Hoverspeed News

Thirty years ago, a ship built in Hobart by Incat Tasmania challenged for the Hales Trophy which recognizes the fastest commercial passenger ship to cross the Atlantic Ocean. The 74-meter Hoverspeed Great Britain left New York on her Transatlantic Challenge voyage arriving in at Bishop Rock on England’s south coast on June 23, 1990. The crossing achieved in 3 days, 7 hours and 54 minutes.The previous record had held for 38 years, the USS United States having taken it out in 1952 after a long list of Transatlantic Challenges by the great passenger liners over the previous century.

Will the prestigious TransAtlantic speed and endurance record ever be broken? Should it? Twenty five years ago headlines around the world announced a new world record, the fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, by a ship built in Australia. Incat Tasmania reports that June 23, 2015, marks 25 continuous years that Incat built fast ships have held the record for the fastest Transatlantic Crossing. On 23 June 1990 Hoverspeed Great Britain, a ship (Incat hull 025) built by Incat in Tasmania…

Twenty years ago headlines around the world announced a new world record, the fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean, by an Incat Tasmania-built ship. June 23 marks twenty continuous years that Incat-built fast ships have held the record for the fastest Transatlantic Crossing. On June 23, 1990 Hoverspeed Great Britain, a ship built by Incat in Tasmania, for operation between England and France by Sea Containers Ltd, broke the record for the fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean by a commercial passenger ship.

When the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company purchased its latest Incat-built high speed ferry for service on the Irish Sea it continued a relationship established 22 years ago. In 1987, Incat’s chairman Robert Clifford was invited by naval architects Hart Fenton, acting for then Steam Packet shareholder Sea Containers, to visit the Isle of Man with a view of building a high speed craft to serve the island’s needs. Three years later, in November 1990 the first generation Incat car ferry Hoverspeed Great Britain arrived in the island for trials.

‘Ferry companies need to take on the issues of pay, discipline and restrictive practices if they are to improve marginal profitability and service standards, according to a United Kingdom based industry expert. Bill Moses, who has worked in the industry for over 30 years, says pay and related issues have long been a key factor in the development of the ferry business. "It is something employers should not shy away from," he says. Mr Moses’ own experience in labour affairs is long and impressive. He has achieved results with minimal dispute, interruption to service and unnecessary loss of face for trade unions, management and employees. Much of this has been achieved in negotiations with some of the toughest unions in Europe.

Local and state dignitaries will converge on the Monmouth County waterfront to take part in the official unveiling and christening of the M/V SeaStreak New Jersey. and East 34th St. in Manhattan. The christening ceremony will be held on Monday, December 10, 2001 at 11:00 a.m. at the Atlantic Highlands Municipal Marina, Pier 6 in Atlantic Highlands. Honoring an ancient tradition and officially naming the vessel will be its Godmother, Miss New Jersey Julie Barber. Among those participating in the ceremony will be a representative of the Coast Guard Reverend Peter Larom of the Seaman's Church in Manhattan. Highlands and South Amboy have also been invited to participate in the festivities.

Sea Containers Ltd., passenger transport operator, marine container lessor and leisure industry investor announced today that its subsidiary Hoverspeed Ltd. operator of fast ferry services on the English Channel, has been successful in its legal challenge of UK Customs and Excise procedures. HM Customs and Excise have been checking and detaining Hoverspeed passengers and seizing their goods and the vehicles in which they travelled. The High Court ruled today that the Customs' policy currently in place could be regarded as a "disproportionate executive policy" and Hoverspeed won on all points. President of Sea Containers Ltd., Mr. James B. Sherwood said the implications of the judgement are very far reaching. "No longer will HM Customs and Excise be entitled to stop passengers at random.

