Mytilene at Piraeus in 2011. | |
History | |
---|---|
Japan | |
Name | Vega |
Owner | Shin Higashi Nihon Ferry |
Route | Tomakomai to Sendai |
Launched | 3 August 1973 |
Completed | 1973 |
Acquired | 1973 |
Maiden voyage | 1973 |
In service | 1973 |
Out of service | 1986 |
Fate | Sold |
History | |
Name |
|
Namesake | Mytilene |
Owner |
|
Operator | NEL Lines (1992–2015) |
Port of registry | |
Route | Piraeus to Chios and Mytilene (until 2015) |
Completed | 1992 |
Acquired | 1990 |
Maiden voyage | 1992 |
In service | 1992 |
Out of service | February 2015 |
Identification |
|
Fate | Scrapped at Aliağa, Turkey in 2022. |
General characteristics | |
Tonnage | |
Length | 136.71 metres (448.5 ft) |
Draught | 5.5 metres (18 ft) |
Speed | 20 knots |
Notes | Oldest active NEL Lines ship until 2015 |
The MS Mytilene was a ferry ship of Greece, which used to be part of NEL Lines' fleet. She was built in 1973 in Japan as the Vega and put into service for NEL in 1992. She is a sister ship of Virgo, which also came to Greece as the GA Ferries' Rodanthi. She could accommodate up to 1300 passengers and 225 vehicles. The shipis powered by two Pielstick 16PC2-5V diesel engines [2] with a maximum combined power of 19,200 bhp [2] and reached service speeds up to 21 knots and maximum speed up to 23.8. [3] She had economy class seating, a salon and bar for A and economy class passengers, a self service restaurant, dining room, jewellery safekeeping room, telephone and gift shop. She took her name from Mytilene, the largest city and capital of Lesvos.
The ship has been laid up since 2015, initially in Karlovasi, Samos and later in Elefsina. The ship will be difficult to return to operating condition, due to engine failure and her company declaring bankruptcy. In 2020, the ship was bought by ANEN at auction and raised the Togolese flag. [4] [5] In 2022 she was sold for scrap as Lene and on 1 June 2022 she was beached for scrap at Aliağa, Turkey.
The ship was built in 1973 in Japan and was originally named Vega , after the star in the constellation Lyra for Shin Higashi Nihon Ferry, a subsidiary of Higashi Nihon Ferry. The ship operated on the Tomakomai-Sendai route until 1986. In 1990, she was sold to the Lesvos Shipping Company (NEL) and renamed Mytilene, from the city of the same name. In 1991, a conversion to night ferry began, which lasted about a year. It was routed between Piraeus-Chios-Mytilene and Lemnos-Kavala-Thessaloniki, while she was also used on the Kavala-Lemnos-Chios-Mytilene-Samos-Ikaria line occasionally. [6] Initially, she was white, with blue lettering on the sides, but later became blue with white lettering, as was the custom with other ships of the company. [7]
In 2013, she was transferred to the line Piraeus-Syros-Evdilos-Agios Kyrikos-Fourni-Karlovasi-Vathi. There, she operated for two years, until February 2015, when due to an accident, she was stuck in Karlovasi. [8] The 43 sailors of the ship were placed under protection by decision of the Deputy Minister of Shipping, due to non-fulfillment of obligations by the ship owner for salaries. Their salaries were finally paid. [9] There were also rumors, later refuted, that the ship would be used as a floating hotel. [10] Finally, after 17 months, and after a relevant auction for her sale by the Municipal Port Fund of Samos, [11] was moved from Karlovasi by a tug and transported to Elefsina. [12] There, another auction followed for her sale, [13] and she was eventually bought by ANEN and hoisted the Togolese flag. [5] In 2022 she was sold for scrap as Lene and on 1 June 2022 she was beached for scrap in Aliağa, Turkey.
Mytilene is the capital of the Greek island of Lesbos, and its port. It is also the capital and administrative center of the North Aegean Region, and hosts the headquarters of the University of the Aegean. It was founded in the 11th century BC.
The North Aegean Region is one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece, and the smallest of the thirteen by population. It comprises the islands of the north-eastern Aegean Sea, called the North Aegean islands, except for Thasos and Samothrace, which belong to the Greek region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, and Imbros and Tenedos, which belong to Turkey.
The MS Theofilos was a passenger/vehicle ferry built at the Nobiskrug shipyard in Rendsburg, Germany in 1975.
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Lesbos or Lesvos is a Greek island located in the northeastern Aegean Sea. It has an area of 1,633 km2 (631 sq mi), with approximately 400 kilometres of coastline, making it the third largest island in Greece and the eighth largest in the Mediterranean. It is separated from Asia Minor by the narrow Mytilini Strait. On the southeastern coast is the island's capital and largest city, Mytilene (Μυτιλήνη), whose name is also used for the island as a whole. Lesbos is a separate regional unit with the seat in Mytilene, which is also the capital of the larger North Aegean region. The region includes the islands of Lesbos, Chios, Ikaria, Lemnos, and Samos. The total population of the island was 83,755 in 2021. A third of Lesbians live in the capital, while the remainder are concentrated in small towns and villages. The largest are Plomari, Kalloni, the Gera Villages, Agiassos, Eresos, and Molyvos.
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NEL LINES was established in 1972, as a company of popular base with shareholders the residents of Lesvos island and primary aim the purchase of a liner vessel for the Mitilini-Chios-Piraeus route. Since then, the company has expanded, serving most of the Aegean sea destinations.
The University of the Aegean(UA) (Greek: Πανεπιστήμιο Αιγαίου) is a public, multi-campus university located in Lesvos, Chios, Samos, Rhodes, Syros and Lemnos, Greece. It was founded on March 20, 1984, by the Presidential Act 83/1984 and its administrative headquarters are located in the town of Mytilene, on the island of Lesvos.
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