SS BRITANIS / BRITANIS – ex Matsonia/Monterey – Passenger Cruise Ship – Chandris Line
24346/1932/Greece/5229223
Leaving Tilbury – 18.6.1976
Don Smith Collection
Notes:-
The S.S. Britanis was a passenger cruise ship with a long history under several names, beginning as the Matson Lines’ S.S. Monterey in 1931.
The ship was later purchased by the Chandris Line, who renamed it Britanis and operated it as a cruise ship for decades
Ship history and timeline
Early career as S.S. Monterey (1931–1970)
1931: Launched as a luxury ocean liner by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation.
1932: Entered service for Matson Lines, offering voyages from the U.S. to Hawaii, Samoa, Fiji, New Zealand, and Australia.World War II:
Requisitioned by the U.S. government for use as a troop transport, carrying thousands of soldiers.
1946–1956: After the war, she was laid up until Matson Lines repurchased her. She was then renamed S.S. Matsonia in 1957, operating on the San Francisco–Honolulu route.
1963: Matson changed her name to S.S. Lurline.
Service with Chandris Lines as S.S. Britanis (1970–1998)
1970: Purchased by Chandris Lines and renamed S.S. Britanis.
1971–1974: Operated as a liner on the Southampton-to-Australia route.1974 onwards and Converted to a full-time cruise ship, sailing itineraries in the Caribbean and Europe.
1980’s–1990’s: Sailed under the Chandris Fantasy Cruises brand. She continued service well into the 1990s and became known as one of the oldest liners still in operation.
1994: Ended her cruise career. She was chartered by the U.S. government as a floating barracks for military personnel at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Final years and sinking (1998–2000)
1998: After being laid up, she was sold to AG Belofin Investments and renamed Belofin-1.
October 2000: While being towed to a scrapyard in India, the ship began taking on water.
The crew of the tugboat cut the ship loose, and it eventually capsized and sank off the coast of Cape Town, South Africa.
