Cruise ship to skip foreign port visit
By Kelly Yamanouchi
Advertiser Staff Writer
Norwegian Cruise Line said yesterday its 2,200-passenger Norwegian Star developed a mechanical problem that prevented the ship from making its scheduled trip this week to Fanning Island, but not from continuing its cruise around Hawai'i.
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Spokesman Steve Hirano said the cruise line has notified the U.S. Customs Service of the change in itinerary, which may lead to fines since a federal law requires foreign-flagged ships to stop at a foreign port during U.S. cruises.
The Norwegian Star cruise ship may face fines because it is unable to complete a trip to Kiribati as required by federal law for foreign-flagged cruises.
"Norwegian just didn't want to hazard that situation at sea," Hirano said. The ship will again skip Fanning Island next week and should return to its regular schedule by Feb. 16, Hirano said.
The Norwegian Star needs repairs to its steering and propulsion controls because of problems with a transformer, Hirano said. Norwegian discovered the problems last week and has ordered parts, he said.
The ship was in Kona yesterday, sails to Hilo today, and returns to Honolulu by Sunday. The repairs will be completed as the cruises continue.
Next week the ship will stop at Kona on Wednesday and Lahaina on Thursday and Friday instead of making the trip to Fanning Island, in the Republic of Kiribati, about 600 miles south of Honolulu. Normally, the Norwegian Star sails from Honolulu and stops at Hilo, Fanning Island, Kahului and Nawiliwili before returning to Honolulu.
To protect the domestic shipping industry, the Passenger Vessel Services Act requires foreign-flagged ships to stop at a foreign port.
According to the U.S. Customs Service, there is a $200- per-passenger fine for violating the requirement.
Legislation introduced by Hawai'i's Sen. Dan Inouye and awaiting action by a Congress conference committee would exempt Norwegian from the requirement.
