The William the Fourth replica steamship is pleading for financial help to keep it afloat during the coronavirus pandemic.
The charity that maintains the vessel and runs harbour cruises and charters is seeking a $20,000 bailout as it faces a sudden loss of revenue and hefty insurance bills in coming months.
The association has asked what secretary Bob Cook said was its only creditor, Thales ship builders at Carrington, to convert an outstanding debt of a "few thousand dollars" into a donation.
"We don't have any large creditor, and we don't owe anyone else any money," Mr Cook said. "But it will be hard for us to start doing cruises again in the short-term where we can't put people close together on the ship.
"If we can't start earning money in two or three months' time, we'll run out of cash. We're not in a desperate situation just yet. We haven't gone bust, as such."
The original William the Fourth was built on the banks of the Hunter River at Raymond Terrace and was the first steam-powered ship made in Australia.
The replica was built for Australia's bicentenary celebrations in 1988 but had been out of the water for 10 years before it returned to the harbour in 2018 thanks to a restoration funded mostly by Hunter and Central Coast Development Corporation.
The vessel finds itself in dire straits again due to coronavirus restrictions.
The association has written to Newcastle state and federal MPs Tim Crakanthorp and Sharon Claydon to "point us in the right direction" to secure funding.
"We've got to make sure we have a plan in place for month after next if we can't earn some money again," Mr Cook said. "We're pleading for help at the moment."
He said the vessel had postponed three charter trips and was unlikely to resume until at least November.
"Our only cost that matters at all is the ship's insurance, and, of course, if we can't pay that bill, then we get into a bad situation. If this is going to drag out for months and we can't earn some money, we've got to find some."
Mr Cook said HCCDC had deferred rental payments for six months for tenants leasing its Newcastle properties.
