Tirrenia Di Navigazione

''Tirrenia di Navigazione'' or Tirrenia of Navigations, was an Italian state-owned shipping company.

History

It was established in 1936 as part of a program of reorganization and rationalization of Italian state-subsidized maritime services, with capital majority subscribed by the state-owned . The company, which merged the fleets of the liquidated Tirrenia Flotte Riunite Florio - CITRA, ''Società Adria di Navigazione'', and ''Società Sarda di Navigazione'' (a total of 53 ships), was assigned cargo and passenger connections in the Tyrrhenian Sea, the western Mediterranean and to Northern Europe.History
''Tirrenia.it''

The almost destruction of the fleet during World War II forced a difficult job of restoring the connections, especially to the Italian islands, which also saw the recovery of several boats sunk during the conflict. In the 1960s and 1970s, following the mass deployment of motorized vehicles, the fleet was substantially renewed by eliminating scheduled cargo and passenger ships in favor of ro-ro ships.

Following the privatization of ''Lloyd Triestino'' and '' Italia di Navigazione'' in 1998 and the merger of ''Adriatica di Navigazione'' into Tirrenia itself in 2004, it remained the last state-owned Finmare company. On 19 July 2012, following a troubled privatization process that began in 2008, it was acquired by ''Compagnia Italiana di Navigazione''.

1930s and 1940s

With the Royal Decree-Laws No. 2081 and 2082 of 7 December 1936, the Italian government reorganized the shipping lines, which was defined as being of "preeminent national interest." They were divided into four sectors, each assigned for 20 years from 1 January 1937, to a specially established shipping company. The deadline for the pre-existing conventions was moved to 31 December 1936; the companies that performed the convention services were put into liquidation and their fleets merged with those of the new companies. The resulting arrangement was as follows:

*The freight and passenger lines to the Americas were assigned to the '' Italia Società Anonima di Navigazione''.
*Freight and passenger lines to Africa beyond the Suez Canal and Gibraltar, Asia, and Australia were assigned to the ''Lloyd Triestino Società Anonima di Navigazione.''
*The cargo and passenger lines of the Tyrrhenian Sea, for Libya, the Western Mediterranean, the so-called "Periplo Italico" and Northern Europe were assigned to ''Tirrenia Società Anonima di Navigazione.''
*The Adriatic and Eastern Mediterranean freight and passenger lines were assigned to the '.

All four companies were to be majority-owned by , a specially-formed company under the Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale (IRI).

''Tirrenia Società Anonima di Navigazione'' was officially incorporated on 17 December 1936, in Naples, with a share capital of 150 million lirasOther sources give 18 or 19 December as the date of the company's incorporation was appointed president In early 1937 Tirrenia was assigned 53 ships from the fleets of the liquidated Tirrenia Flotte Riunite Florio - CITRA (30 ships), Società Adria di Navigazione (17 ships) and Società Sarda di Navigazione (6 ships); in addition to these, two steamships, ''Praga'' and ''Aventino'', were purchased from ''Lloyd Triestino'' during 1937. On 15 November 1937, the former Adria unit named ''Boccaccio'' sank after an explosion, resulting in one death among the crew; Tirrenia replaced it with the steameship ''Makala'', purchased from ''Compagnie Africaine de Navigation'' and renamed ''Giovanni Boccaccio''. In 1938 four of the company's motor ships (''Città of Savona, Città of Bastia, Città of Naples,'' and ''Olbia'') were part of the convoy of 15 ships that transported Italian settlers to Libya.

The list of routes assigned to Tirrenia in 1936 was updated in 1938 and then again by Law No. 1002 on 10 June 1939, by which it was established that subsidies to the company would amount to 86 million liras annually, to be reduced to 83 million from 1 January 1941. In 1939, the Tirrenia, taking advantage of the incentives for new construction granted by the 1938 Benni Law, ordered a series of eleven freight motor boats (the ) to replace the now obsolete steamships inherited from the Adria and in service on the lines to Northern Europe.

Following Italy's entry into World War II in June 1940, the number of routes served was drastically reduced, while the faster and more modern ships were converted into auxiliary cruisers or used to transport troops and cargo. Only the Civitavecchia - Newfoundland (Olbia), Genoa - Livorno - Portoferraio - La Maddalena - Cagliari - Palermo, and Genoa - Livorno - Porto Torres lines remained active initially, in addition to local Sardinian connections. As the war progressed, Tirrenia lost more than 50 ships, almost its entire fleet, and consequently suspended most of its routes; in 1943, before the Armistice of Cassibile, connections to and from Sardinia were effectively discontinued. After 8 September, the motors ''Città of Alessandria'' and the Steamship ''Argentina'', the only unharmed units in Tirrenia's hands at that time besides the small steamers G''allura, Capo Sandalo, Gennargentu'', and the motor boats ''Carloforte'', were requisitioned by the Allies.

