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Elation heads the big parade
Carnival Cruise Lines 2,040-passenger Elation took safely to the seas in March 1998 having been handed over by Finland's Kvaerner Masa-Yards during ceremonies in Helsinki.
 The 70,000-ton, 300 million-dollar vessel is pictured by Marvin Jensen arriving in San Fransisco having left Miami on March 20 for a 15-day maiden Panama Canal voyage to Los Angeles.
Following some pre-inaugural activities on the West Coast, she began her year-round, seven-day cruises from California to the Mexican Riviera, becoming the first new cruise ship ever to offer regular service from Los Angeles.
Elation, completed almost two weeks ahead of schedule, was the first cruise ship to feature the innovative electric Azipod propulsion which, unlike conventional systems, pulls a ship through the water instead of pushing it.
The system did away with traditional propeller shafts, rudders and stern thrusters, making the ship easier to steer and manoeuver and reducing noise and vibration.
Jukka Jaatinen, Kvaerner Masa's project manager, says: "The change to Azipod propulsion is as significant as the change from the paddle wheel to the propeller."
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