Timeline 1971-1980 (Rise of the Ocean Liners)

Timeline of events from 1971-1980.

Date Unknown

 * The Cunard Adventurer enters service in the Caribbean, joining the Caronia and Carinthia. Unlike previous ships, the Adventurer is a straight cruise ship, not fit for actual passenger service.

April

 * The Churchill and Churchill 2 are transferred to a new Vancouver-Vladivostok route. Meanwhile, the Queen Elizabeth 2 is damaged when she accidentily strikes and sinks a Port Authority boat in San Francisco. No one was injured, and the QE2 is repaired in days.

October

 * The Cunard Ambassador enters service in the Mediterranian, sailing out of Athens. Like the Adventurer, she is not fit for actual passenger service, and is a straight cruise ship.

April

 * A crazed gunman goes on a rampage aboard the Queen Victoria, killing 63 passengers and 32 crew. He also shoots a Rocket-Propelled Grenade at the ship's hull, but it misses. Soldiers from a US battleship board the ship and capture the gunman after a violent firefight, in which 2 soldiers are killed. The Queen Victoria's surviving passengers and crew are evacuated, and all passengers are refunded. The ship is then docked in New York and declared a crime scene. The gunman, whose identity is unreleased to this very day, revealed he was a Neo-Nazi who was inspired by the song "Der Fuehrer's Face" by Spike Jones. He was later executed by firing squad. The QV would be out of service for 18 months.

September

 * The Ambassador is removed from service after a fire guts the ship, killing 121. Cunard writes off the ship several days later and scuttles it, bringing its short, troubled career to an end. The same month, the Cunard Countess is launched.

August
TO BE CONTINUED...
 * The Cunard Countess enters service in the Mediterranian as a replacement for the ill-fated Ambassador.