The first resumption of services to Sardinia occurred in December 1944, when a fortnightly connection between Naples and Cagliari was activated with the steamer ''Abbazia'', chartered by Adriatica. In April 1945 the line was extended to Palermo, reactivating the connections with Sicily, thanks to the entry into service of the steamer ''Campidoglio'', also chartered by Adriatica, while in June the ''Civitavecchia-Olbia'' connection was reopened with the old freight steamer ''Langano'' (built-in 1894 and chartered by Costa); the latter unit was later replaced by the motor ship ''Patriota'' (chartered by ''Italia di Navigazione''). In August passenger service was also restored on the latter line using the motors Lazzaro Mocenigo, with accommodations for 260 people. The capacity of the Mocenigo soon proved insufficient and the steamers ''Abbazia'' and ''Campidoglio'' were used instead, while the Naples-Cagliari-Palermo connection was provided by the steamer ''Toscana'', chartered by Oriens. In April 1945, the management of the company was entrusted to a government commissioner, whose term of office ended, and in January 1946, lawyer Umberto Ricciuti was appointed president.

In the immediate aftermath of the war, Tirrenia continued the activity of restoring the connections interrupted by the conflict. To this end, the units gradually released by the Allies (the motor ships ''Città of Alessandria, '', and the steamship ''Argentina'') were put back into service, and the construction of the ', which had remained unfinished during the war, was completed. It also became necessary to salvage units sunk during the conflict and return them to seaworthiness: these operations were carried out between 1946 and 1947 for the steamships ' and ''Limbara'' and the motor ships ''Rossini'', ''Città di Marsala'', and ''Verdi''; the latter were renamed ''Città di Messina'', ''Città di Trapani'', ''Cagliari'' and ''Celio'', respectively, after repairs. In 1947, under the Ship Sales Act of the United States of America, Tirrenia was able to take advantage of three Liberty-class cargo steamers, renamed ''Napoli'' (formerly ''Otto Mears''), ''Firenze'' (formerly ''George T. Angel'') and ''Milano'' (formerly ''M. Michael Edelstein''), which were destined to transport coal from the United States to Italy; these were joined by another smaller cargo steamer, the ''Marechiaro'' (formerly ''Charles Hull'').

In July 1948, the Lazzaro Mocenigo and the , hitherto chartered by the Fiumana Company, were finally purchased, renamed Civitavecchia and Olbia, and employed on the Genoa-Olbia and Genoa-Porto Torres routes; the second line was later reinforced with a second ship, the steamer Torres. The last ship to be salvaged was the ''Città di Savona'', sunk in February 1944 and salvaged by the Greek government, which rejoined the fleet in November 1949 under the name ''Città di Livorno.'' Also in 1949, the service of the Periplo Italico was restored, using three chartered ships for the purpose (the steamer Maria Carla and the motor ships Francesca and Anna Maria, the latter purchased and renamed the ''Città di Siracusa'' and ''Città di Catania'' in 1953).

1950s

In 1950, work continued to restore prewar services. The ''Civitavecchia'' - Cagliari connection was reopened, initially employing the motorship (formerly ''Verdi''), and the connections with Northern Europe, to which the two steamships ''Valgardena'' and ''Valtellina'', chartered by ''Vivaldi'' & ''Giacobini'' and ''Ligure-Veneta di Navigazione'', were assigned. At the end of the year, the Tirrenia had a fleet of 21 ships, with a total tonnage of 61,038 tons; 2,953 voyages had been made, carrying a total of 604,184 passengers and 242,486 tons of cargo. However, the ships in service were very uneven in age and characteristics, and there was a lack of units with sufficient capacity and speed to satisfactorily perform postal services. Noting the inadequacy of the ships in service in the face of the gradual increase in demand for transportation, five twin motor boats were ordered from the ''Castellammare di Stabia'' and Palermo shipyards in April, taking advantage of the benefits granted for new shipbuilding by the so-called "Saragat Law" of 1949. The five ships, capable of carrying 560 passengers each, were christened with the names of the Central-South regions ('','' '','' '', Lazio'', and ) and entered service between 1952 and 1953, being destined for the Naples - Palermo, Naples - Palermo - Tunis, Naples - Cagliari and Civitavecchia - Olbia lines. Also in 1952, the ''Città di Tunisi'', which had undergone extensive refurbishment in the previous year (the main engines and generators were replaced, and the passenger and crew quarters were completely redone), re-entered service on the Naples - Palermo line.

