Celebrating ORIANA - First meeting with a great rival

May 1995 brought ORIANA another first in her early career; a meeting with perhaps P&O's greatest rival on the seas, the famous Cunarder QUEEN ELIZABETH 2.
Having taken over the role of Flagship of the Merchent Fleet from the ageing QE2 it would make for a fitting meeting to pass the baton from the old to the new as it were.

ORIANA passes QE2 for the first time

The two ships identical in tonnage although different in every other way represented two contrasting eras of sea travel, QE2 a mixed Transatlantic liner/Cruise ship from the end of the great liner era and ORIANA a thoroughly modern dedicated cruise ship the first dedicated to the British cruise market.
With Commodore Gibb on the Port bridge wing, ORIANA enthusiastically sounded her horn in greeting to which QE2's deep horn replied.
While it was common for the veteran queen's to get the last blast in on this occasion Commodore Gibb blasted one final salute to ensure ORIANA truely made her presence felt.

This being the first meeting there was to be many more over the years both in Southampton and at many other ports around the world.
One such meeting occurred 13 years later during QE2's farewell year on the 3rd January 2008, both ships by this time ultimately owned by Carnival PLC, met in the port of Funchal on the fair Atlantic Isle of Madeira,  ORIANA by now herself considered somewhat classic withj the ever larger new builds entering service, still made quite the contrast to the old liner.

ORIANA and QUEEN ELIZABETH 2 contrast Funchal, Madeira, 3/1/08: Copyrigh Nuno Jesus