Construction begins on another giant Norwegian Cruise Line ship

Construction officially has begun on another giant new ship for Norwegian Cruise Line.

The Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany on Friday held a keel-laying ceremony for Norwegian Bliss, the 4,000-passenger vessel that Norwegian plans to deploy to Alaska during summers.

Such ceremonies are a shipbuilding tradition that dates back hundreds of years. They signify the official start of construction of a seagoing vessel.

During the ceremony, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings president and CEO Frank Del Rio pressed a button to start a computer-controlled cutting machine. The machine then cut the first plate of steel for Norwegian Bliss. The plate will become part of the first of 81 blocks that will comprise the new ship.

At 167,800 tons, Bliss will rank among the ten largest cruise vessels in the world when it debuts in June 2018. It'll become the largest ship ever to sail to Alaska.

Bliss will be the third vessel in Norwegian's Breakaway-Plus class. It follows Norwegian Escape, which debuted in 2015, and the soon-to-arrive Norwegian Joy.