No-Nonsense Travel Forum

American Queen Steamboat Company’s flagship riverboat is experiencing mechanical problems on the Ohio River and cancelled Monday’s scheduled call at Huntington, W.Va.

The 436-passenger American Queen apparently spent the night at Maysville, Ky., according to the Ledger-Independent newspaper. The newspaper said on its Facebook page that the boat cancelled a call on Sunday after running late, but that it returned to overnight and might undergo repairs today. “I noticed that it was minus its paddle wheel for some reason,” the Ledger-Independent wrote on Facebook.

The visit to Huntington, scheduled for today, was cancelled Sunday night, according to a story in the Herald-Dispatch.

American Queen Steamboat confirmed that the boat was experiencing problems but didn’t immediately respond to further questions about the situation Monday.

“American Queen’s engineers discovered an issue with its paddlewheel,” the company said in a statement on Sunday night. “As a preventative measure, they are re-engineering it to allow for multiple years of operation in the future." Despite the cancelled calls, the statement further said that the “riverboat remains on schedule, and we do not anticipate any challenges in meeting our planned itineraries.”

The American Queen is in the middle of its June 27 cruise — the eight-day “Good Old Summertime” voyage from Cincinnati to Pittsburgh. Calls were scheduled at Maysville and Huntington along with Point Pleasant, W.Va.; Marietta, Ohio; and Wheeling, W.Va.

American Queen is underway after having one its Z-drives replaced in Maysville, Ky., and the paddlewheel removed and disassembled to repair the main shaft, which developed a stress fracture.

The vessel is due to reach Pittsburgh Thursday on a revised itinerary that will not offer shore excursions, according to American Queen Steamboat Co. president and COO Ted Sykes.

After Pittsburgh, American Queen will resume its scheduled program under the power of Z-drives, and the paddlewheel will be reassembled once repairs have been made.

'All modifications on the American Queen have been approved by the Coast Guard for her to continue sailing,' Sykes said.

The paddlewheeler had been alongside in Maysville, a small town on the Ohio River southeast of Cincinnati, since Sunday afternoon. It sailed on Tuesday morning.

The 215 passengers remained on board during the layover.

They will receive the choice of a free cruise on the July 4 voyage from Pittsburgh, returning to Cincinnati July 9, or 25% off their current fare for a future sailing.

The 436-passenger American Queen is the largest paddlewheel steamboat ever built. Constructed in 1995, it was brought back into service by the start-up American Queen Steamboat Co. in 2012. The Memphis-based operator recently introduced its second vessel, American Empress, in the Pacific Northwest.