Concepts to Replace QE2 - Q5 & "SWIFT"

[Rob Lightbody]

What is more interesting is that Trafalgar House / Cunard did plan Q5 in the late 1980s. She would have entered service in 1991 and perhaps would have shortened the life of our beloved Queen by 5 - 10 years!! Q5 would have been very revolutionary - the plans show a twin-funnelled, 90,000-ton ship capable of 40 knots! (gas turbines) to make the crossing in 3.5 - 4 days. She would have been three-class roo with a Super Deluxe, First and Tourist. The Tourist passengers would have had buffet food - for which they would pay extra (way ahead of the Aida and Ocean Village concept). QE2 would hve been assigned to Pacific cruises leaving Q5 on the Atlantic. So, things could have been very different.... Q5 was eventually cancelled because Trafalgar House couldn't agree on the final design and costs were spiralling.

But they did develop the SWIFT Concept in the mid-1990s which would have been unlike any other ship!

Fascinating.  All of it!  What on earth, though, was the driving force for an even faster ship?  Is/was there a market for people who want to travel by sea, as fast as possible, transatlantic?  Cunard can't think there is now, or they'd run QM2 faster... ?

If they'd done Q5 instead of re-engining QE2, I presume thats what you mean by shortening QE2's life?  If they'd done it AS WELL as the re-enginging, it would have been crazy to spend that much on QE2, only to retire her a few years later..?  Or i suppose they could have done a less thorough job just to see her through ...

How things have changed... from Q3...4...5 to QV ...

[Rob Lightbody]

But they did develop the SWIFT Concept in the mid-1990s which would have been unlike any other ship!

Can you please tell us more about SWIFT, Mr. Flagship? 

[Bob C.]

Can you please tell us more about SWIFT, Mr. Flagship? 

And do you have anymore information on the plans for Q5?  I'd love to see any drawings or concept art if available.  What are your references? 

[Michael Gallagher]

I must go and have a hunt in the garage. I have a set of plans as well as about an archice box full of internal correspondence on Q5 - including the manual that was put together for submission to potential builders.

I can't really remember much about SWIFT... I have some odds and sods on it somewhere but I know I lost a whole tube of massive plans on the ship during a house move

[Scott Ebersold]

Oh, yes!  And I would love to see any images of Q5 or SWIFT!   

[Malcolm]

And do you have anymore information on the plans for Q5?

This is the first time I've ever heard of Q5. This is quite possibly because my interest in Cunard really ended with the QE2 so although I know about Q3 because of the way that affected Q4 I've never looked to see it there was anything afterwards.

flagship - I really hope you find details of the proposed ship

(BTW what was SWIFT?)

[Michael Gallagher]

Swift: In 1994 / 95 MET Studio (who were mainly responsible for the 1994 project Lifetsyle QE2 refit) worked with Cunard's technical people to produce a revolutionary ship that looked like a bullet - what looked like an adcanced version of the Radisson Diamond. I must try and find the file I had on it...

[Malcolm]

Thank you for the explanation of SWIFT

[Michael Gallagher]

A little tease about Q5! 

[Rob Lightbody]

A little tease about Q5! 

From the profile it looks absolutely hideous!  Please tell us more though!!

[Rob Lightbody]

After Michael's posting of a profile of 'Q5' above, here is a little bit of information about this proposed QE2 replacement.  I feel Q5 may need her own topic soon!

Cunard had been studying their longterm options beyond QE2's forseeable life expectancy ever since the early 1980s.  A decade later, the line's technical department began planning a new dual-purpose transatlantic liner and cruise ship in collaboration with the Finnish consulting naval architectural firm Deltamarin.  Code-named Q5, this ship was to have been of ultimate Panamax size at around 90,000 tons, with a maximum speed of 40 knots yielded by a highly eficcient 240 megaWatt propulsion plant driving three screws.  With its refined hull form and propellors designed for low-pulse induced pressure propellors, this remarkable liner was described as realising "the impossible into a possible configuration".  With a somewhat traditionally balanced two-funnelled profile, featuring a Canberra-style nested lifeboat arrangement, Q5 would have offered accomodation for 2,500 passengers in 1,250 cabins and suites.  Planning had reached a fairly advanced stage under a veil of great secrecy before this project was eventually cancelled as the line and its owners were ultimately unprepared to make the huge financial committment to augmenting or replacing their flagship.

[Bob C.]

A design concept doomed to failure had it been carried out.  I can hardly wait to see what else Flagship has on this.

[Michael Gallagher]

I have three archive boxes on Q5 in the attic including full deckplans. Not the best looking ship but incredibly revolutionary: a twin-funnelled, 90,000-ton ship capable of 40 knots! (gas turbines) to make the crossing in 3.5 - 4 days. She would have entered service in 1991 and perhaps would have shortened the life of our beloved QE2 by 5 - 10 years!! She would have been a three-class vessel with a Super Deluxe, First and Tourist. The Tourist passengers would have had buffet food - for which they would pay extra (way ahead of the Aida and Ocean Village concept). QE2 would hve been assigned to Pacific cruises leaving Q5 on the Atlantic. So, things could have been very different.... Q5 was eventually cancelled because Trafalgar House couldn't agree on the final design and costs were spiralling.

[Rob Lightbody]

Is Q5 the same as the Swift project?

[Michael Gallagher]

No - SWIFT made Q5 look obsolete!