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Another viewpoint on the Glen Sannox ‘incident’:

UK Defence Journal (March 15, 2025) ‘New Scottish ferry to resume service after minor repair’. (https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/new-scottish-ferry-to-resume-service-after-minor-repair/)

‘In Perspective: As we noted earlier, structural issues like this are not uncommon for newly commissioned vessels and are often identified during early inspections as ships settle into service.

‘Minor weld seam defects can occasionally appear, particularly in areas of high stress or flex, and are typically straightforward to address.

‘A marine engineer we spoke to reinforced this point, saying, “From the available information, this appears to be a minor weld defect rather than a serious structural failure. The crack is on a seam near the waterline, which suggests it may have been exacerbated by natural flexing in the hull. If that’s the case, it’s a straightforward repair, and I’d be surprised if the dive team disagrees with that assessment.”

‘Naval vessels, which undergo rigorous trials before deployment, also frequently require similar minor repairs and adjustments in their early months of service. Issues like this, while unfortunate, do not indicate any fundamental design flaw.’

Despite this, the ‘incident’ as we know reached the UK-wide news bulletins of the BBC and ‘outraged’ coverage by other mainstream new media outlets.

And on Ferguson Marine, the UK Defence Journal reminds us: ‘This follows Ferguson Marine’s successful delivery of hull sections for HMS Belfast, a Royal Navy frigate under construction at BAE Systems’ Govan shipyard.’