Beginning in 1952, routes to Benghazi via the ''Città di Trapani'' were restored, while in January 1953 it was the turn of connections to Spain (Barcelona, Valencia) with the ships ''Città di Alessandria'', ''Città di Messina'' and ''Celio''. Beginning in 1953, the only Foscolo-class ships still in service for Tirrenia, ''Cagliari'' and ''Giosuè Borsi'', which had been equipped with passenger accommodations in the immediate postwar period, were converted back to cargo ships and placed on the northern European links, for which they had been specially built in the 1940s. They were joined by two chartered motor boats, ''Vallisarco'' and ''Valdarno'', which replaced the steamers ''Valgardena'' and ''Valtellina''.

Between 1954 and 1955, Liberty-class ships, which had already been chartered to Lloyd Triestino in previous years, were sold to private shipowners. The previous year the ''Olbia'' (formerly ''Lazzaro Mocenigo'') had been sold, while from 1955 the ''Civitavecchia'' was chartered to other shipowners; their places on the Genoa-Olbia-Porto Torres and Livorno-Bastia-Porto Torres lines were taken by the ''Città di Livorno'' and the ''Città di Alesandria'', respectively.

Despite the coming online of the ships and the consequent reorganization of services, the growing demand for transportation to and from Sardinia made it necessary for other newly built ships to enter service. Thanks to the facilities provided by the "Tambroni Law" of 1954, the following year Tirrenia ordered three ships, two twins to be destined for the Civitavecchia - Olbia line and one, smaller, designed for the Genoa - Porto Torres. The three ships, christened , , and , entered service on their respective routes in 1957.

Meanwhile, the 1937 agreement, which was to expire on 31 December 1956, was extended, initially until 30 June 1957, and later until 30 June 1962.

On 4 December 1957, the ', engaged on a link between Genoa, Cagliari, Palermo, and Tunisi that had been opened a few months earlier, ran aground off the port of Trapani. Four Tirrenia seamen and two embarked on the tug ''Pirano'', engaged in the rescue, lost their lives in the accident; the ship, after lengthy salvage attempts, was declared lost in February 1958, making it the only unit lost by the company in the postwar period. To replace the wrecked unit, the motors was chartered and then, in January 1958, purchased by Adriatica, renamed the ''Città di Tripoli'', and placed on the Livorno - Olbia - Porto Torres link.The ''Città di Alessandria'' was then in turn shifted onto the Libya links, while the steamer ''Argentina'', employed for this purpose up to that time, was decommissioned.

Demand for transport to Sardinia continued to grow, and in March 1959 Tirrenia, again taking advantage of the benefits of the Tambroni Law, ordered a new pair of sister ships, the '. A heavy strike by Finmare seamen occurred between May and June; to prevent Sardinia from becoming isolated, Sicily, Sardinia, and Lazio were requisitioned by the and directly armed with military crews.

1960s

The early 1960s saw a continuation of the strengthening of connections with Sardinia, whose tourist development was in its infancy. In 1960 the old steamer Argentina was sold for demolition and the Egyptian turboship Nefertiti was purchased, which was renamed Olbia and destined, starting the following year, to join the Torres on the Genoa-Porto Torres line, the frequency of which was increased to six runs per week. Then in 1962 the two sister ships of the ''Città class, Città di Napoli'' and ''Città di Nuoro'', entered service on the Civitavecchia - Olbia.

Also in 1962, the steamship Belluno was purchased by Adriatica, which was assigned to the freight line of the Periplo Italico, with terminus stops in Trieste and Genoa, together with the steamship ''Marechiaro'' (initially a sister ship of the ''Belluno'', before the latter was modified) and the motors ''Città di Catania''.

In 1962 the convention with the Italian state was finally renewed, as mentioned expired on 31 December 1956, and extended thereafter for six months and then five years. The new convention, established by Law No. 600 2 June 1962, was ratified only in January 1965; it again lasted for twenty years and confirmed the lines already provided by the previous one, but changed the subsidy system: whereas previously the state had committed itself to replenishing the balance sheet of Tirrenia and the other Finmare companies every year, guaranteeing a profit equal to at least 4 percent of the share capital, from 1962 the subsidy had a fixed amount, which would be reviewed every two years. In January 1963, lawyer Bernardo Giannuzzi Savelli was appointed president of the company, who was succeeded, after his death the following year, by Dr. Salvatore Stara; general manager, since 1956, was Commander Giuseppe Pirandello.

