Allure of the Seas dry-docked

The largest cruise ship in the world, Royal Caribbean International’s Allure of the Seas, will be put in dry dock on Feb. 24 to repair its propulsion units. Booked passengers can apply for a 100% refund or rebook other itineraries with RCI at the same rate. 

The propulsion units, called pods, can swivel 360 degrees independently to propel or stabilize ships. The pods have been prone to problems, resulting in ships having to decrease speed or risk losing propulsion power. On several ships, the bearings used to enable the swiveling have shown rates of wear that preclude the ships’ moving at high speeds. 

Other ships that have had propulsion-pod issues are Carnival Paradise, Celebrity Millennium and Carnival Legend.