Vessel Profile: Spirit of Rathlin

Introduction

SPIRIT OF RATHLIN is the Ballycastle to Rathlin Island ferry route’s purpose-built vehicle ferry.  The vessel was constructed by Arklow Marine Services of Ireland for the Department for Regional Development (now Department for Infrastructure) at a cost of £2.8m, and is operated by Rathlin Island Ferry Limited under a 10 year subsidised contract with the DFI.  AMS also constructed the purpose-built passenger catamaran operating the Rathlin Island route, RATHLIN EXPRESS. SPIRIT OF RATHLIN is essentially an updated and modernised version of CANNA, the vessel she will replace.  In advance of the introduction of the SPIRIT OF RATHLIN, a new harbour costing £1 million was built at at Church Bay in Rathlin to accommodate the new vessel. This consisted of a new ferry ramp, berthing pier, car park area, fendering system, lighting and re-alignment of the road at Rathlin Island Harbour.

SPIRIT OF RATHLIN was ‘launched’ at the end of September 2016 when she was lifted by the heavy-lift crane barge LARA I from the north quay at Arklow into the River Avoca. SPIRIT OF RATHLIN was designed by Argyll Maritime Design Services on behalf of Burness Corlett Three Quays (BCTQ) for the Rathlin Island ferry service, and is classified by Lloyds.  Coincidentally, one of BCTQ’s predecessor companies was responsible for the design of CANNA, the vessel SPIRIT OF RATHLIN will replace.  On 16th January 2017 Infrastructure Minister Chris Hazard announced that SPIRIT OF RATHLIN was complete and ready to enter service once the works to accommodate her at Rathlin were completed, though it would be late March 2017 before she arrived at her new home in Church Bay for the first time.  On the 14th of June 2017 SPIRIT OF RATHLIN began service on the Ballycastle to Rathlin Island route.  This followed a week of maintenance at Mooney Boats, Killybegs where some adjustments were made and the vessel cleaned and repainted.  The modern vessel provides seating for 140 passengers and can accommodate up to 6 passenger cars or a single HGV.  42 of these seats are provided in an enclosed heated saloon to the aft end of the main deck which has padded seating, tables, and a television.  The remainder of the seating is provided in open spaces on passenger decks 2 and 3.

Title image: Spirit of Rathlin departing Wiklow.   Courtesy of AMS.

Deckplans

General arrangement drawings of SPIRIT OF RATHLIN are available from the DFI website here.

Technical Information

	SPIRIT OF RATHLIN
IMO Number	9780122
MMSI	232003949
Building Yard	Arklow Marine Services, Arklow, Ireland
Hull Number	62
Launched	September 2017
Completed	Jan 2017
Construction cost	£2.8m
Naval Architect	Argyll Maritime Design Services (previously trading as A G Salmon & Co)
Maritime consultant	Burness Corlett Three Quays (BCTQ)
Classification	Lloyds Register of Shipping ✠100A1 SSC Passenger Mono, G2A, ✠LMC, UMS EU Class C passenger/vehicle ferry engaged on domestic voyages UK Class C workboat under 24m
Owner	Department for Infrastructure (UK Government)
Operator (current)	Rathlin Island Ferry Limited
In service (Current route)	14th June 2017
Call sign	MAEH2
Length overall	27.31m
Breadth	9.07m
Depth	2.65m
Draught (aft)	1.52m
Gross Tonnage	105.03
Machinery	2 x Scania D113 071M 12.7l 6-cylinder marine diesel engines each developing 331KW (450BHP) at 1800 rpm. 2 x Twin Disc MGX 5114SC-HD gearboxes (2.54:1 reduction ratio).  2 x Clements Engineering Hyperform 4-bladed 940mm diameter propellers. 2 x keel cooled Beta Marine auxiliary engines producing 28kW each  Clements Engineering steering gear and dual Clements Engineering stern-lift rudders.   1 x Hardy Engineering T600 90kW/120hp bow thruster unit. Vacuum sewage treatment system
Service speed	8.5 knots (9.5kts max speed)
Capacity	140 passengers (42 passengers on No.1 passenger deck, 80 passengers on No.2 passenger deck, and 18 passengers on No.3 passenger deck). 6 passenger cars or one HGV.
Vehicle deck configuration	Single bow loading vehicle deck forward of the passenger accommodation.
Onboard Facilities in use	Passenger seating Television Separate Male, Female, and Disabled toilet facilities
Flag (Current)	United Kingdom (Belfast)

Additional Photographs

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