The Caledonian MacBrayne fleet is the largest fleet of car and passenger ferries in the United Kingdom, with 34 ferries in operation, 2 on charter and another 6 on order. The company provides lifeline services to 23 islands off the west coast of Scotland, as well as operating routes in the Firth of Clyde.
Caledonian MacBrayne (CalMac) vessels can be readily identified by their black hulls and white superstructures. They have red funnels with black caps that display the Lion Rampant badge with masts in buff. The fleet can be categorised into various groups. Vessels are owned by the asset holding company Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited, which is in turn wholly owned by the Scottish Government.
There are presently ten vessels over 80m (260feet) in length in the CalMac fleet:,,,,,,,,, and.These vessels usually operate on the longer crossings, with high passenger numbers.
, at 116m (381feet) in length the largest vessel in the fleet, operates on the Ullapool to Stornoway, Lewis crossing. has the highest passenger capacity and can carry 1000 people on the Ardrossan to Brodick, Arran crossing. crosses The Minch from Uig, Skye, while, and are based in Oban, serving Mull, Colonsay, Coll, Tiree and in the summer and for relief Barra. is based in Castlebay, serving Barra, sailing to Oban. is based in Lochboisdale, serving South Uist, sailing to Mallaig. and serve Islay and Colonsay from Kennacraig.[1] During the summer,, replaced at Islay in 2011,[2] supplements the Ardrossan - Brodick service and sails to Campbeltown. She is a spare vessel during the winter months.
Two new dual fuel ferries are being built by Ferguson Marine Engineering.[3] The first, named is due to enter service at Ardrossan,[4] and is now scheduled for delivery by 30 September 2024.[5] [6] The second,, is expected to be launched on 12 March 2024 and delivered by 31 May 2025.[7] See also ferry fiasco for the political controversies surrounding the construction of these units.
Four other identical new vessels, ordered in two batches, from Cemre Marin Endustri, Turkey are due to be delivered between October 2024 and February 2025.[8] The first two will be used on the Islay service, and will be named and .[9] The second two will be used on the Uig to Lochmaddy and Tarbert routes, and will be named and .[10] [11] All apart from the first vessel being built in Turkey has a raised aft mooring deck due to the higher piers on the Uig Triangle.[12]
The Wemyss Bay to Rothesay route is operated by two vessels, built in Poland, (delivered in spring 2005) and, which entered service in 2007. There was much controversy following the decision to award the shipbuilding contracts to yards outside Scotland.[13] The streakers' removal from Rothesay was delayed by pier work to install an end-loading linkspan, allowing full ro-ro operation.[13]
The former Clyde ferries,, and had provided the Dunoon and Rothesay services for the best part of 35 years. They were nicknamed the "streakers", because of their speed and ability to manoeuvre rapidly both at sea and in port. Juno and Jupiter were withdrawn from service in 2010, and by June 2011 Juno had been broken up at Rosneath,[14] meanwhile Jupiter was sold to breakers in Denmark for recycling in that month.[15]
From 2002, the service to Dunoon was supplemented by passenger catamaran, owned by Solent and Wightline Cruises and chartered by CalMac from Red Funnel Line.[16] last served Dunoon on 29 June 2011, and was then scheduled to operate the summer relief on the Arran crossing.[17] From 30 June 2011, the Gourock - Dunoon service was awarded on a passenger-only basis to the newly formed David MacBrayne Ltd subsidiary Argyll Ferries.[18] Argyll Ferries purchased and a former Irish boat renamed to serve the route. Argyll Flyer was not available for the start of the passenger-only service due to prop shaft problems. The company leased the cruise boat from Clyde Cruises to start the service, but she was out of service with engine problems for most of the first day.[19]
The Loch class are a group of smaller vessels with a single car deck, running the length of the ship, with a ramp at each end. They vary in length from 30.2to. Most are symmetrical when viewed from the side, with no operational bow or stern. Passenger accommodation is down one or both sides of the ship., and also have a lounge above the car deck. They operate on shorter crossings, usually between 5 and 30 minutes, although,, and take 40, 60 and 55 minutes on their respective routes, Sound of Barra between Ardmhor and Eriskay, Sound of Harris between Berneray and Leverburgh, and Oban and Lismore.
The original four Loch class vessels were based on . At 30.2m (99.1feet) in length, they can carry 12 cars and 200 passengers.[1] The largest and newest,, is 54.27by and can carry 32 cars and 250 passengers.[1] She was built for and has run on the Largs to Cumbrae route since 2007. A mere 7frac=2NaNfrac=2 shorter, and were built for the Skye crossing. They were made redundant by the opening of the Skye Bridge and eventually found redeployment elsewhere after some time laid up.