Put into service in the previous decade ten new passenger ships intended for connections with the major islands and North Africa, in 1964 four small ferries were ordered from of Naples to operate local Sardinian connections, on which were in service outdated steamers built in the pre-war period (Capo Sandalo, Gallura and Luigi Rizzo). The four ferries (La Maddalena, Teulada, Arbatax, and Bonifacio) entered service in 1966, being placed on the Palau - La Maddalena, La Maddalena - Santa Teresa Gallura - Bonifacio, Carloforte - Calasetta and Carloforte - connections.

The rapid process of motorization that took place in Italy caused a rapid growth in demand for vehicle transport by ship, to which Tirrenia initially responded in a very limited way. In the winter of 1963, the Adriatica's ferry ' was chartered to make trial runs between Genoa and Porto Torres, an operation repeated in later years, while in 1965, conversion work was carried out on the ''Città di Alessandria'', which obtained accessible garages with side doors. Beginning in 1965, the private companies ' and ' put into service on the routes to Sicily and Sardinia five modern ro-ro ferries, which from the moment they entered service gained considerable traffic shares at the expense of the Tirrenia; the ships of the private shipowners were joined by the Ferrovie dello Stato ferries in service between Civitavecchia and Golfo Aranci, whose garages could also carry cars and trucks in addition to railroad cars. During the same period, connections to North Africa also saw a decline in the number of passengers carried due to competition from air services.

The state-owned company reacted by commissioning of Trieste to undertake a project to convert the Regione-class units into ro-ro ferries, which was implemented for four of the five ships in the class between 1967 and 1969. The converted units were gradually put into service on the Naples - Palermo - Tunisi, Naples - Cagliari - Civitavecchia, and Naples - Catania - Syracuse - Malta - Tripoli lines, while the other lines remained the preserve of conventional units. This plan also proved insufficient, and in March 1968 six ro-ro passenger ferries, the , of much larger size and capacity than the converted Regione class were ordered from Italcantieri. In September 1969, Commander Emanuele Cossetto was appointed chief executive officer and general manager.

1970s

In 1970, Tirrenia ships participated in the repatriation operations of some 20,000 Italians from Libya, following the decree of confiscation of their property issued by Muammar Gaddafi. was appointed president of the company, replaced the following year by lawyer Pasquale Schiano.

The early 1970s saw a profound renewal of the fleet. On 8 July 1970, the ''Boccaccio'', the first ship of the Poeta class, entered service on the Genoa - Porto Torres, followed in the following months by the sister ships '', , , ,'' and '. The Poeta-class ships enabled Tirrenia to reverse the trend of previous years and regain market share at the expense of competitors, particularly the associated companies Società Navi Traghetto and Società Traghetti Sardi. In addition to the Poeta-class ships, a seventh ro-ro passenger ship, the ferry ', was acquired, intended for connections with Malta.

The entry into service of these new units and the evolution of maritime traffic led to the decommissioning of several traditional freight and passenger units in 1970-1972. In 1970 the and the ''Città di Livorno'' were stopped and sold for scrapping, while in March of the following year, the freight line Genoa-East coast of Sardinia-Sicily-Pantelleria was discontinued and the steamers Ichnusa and Campidano in service on it were sold for scrapping. Also in 1971, the motor ships ''Città di Alessandria'' and '','' the steamers Marechiaro and Belluno, and the turboship Olbia were decommissioned and sold for scrapping. Also laid up was the , which was later sold in 1973 In 1972 the connections with France and Spain were merged with the Periplo Italico and the motorships Celio and ''Città di Messina'' laid up and scrapped, while the was laid up in September. The following year the freight lines of the Periplo Italico and those to France and Spain were replaced by a new link Trieste - Bari - Catania - Naples - Genoa - Marseille - Barcelona - Algiers, on which the chartered ro-ro freighters Canguro Giallo and Canguro Biondo, renamed Staffetta Adriatica and Staffetta Tirrenica and later purchased, were put into service. The motor ships ''Città di Catania'' and ''Città di Siracusa'' were then scrapped.

