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h/s/c superseacat four

Photo © Kimmo Rantanen, Gulf of Finland, 28/09/08 #9695

Ship	Superseacat Four (2008)	Building Spec.	Fincantieri, Riva Trigoso, Italy, 1999 – N° 6004
Call Sign	IBDU	IMO Number	9141883
GRT	4.662	DWT	340
Dimensions	100 x 17,1 x 2,75	Engines	4 Ruston 20RK270 MkII, 27.500 kW
Speed	38 knots	Passengers	808
Seats	808	Cars	170
Garage	80 lane metres (?)	Sister Ships	Almudaina Dos Hellenic Highspeed Speedrunner III
Registry Port	La Spezia	Flag	Italy
Former Names/Own.	Superseacat Four – Hoverspeed (Seacontainers) 1999-04/2000 Superseacat Four – Silja Line 04/2000-05/2006 Superseacat Four – Seacontainers 05/2006-01/2008 Superseacat Four – Aegean Speed Lines 01/2008-05/2009
New Names/Own.	Superrunner – Golden Star Ferries 11/2016
Line

The British Seacontainers group, particularly active in British market of fast ferries using Incat wave-piercing catamarans decided to invest on the new type of fast crafts which were very successful in the second half of 90’s, with many other well-known companies ordering a good number of them like SNCM, Corsica Ferries and Tirrenia. This statement of the British group led to an order for four vessels with an option for two more placed at Fincantieri Riva Trigoso yard, with deliveries scheduled on 1997 for two ferries and 1999 for the last two ordered; the four vessels were of “MDV 1200 Mark II” class, an evolution of the “MDV 1200” class which was formed of two H/S/C delivered to Ocean Bridge developments one year before. These newer vessels have greater dimensions than the others (100 metres length instead of 95 and 17,10 metres breadth instead of 16), less draught (14 centimetres) which allowed better fuel consumption and higher speed. The increased dimensions allowed a capacity of 80 passengers and 20 cars more than the “MDV 1200” class plus an open deck at stern; another significant alteration to the original MDV 1200 project were the four Ruston engines replacing the four MTU; with an increased power to 27.500 kW, the vessels were capable of 38 knots of maximum speed, instead of 34 knots for the original design. Before the delivery of the second pair of vessels, anyway, Seacontainers cancelled their option on the third pair, so the “MDV 1200 Mark II” class was to be formed by only four vessels, of which this one were the last to be delivered on May 1999 with the name “Superseacat Four”. For this vessel, Seacontainers had very ambitious plans: while all the vessels of this kind were used on routes longer less than 100 nautical miles and, sometimes, on 200 n.m. routes as Tirrenia did using their H/S/C on Genoa – Olbia and Genoa – Porto Torres routes, the “Superseacat Four” had to be used on Brindisi – Cesme line via Corinth Canal, a 480 n.m. route, probably without calling in Greece. In these years, sea connections between Italy and Turkey were very popular and requested, but even if ll the sea connections that time required a very long crossing-time (the shorter being at least 30 hours sailing from Bari or Brindisi), a sea-crossing during half-a time of those required sailing from Southern Italy on a ferry without particular attractions and amenities and with only air seats accommodation, with a crossing price reasonably much higher of the opponents on the same service, made the service not very interesting and Seacontainers stopped its plans, laying up the “Superseacat Four” at her home port of La Spezia for about a year. She left Italy on April 2000, when her Hoverspeed Superseacat livery was matched with Silja Line livery, a company part of Seacontainers group, to open a new Helsinki – Tallinn Summer service, completing three or four round-trips a-day to replace the “Finnjet”, which left this route on Summer to be deployed on Rostock – Helsinki line. Her deployment under Silja Line’s colours led to many complaints against the company by Finnish Seamen’s Union, due to the Estonian crew embarked on the Italian-flagged ferry, which had a lower wage, and the company was forced to adequate the wage to the others applied on Silja Line ships. The “Superseacat Four” continued her service for Silja Line Superseacat without any other significant notice until 2006; that year Seacontainers sold to Tallink the Finnish company, retaining anyway this ferry and her sister “Superseacat Three”, which joined the “Four” on Baltic service in 2003, so the two sisters continued their Estonia – Finlandia line under Superseacat marks. In 2008 the company was sold to Aegean Speed Lines, which decided to continue on Baltic services until half October 2008, then laying up the ferry at Remontowa yard of Gdansk, Poland. At the end of May, 2009, she left Poland to Greece under her new “Speedrunner IV” name, starting her new life in Aegean Sea at the end of June, 2009. Since November 2016 is part of Golden Star Ferries’s fleet.

photo gallery

Riva Trigoso, 1999	Muggiano, 31/07/1999
From Fincantieri Website	Carlo Martinelli

HOVERSPEED – Superseacat Four (1999)

Helsinki, 06/2000	Helsinki, 25/06/2006
Aleksi Lindström	Eero Isotalo

SILJA LINE SUPERSEACAT – Superseacat Four (2000-2006)

Tallinn, 11/07/2007	Tallinn, 11/07/2007
Kimmo Rantanen	Kimmo Rantanen

SUPERSEACAT – Superseacat Four (2006-2007)

Helsinki, 01/08/2008	Helsinki, 02/08/2008
Wil Weijsters	Wil Weijsters

AEGEAN SPEED LINES – Superseacat Four (2008)

Piraeus, 31/03/2010

Michele Lulurgas

AEGEAN SPEED LINES – Speedrunner IV (2009-2010)

Piraeus, 08/08/2010	Piraeus, 12/08/2010
Michele Lulurgas	Michele Lulurgas

AEGEAN SPEED LINES – Speedrunner III (2010-2016)

Rafina, 02/09/2017	Rafina, 25/04/2018
Michele Lulurgas	Michele Lulurgas

GOLDEN STAR FERRIES – Superrunner (2017)

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