Of similar design, but larger than the Loch class, was launched in 2012 for the Raasay service. She is powered by a hybrid combination of batteries and a small diesel engine - a world first for a sea-going RO-RO vessel.[20] A second hybrid ferry,, was launched in May 2013 for the Tarbert to Portavadie route.[21] The third hybrid ferry,, was launched on 11 December 2015 and entered service on the Claonaig to Lochranza route in September 2016.[22]
CMAL are currently undergoing a design and tender process for new battery-powered Loch Class ferries. The first phase is expected to consist of seven vessels being delivered between 2025 and 2028. They will be 49.9m long and have the capacity for 24/25 cars and 150 passengers or 15/16 cars and 250 passengers, depending on the design and route they will be on. There will be another phase for the ferries that do longer journeys or have port or sea constraints; these will be assigned to the Sound of Barra, Sound of Harris, Oban - Lismore and Mallaig - Armadale crossings.[23] [24]
There are five vessels in the fleet which cannot be listed in the above categories.
Name | Cars | Passengers | Type | Routes | Launched | Shipbuilder | Image | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
18 | 160 | Double Ended Car ferry | Tarbert - Portavadie (Summer) Relief vessel (Winter) | 1976 | Ailsa Shipbuilding Company, Troon | |||
76 | 448 | Car ferry | Ardrossan - Brodick[36] | 1983 | Ferguson Ailsa Ltd, Port Glasgow | |||
68 | 507 | Car ferry | Kennacraig – Port Askaig/Port Ellen Kennacraig – Port Askaig - Colonsay - Oban Relief (Winter) | 1985 | Cochrane Shipbuilders Ltd, Selby | |||
12 | 203 | Double Ended Car ferry | Oban - Achnacroish, Lismore | 1986 | Richard Dunston, Hessle | |||
12 | 203 | Double Ended Car ferry | Relief vessel | 1986 | Richard Dunston, Hessle | |||
12 | 203 | Double Ended Car ferry | Largs - Cumbrae Slip (Tattie Pier)(summer) Relief vessel (winter) | 1986 | Richard Dunston, Hessle | |||
12 | 203 | Double Ended Car ferry | 1986 | Richard Dunston, Hessle | ||||
80 | 962 | Car ferry | Oban - Craignure Oban - Scalasaig (Winter Only) Oban - Castlebay / Lochboisdale (Winter Relief) | 1987 | Ferguson Shipbuilders, Port Glasgow | |||
56 | 505 | Car ferry | Mallaig - Lochboisdale Oban - Lochboisdale (Winter Only) Oban - Arinagour - Scarinish (Winter Relief) Oban - Scalasaig (Winter Relief) | 1989 | Ferguson Shipbuilders, Port Glasgow | |||
III | 36 | 200 | Double Ended Car ferry | 1991 | Ferguson Shipbuilders, Port Glasgow | |||
II | 36 | 200 | Double Ended Car ferry | Mallaig - Armadale (Summer) Relief vessel (Winter) | 1991 | Ferguson Shipbuilders, Port Glasgow | ||
III | 10 | 250 | Double Ended Car ferry | 1991 | J W Miller & Sons Ltd, St Monans | |||
18 | 142 | Double Ended Car ferry | Tobermory - Kilchoan Relief (Winter) | 1992 | J W Miller & Sons Ltd, St Monans | |||
110 | 1000 | Car ferry | Out of service until further notice[37] | 1993 | Richards (Shipbuilders) Ltd, Suffolk | |||
123 | 680 | Car ferry | Oban - Castlebay Ullapool - Stornoway (Winter Relief) | 1995 | Ferguson Shipbuilders, Port Glasgow | |||
18 | 150 | Double Ended Car ferry | Relief vessel | 1996 | McTay Marine, Merseyside | |||
24 | 150 | Double Ended Car ferry | 1997 | |||||
V | 100 | 638 | Car ferry | Oban - Arinagour - Scarinish (- Castlebay (Summer Only)) Oban - Scalasaig Oban - Craignure (Winter Only) | 1998 | Appledore Shipbuilders, Devon | ||
0 | 250 | Passenger catamaran | 1999 | |||||
II | 14 | 190 | Car ferry | Mallaig - Rùm - Canna - Eigg - Muck Mallaig - Armadale (Winter) | 2000 | Ailsa Shipbuilding Company, Troon | ||
