MS Isle of Inishmore

MS Isle of Inishmore heading towards Rosslare. MS Isle of Inishmore heading towards Rosslare.
History
Name:	Isle of Inishmore
Operator:	Irish Ferries
Port of registry:	1997-2006: Dublin, Ireland 2006 onwards: Limassol, Cyprus
Route:	Rosslare - Pembroke Dock
Builder:	Van der Giessen de Noord
Cost:	IR£60 million
Yard number:	968
Laid down:	December 1995
Launched:	October 1996
Completed:	February 1997
In service:	March 1997
Identification:	IMO number: 9142605
Status:	In service
General characteristics
Tonnage:	34,031 GT
Length:	182.5 m (598 ft 9 in)
Beam:	27.8 m (91 ft 2 in)
Draught:	5.8 m (19 ft 0 in)
Installed power:	4x Sulzer 8ZA40S diesel engines
Capacity:	2,200 passengers 186 berths 856 cars 2,060 lane metres

MS Isle of Inishmore is a ro-ro ferry owned by Irish Ferries and operated on their Rosslare-Pembroke service. At the time of her introduction, she was the largest car ferry operating in Northern Europe. She is named after Inishmore, the largest of the Aran Islands. The name of the ferry is tautologous, since "Inishmore" derives from the Irish for "big island".

Design and construction

Isle of Inishmore was constructed by Van der Giessen de Noord in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, at a cost of IR£60 million. Construction commenced in December 1995, and the vessel was launched in October 1996. She was delivered to Dublin in February 1997, before entering service in March 1997.

Power is provided by four Sulzer diesel engines. Each round trip between Rosslare and Pembroke requires 25 tonnes of marine diesel oil.

Isle of Inishmore's sistership, Stena Jutlandica, operates between Gothenburg and Frerikshavn. She has less passenger accommodation.

Onboard facilities

Passenger accommodation includes cabins for up to four people. Cabins are provided with an en-suite shower room. The vessel also offers a number of catering facilities and seating areas. The Club Class lounge, located on the top deck, is available at an additional cost to the passenger and offers complimentary refreshments and reserved seating. Also available are shopping facilities and a video game arcade.

Career

Isle of Inishmore began her career on Irish Ferries' Dublin-Holyhead route as the flagship of the company's fleet, replacing the 1995 built Isle of Innisfree. Following the introduction of the larger MS Ulysses onto the route in March 2001, Isle of Inishmore was redeployed to the Rosslare-Pembroke route.

Incidents

• On 30 July 2008 a fire broke out on the Isle of Inishmore at Pembroke Dock at approximately 02.30am, in a thermal oil boiler located adjacent to the engine area of the vessel. The function of this boiler is to preheat the fuel oil prior to its use in the ship's main engines. The ship was getting ready to sail for Rosslare at 02:45am, with some 227 passengers and 89 crew on board. All passengers and crew were put on standby. At 4:20am the fire was brought under control, and nobody was injured. The 02:45am Pembroke-Rosslare and the 08:45am Rosslare-Pembroke crossings were both cancelled as a result.