Logos Hope in Kiel
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History | |
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Builder: | Nobiskrug, Rendsburg, Germany |
Yard number: | 678 |
Identification: | IMO number: 7302914 |
Status: | In service |
General characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 12,519 GT |
Length: | 132.5 m (434 ft 9 in) |
Beam: | 21.06 m (69 ft 1 in) |
Draught: | 5.22 m (17 ft 2 in) |
Decks: | 9 |
Installed power: | 4 X SWD 6TM 410 RR 6-cylinder diesel engines |
Propulsion: |
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Capacity: | 442 passengers |
MV Logos Hope is operated by the German Christian charitable organization GBA Ships e.V (Gute Bücher für Alle, English: Good Books for All). Built in 1973 as the ferry MV Gustav Vasa for service between Malmö (Sweden) and Travemünde (Germany), she later operated as the MV Norröna providing a ferry service to the Faroe Islands.
As the fourth ship operated by the organisation, The MV Logos Hope follows in the line of MV Logos, the wrecked hulk of which now sits on a rock shelf on the Chilean coast, MV Logos II which was retired in the fall of 2008 and which Logos Hope was designed to replace, and MV Doulos which was sold to a company in Singapore in 2009.
Twice as big as any previous ship operated by the organisation, the ship was completely refitted over a period of 5 years. Logos Hope provides a better quality of life for crew as well as a wider range of activities for visitors and guests. The newly created Logos Hope Experience (which is situated on a deck that was installed into the original ferry’s car area) holds up to 800 visitors at any time, with capacity to host an additional 500 in the Hope Theatre and Logos Lounge. This publicly accessible deck offers visitors an introduction to the vessel and the organisation, a book fair featuring over 5,000 different titles of educational and Christian books, a visual presentation called the Journey of Life, which is based on the story of the "Prodigal Son", and the International Cafe.
The all volunteer crew and staff of 400 people, represent over 60 different countries. Unlike the crew during her original use as a car ferry, crew and staff normally join the organisation to live on board for two years as volunteers.
Logos Hope generally visits ports for two weeks and is continually sailing from port to port year round. Since the launch into active service in February 2009, she has been in several regions: Northern Europe, the Caribbean, West Africa, the Mediterranean, the Arabian Peninsula, and most recently south Asia. Future schedule information is available on the website.