MV Colombo Express

Colombo Express on its maiden voyage into Hamburg, with the Köhlbrand bridge in the background, in April 2005
Career
Name:	Colombo Express
Owner:	Hapag-Lloyd
Operator:	Hapag-Lloyd Container Line division
Route:	North America to East Asia
Builder:	Hyundai Heavy Industries
Christened:	11 April 2005
Status:	active
General characteristics
Class and type:	Container ship
Tonnage:	93,750 gross tons 104,400 metric tons deadweight capacity
Length:	1,099 ft (335 m)
Beam:	140 ft (43 m)
Installed power:	diesel engine
Speed:	20 kts
Capacity:	8749 TEUs

Colombo Express is one of the largest container ships in the world. When launched in 2005, she was claimed by her owner to be the world's largest container ship.^[1]

Colombo Express holds 8,749 Twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU), 730 refrigerated (reefer) TEUs, is 1,099 feet (335 m) long, and has a beam, or width, of 140 feet (43 m). She is owned by the German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd, and operated by its Hapag-Lloyd Container Line division. She is named for Colombo, the largest city in Sri Lanka, which the predecessor company, North American Lloyd, first called on in 1886. She is the first of eight proposed Colombo Express Class vessels, and is only slightly larger (approximately 4%) than her Savannah Express Class cousins, the 8400 TEU (700 reefer) ships Savannah Express and Houston Express.

Colombo Express measures 93,750 gross tons and had a deadweight capacity of 104,400 metric tons.^[2] Her rated speed is 25.0 knots (46.3 km/h).^[2] Built in South Korea by Hyundai Heavy Industries in 2004–2005, she was christened on 11 April 2005, and her diesel engine generates 93,500 horsepower (69,700 kW) of power.

Colombo Express operates out of the homeport of Hamburg, and will mainly travel from Europe to Southeast Asia and back in 56-day round-trips.

Colombo Express class

Colombo Express class ships:

• Bremen Express
• Chicago Express
• Colombo Express
• Hanover Express
• Kuala Lumpur Express
• Kyoto Express
• Osaka Express
• Tsingtao Express

References

1. ^ "Colombo Express - Naming of the largest containership in the world", Press release (Hapag-Lloyd), 11 April 2005, http://www.hapag-lloyd.com/en/press_and_media/press_release_page_9470.html, retrieved 2011-08-15 
2. ^ ^{a b} "Colombo Express Class, Hapag Lloyd Vessels". http://www.hlcl.info/en/fleet/vessels_20468.html.