Sea Containers Ltd. passenger transport operator, marine container lessor and leisure industry investor, announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Silja Holdings Ltd., had received acceptances of its tender offer to acquire all the outstanding common stock of Silja Oyj Abp, bringing its total shareholding in Silja to 92 percent. The significance of the 90 percent threshold is that Silja Holdings may now compulsorily acquire all the remaining shares in Silja in accordance with Finnish law. Sea Containers shareholding in Silja was increased to 75% in the second quarter of 2002 which will result in consolidation of Silja's assets and liabilities with those of Sea Containers at June 30th.

its ferries division and other matters. Background The company's ferries business is composed of three units. ferries, ro-pax ships, fast ferries and cruise ships. European waters other than in the Baltic. Manhattan. services to Estonia, the unsuccessful m.v. the Swedish market introduced by competitors. reputation for quality, with its core business remaining profitable. large measure to high fuel prices. recover the extra cost through fuel surcharges. earnings. capacity and reduced profits from low tax merchandise sales. Channel. loss in 2005 due largely to high fuel costs. such increases to a certain level before switching to cars, buses and trains. eliminate or greatly reduce the operating losses being incurred. to buy the business. controlled auction of Silja.

Since reopening in August last year (2002), A&P Birkenhead has made significant strides to becoming a major force in the northern European shiprepair industry. One of the first operations carried out by A&P Group was to put in place efficient and effective quality systems in all the yard’s departments. This drive has been rewarded with the award of the ISO 9002:2000 accreditation from Bureau Veritas Quality Inspectorate (BVQI), which will also carry out six-monthly audits of the yard. Currently A&P Birkenhead is experiencing one of its busiest periods, having completed a 14-day repair programme onboard P&O’s ferry 14,426 grt European Pioneer, she is immediately followed by the 18,653 grt European Envoy, which will be in drydock for 10 days, and the 12,879 grt European Leader - 14 days.

The introduction of the 269-ft. Austal Auto Express catamaran Felix to a fast ferry service across the Adriatic Sea has reportedly been accompanied by an increase in traffic for its operators. Linking the Italian port of Ancona with Split in Croatia, the ‘Croazia Jet’ service was previously serviced by a 242.7 ft. Incat vessel. This has now been replaced by the Austal designed and built Felix.. Established in 2000, the ‘Croazia Jet’ service is jointly operated by the Italian ferry operator SNAV and Sea Containers’ subsidiary company Hoverspeed. Sea Containers operates the world’s largest fleet of fast vehicle-passenger ferries. Earlier this month, Sea Containers announced that “Felix” carried nearly 59,000 passengers and 13,250 vehicles during the seasonal service.

The European Commission granted P&O and Stena Line a six-year exemption from competition rules to operate a cross-Channel ferry service for passengers and freight. "The Commission's recent investigation has not revealed any valid market changes which could justify forcing P&0 of Britain and Stena Line, a subsidiary of Sweden's Stena Line AB, to undo their alliance," it said. The new exemption period, which expires on March 7, 2007, will permit P&0 Stena Line to continue competing with Eurotunnel, Sea France, Hoverspeed and NorfolkLine, the Commission said. The new exemption replaces a three-year exemption that expired March 10. The old exemption, while granted in 1999, had been retroactive to 1998. - (Reuters)

While the fast ferries of SeaStreak were not the first to provide high-speed commuter service to the Highlands region of New Jersey, they were the first to be set-up by a Bermudan company. "Sea Container, Ltd., operates in three main areas," said SeaStreak's General Manager, David Stafford "marine container leasing, various leisure-bound operations, and passenger transport." SeaStreak falls into the third group, one of several comparable operations the parent company runs worldwide. They have fast ferry operations in the English Channel (Hoverspeed, Ltd.), fast and conventional ferry operations in the Irish and Baltic Seas (Man Steam Packet Co. and Silja Line respectively, the latter 50% owned). Sea Container also has railroad interests in the U.K. and Peru, among others.

Sea Containers has announced a record breaking year for the Ancona, Italy - Split, Croatia joint venture route. on the previous year. The craft has been moved to Ravenna, Italy for its winter lay-up. The service will resume in June 2003 until 15 September. David Collins of Sea Containers passenger transport division said: "The success of the route has vindicated our investment in this service and ensures that the service has become a firm fixture in the Adriatic. The service began in 2000 with 'Atlantic II', a Sea Containers owned 74m wave-piercing catamaran which had previously operated on the River Plate between Argentina and Uruguay. This craft also operated the service in 2001.