MV Moby Love
Encyclopedia
Moby Love is a passenger ferry currently in service with Moby Lines, Genoa
, Italy
. She was launched in 1972 as Saint Eloi but not completed until 1975 due to the bankruptcy of the shipyard that built her. She was built as a multi-purpose ferry, capable of carrying railway rolling stock as well as road vehicles.
Built for Angleterre-Lorraine-Alsace, she was renamed Channel Entente in 1989. She served on cross-channel routes until sold in 1990 to the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company (IoMSPCo) and reflagged to the Bahamas. Renamed King Orry, she was reflagged to the Isle of Man
in 1995. In 1998, she was sold to Moby Lines and renamed Moby Love, then Moby Love 2. She was renamed Moby Love in 2002 and remains in service under this name.
s giving a total power output of 10740 kW. These can propel the ship at 21.8 knots (42.7 km/h).
Originally built as a train and roll on, roll off ferry, the ship has 48 berths. She can carry 1,000 passengers and 160 cars. The ship is assessed as 4,649 GRT, 1,849 NRT. She could carry 35 railway wagons or 10 carriages and 11 wagons.
, Italy, she was yard number 12 and was launched on 26 February 1972. She was due to be delivered in October 1972, but the shipyard went bankrupt after her launch and the unfinished ship was laid up in Genoa
. Work resumed on 1 July 1972. The Italian Government had to finance the completion of the ship, which was delivered to ALA in February 1975.
Saint Eloi entered service with ALA on the Dover
- Dunquerque route on 12 March 1975. Her port of registry was Dunquerque and the IMO Number 7207451 was allocated. On 23 March 1977, ALA was bought outright by British Rail
. As she could carry railway wagons, Saint Eloi was classed as a locomotive, being allocated to Class 99
under TOPS
. Saint Eloi was allocated the TOPS number 99 013.
On 27 May 1986, Saint Eloi was chartered
for four months by SNCF
. She was employed on the Calais
- Dover route. She reverted to the Dover - Dunquerque route on 27 September, serving until 24 April 1988 when she was again chartered by SNCF for use between Calais and Dover. On 1 May 1987, Saint Eloi was in collision with just outside Dover Harbour. Both ships damaged. Saint Eloi was repaired at Dunquerque, re-entering service on 16 May. On 23 July 1988, Saint Eloi collided with the breakwater at Dover and suffered a damaged stern. replaced Saint Eloi and on the Calais - Dover route. On 8 January 1989, she entered service on the Larne
- Stranraer
route. On 4 March 1989, Saint Eloi entered service on the Dun Laoghaire
- Holyhead
route, which she operated on until 28 April. This enabled the regular ferry St Columba
to undergo an overhaul at Bremerhaven
, West Germany
. On 20 May, Saint Eloi was renamed Channel Entente. She entered service on the Calais - Dover route on 25 May 1989, serving until the end of the year.
On 11 January 1990, Channel Entente arrived at Douglas
, Isle of Man
for berthing trials. On 5 February 1990 she was reflagged
to the Bahamas, with Nassau
as her port of registry. The call sign FNKC was allocated. She was sold to Vessel Holdings Ltd, Nassau, on 9 February and then sold to the IoMSPCo, Douglas on 14 February. She entered service on the Douglas - Heysham
route on 19 February, serving until 27 September when she was sent to Messrs Wright & Beyer, Birkenhead
for a refit. during the refit, her passenger accommodation was extended and vehicle side-loading doors were fitted. An additional bow thruster
was fitted. During her time with the IoMSPCo, the rails were filled in and the buffers were removed. On 8 December 1990, Channel Entente was renamed King Orry, she re-entered service on the Douglas - Heysham and Douglas - Liverpool
routes on 9 December. King Orry was fitted with stern doors in 1992. In February 1995, King Orry was reflagged to the Isle of Man
, with Douglas as her port of registry. Her last day of service with IoMSPCo was 28 September 1998.
In October 1998, King Orry was sold to Moby Lines Srl, Naples
, Italy. On 21 October, she was renamed Moby Love. The call sign IBDB was allocated. She departed Birkenhead on 23 October bound for Livorno
, arriving on 29 October. Later that year, she was renamed Moby Love 2. She entered service on the Piombino
- Portoferraio route in April 1999. She was renamed Moby Love in 2002. Moby Love remains in active service as of 2011. She is allocated the MMSI Number 247322000.
