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 Conception TSS Oxfordshire "Conox" Fairstar liner voyages Fairstar - the 'Funship' Fairstar's Finalé Fairstar Reunion Chronology |
"CONOX" - the CONversion of OXfordshire With the Oxfordshire going into lay-up at Falmouth in 1962, it was at this time that the migrant trade to Australia was booming. British and European migrants were given assisted passage to Australia - only having to pay ten pounds, with the balance paid by the Federal Government. Sitmar was already well established as a migrant carrier to Australia and they quickly showed an interest in the idle ship. A six-year charter agreement with an option to purchase the ship was signed in February 1963 between the Bibby Line and Fairline Shipping Corporation (a subsidiary of Vlasov Group). The complex plan to convert the Oxfordshire into a ship that was suitable for both liner voyages and cruises was one of the most ambitious projects to be undertaken by the Vlasov engineers. On 19th May 1963 the Oxfordshire entered the Wilton-Fijenoord shipyard at Schiedam to commence the transformation. The project was known as "Conox Project" (Conversion of Oxfordshire) and was personally overseen by Boris Vlasov. Unfortunately, the project took longer than expected and cost more than anticipated (£4.5 million). There were some crew issues between Bibby Line and Sitmar that were causing some strain on the project. In May 1964 it was then decided to buy the ship outright and move her to Southampton to complete the fitting out. The new-look ship was quite changed from her former image: the superstructure was lengthened both fore and aft, three pairs of cargo booms were replaced by cranes and the funnel housing was redesigned. Inside, the ship was now fully air-conditioned and there were now 484 cabins in one class with the majority having private shower and toilet facilities. Most of the cabins were four berth, but there were also two, six and eight berth cabins. There were also four luxury suites on the Boat Deck. Other facilities included several public lounges and bars (including the infamous Tavern - later dubbed 'The Animal Bar'), a night club, library and a 367 seat cinema-theatre. There were two restaurants - the Waldorf (forward) and the Savoy (aft). Children's facilities included The Play Pen for younger passengers, and the Jungle Room for older children and teenagers. They also originally had their own dining room, located on 'A' deck.
On 19th May 1964 the Fairstar left Southampton with a full compliment of passengers, mostly migrants, on her maiden voyage to Sydney, Australia.
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   (photo: Ray Parkinson)  |