SS American Star - ever heard of it?

[Gone Fishing]

Some fascinating videos of the American Star on Youtube

[Gone Fishing]

It was even illuminated in 1999 by German artist Klaus Berends

[Gone Fishing]

And this film represents the ship's story including her ending up as a wreck 
on the coast of Fuerteventura



This is well worth watching for anyone who saw the ship during the time she was beached, or wished they had.

[tigga1958]

has anyone been to Fado Rock corralejo Lately?


They have acquired some large ship equipment for the restaurant, could it be from the bar in Puerto del Rosario which had a lot of stuff from the SS American star?

[Sam]

Came across this, well made video:

[windermeregolfer]

That is a really interesting video, Thanks Sam

[Sam]

The webpage mentioned in the video, including much more info and pics: https://www.explorermagazin.de/amstar/index2_e.htm

[TamaraEnLaPlaya]

Noticias:

Secrets of luxury and war rust under the sea of Fuerteventura.

It's been 30 years since the American Star, named after U.S. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, which carried 480,000 troops in World War II, ran aground


The remains of what was once the largest passenger ship built in the United States, sponsored on August 31, 1939 by the first lady of the United States Eleanor Roosevelt, in a mass event that brought together 30,000 people, rest under the sea on the west coast of Fuerteventura. All that remains is a jumble of rusty shallow iron from the now unrecognizable American Star, the iconic ship of the United States Lines company, which symbolized the model of the luxury ocean liner in the 1940s and 1950s and which played a prominent role in the transport of troops in the United States during World War II.



A strong storm, on January 18, 1994, ended up dragging the emblematic American ship to the west coast of Fuerteventura. His end was cruel, unworthy of the glamour that surrounded him and the service he provided for almost 54 years, Diario de Avisos also publishes today in a phenomenal article by Juan Carlos Mateu.



The Ukrainian tugboat Neftegaz 67, which was transporting it from the port of Piraeus (Athens) to Bangkok, after it was acquired by the Thai company Chaophraya Transport for two million dollars to convert it into a luxury floating hotel, broke moorings due to the large waves (and foreseeably some negligence) and the ship, with the propellers disassembled on deck, it was left adrift on its way to the port of La Luz and Las Palmas, in Gran Canaria, for a technical stopover. Its crew was rescued by a Maritime Rescue helicopter after two Spanish tugboats unsuccessfully assisted the Neftegaz 67.



The ocean liner, then called American Star, almost a twin of the company's other flagship, the SS United States, would end up stranded among the rocks and sand of Garcey beach, in the municipality of Pájara. Two days later, while the owner, the company in charge of the towing and the insurance company were unable to reach an agreement on the responsibilities of the accident, the structure did not withstand the onslaught of the waves and broke in two, which led to the declaration of the total loss of the ship. Only part of the bow was exposed, which lasted until 2007, when it collapsed and went to the bottom of the sea.

For a time, the Guardia Civil maintained a surveillance service on the coast. Once removed, the boarding and looting of the ghostly boat began - many residents in Fuerteventura keep some object from its luxurious halls, rooms or decks - converted into a risky tourist attraction until its disappearance under the waters of Fuerteventura. Up to three people have drowned, swept away by the currents while trying to access the American Star.

However, her maiden voyage was postponed due to World War II. The war transformed it into a ship intended for military use and was therefore used to transport American soldiers. It is estimated that around 480,000 military personnel embarked on it between 1941 and 1945. At the end of the international war, the SS América, in whose figure its two chimneys stood out, made its first commercial crossing on December 14, 1946 between New York, Cobh (Ireland), Le Havre (Normandy, France) and finally Southampton (England).

The progressive rise of commercial aviation relegated cruise ships to the background. In 1964 it was sold to the Greek shipping company Chandris Lines, which modernized it, doubled its passenger capacity and oriented its offer to the tourist and emigrant market.



Australia and New Zealand were then her new routes until a second sale took place and the ship entered a stage of technical decline due to lack of maintenance until her machines stopped in 1978, the year in which she made her last voyage with passengers under the name SS Australis. Left behind was a long history of a symbol of 20th-century shipping.



The appearance, 15 years later, of the Thai shipowner and his initiative to convert it into a hotel establishment (the island of Phuket was being considered, in addition to the Bangkok option) brought it out of ostracism, but it would never reach its final port. A storm in the Atlantic Ocean prevented it from passing through the Canary Islands. Thus the golden retirement of the American Star was cut short, which would end up taking forever its secrets of luxury and war to the bottom of the sea of Fuerteventura.

link to article for pics