Greg Mortimer (ship)

Greg Mortimer is a cruise ship operated by Aurora Expeditions. The ship was named in honour of the company's founder Greg Mortimer, in a combined naming and delivery ceremony at CMHI's Haimen base on 6 September 2019.

Greg Mortimer off Antarctica in 2020
History
Bahamas
Name	Greg Mortimer
Namesake	Greg Mortimer
Owner	SunStone Ships
Operator	Aurora Expeditions
Builder	China Merchants Heavy Industry, Jiangsu, China
Yard number	Hull No. CMHI-196-1
Laid down	12 June 2018
Launched	12 March 2019
Christened	6 September 2019
Identification	IMO number: 9834648 MMSI number: 311000866 Call sign: C6ED7
Status	In service
General characteristics
Class & type	Infinity-class cruise ship
Tonnage	7,892 GT
Length	104.4 m (343 ft)
Beam	18.4 m (60 ft)
Draft	5.3 m (17 ft)
Decks	8
Ice class	PC6, Polar Category: B
Propulsion	2 x Ingeteam
Speed	12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Capacity	126
Notes	TECHNICAL MANAGER: Cruise Management International, Inc.

Design and description

The ship one of seven Infinity-class vessels built by SunStone Ships. It is a 104 m (341 ft 2 in) expedition ship with a state of the art x-bow design which has a piercing effect on smaller waves, making for a smoother ride. It has 80 cabins.^[1]

Construction and career

The ship was named after the Australian mountaineer, polar explorer and founder of Aurora Expeditions, Greg Mortimer.^[2] Mortimer arguably became best known as one of the first two Australians (with Tim Macartney-Snape) to successfully climb Mount Everest, on 3 October 1984.^[3]

COVID-19 pandemic

Main article: COVID-19 pandemic on cruise ships § Greg Mortimer

On 7 April 2020, the cruise ship, which holds up to 216 passengers,^[4] became stranded in South American waters, asking for help after people exhibited symptoms such as fever, which prompted authorities to ban them from disembarking.^[5] Uruguay was the only country which allowed the cruise ship to dock, after Uruguayan medical teams boarded the cruise ship to test passengers on 1 April, 81 people tested positive for COVID-19. Six people found seriously ill with coronavirus were evacuated and transferred to a hospital in Montevideo.^[6]

The ship received permission to dock and Uruguayan authorities arranged an evacuation flight to Australia and New Zealand. By that time 128 persons on the vessel had tested positive for COVID-19. Six had transferred to a hospital in Montevideo. Passengers from Europe and America who had positive tests would not be allowed to travel to their home countries until their subsequent tests indicated negative results.^[7] On the night of 10 April some passengers were evacuated in order to fly to Australia.^[8] On 18 April, a 52-year-old Filipino crewman died of the coronavirus.^[9]

Repairs and substitution

In July 2023 the Greg Mortimer suffered propeller damage, and was placed in dry dock for repairs. While under repair, Aurora substituted a similar Infinity-class ship, the Ocean Explorer.^[10]