F/B Superferry - Piraeus / Valletta

F/B SUPERFERRY

Official Strintzis Lines postcard

Ship	Superferry (1991)	Building Spec.	1972 at Hashihama Shipbuilding yards, Japan N° 310
Call Sign		IMO Number	7210305
GRT	14.797	DWT	2.817
Dimensions	137,84 x 23,4 x 5,61	Engines	2 IHI - Pielstick, 14.033 kW
Speed	22 knots	Passengers	1.350
Beds	429 in 179 cabins	Cars	400
Lane Metres	690	Sister Ships	Patmos
Registry Port	Piraeus	Flag	Greek
Former Owners	Ocean Ferry KK 1972-76 Ocean Tokyu Ferry 1976-91 Minoan Lines 1991	Former Names	Cassiopeia 1972-76 Izu No 3 1976-91 Erotokritos 1991
New Owners	Blue Star Ferries 2000-01 Swansea Cork Ferries 2002à	New Names	Blue Aegean 2001-02 Superferry 2002à
Line

This ship and her sister “Izu No 11” were bought in 1991 by Minoan Lines and came to Greece as “Erotokritos”, while her sister was renamed “Aretousa”. However, neither one of the pair of sisters ever operated for Minoan: the “Aretousa” was resold to Dane Sea Line and renamed “Patmos”; this one was instead exchanged with Strintzis Lines’s newly-acquired “Ionian Express”, which became the well-known “Erotokritos”, renamed “Superferry”, refitted and deployed on Strintzis’s Cyclades line (Rafina - Andros - Tinos - Myconos - Syros), being even used also on international routes (Patras - Igoumenitsa - Corfu - Ancona); the “Superferry” seems to be a very good ship and everyone which had travelled aboard her is enthusiast of this real “Superferry”. Probably due to the bad month of September 1992, when the “Superferry” had a collision with “Penelope A” at Rafina on 3rd and hitted the quay at Tinos on 30th, Strintzis Lines decided to replace her with the smaller “Superferry II” and transfer her to Swansea Cork Ferries, acquired the same year by the greek company and put her on the route from Swansea (Wales) to Cork, (Ireland), repainting the name but with unchanged name, registry port (Piraeus) and the Strintzis logo on the funnels. Some rumours at the beginning of 1999 indicated her return to the adriatic as “Superferry Kerkira”, but the “Ionian Galaxy” returned from the charter to Libyan Government and the “Superferry” didn’t return in Adriatic service. But the destiny decided that “Superferry” has to return in Adriatic seas that year: on November 1999 substitutes the “Ionian Island” chartered by Superfast Ferries on the lines from Ancona and Venice to Corfu, Igoumenitsa and Patras. Despite the sale of Swansea Cork Ferries the “Superferry”, although in Strintzis ownership, continued her service in Irish Sea both in 1999 and 2000. She grounded two times on Irish service: on April 1994 on a Cork - Swansea crossing and on November 1994 in Swansea Port. For 2001 season Blue Star Ferries decided to bring the ferry back to Greece; renamed “Blue Aegean”, was redeployed on the link between Piraeus, Syros, Tinos and Mykonos, replacing the “Express Naias” of H.F.D., which was arrested the former year; then she replaced in Adriatic the “Blue Bridge” on Brindisi – Corfu – Igoumenitsa line. Was sold at the beginning of 2002 to the company which operated her for several years, the Swansea Cork Ferries. Another big loss for Greek Shipping Register…

SWANSEA CORK FERRIES F/B Superferry Photo © Michele Lulurgas, Patras, 22/11/99

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