Thilo Natke News

Hapag-Lloyd Cruises’ expedition cruise ship, the 155-passenger MS Bremen has become one of the first passenger ships in the world to receive the Polar Ship Certificate which will be mandatory for ships operating in the polar regions from January 2018. MS Bremen was awarded Polar Code certification by classification society DNV GL following a two-year long phase of intense preparation, leading the way for all other ships in the Hapag-Lloyd Cruises fleet which are also due to meet the Polar Code requirements by the Arctic season in 2018.

Hapag-Lloyd Cruises say that their expedition ship 'Hanseatic' has set a new record for passenger ships in the Northeast Passage, when the 122.8-metre-long ship reached the northernmost point at 85°, 40.7'N and 135°, 39.6' E. Captain Thilo Natke comments: “Unusual ice conditions made this record possible. North of the New Siberian Islands in the Russian Arctic, there was a large ice-free zone stretching north through the Arctic Ocean, which we used for this spontaneous detour.” In temperatures of around zero degrees and a brisk north-easterly wind, the passengers took a Zodiac ride along the edge of the pack ice. This event was then celebrated in style with a party on deck.