With Law No. 684 20 December 1974, the Italian government reorganized the services carried out by the Finmare companies, proceeding to a divestment from international passenger lines and promoting a more market-appropriate management of the group's companies. The validity of the conventions stipulated in 1962 ceased on 31 December 1974, and the Ministry of the Merchant Navy was given the possibility of stipulating new ones, of annual duration and renewable for a maximum of five years, beginning in January 1975. The same law also provided for a strengthening of connections with the major islands, which were the responsibility of Tirrenia, and this was made concrete in March 1975 with a plan that included the construction of eight passenger ferries and three cargo ships, ordered from Italcantieri on 24 December 1975. To speed up their entry into service, it was decided to have two of the new passenger units built on the same design as the Poeta class, while the other six would be built from scratch. The process of decommissioning the conventional units also continued; the was stopped in 1974 and, in parallel with the construction of the new units mentioned above, it was planned to stop the motor ships ''Città di Nuoro, Città di Napoli'', and ''Torres''. As of May 1975, the line to Northern Europe was assigned to Adriatica, which chartered the ships employed on it (Cagliari, Giosuè Borsi, and Vallisarco).

In 1975, local services were also reorganized: by Law 169 19 May 1975, it was decided to establish three companies dedicated to them, Toremar, Caremar, and Siremar, based in Livorno, Naples, and Palermo, respectively. As of 1 January 1976, the three companies, in which Tirrenia had a minimum 51 percent share, were assigned, respectively, connections with the islands of the Tuscan archipelago, the Campania archipelago, and the Ponziane islands, and connections with the Aeolian, Egadi, Pelagie, Ustica, and .

Between 1976 and 1978, pending the gradual entry into service of the units ordered from Italcantieri, the ferries Canguro Bianco and Canguro Verde were chartered from , Espresso Venezia and Espresso Ravenna from Adriatica, all destined to reinforce connections with Sardinia, including the new lines Genoa-Olbia-Arbatax and Genoa-Cagliari. The first two ships were returned to the owning company in 1978, while the others continued to be part of the Tirrenia fleet thereafter. During the same period, a renewal of the Sardinian regional fleet was put in place through the purchase of the small ferries Carloforte and Limbara while the ferry La Valletta, deemed unsuitable for connections to Malta, was sold to Siremar and replaced with a German-built unit, the .

In 1978 the first two ferries ordered in December 1975 entered service, the Poeta and class units, which were destined for the Civitavecchia - Olbia link to replace the two ''Città class'' ships. In 1979 the and , the first units of the new , and the three freight units (''Staffetta Mediterranea, Staffetta Ligure,'' and ''Staffetta Jonica''), capable of carrying 117 semi-trailers, entered service. The former was introduced on the Genoa - Porto Torres link, while the three freight units were placed alongside the Staffetta Tirrenica and the Staffetta Adriatica on the lines to North Africa, with terminus in Trieste, Genoa, and Tripoli.

1980s

Between 1980 and 1981, with the entry into service of the four remaining units of the Strade Romane class (, , , and ), the fleet renewal plan established in 1975 was completed. The low fares and the increase in Tirrenia's offer led to a substantial withdrawal by private shipowners in the connections to Sardinia, which were considered no longer economically viable.Private shipowners reduce connections to Sardinia, in Corriere della Sera, 4 December 1980. The entry into service of these new ferries also led to the gradual decommissioning of the remaining Regione-class ships and traditional passenger ships, which were relegated to the role of reinforcement during the summer months; these ships were also used, between November 1980 and February 1982, as temporary accommodation for those displaced by the 1980 Irpinia earthquake. In 1984, Dr. Franco Pecorini was appointed managing director and general manager.

In the following years, the fleet structure remained stable, with only a few changes: in 1984 the Sardinia was sold for scrap, leaving only two Region-class ships still in service for Tirrenia, while in December 1985 the City-class ships, deployed the year before to open an ephemeral Civitavecchia-Cagliari-Sant'Antioco line, were used to accommodate the people of Naples displaced by the .

In January and February 1986, two more ferries were taken over for local Sardinian connections, the and the Ichnusa. In December of that year, the government issued new regulations for the restructuring of the public fleet, by which the system of subsidizing the lines operated by Tirrenia was again modified, and the establishment of a company dedicated to the performance of local Sardinian services was established. Saremar, founded in April 1987, actually became operational on 1 January 1988, taking charge of the ships dedicated to connections with the minor Sardinian islands.

Then, starting in 1986, a fleet upgrade program was initiated to meet the ever-increasing demand for passenger transport to Sardinia. Between 1986 and 1987, the Strade Romane class units underwent a major refurbishment, which involved the addition of a new 12-meter-long cylindrical body amidships and an additional deck designed to contain passenger accommodations. Then, between 1987 and 1988, the conversion into passenger ferries was carried out of six ro-ro cargo ships, three of the Staffetta Mediterranea class and three acquired in 1987 from ''Lloyd Triestino'' (''Apulia, Torre del Greco'', and ''Adria''). The former, renamed Arborea, Caralis, and Torres went to form the , while the others, renamed '','' '','' and , formed the . The Staffetta Adriatica and Staffetta Tirrenica remained used for freight services, which were joined by the Campania (formerly Julia), purchased in December 1986 from Lloyd Triestino, and the three sister units , purchased from the Adriatica.

