hurol Hekimbasi

Specifications:

Built by: A.G. Weser Shipyards, Bremerhaven Germany

Tonnage: 6,049 GRT

Length: 402ft

Width: 54ft

Draught: 19ft

Engines: Single M.A.N. Diesel Engine

Screws: One

Speed 14 knots

Passengers: 4 deluxe, 68 First Class

72 Second Class

332 Tourist

Izmir continued in service along the Mediterranean coast until the mid eighties, but slowly passenger loadings were dropping, and already the company was considering of disposing of the larger Karadeniz. Thus it was decided that they would also send Izmir to the breakers and after a short lay up she was towed to Aliaga arriving there on October 29, 1987.

Turkish Maritime Lines 1969 Schedule

The 1969 schedule seen above and below is from the Ata Bilgili collection

For interest, the bow shown on the cover of this brochure is one of the Companies older ships the 1950 Italian built SS Iskenderun. She and her sister SS Samsun were 6,570 & 6,543 GRT respectively, and had 25 Deluxe, 71 First Class and 320/330 passengers. In this schedule they are shown on Page 5 and operated the Istanbul to Haifa service, sailing via Izmir and Limassol both out and homeward bound.

A postcard of the SS Iskenderun

Author’s collection

Page One

Page Two

Enlargement of page two

Page Three

Page Four

Page Five

Izmir’s Tourist Class A Grade Cabin

From a brochure from the Ata Bilgili collection

Page One … The history of MS Akdeniz and the early days of MS Karadeniz

Page Two … Interior photographs taken in June 2006 and other images

Page Three … Photographs by Peter Knego taken of Akdeniz in 1998

Page Four … Photographs and details of MS Karadeniz and MV Izmir, Ege & Marmara

Page Five ... NEW – A superb page packed full of photographs of the ships interiors taken by Dr. Ata Bilgili

whilst she has been at anchor as an accommodation vessel

New Page … Two fine Turkish ships SS Iskenderun and Samsun built in 1950/51

New Page … MS Pasabahce is a remarkable 1955-built Turkish all steel ferry and it is now in need of saving!

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Photographs on ssmaritime and associate pages are by the author or from the author’s private collection. In addition there are some images that have been provided by Shipping Companies and private photographers or collectors. Credit is given to all contributors. However, there are some photographs provided to me without details regarding the photographer/owner concerned. I hereby invite if owners of these images would be so kind to make them-selves known to me (my email address may be found on www.ssmaritime.com only), in order that due credit may be given.

This notice covers all pages, although, and I have done my best to ensure that all photographs are duly credited and that this notice is displaced on each page, that is, when a page is updated!