Caledonian MacBrayne ferries in Scotland

[whole diary]

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

CalMac in 'better place' as third repaired ferry returns to service

Scotland's ferry shortage is reaching a "much better place" with a third major vessel set to resume service, CalMac says.

MV Lord of the Isles will be ready to sail again "early next week" after problems with its main engine put it out of action last Saturday.

The operator said its network was in a "critical" state last weekend after a series of issues left four ferries needing repairs while four others were under annual maintenance.

Earlier this week MV Glen Sannox returned to Arran and MV Isle of Islay, the newest ferry of the fleet, entered service after snagging issues were resolved.

However, chief executive Duncan Mackison warned passengers to be prepared for weather disruption over Easter weekend during Storm Dave. He said: "With MV Lord of the Isles available for service from early next week, we will have three of the four major vessels which had unplanned technical issues back in action. The picture is much improved from a few days ago and we're able to operate additional services for Mull, Barra and South Uist next week."

He added: "We have detailed information on our website for customers travelling over Easter weekend."

(BBC article continues)

[Mark A]

From the end of February & Ullapool. Its not commonplace to see two Calmac ferries there at once. The Stornoway ferry Loch Seaforth has arrived and is about to berth, while the second ferry, 'Hebrides', is leaving after a brief call en route from her more usual haunts to Leith for maintenance.

Hebrides had just given a long blast on her horn, the echoes from which came back from various parts of the loch for around the next thirty seconds, which was atmospheric.

Mark

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[Chris from Nailsea]

Another update, from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Almost a third of CalMac's ferry fleet out of action

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The MV Glen Sannox only returned to service last week

Almost a third of CalMac's ferry fleet is out of action due to technical faults and annual repairs, with the firm's boss warning it is struggling to maintain services.

MV Lord of the Isles became the latest large vessel out of action when it was pulled from the Oban-Barra route on Tuesday due to a problem with its starboard engine.

Six major vessels and four smaller ones are currently unable to sail, causing widespread disruption to west coast routes.

The operator's chief executive, Duncan Mackison, said the firm had been facing an "unprecedented scenario" which had now worsened.

Mackison said: "Almost a third of our entire fleet is unavailable for service, creating a set of circumstances where significant disruption on multiple routes served by major and small vessels is unavoidable. Though the situation appeared to be stabilising, emergent issues across major and small vessels means the unprecedented scenario we find ourselves in has worsened. Everyone at CalMac is acutely aware of the level of disruption many islands on our network have faced recently, and I apologise for that."

He added: "The full service impact of the current issues is being reviewed, and plans will be shared with island communities tomorrow."

MV Glen Sannox, has been hit by a series of faults since returning from an extended annual overhaul in Merseyside in March, the latest being a leak from a fuel pump. It had returned to service last week after a repair to its exhaust system but was withdrawn again on Monday, affecting the busy Troon to Brodick route.

The chartered catamaran MV Alfred is expected back from overhaul and should be able to restore the Troon services on Wednesday.

CalMac has now abandoned plans to temporarily re-deploy Glen Sannox to the Western Isles routes and it will stay on the Arran service once it is fixed.

MV Lord of the Isles only returned at the weekend after problems with its main engine put it out of action last week. However an "ongoing technical issue" with the ship's starboard main engine means an amended timetable - using the MV Isle of Mull - will run through to the end of Wednesday.

CalMac's west of Scotland network has been under sustained pressure in recent weeks, with many ferries under maintenance and others facing unplanned repairs.

The state-owned operator last month said it was facing a "critical" situation due to a shortage of vessels due to technical faults and planned maintenance.

CalMac has been forced to reposition multiple vessels on its island routes and said plans were "under constant review".

(BBC article continues)

[Chris from Nailsea]

Oh, no. 

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Main Calmac ferry to Lewis out of action after issue with ramp

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Engineers are working on an issue with a ramp on the MV Loch Seaforth

The main Calmac ferry to Lewis has broken down, with services cancelled for the rest of the day.

MV Loch Seaforth, which sails between Ullapool and Stornoway, has a problem with the ramp at its bow. Engineers are carrying out repairs.