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. She was launched in 1972 as Saint Eloi but not completed until 1975 due to the bankruptcy of the shipyard that built her. She was built as a multi-purpose ferry, capable of carrying railway rolling stock as well as road vehicles.
Built for Angleterre-Lorraine-Alsace, she was renamed Channel Entente in 1989. She served on cross-channel routes until sold in 1990 to the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company (IoMSPCo) and reflagged to the Bahamas. Renamed King Orry, she was reflagged to the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
in 1995. In 1998, she was sold to Moby Lines and renamed Moby Love, then Moby Love 2. She was renamed Moby Love in 2002 and remains in service under this name.
Description
The ship is 114.59 metre long, with a beam of 18.62 metre. She has a depth of 11.48 metre and a draught of 4.11 metre. She is powered by two Pielstick 16PC2-2V-400 diesel engineDiesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
s giving a total power output of 10740 kW. These can propel the ship at 21.8 knots (42.7 km/h).
Originally built as a train and roll on, roll off ferry, the ship has 48 berths. She can carry 1,000 passengers and 160 cars. The ship is assessed as 4,649 GRT, 1,849 NRT. She could carry 35 railway wagons or 10 carriages and 11 wagons.
History
Saint Eloi was ordered on 24 November 1969 and her keel was laid on 2 January 1971. Built by Cantieri Navali di Pietra Ligure, Pietra LigurePietra Ligure
Pietra Ligure is a comune in the Province of Savona in the Italian region Liguria, located about 60 km southwest of Genoa and about 20 km southwest of Savona...
, Italy, she was yard number 12 and was launched on 26 February 1972. She was due to be delivered in October 1972, but the shipyard went bankrupt after her launch and the unfinished ship was laid up in Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
. Work resumed on 1 July 1972. The Italian Government had to finance the completion of the ship, which was delivered to ALA in February 1975.
Saint Eloi entered service with ALA on the Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
- Dunquerque route on 12 March 1975. Her port of registry was Dunquerque and the IMO Number 7207451 was allocated. On 23 March 1977, ALA was bought outright by British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
. As she could carry railway wagons, Saint Eloi was classed as a locomotive, being allocated to Class 99
British Rail Class 99
The British Rail Class 99 was a fleet of 14 ferries, mostly owned by Sealink, which carried rail vehicles between Britain and mainland Europe. When British Rail implemented the TOPS system for managing their operating stock, these ships were incorporated into the system in order to circumvent some...
under TOPS
TOPS
Total Operations Processing System, or TOPS, is a computer system for managing the locomotives and rolling stock owned by a rail system...
. Saint Eloi was allocated the TOPS number 99 013.
On 27 May 1986, Saint Eloi was chartered
Bareboat charter
A bareboat charter is an arrangement for the chartering or hiring of a ship or boat, whereby no crew or provisions are included as part of the agreement; instead, the people who rent the vessel from the owner are responsible for taking care of such things....
for four months by SNCF
SNCF
The SNCF , is France's national state-owned railway company. SNCF operates the country's national rail services, including the TGV, France's high-speed rail network...
. She was employed on the Calais
Calais
Calais is a town in Northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture. Although Calais is by far the largest city in Pas-de-Calais, the department's capital is its third-largest city of Arras....
- Dover route. She reverted to the Dover - Dunquerque route on 27 September, serving until 24 April 1988 when she was again chartered by SNCF for use between Calais and Dover. On 1 May 1987, Saint Eloi was in collision with just outside Dover Harbour. Both ships damaged. Saint Eloi was repaired at Dunquerque, re-entering service on 16 May. On 23 July 1988, Saint Eloi collided with the breakwater at Dover and suffered a damaged stern. replaced Saint Eloi and on the Calais - Dover route. On 8 January 1989, she entered service on the Larne
Larne
Larne is a substantial seaport and industrial market town on the east coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland with a population of 18,228 people in the 2001 Census. As of 2011, there are about 31,000 residents in the greater Larne area. It has been used as a seaport for over 1,000 years, and is...