The entry into service of these new units entailed the alienation of the last two Region-class units and the two City-class units, which were all sold for scrapping in 1988. Finally, the ferry Malta Express was sold to Nav.Ar.Ma.

1990s

Between 1990 and 1992, major conversions were carried out on several of the company's ferries, to increase their passenger capacity In particular, the Leopardi obtained new car decks, while the other Poeta class first series ships (Boccaccio, Carducci, Manzoni, Pascoli, and Petrarch) were raised by three decks and fitted with counter-bridges. Similar operations were carried out on three units of the Strade Romane class (Aurelia, Clodia, and Nomentana), which returned to the shipyard for the addition of two more decks and counter purlines, being named Strade Romane Trasformate. These interventions, while greatly increasing the passenger accommodations of the units involved, resulted in a heavy aesthetic impact on the ships (especially on the Poet class ships) and a reduction in their speed.

The following years were marked by the introduction of a new generation of ferries, designed to drastically reduce the time in passenger connections to Sardinia. In July 1993 the first unit of this type, the Guizzo, built at in Messina, entered service. The Guizzo had a single hull and could carry 450 passengers and 120 cars, achieving more than twice the speed of the other ferries in the fleet (40 knots) thanks to a propulsion system consisting of a gas turbine and two fast Diesel engines. The Guizzo was put into service on the Civitavecchia - Olbia link, halving the journey time to three and a half hours. The following year, the Guizzo was joined by her twin sister Scatto; the two units were later destined for the new Fiumicino - Golfo Aranci and La Spezia - Golfo Aranci links.

Three ro-ro cargo ferries, ''Toscana'', ''Lazio'', and ''Puglia'', also entered the fleet between 1994 and 1995, the latter two being part of the Viamare class, sister units of those used by the company of the same name. On 14 March 1996, the Caralis ran aground on while sailing between Cagliari and Civitavecchia; the ship suffered hull damage, but there were no casualties or serious injuries.

The second half of the 1990s saw a profound renewal of Tirrenia's fleet and corporate structure. Two modern ro-ro passenger ferries, , were ordered from the Ferrari shipyards in La Spezia, destined for the Naples - Palermo route; it was also decided to continue along the path of superfast ferries, commissioning Fincantieri in Riva Trigoso to build four , capable of carrying 1,800 passengers and 460 cars at a speed of over 40 knots. The four high-speed ships entered service on routes to Sardinia between 1998 and 1999; the two conventional ferries were instead delivered in 1999 and 2001, with some delays due to the bankruptcy of the shipbuilder. The reorganization of the fleet led to the decommissioning and sale of all the Poeta-class units (Leopardi in 1994, Deledda in 1995, Verga in 1996, and the others in 1999) and the traditional ferries Capo Carbonara and Capo Sandalo.

From a corporate point of view, in September 1998 the Finmare reorganization plan was approved, with the privatization of Lloyd Triestino and Italia di Navigazione and the transfer of Tirrenia to the direct control of IRI. Tirrenia itself assumed the role of the parent company of the state-owned companies engaged in cabotage, taking full control in the early months of the following year. In addition to Tirrenia di Navigazione itself, the group included Adriatica di Navigazione and the regional companies Siremar, Saremar, Toremar, and Caremar, ranking third in Europe in terms of transport figures (13,900,000 passengers and 2,664,000 cars per year) and first in terms of numerical size of the fleet (92 ships). Among the objectives of the business plan approved in March 1999 was also to guide the group to eventual privatization, when the conventions with the state expire on 31 December 2008.

2000s

The early 2000s were marked by a rationalization of the fleet, consistent with the business plan summarized above. In 2001, the , a ferry of modern design capable of carrying 2,700 passengers and 900 cars at a service speed of 29 knots, entered service. This was followed in the following years by the Janas, Athara, , and Sharden ferries, the last two characterized by a higher speed and the presence of an additional garage deck. Some ships, such as the Aurelia, Clodia, Nomentana, and Toscana, were not replaced but underwent thorough restyling to bring the interiors up to the standards of the new units. The remaining Sociale and Capo class units were laid up and sold, while the untransformed Strade Romane class units were often chartered to Adriatica, to which the Flaminia and Emilia were permanently sold in 2004.

At the corporate level, in 2002 with the liquidation of IRI Tirrenia came under the control of Fintecna, while in 2004 Adriatica ceased to exist as an independent company and became a division of Tirrenia.

