Cool Cats

Whilst hanging about at Cammell Lairds ship yard in Gibraltar for one of the Normand twins to come in from a Dynamic Positioning test so I could install a PBX, the guy’s on the quay side were getting ready to receive a fast ferry into the dry dock for maintenance.

I grabbed the Blackberry and snapped off a few shots so sorry about the quality of the photos.

These vessels operated by Acciona are a regular feature in the Bay and Straits and everyone knows full well to keep an eye out for them because of their speed. Most small yachts cruise at 10 knots and ships cruise at 18 knots but these behemoths carve up the ocean at 40+ knots which means from the time you spot them on watch or AIS/Radar until they pass by can be on top of you in less than a few minutes leaving a huge wake in, well, their wake!

300 feet long and travelling 40 miles per hour is an object not to be taken lightly. Look at the stats.

Total length: 97,20 m.
Breadth: 26,60 m.
Depth: 7,70 m.
Standard displacement: 1.050 tm.
Maximum displacement: 1.650 a 1.792 tm.
Engine power: 39.200 C.V.
Speed: from 38 to 47 knots

Capacity: 880 Passengers
260 Vehicles

What was so amazing was the absolute control the Captain had over the vessel as he negotiated the vessel into the dry dock without any rope handlers or linesmen with just a foot or two of clearance on both sides.

The vessels are manufactured in Australia by Incat and their all aluminum wave piercing design is what gives them such speed and the water jet propulsion system does not require rudders nor reverse gear, just a fully articulated propulsion unit coupled to a reversing bucket that directs water in the right direction.

The wake left behind as they enter the Bay is spectacular. On one occasion I was transferring from a ship to a 45 foot long 4 ton launch and was very nearly thrown into the water when the launch was tossed about like a twig as the wake slammed into the ship’s hull and bounced back at the launch.

As Mr. Bond would say, "shaken but not stirred", but it was close.

Journey times are less than half of normal ships and during the summer months, millions of passengers travel between Algeciras in Spain to Tangiers in Morocco or Ceuta which is a small territory in North Africa belonging to Spain.

Each time I spot one whilst onboard another ship, I always fire up the AIS and clock their speed, it never fails to impress me. If you get the chance, buy yourself a ticket and take a ride, it’s well worth it if for no other reason than to marvel at how smooth the ride is and how quickly you get to your destination.