Glen Sannox to be trialled on different route as CalMac ferry returns from hull crack repairs

The 850-passenger vessel had been forced to undergo a second set of repairs after less than ten months in service.

The ferry had been out of action since Sunday to fix a weld that was required for a crack in the boat’s hull, which was first discovered in March.

But operator CalMac has now confirmed the repairs have been completed, with Glen Sannox scheduled to leave Inchgreen dock in Port Glasgow on Friday.

READ MORE: Glen Sannox: CalMac's newest ferry out of action for second time for repairs to crack in hull

The Caledonian Isles, which only itself returned to service last week after 20 months worth of repairs, and the catamaran Alfred have been covering the Arran route while the Glen Sannox was out of action.

CalMac said the use of those vessels to ferry passengers between Troon and Brodick meant the operator could trial using the Glen Sannox on the Islay route this weekend.

The trial has been labelled a “prudent decision” by CalMac to plan for when services might be “stretched” in future.

The Glen Sannox will then be switched back onto the Arran route from Monday.

A CalMac spokeswoman said: “As the Arran service is being covered by MV Caledonian Isles and MV Alfred, we are taking the opportunity to trial the Glen Sannox on the Islay route this weekend.

“While we don’t intend to deploy the Glen Sannox to Islay on a regular basis, this is the ideal opportunity to find out which ports the vessel can operate from, giving reassurance to communities when services are stretched.

“Testing the vessel’s ability to use the ports on the island and at Kennacraig is a prudent decision and should help with resilience and service reliability in the future.

“Once the Glen Sannox picks up the Arran service during the week of 13 October, we will be assessing the Arran service, which may give us the opportunity to release MV Alfred for network trials on the Islay route.”

The Glen Sannox was out of service for two days in March after a 13cm “minor” defect was found in its hull close to the waterline. This included a 2.5cm section that had let in a “very small amount of water”, CalMac said at the time.

CalMac told The Scotsman in March the crack might have been caused by vibration detected in that area of the ship.

The return of the Glen Sannox was confirmed just days after First Minister John Swinney said state-owned shipyard Ferguson Marine had to make a “justifiable business case” before it could receive millions of pounds in investment from the Scottish Government.

Ferguson Marine has been heavily criticised over its handling of the construction of the Glen Sannox and sister ferry Glen Rosa. The cost of the two vessels has risen to some £400 million - around four times their original contract value.

Mr Swinney said earlier this week his Government had agreed “in principle” to providing the Ferguson Marine yard in Port Glasgow with £14.2 million of funding to help it modernise.

However, with only £570,000 of the funding so far handed over, Mr Swinney said there had to be “progress on the plans that are coming from the yard” before further support can be provided.