The idea of superfast ferries proved to be a total failure. The units did not find favor with the public because of inconvenient departure and arrival times and poor comfort on board in rough seas, in addition to being penalized by the high consumption of the gas turbines (290 kg of fuel per minute), which made their operation uneconomical. As of 2004, the high-speed units remained mostly laid up at various Italian ports, being sporadically employed during the summer or for charters to other companies.

The privatization

Although a possible privatization of Tirrenia had been a topic of discussion for years, it was not until 2007 that the first concrete steps in this direction were taken, with the approval by the of the draft of a new convention. The process continued with the following year's finance law, in which the possibility of ceding cabotage services carried out by Tirrenia free of charge to the relevant regional entities that had applied for it was provided for. However, the initiative did not come to fruition, and on 6 November 2008, the Council of Ministers of the Berlusconi IV government gave the go-ahead for the privatization of Tirrenia di Navigazione S.p.A. The agreement with the state was extended until 31 December 2009, so that the privatization process could be completed.

On the night of 29 May 2009, a serious fire broke out on the , sailing between Naples and Palermo; there were no casualties or serious injuries, and the ship was towed to port in Palermo. The ship sustained extensive damage and was placed under impoundment for a long time, only returning to service in 2012 after extensive repair work.

The criteria for the privatization of Tirrenia were established by Law No. 166 20 Nov. 2009, in which it was decided, among other things, that the regional companies (Caremar, Saremar, Siremar, and Toremar) would be transferred to their respective regions, which would then be in charge of privatizing them by 30 Sept. 2010. On 23 Dec. 2009, Fintecna opened the call for tenders for the privatization of Tirrenia and Siremar, of which the Sicilian Region had declined to take control. The tender, with a deadline of 19 February 2010, saw the participation of as many as sixteen companies, including SNAV (of shipowner Gianluigi Aponte), Grandi Navi Veloci, , Moby Lines (of shipowner Vincenzo Onorato), Ustica Lines, Corsica Ferries (owned by Corsican shipowner Pascal Lota) and the Mediterranea Holding consortium (in which the Sicilian Region had a 37 percent stake and Greek shipowner Alexis Tomasos' TTT Lines had a 30.5 percent stake). However, the company's significant indebtedness (646 million euros, including 100 million to Fintecna) led to the withdrawal of all bidders except Mediterranea Holding, which then won the tender on 28 July.

The negotiations failed because the winning company did not sign the acquisition contract on time, a delay justified by Mediterranea Holding with the inclusion by Fintecna of a clause providing for the possibility of unilateral revocation of the contract by Fintecna itself. Tirrenia was then placed under receivership on 4 August and on 12 August declared insolvent by the Court of Rome, thus initiating the extraordinary administration procedure provided for in the Marzano Law. The receivership put an end to the leadership of CEO Franco Pecorini, which had lasted since 1984.

A second privatization tender was then called, which closed on 19 May 2011. The only participant, Compagnia Italiana di Navigazione (CIN), a new company formed precisely for the privatization of Tirrenia by Marinvest (Gianluigi Aponte), Moby (Vincenzo Onorato), and Grimaldi, turned out to be the winner. Meanwhile, because no buyer had expressed interest in the Superfast Ferries despite their advanced technology, Tirrenia was forced to sell the units for scrapping at 5 million euros each (as opposed to the 30 million estimated for their actual value). In the summer of 2011, Guizzo, Scatto, Aries, and Taurus were towed to the Aliaga shipyard in Turkey and finally scrapped.

On 21 June 2012, Tirrenia was officially privatized. An EU antitrust decision, which found a dominant position of CIN, led to the exit of the Grimaldi Group, Gianluigi Aponte, and Greek Alexis Tomasos from the company. On 19 July 2012, the closing of the deal could be signed, and CIN officially became the new owner of Tirrenia di Navigazione. The name of the company changed to Tirrenia - Compagnia Italiana di Navigazion, and the new shareholder initiated a corporate restructuring and a slight fleet renewal.

Passenger accommodations

Passenger accommodations on board Tirrenia ships changed over the years, adapting to changing social customs and the functions performed by the ships themselves. Until the 1950s, passenger accommodations were divided into three classes, each with separate common areas; only first-class cabins were equipped with private toilets, while third-class passengers were mostly provided with common dormitories, separate for men and women. Third-class dormitories were abolished only in the 1960s, with the entry into service of the ''Città di Napoli'' and ''the Città di Nuoro,'' whose passenger spaces were divided into only two classes. The two ships also introduced a new type of accommodation on board, having numerous lounges with aircraft-type reclining seats, which earned them the nickname "Pullman ships." The division into two classes instead of the classic three was later adopted also on Region-class ships when they were converted into ro-ro ferries and gradually on all newly built units. With the development of mass tourism, the differences between first and second class gradually thinned out: by the late 1970s, the Espresso Livorno class ships provided a single class for passenger accommodations, while the Poeta Deledda and Verga class ships, while maintaining first- and second-class cabins, they had public rooms in common.

