From BBC Scotland this morning:
MV Hebridean Isles has been out of service since February with a series of faults that have led to speculation it might never return. But after a new round of repairs in Aberdeen, it will carry passengers, cars and freight on the Islay route as part of its operational trials.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-67105243
Despite that definitive ‘will carry‘, BBC Scotland went for the vague, hesitant, grudging headline – Repairs hope for veteran CalMac ferry MV Hebridean Isles
Only 10 days ago, the Herald’s ‘leading journalist on the issue [of ferries]‘ wrote: Will one of CalMac’s oldest ferries ever return after nine months out? before going on to list reasons why that seemed unlikely. It makes you wonder now whether the sources could be trusted doesn’t it?
Doubts have already been cast on the Herald’s ‘leading’ claims when TuS was able to reveal that not one report contained any research [deliberately?] into international comparisons with other archipelago-based ferry services such as the troubled BC Ferries or WS Ferries on the North Pacific Coast of America.
TuS has now compiled more than 40 reports on this which can be studied at:
Home
Footnote: Old ferries?
The MV Hebridean Isles is 38 years young. BC Ferries in Canada is still sailing 13 ferries older than that, some well into their 50s. Washington State Ferries has 11 ferries older than that, including 1 built in 1959 and 2 built in 1967.
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
If you spend 9 months overhauling a ship/ferry you are clearly serious about making it fully operational and fit for purpose. It is potentially possible to refurbish any ship of any age back to any condition or to ‘as new’ it just depends on whether it is economically viable/sane. To suggest the ferry would not return after being worked on for so long would be to misunderstand the process. ‘Ferry expert’?
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Might that thinking also apply to keeping going for a new one?
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The 9 months was mainly spent fault finding and repairing one issue, not overhauling anything else with the vessel. For the money that has been spent on her this year, better solutions could have been found to either find a replacement or commit to taking the vessel out of service and perform a comprehensive modernisation program. She is in nowhere near ‘as new’ condition – even if the propulsion issue is sorted, she is an aged vessel with poor steel work and other issues and a limited lifespan in the fleet.
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Here is how to restore a WWII gun boat first launched in 26th June 1942, and
Yes it has a steel hull. https://www.berthon.co.uk/shipyard/yacht-refits-refurb/ww2-mgb-81-motor-gun-boat-restoration/
Although not quite the same size as a passenger ferry it can be done!!!
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Here is how to restore a WWII gun boat first launched in 26th June 1942, and
Yes it has a steel hull. https://www.berthon.co.uk/shipyard/yacht-refits-refurb/ww2-mgb-81-motor-gun-boat-restoration/
Although not quite the same size as a passenger ferry it can be done!!!
Boat makers have consistently used steel for more than 150 years. It is tough, durable, and relatively cheaper to produce compared to aluminum and fiberglass. To add, it is also recyclable. However, boats made from this material tend to be heavier compared to its counterparts. On average, a well-built and properly maintained steel boat can last for 40 to 75 years.
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Sorry for going off topic.
The UK section of BBC News has this report –
“The ‘gay tax’ facing same-sex couples starting a family”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-66927609
“Same-sex couples are still having to pay thousands of pounds before they can access NHS fertility treatment, BBC News has found.
In England, the NHS will fund in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) for heterosexual couples who have been trying for a baby unsuccessfully for at least two years and meet certain other criteria such as age and weight.
But same-sex couples are often expected to demonstrate their infertility before the NHS will fund IVF – and to do so must pay privately for between three and 12 rounds of artificial insemination.
Couples say they have spent more than £20,000 on the treatment.”
The article says –
“Scotland is the only place in the UK that provides donor insemination to same-sex couples without requiring them to have private treatments first.
Northern Ireland and Wales have similar requirements to England – and access varies by locality.”
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Great news And a POKEIN THE EYE FOR ALL SCOTTISH HATERS WHO LIVE AND TAKE BENEFITS FROM A GOVERNMENT
THAT KEEPS SCOTLAND BETTER THAN OTHER PARTS OF uk
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