The Star Class is a class of five Ro-pax ferries built by Fincantieri

Fincantieri

Fincantieri - Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A. is a shipbuilding company based in Trieste, Italy. It was formed in 1959 and is the largest shipbuilder in the Mediterranean, and one of the largest in Europe...

, 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...

 at their Castellammare di Stabia

Castellammare di Stabia

Castellammare di Stabia is a comune in the province of Naples, Campania region, southern Italy. It is situated on the Bay of Naples about 30 kilometers southeast of Naples, on the route to Sorrento.-History:...

 and Ancona

Ancona

Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....

 shipyards for Finnlines

Finnlines

Finnlines Plc is a Finnish shipping company that operates freight throughout Northern Europe as well as passenger services in the Baltic Sea. In the past, Finnlines has operated ships under the brands Finncarriers, Finnflow Systems, Finnjet Lines, and FG Shipping Oy Ab...

. They are used on Finnlines' routes connecting Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

 to Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 and Sweden

Sweden

Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....

 to Germany. Most ships of this class were delivered behind original planned schedule.

M/S Finnstar

M/S Finnstar was the first Star-class ship to be completed. The ship was built at Fincantieri's Castellammare di Stabia yard. She was delivered to Finnlines in July 2006 (original planned delivery date was in late 2005) and the class takes its name from this ship. She is used on the Helsinki

Helsinki

Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...

–Travemünde

Travemünde

Travemünde is a borough of Lübeck, Germany, located at the mouth of the river Trave in Lübeck Bay. It began life as a fortress built by Henry the Lion, Duke of Saxony, in the 12th century to guard the mouth of the Trave, and the Danes subsequently strengthened it. It became a town in 1317 and in...

 route. During construction a small fire broke out onboard the ship in November 2005, but it was quickly extinguished. The Finnstar is registered in Helsinki, Finland.

M/S Finnmaid

M/S Finnmaid was built at Fincantieri's Ancona shipyard, and is used on the Helsinki–Travemünde route. She was delivered in August 2006. Immediately after the first Travemünde–Helsinki trip the ship was forced to drydock in 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...

 due to problems with her bow thrusters. On 4 January 2007, a small fire broke out on board while the ship was docked in Helsinki, that seems to have originated, and been contained to one of the bilge pumps on board. The Finnmaid is registered in Helsinki, Finland.

M/S Finnlady

The ship currently sailing under the name M/S Finnlady was originally laid down as M/S Europalink, but due to delays in construction of the original Finnlady Finnlines decided to swap the names of the ships. She was built at Fincantieri's Ancona shipyard and delivered in February 2007 (original planned delivery date was in October 2006). She is used on the Helsinki–Travemünde route. The Finnlady is registered in Helsinki, Finland.

M/S Europalink

M/S Europalink was originally planned to be called M/S Finnlady, but delays in construction made Finnlines swap the names of the two ships. She was built at the Castellammare di Stabia shipyard, and her original delivery date was planned to be in mid-2006, but eventually she was delivered in March 2007 and used on Finnlines Nordö-Link service between Malmö

Malmö

Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...

 and Travemünde. The Europalink is registered in Malmö, Sweden.

M/S Nordlink

The construction of M/S Nordlink was begun at the Castellammare di Stabia shipyard, but she was moved to the Ancona shipyard after launching. The ship's original planned delivery date was in March 2007 but after numerous delays she was finally delivered in July 2007. The Nordlink is registered in Malmö, Sweden. Following delivery the ship was placed on Malmö–Travemünde traffic, replacing the old M/S Malmö Link. Since June 2009 she has been sailing between Helsinki and Travemünde via Gdynia

Gdynia

Gdynia is a city in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland and an important seaport of Gdańsk Bay on the south coast of the Baltic Sea.Located in Kashubia in Eastern Pomerania, Gdynia is part of a conurbation with the spa town of Sopot, the city of Gdańsk and suburban communities, which together...

.

External links

• Finnlines company website
• Nordic Ferry Center, main agent for Finnlines passenger services
• Ferry Travel Agency "E. & S.", agent for Nordic Ferry Center in Russia
• Photos of M/S Finnstar, Photos of cabins, buffet, bar, sauna M/S Finnstar
• Pictorial description Finnlines, Finnmaid voyage to Finland from Gdynia,Poland