MV Suilven
MV Suilven off Ullapool
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| History | |
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| Name: | MV Suilven |
| Namesake: | Suilven |
| Operator: |
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| Port of registry: |
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| Route: |
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| Builder: |
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| Yard number: | 180 |
| Launched: | 19 April 1974 |
| Acquired: | 1974 |
| In service: | 27 August 1974 |
| Out of service: |
July 1995 (with Caledonian MacBrayne) 2004 (with Strait Shipping) 2015 (with Bligh Water Shipping) November 2015 (with Venu Shipping Limited) |
| Identification: |
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| Fate: | Sunk in Suva harbour, 24 November 2015 |
| Status: | Salvageable Partial Wreck |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage: | 1980 |
| Length: | 86.52 metres (283.9 ft) |
| Beam: | 16.03 metres (52.6 ft) |
| Draught: | 4.96 metres (16.3 ft) |
| Installed power: | 2 x 7-cyl, Wichmann Diesel 1300kW |
| Propulsion: | 2 x variable-pitch propellers & 2 x Brunvoll SPK300 bow thrusters |
| Speed: | 16 knots (service) |
| Capacity: | 500 passengers, 120 cars |
| Crew: | 25 |
July 1995 (with Caledonian MacBrayne)
2004 (with Strait Shipping)
2015 (with Bligh Water Shipping)
MV Suilven was a vehicle ferry built in 1974 and operated for 21 years by Caledonian MacBrayne on the Ullapool to Stornoway route. She subsequently operated in New Zealand and later in Fiji.
Suilven was the second of twins, intended for Oslofjord and named after the mountain peak Suilven in Sutherland . She was bought off the stocks in 1974 and modified to comply with British standards for the Lewis service. She remained on the route until 1995, when she was replaced by the larger MV Isle of Lewis.
The car deck featured two lanes either side of the central casing and featured two hoistable mezzanine decks for additional car capacity. Car deck access was via a two piece bow ramp and visor, with a single piece stern ramp. The superstructure featured a main mast above the wheel house carrying the radar scanners and aerials, and a main mast aft incorporated into the forward edge of the funnel, cleverly concealing the main engine exhausts. Her original single lounge bar saloon was soon divided with a screen to cordon off different areas. The cafeteria and servery was situated aft of the saloon and in common with vessels of the time, she was fitted out with a number of sleeping berths allowing passengers to embark the night before an early departure. Early in her Caledonian MacBrayne career, she was fitted with stabilisers, improving stability. Suilven was the first vessel in the Caledonian MacBrayne fleet to carry the fleet branding on the hull side in large steel letters, welded to the hull side. Air conditioning was fitted for her service in Fiji.
Suilven was purchased for the Stornoway to Ullapool route, a replacement for the 1964 MV Clansman. She operated the route for 21 years, giving two crossings per day in summer reducing, until 1979, to one in winter. By the 1990s, she was increasingly inadequate for the traffic on the service and unacceptably slow and the larger MV Isle of Lewis was built, offering superior capacity and facilities, entering service in July 1995.
No longer required in Scotland, she was sold to Strait Shipping, for service between the North Island and South Island of New Zealand. In 2004, she was moved to Fiji and operated between Suva, Savusavu (on Vanua Levu) and Taveuni.
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