MV Cambria (1949)

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Ferry Cambria at Carlisle Pier - June 1975
History
Name
  • 1949-1976: MV Cambria
  • 1976-1980: Altaif
  • 1980-1981: Al Taif
Owner
Operator
Port of registryUnited Kingdom
Route
BuilderHarland and Wolff, Belfast
Yard number1368
Launched21 September 1948
Maiden voyage1949
IdentificationIMO number: 5059020
FateFoundered 15 January 1985
General characteristics
Tonnage4,972 gross register tons (GRT)
Length379.5 ft (115.7 m)
Beam54.2 ft (16.5 m)
Draught27.5 ft (8.4 m)
Speed15 knots

MV Cambria was a twin screw motor vessel operated by the British Transport Commission from 1948 to 1962 and British Rail from 1962 to 1976.[2] Together with her sister ship the MV Hibernia she served the Holyhead to Dún Laoghaire route across the Irish Sea.[3]

History[edit]

She was built by Harland and Wolff of Belfast, launched in 1948 for the British Transport Commission and started service in 1949.[4] She replaced a smaller 1920 vessel of the same name, the twin screw steamer Cambria, and despite a large size had a reduced maximum speed of 21 knots (39 km/h) compared to 25 knots (46 km/h) of the older ship.[5] In 1951 she was fitted with Denny-Brown stabilisers. In 1964–65 they were refurbished with airline style seating. Some cabins and staterooms were removed and replaced with second-class lounges, and a cafeteria. The screened areas were extended to provide further covered seating, and the first and second class smokerooms were converted into a tea lounge.[4]

She was sold in 1976 to the Orri Navigation Company in Saudi Arabia and became the Al Taif.[6]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "MENAI STRAITS, BRITANNIA BRIDGE - HC Deb 24 July 1970 vol 804 cc1023-39". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 24 July 1970. Archived from the original on 5 February 2018. Retrieved 4 February 2018.
  2. ^ Railway and Other Steamers, Duckworth. 1962
  3. ^ "Chronological list of Ships operating on the Holyhead to Ireland Route". Archived from the original on 27 July 2009. Retrieved 4 February 2018.
  4. ^ a b Merrigan, Justin P.; Collard, Ian H (15 November 2010). Holyhead to Ireland: Stena and Its Welsh Heritage. Amberley Publishing. ISBN 978-1848689589.
  5. ^ Peter Pearson (1981). Dun Laoghaire Kingstown. Dublin: O'Brien Press. p. 147. ISBN 0-905140-83-4. OL 22450451M.
  6. ^ Sea breezes: the ship lovers' digest: Volume 50. Pacific Steam Navigation Company. 1976
On the Holyhead to Ireland service when new
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