Problems across the Calmac network caused by breakdowns and maintenance demands have eased in recent days. However, passengers are being warned of possible disruption across 15 out of 30 west coast routes.

The MV Loch Seaforth, which cost £42m to build, made its first passenger sailing 11 years ago. It has capacity for 700 passengers, 143 cars or 20 commercial vehicles. It was named after a mail boat that sailed between Lewis and the Scottish mainland from the 1940s until the 1970s.

(BBC article continues)

[grahame]

Main Calmac ferry to Lewis out of action after issue with ramp

3 hours drive to Uig for the alternative ferry to Tarbert (Harris) ... or about 24 hours by public transport according to Google.  One hopes that CalMac might lay on a bus, coach or taxi around

[Mark A]

Oops, the media fixated on bow doors there: the Loch Seaforth doesn't have such an infernal invention.

Mark

[Mark A]

Oops, to be fair, in their service update, CalMac have described it as a "bow ramp".

Mark

Monday 13 April

The repair to the Bow Ramp on MV loch Seaforth has been unsuccessful. Engineers are continuing to work on a repair. As a result, the following sailings are cancelled:

Depart Stornoway – 14:00

Depart Ullapool – 17:30

Parts are due to be returned to the vessel this evening following repair for fitting overnight.

Following this, a period of sea trials will be required on the morning of Tuesday 13 April to test the repair. As a result, the following sailings are cancelled:

Depart Stornoway – 07:00

Depart Ullapool - 10:30

There will be an update by 11:00 on Tuesday 14 April regarding the 14:00 sailing from Stornoway. Sailings remain liable to disruption or cancellation at short notice.

[Mark A]

Oops, I'm completely to seek. She *does* have a bow door and it's not yet fixed.

Mark

From Tuesday 14 April

MV Loch Seaforth will be operating single ended with weather restrictions in place until further notice. Please note that this will result in a reduction of carrying capacity to allow vehicles to turn on the car deck. Impacted bookings will be contacted by the Port directly.

[Mark A]

Photo from 2023.

Mark

https://www.inverness-courier.co.uk/news/ferry-cancellations-continue-into-second-day-309924/

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

CalMac's dual-fuel ferry has run solely on diesel since July

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CalMac initially suspended use of the ship's liquefied natural gas after concern that some gas could enter the engine spaces

CalMac's "eco-friendly" dual-fuel ferry Glen Sannox - which is capable of running on gas - has been operating solely on diesel since last July, it has emerged.

The operator initially suspended use of the ship's liquefied natural gas (LNG) last summer after concern that some gas could enter the engine spaces.

An extra safety feature was fitted during the vessel's annual overhaul to address the issue but CalMac then decided not to "re-gas" the ship when it returned in February.

A spokesperson said re-gassing would take at least a week and the priority had been to get Glen Sannox back into service as soon as possible given the shortage of available vessels on its west coast network.

The initial decision to suspend the use of LNG for the main engines followed concern that gases from a vent pipe could enter the engine spaces via an air intake, according to the Daily Express which first reported the story.

Venting into the atmosphere is a standard feature of LNG ships to control pressure and to get rid of "boil off" gas - where the gas deliquefies - as well as gases released when the ship switches between fuels.

The ship's refrigerated LNG tank then had to be emptied for safety reasons before it went for an extended overhaul in Merseyside in November.

CalMac said refilling the LNG tank was a lengthy process because the engine had to cool down for a week before the refuelling operation could commence.

Given the shortage of serviceable vessels it was facing, the operator decided instead to continue operating the ship solely on marine gas oil, a form of diesel.

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CalMac says the cryogenic LNG tank on Glen Sannox cannot be refilled until the engines have been allowed to cool for a week

CalMac said it planned to resume using LNG once the current network pressures had eased and a suitable opportunity arose to take Glen Sannox out of service for re-gassing.

The spokesperson added: "She was designed to run on either LNG or diesel and has not operated on LNG since July 2025. The vessel has been a welcome addition to the CalMac fleet since she joined the service in January 2025."

The ferry, which normally serves Arran, is currently redeployed to the Ullapool- Stornoway route because of vessel shortages.

(BBC article continues)