- Stranraer
Stranraer
Stranraer is a town in the southwest of Scotland. It lies in the west of Dumfries and Galloway and in the county of Wigtownshire.Stranraer lies on the shores of Loch Ryan on the northern side of the isthmus joining the Rhins of Galloway to the mainland...
route. On 4 March 1989, Saint Eloi entered service on the Dun Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire or Dún Laoire , sometimes anglicised as "Dunleary" , is a suburban seaside town in County Dublin, Ireland, about twelve kilometres south of Dublin city centre. It is the county town of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County and a major port of entry from Great Britain...
- Holyhead
Holyhead
Holyhead is the largest town in the county of Anglesey in the North Wales. It is also a major port adjacent to the Irish Sea serving Ireland....
route, which she operated on until 28 April. This enabled the regular ferry St Columba
MS Masarrah
The MS Masarrah is a ferry originally named St. Columba. Built in 1977, at the Aalborg Shipyard in Denmark, St. Columba was originally a Sealink UK ferry, operating between Holyhead and Dun Laoghaire in the Irish Sea. It now operates between Piraeus and Santorini for Namma Shipping Lines.- Fire :On...
to undergo an overhaul at Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham...
, West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
. On 20 May, Saint Eloi was renamed Channel Entente. She entered service on the Calais - Dover route on 25 May 1989, serving until the end of the year.
On 11 January 1990, Channel Entente arrived at Douglas
Douglas, Isle of Man
right|thumb|250px|Douglas Promenade, which runs nearly the entire length of beachfront in Douglasright|thumb|250px|Sea terminal in DouglasDouglas is the capital and largest town of the Isle of Man, with a population of 26,218 people . It is located at the mouth of the River Douglas, and a sweeping...
, Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
for berthing trials. On 5 February 1990 she was reflagged
Flag of convenience
The term flag of convenience describes the business practice of registering a merchant ship in a sovereign state different from that of the ship's owners, and flying that state's civil ensign on the ship. Ships are registered under flags of convenience to reduce operating costs or avoid the...
to the Bahamas, with Nassau
Nassau, Bahamas
Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. The city has a population of 248,948 , 70 percent of the entire population of The Bahamas...
as her port of registry. The call sign FNKC was allocated. She was sold to Vessel Holdings Ltd, Nassau, on 9 February and then sold to the IoMSPCo, Douglas on 14 February. She entered service on the Douglas - Heysham
Heysham
Heysham is a large coastal village near Lancaster in the county of Lancashire, England. Overlooking Morecambe Bay, it is a ferry port with services to the Isle of Man and Ireland. Heysham is the site of two nuclear power stations which are landmarks visible from hills in the surrounding area...
route on 19 February, serving until 27 September when she was sent to Messrs Wright & Beyer, Birkenhead
Birkenhead
Birkenhead is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite the city of Liverpool...
for a refit. during the refit, her passenger accommodation was extended and vehicle side-loading doors were fitted. An additional bow thruster
Bow thruster
A bow thruster is a transversal propulsion device built into, or mounted to, the bow of a ship or boat to make it more maneuverable. Bow thrusters make docking easier, since they allow the captain to turn the vessel to port or starboard without using the main propulsion mechanism which requires...
was fitted. During her time with the IoMSPCo, the rails were filled in and the buffers were removed. On 8 December 1990, Channel Entente was renamed King Orry, she re-entered service on the Douglas - Heysham and Douglas - Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
routes on 9 December. King Orry was fitted with stern doors in 1992. In February 1995, King Orry was reflagged to the Isle of Man
Isle of Man
The Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
, with Douglas as her port of registry. Her last day of service with IoMSPCo was 28 September 1998.
In October 1998, King Orry was sold to Moby Lines Srl, Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, Italy. On 21 October, she was renamed Moby Love. The call sign IBDB was allocated. She departed Birkenhead on 23 October bound for Livorno
Livorno
Livorno , traditionally Leghorn , is a port city on the Tyrrhenian Sea on the western edge of Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of approximately 160,000 residents in 2009.- History :...
, arriving on 29 October. Later that year, she was renamed Moby Love 2. She entered service on the Piombino
Piombino
Piombino is an Italian town and comune of circa 35,000 inhabitants in the province of Livorno . It lies on the border between the Ligurian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea, in front of Elba Island and at the northern side of Maremma.-Overview:...
- Portoferraio route in April 1999. She was renamed Moby Love in 2002. Moby Love remains in active service as of 2011. She is allocated the MMSI Number 247322000.