MS Spirit of Tasmania II

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Devonport-Spirit-Of-Tasmania-2008.jpg
Spirit of Tasmania II at port in Devonport, Tasmania
History
Name:
  • 1998—2002: Superfast III
  • 2002—present: Spirit of Tasmania II
Owner:
Operator:
  • 1998—2002: Superfast Ferries
  • 2003—2006: TT-Line Pty. Ltd.[1]
Port of registry:
Route:

1998—2002: Patras-Ancona

2002 onwards: Melbourne-Devonport
Builder: Kvaerner Masa-Yards Turku
Yard number: 1340[1]
Completed: 1998
Identification:
Status: In service
General characteristics
Class & type: Superfast III class fast ropax ferry
Tonnage:
Length: 194.3 m (637 ft 6 in)
Beam: 25.00 m (82 ft)
Draught: 6.55 m (21 ft 6 in)
Installed power:
Speed: 30.8 knots (57.0 km/h; 35.4 mph) maximum speed
Capacity:
  • 1400 passengers
  • 750 berths
  • 1000 cars
  • 1852 lanemeters

MS Spirit of Tasmania II is a super fast ropax ferry owned by TT-Line Pty. Ltd. and operated on the route from Melbourne and Devonport. She was built in 1998 by Kvaerner Masa-Yards Turku in Finland for Superfast Ferries as MS Superfast III. From 2002 onwards she sails for TT-Line Pty. Ltd. as MS Spirit of Tasmania II.

Concept and construction

The Superfast III was the first ship of the second pair (the former pair being Superfast I and Superfast II built in Germany) built for Attica Group's subsidiary Superfast Ferries at Kvaerner Masa-Yards for their Adriatic Sea services from Patras to Ancona. She was a sister ship of MS Superfast IV.[1]

Amenities and deck layout

Spirit of Tasmania II has 11 decks, with 222 cabins.

  • Decks 1 to 6 are used to hold cars and trucks. The for-end of Decks 1 and 2 are accessed via a ramp from deck 3 (The Aft-end space of the two decks houses the ships machinery). Deck 6 holds cars using a hoistable platform.
  • Deck 7 has cabins, a reception area, small movie theater, lounge bar, gaming lounge, gift shop, tourism bureau, main bar, two restaurants and a children's playroom.
  • Deck 8 has cabins and an ocean recliner area.
  • Deck 9 is mainly crew area.
  • Deck 10 has a bar and disco area.
  • Deck 11 has a helicopter landing pad.

Service history

1998—2002: Superfast III

The Superfast III entered service on 16 March 1998 on Superfast Ferries' Patras—Ancona route.[1] On 1 Nov 1999 en route from Patras to Ancona a fire broke out in a freezer trailer on the vehicle deck, most likely in the electrical system. The ship's vehicle deck drenching system along with crew put the blaze out. All 307 passengers and 106 crew were evacuated and picked up by nearby ships.[3]

The ship arrived back in Patras the day after the disaster, and investigations began. 14 dead bodies were found in a truck.[4] These bodies were later identified as refugees from Kurdistan.[4] After the investigations had concluded, the Superfast III set sail for the Blohm + Voss shipyards in Hamburg, Germany for repairs, arriving there on 3 December.

The repairs took 71 days during which 450 tons of steel, 84 km of cable, 1,200 m2 of insulation material and cladding were replaced, and a new tilting ramp and new public areas were installed.[5][6] The cost to the underwriter (Attica Enterprises) was US$26 million.[4] On 3 March she arrived back in Greece and once again operated on the Patras - Ancona route. In March 2002 the Superfast III was sold to TT-Line Pty. Ltd..[1]

2002 Onwards: Spirit of Tasmania II

TT-Line took over their new ship on 10 May 2002.[1] Along with her sister ship Superfast IV, she was handed over to TT-Line Pty. Ltd. at Patras.[4] The two ships then sailed to the Neorion ship yard on the island of Syros. During the ship's dry docking, works such as painting the new livery and superstructure, as well as a general overhaul were carried out. At the yard she was renamed Spirit of Tasmania II.[1] She subsequently sailed to Hobart, Tasmania, where she was refitted for her new service. On 1 September 2002 she entered service on TT-Line's Melbourne—Devonport route.[1]

Between 21 July and 8 August 2014 the ship was docked for maintenance at the Captain Cook Graving Dock in Sydney.[7][8]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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