MV Apollo

Last updated

MV Apollo passenger ferry.jpg
MV Apollo preparing to dock at Newfoundland.
History
Name
  • Apollo (1970–1976)
  • Olau Kent (1976–1980)
  • Gelting Nord (1980–1984)
  • Benodet (1984–1985)
  • Corbière (1985–1995)
  • Apollo (1995–2021)
Owner
Port of registry
Builder Meyer Werft, Papenburg, Germany [1]
Cost SEK 25 million [2]
Yard number0560 [1]
Launched19 December 1969 [2]
Sponsored byIsabella Myrsten [2]
Completed2 May 1970 [2]
Maiden voyage1970
In service1970–2019
Identification
FateScrapped at Aliağa, Turkey in 2021.
General characteristics (as built) [2]
Type Passenger ferry
Length108.7 m (356 ft 8 in)
Beam17.2 m (56 ft 5 in)
Draught4.6 m (15 ft 1 in)
Depth6 m (19 ft 8 in)
Installed power2 × 4,000  bhp (3,000 kW) 12 cyl. Klöckner-Humboldt-Deutz SBV 12M 350 diesel engines 1982 re-engined with 2x 4,500 bhp (3,400 kW) MAN 9L32/36 diesel engines
Propulsion2 shafts; controllable pitch propellers
Speed18.5 knots (34.3 km/h; 21.3 mph)
General characteristics (current) [1]
TypePassenger ferry
Tonnage
Length108.7 m (356 ft 8 in)
Beam17.2 m (56 ft 5 in)
Draught4.6 m (15 ft 1 in)
Depth6 m (19 ft 8 in)
Ice class 1A
Installed powerFrom 1982, 2 × 4,500 bhp 9 cyl. MAN/B&W 9L32/36 [2]
Propulsion2 shafts; controllable pitch propellers
Speed18.5 knots (34.3 km/h; 21.3 mph)

MV Apollo was a vehicle/passenger ferry that previously serviced the route between St. Barbe, Newfoundland and Labrador and Blanc-Sablon, Quebec, Canada. [4]

Contents

History

Apollo at a drydrock in 1972. Finnboda varv 1972.jpg
Apollo at a drydrock in 1972.

Apollo was originally built for Rederi Ab Slite of Sweden in 1970. She was put into service for Viking Line from Kapellskär, Sweden, to Naantali, Finland, via Mariehamn on Åland. In 1975 the route was changed to Stockholm–Mariehamn. In 1976, she was sold to Olau Line for its service between Sheerness, England, and Vlissingen, Netherlands, and was renamed Olau Kent, before returning to Scandinavia in 1981 as the Gelting Nord of Danish operator Nordisk Færgefart. In 1984, she was chartered to Brittany Ferries as the Benodet, before moving to sister company British Channel Island Ferries in 1985 as the Corbière. In the early 1990s, she was sold to Rederi Ab Eckerö and moved back to the Baltic Sea serving between Helsinki and Tallinn, first for Tallink, under the marketing name Linda 1, and from 1995 for Eckerö Line and reverting to its original name of Apollo. After some further charters in the late 1990s, in 2000 Apollo was sold to the Woodward Group of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, entering service with its Labrador Marine subsidiary. [2]

Service with Labrador Marine

MV Apollo departing from Corner Brook in March 2015. MV Apollo Corner Brook March 2015.jpg
MV Apollo departing from Corner Brook in March 2015.
Apollo laid up at Quebec in 2020. Apollo Quebec 2020.jpg
Apollo laid up at Quebec in 2020.

Apollo typically operated across the Strait of Belle Isle between St. Barbe, on the island of Newfoundland and Blanc-Sablon, Quebec, close to the border with Labrador. Winter ice conditions sometimes prevent Apollo from entering the harbour at St. Barbe, and service is provided from the Newfoundland port of Corner Brook instead, resulting in a crossing time of 12 hours rather than 1 hour 45 minutes. [5]

In January 2008, Apollo suffered a minor engine room fire. [6]

On 13 April 2017, Apollo became stuck in ice in the Strait of Belle Isle near Blanc-Sablon, Quebec for nearly 30 hours with 70 passengers on board. The Canadian Coast Guard vessel CCGS Henry Larsen was sent to aid the ferry and escorted Apollo to port once it was free of the ice. [7] [8] Sailings were cancelled on 14 April, but the vessel returned to normal service following the incident. On 19–20 April, all sailings by the ferry were cancelled due to severe ice conditions in the strait. [9]

In February 2019 the ship crashed into the landing dock in Godbout, Quebec, tearing a hole in the ship's bow. It crashed again the following month at a wharf across the river in Matane, Quebec. It was permanently removed from service after the two crashes. Plans were established to sink the vessel to create an underwater diving attraction, but asbestos was discovered on the ship and the project proved impractical. In October 2019, while the ship was costing $30,000 per month to keep the ship docked at a facility in Quebec City, it was announced that the vessel would be scrapped. [10] MV Qajaq W, formerly MV Grete, replaced Apollo on the Strait of Belle Isle crossing in late 2019. [11] Apollo was finally scrapped in September 2021 at Aliaga in Turkey.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "Apollo (29B602)". VeriSTAR Info. Bureau Veritas . Retrieved 11 March 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 M/S APOLLO. Fakta om Fartyg. Retrieved7 June 2017.
  3. 1 2 "Apollo (7006314)" . Equasis. French Ministry for Transport . Retrieved 11 March 2017.
  4. ↑ "Vessel Departure Information". labradormarine.com. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  5. ↑ "Strait of Belle Isle Ferry Service" (PDF). Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. 5 January 2017. Retrieved 7 June 2017. Service will revert to Corner Brook if ice conditions do not allow access to St. Barbe.
  6. ↑ "N.L. playing 'Russian roulette' with aging ferry fleet". CBC News. 14 January 2008. Retrieved 7 June 2017.
  7. ↑ "Newfoundland ferry stuck in ice for over 24 hours near Quebec gets escort to port". Calgary Herald. The Canadian Press. 14 April 2017. Archived from the original on 15 April 2017. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
  8. ↑ Bartlett, Geoff (14 April 2017). "Apollo arrives in Blanc Sablon after spending more than 30 hours stuck in ice". CBC News. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  9. ↑ Wall, Lukas (19 April 2017). "Coast guard busy breaking up icy conditions in Strait of Belle Isle". CBC News. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  10. ↑ Banerjee, Sidhartha (22 October 2020). "Crash-prone ferry MV Apollo, slated for new life as Quebec tourist site, to be junked". Toronto Star . The Canadian Press . Retrieved 1 March 2021.
  11. ↑ "Meet the Qajaq, set to sail the Strait of Belle Isle in 2019". CBC News. 2 January 2019. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
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