The new American Melody is nearing completion and was recently moved from a hull fabrication building to the launch ways earlier this week at Chesapeake Shipbuilding, where it will be joined to the aft section and launched into the Wicomico River.

The hull section utilizes a heavy-lift ground-transfer system that distributes and levels the load as it moves, according to the company.

The American Melody, the fourth new ship in American Cruise Lines’ modern riverboat series is on schedule for delivery to the Mississippi River next year. It will feature the next iteration in the modern series’ contemporary design aesthetic, but the Line has not yet released details of the new ship’s interior concept or capacity, the company said.