III | 100 | 612 | Car ferry | 2000 | Ferguson Shipbuilders, Port Glasgow | |||
0 | 244 | Passenger ferry | 2001 | OCEA, France | ||||
32 | 146 | Double Ended Car ferry | 2003 | |||||
III | 40 | 250 | Almost Double Ended Car ferry | Mallaig - Armadale (Summer) Wemyss Bay - Rothesay (Winter relief) | 2003 | Appledore Shipbuilders, Devon | ||
VII | 60 | 450 | Car ferry | 2005 | Remontowa Group, Poland | |||
VII | 60 | 450 | Car ferry | 2006 | Remontowa Group, Poland | |||
36 | 250 | Double Ended Car ferry | 2006 | Ferguson Shipbuilders, Port Glasgow | ||||
II (on charter) | 0 | 80 | Passenger ferry | 2007 | Voyager Boatyard | |||
85 | 550 | Car ferry | Kennacraig – Port Askaig/Port Ellen Kennacraig – Port Askaig - Colonsay (Winter) | 2010 | Remontowa Group, Poland | |||
23 | 150 | Double Ended Hybrid Car ferry | 2012 | Ferguson Shipbuilders, Port Glasgow | ||||
II | 23 | 150 | Double Ended Hybrid Car ferry | 2013 | Ferguson Shipbuilders, Port Glasgow | |||
II | 143 | 700 | Car ferry | 2014 | Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft, Germany | |||
23 | 150 | Double Ended Hybrid Car ferry | Claonaig – Lochranza (summer) Tarbert – Portavadie (winter) Tarbert – Lochranza (winter) | 2015 | Ferguson Marine, Port Glasgow | |||
II | 40 | 195 | Double Ended Car ferry | 2015 | Sefine Shipyard, Turkey | |||
1 | 12 | Car Landing Craft | 2017 | Malakoff Limited, Lerwick, Shetland | ||||
(on charter) | 98 | 430 | Catamaran Car Ferry | Ardrossan - Brodick (May - Sept, Nov 2023, Jan 2024) Tarbert - Lochmaddy (Nov - Dec 2023) Troon - Brodick (March 2024 -) | 2019 | Strategic Marine, Vietnam |
Name | Cars | Passengers | Type | Routes | Build Details | Shipbuilder | Image | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
127 | 852[38] | LNG Hybrid Car ferry | Launched 2017, Delivery due by end September 2024[40] | Ferguson Marine, Port Glasgow | ||||
127 | 852 | LNG Hybrid Car ferry | Troon - Brodick (initially) Ardrossan - Brodick[41] | Under Construction, Delivery 31 May 2025 Launched 9 April 2024[42] | Ferguson Marine, Port Glasgow | |||
107 | 450[43] | Car Ferry | Under Construction, Delivery end of 2024[44] | Cemre Marin Endustri, Turkey | MV Isle of Islay image on CMAL website | |||
107 | 450 | Car Ferry | Kennacraig – Port Askaig/Port Ellen Kennacraig – Port Askaig - Colonsay - Oban | Under Construction, Delivery February 2025 | Cemre Marin Endustri, Turkey | |||
107 | 450 | Car Ferry | Uig - Lochmaddy | Under Construction, Delivery June 2025 | Cemre Marin Endustri, Turkey | |||
107 | 450 | Car Ferry | Uig - Tarbert | Under Construction, Delivery October 2025 | Cemre Marin Endustri, Turkey |
FB Laig Bay | 2000 | 2000 | 2004 | Eigg Tender | ||
MV Gylen Lady | 1999 | 1 July 2017[45] | 5 Sept 2017 | Continues to do relief duties to cover for the overhaul of MV Cavoria. | ||
MV Arrow | 1998 | July 2021 Jan 2023 Nov 2023 | Sept 2021 Mar 2023 Nov 2023 | Charter vessel from Seatruck Ferries and Isle of Man Steam Packet Co. for Stornoway freight service. | ||
MV Clipper Ranger | 1998 | 2013 | 2015 | Charter vessel from Seatruck Ferries for Stornoway freight service. | ||
1979 | Sept 2002 | Sept 2013 | Charter vessel from Harrison's (Clyde) Ltd for Stornoway freight service. | |||
MV Hascosay | 1971 | May 2002 | Aug 2002 | Charter vessel from NorthLink Ferries for Stornoway freight service. | ||
MV Lochmor II | 1979 | 1979 | 2001 | |||
III | 1978 | 1978 Oct 1997 | May 1997 Apr 1998 | Sold to Sea Container Service Ltd then to Pentland Ferries. She was chartered back 1997/8. | ||
MV Saturn | 1977 | 1977 | 2011 | Sold to Pentland Ferries, renamed MV Orcadia. | ||
1976 | 1976 | 2018 | ||||
1975 | 1975 | 2017 | ||||