On board the Tirrenia ships, up to the Vincenzo Florio class, there was then a cell for possible detainees and a cabin designated for escorting carabinieri.

Liveries

At the time of its founding, Tirrenia's ships retained the livery already used since 1932 by Tirrenia - Flotte Riunite Florio-Citra, characterized by a black hull at the bottom and white at the top, white superstructures, and white funnels with two black bands, one at the top and one in between. The company also took from Florio the coat of arms with the rampant lion and the company flag, blue with a diagonal yellow-red stripe. In World War II, ships employed as auxiliary cruisers or for troop and war material transports were repainted with camouflage liveries characterized by light and dark gray striped patterns, which were intended to make it difficult for a submarine observing the ship's course angle to detect it from the periscope.

After World War II, it was decided to visually distinguish between ships intended for passenger service and those dedicated to cargo service: the former had a new livery, characterized by a white hull with a green longitudinal stripe and white superstructures, while the latter had a black painted hull and white superstructures.

The livery was further changed in 1979, when the green longitudinal line became blue and interrupted, on both sides, by the inscription "Tirrenia." The livery on the funnels was also changed, replacing the Florios' black heritage with light blue and inserting the letter "t" on both sides of the funnel within the lower stripe. The last change took place in the late 1990s, notably changing the typeface of the lettering, and the blue stripe became thicker and progressively doubled towards the stern.

The livery of the Ro-Ro freighters consisted of a dark orange hull and white superstructures.

The fleet

This does not include units taken for hire (except those later purchased) and units captured by France and Greece and assigned to Italy during World War II.

Units that entered service before and during World War II

The following table presents in chronological order the ships that served Tirrenia di Navigazione before and during World War II. Unless otherwise indicated, all data for each ship are taken from the source indicated in the "Name" column. In the case of homonymous ships, they are distinguished by a sequential number in parentheses.

Units that entered service after the war

The following table presents in chronological order the ships that served for Tirrenia di Navigazione after World War II. Unless otherwise indicated, all data for each ship are taken from the source indicated in the "Name" column. In the case of homonymous ships, they are distinguished by a sequential number in parentheses.

Routes taken

At the foundation (1937)

The following are the routes assigned to the newly formed Tirrenia under the 1937 agreement:

In addition to the lines shown in the table, the following tourist routes were then planned:

*Itinerary A (Periplo Italico)Not to be confused with the freight line of the same name.
*Itinerary B (The Sun Cruise)
*Itinerary C (Toward the South)
*Itinerary D (Along the Palm Coast)
*Itinerary E (The Cruise of the Three Seas)
*Itinerary F (The Cruise of Libya)
*Itinerary G (The Egypt Cruise)

In the postwar period (1950)

In 1950, having completed an initial phase of fleet reconstruction after the devastation of World War II, the situation of the routes served by Tirrenia was as follows:

In 1966

In 1966, before the introduction of the first ro-ro ferries, Tirrenia operated service on the following routes:

At the time of privatization (2011)

Below are the routes operated by Tirrenia di Navigazione in 2011, a year before privatization.

Sardegna

Source:

Sicilia

Source:

Tunisia

Connection made by the Compagnie Tunisienne de Navigation.

Gallery

File:Tirrenia di Navigazione Via Adriatico ship 03.JPG, Ro-Ro Beniamino Carnevale.
File:MN Athara, 30-03-2011, Genova.JPG, M/S Athara to Genoa.
File:SHARDEN OLBIA 014.jpg, M/S Sharden in Olbia.
File:Traghetto Bithia della Tirrenia in navigazione verso Genova - aprile 2020.jpg, M/S Bithia to Genoa.
File:House Flag of Tirrenia.svg, House flag of Tirrenia

See also

* Caremar
*Saremar
* Siremar
*Toremar
*
*
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*Vincenzo Onorato

Notes

References

Bibliography

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External links

* {{official website, en.tirrenia.it

Italian brands
Companies based in Naples
Transport companies established in 1936
Italian companies established in 1936
Tirrenia Compagnia Italiana di Navigazione
Ferry companies of Italy