The 18,017 gross ton, 631 by 79 foot SS BELOFIN-1 is one of the most important and beloved liners of the past century. As the MONTEREY, she began her career in 1931, the second in a trio of long-lived and successful liners on Matson Line's U.S. West Coast to Australia and South Pacific service.

Her war service as a 6,500 capacity troopship was legendary, highlighted by the rescue of 1,675 men from the torpedoed SANTA ELENA off Italy in 1943. After a long layup following war duty, she was rebuilt by Matson and returned to service on the California to Hawaii run as the MATSONIA in 1957, joining her sister LURLINE in the heyday of postwar sea travel. When the LURLINE became Chandris Line’s ELLINIS in 1963, the MATSONIA was renamed LURLINE, remaining in cruise service for Matson Lines until 1970, when she was refitted for Chandris Lines with a doubled capacity of 1,655 for Australian emigrant service as the BRITANIS.

She was later diverted to European and American-based cruising, maintaining a fiercely loyal clientele until late 1995, when she was chartered to the US Government for use as a barracks for army personnel at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. While still in remarkable condition, she was not returned to service following the charter. Instead, BRITANIS was laid up at Tampa and offered for sale, finally going to A- Belofin Investments of Lichenstein in January of 1998, who purchased the ship for scrapping in India or Pakistan as the BELOFIN-1.

With low steel prices and prohibitive towing costs, she has remained at her lonely berth and has been the subject of several proposed preservation plans, the latest and most promising of which would see her renamed SS LURLINE and berthed in San Francisco as a floating hotel and museum.

Tour this most important ship then and now by clicking her for the Britanis pages

UPDATE: On July 3, 2000 BELOFIN-1 was towed away from her berth by ocean tow tug IRBIS and departed for a 100 day voyage to India or Pakistan via Cape of Good Hope

UPDATE: On October 21, 2000 BELOFIN-1 while under tow from tug IRBIS, sank 50 miles west of Cape Town after developing a leak

Vintage Passenger Ship Roundup index
Previous ship, Next ship