II | 1974 | 1974 | 2018 | |||
III | 1974 | 1974 | 2010 | Scrapped | ||
III | 1974 | 1974 | 2004 | |||
1974 | 1974 | 1995 | ||||
II | 1973 | 1974 | 2011 | Scrapped | ||
MV Bruernish | 1973 | 1973 | 2006 | |||
MV Coll II | 1973 | 1973 | 1998 | |||
1973 | 1973 | 1998 | ||||
MV Morvern | 1972 | 1972, 1973 | 1995 | From David MacBrayne | ||
MV Kilbrannan | 1972 | 1972, 1973 | 1992 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
MV Lochalsh III | 1971 | 1971, 1973 | 1991 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
MV Iona VII | 1970 | 1970, 1973 Apr 1998 Nov 2008 | 1997 May 1998 Dec 2008 | From David MacBrayne. Sold to Pentland Ferries renamed MV Pentalina-B. Chartered back to CalMac twice. | ||
III | 1970 | 1970, 1973 | 1991 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
II | 1969 | 1969, 1973 | 1986 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
II | 1967 | 1967, 1973 | 1987 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
III | 1966 | 1970, 1973 | 1988 | From Caledonian Steam Packet, former MV Stena Baltica | ||
II | 1965 | 1965, 1973 | 1987 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
MV Columba II | 1964 | 1964, 1973 | 1989 | From David MacBrayne, current MV Hebridean Princess | ||
IV | 1964 | 1964, 1973 | 1984 | From David MacBrayne | ||
II | 1963 | 1963, 1973 | 1985 | From David MacBrayne | ||
FB Iona VI | 1962 | 1962, 1973 | 1988 | From David MacBrayne, Iona - Staffa Tender | ||
1961 | 1967, 1973 | 1993 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | |||
MV Kyleakin II | 1960 | 1960, 1973 | 1983 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
III | 1957 | 1957, 1973 | 1989 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
MV Lochalsh II | 1957 | 1957, 1973 | 1979 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
FB Ulva | 1956 | 1956, 1973 | 2001 | From David MacBrayne, Iona - Staffa then Eigg tender | ||
II | 1955 | 1955, 1973 | 1976 | From David MacBrayne | ||
VI | 1954 | 1954, 1973 | 1979 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
II | 1954 | 1954, 1973 | 1979 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
1953 | 1953, 1973 | 1981 | From Caledonian Steam Packet, restoration being done by preservation society | |||
II | 1953 | 1954, 1973 | 1980 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | ||
1953 | 1953, 1973 | 1978 | From Caledonian Steam Packet, converted to a car ferry | |||
1953 | 1953, 1973 | 1974 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | |||
1953 | 1953, 1973 | 1973 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | |||
1953 | 1953, 1973 | 1973 | From Caledonian Steam Packet | |||
MV Loch Carron | 1951 | 1951, 1973 | 1976 | From David MacBrayne | ||
1947 | 1947, 1973 | 1974 | From Caledonian Steam Packet, currently run by a preservation society | |||
I | 1947 | 1947, 1973 | 1973 | From David MacBrayne | ||
MV Loch Dunvegan II | 1946 | 1950, 1973 | 1973 | From David MacBrayne | ||
MV Loch Toscaig | 1945 | 1955, 1973 | 1975 | From David MacBrayne | ||
FB Applecross | 1944 | 1963 1973 | 1969 1985 | Kylerhea, Tobermory and Iona Tender | ||
MV Loch Arkaig | 1942 | 1960, 1973 | 1979 | From David MacBrayne | ||
MV Loch Nell | 1941 | 1947, 1973 | 1981 | From David MacBrayne | ||
FB Staffa VI | 1934 | 1975 | 1981 | Tender | ||
1933 | 1935, 1973 | 1978 | From Caledonian Steam Packet, restoration being done by preservation society | |||
FB Kildonan II | 1923 | 1975 | 1985 | Tender | ||
FB Eigg I | 1923 | 1966, 1973 | 1978 | From David MacBrayne, Tender | ||
FB Craignure | 1904 | 1950 1973 | 1964 1979 | Craignure and Iona Tender | ||
FB Tiger | 1904 | 1973 | 1975 | Iona Tender |