MV Al Salmy 4

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Ponta Delgada
in 2008.
History
Name
  • Chartres (1973–1993)
  • Express Santorini (1993–2016)
  • Al Salmy 4 (2016–2021)
  • Aqua Myth (2021–2022)
  • Myth (2022)
Owner
Operator
Port of registry
BuilderChantiers Dubigeon S.A.
Yard number137
Launched12 September 1973
Christened6 March 1974
CompletedJanuary 1974
Maiden voyage1974
In service25 February 1974
Out of serviceFebruary 2022
IdentificationIMO number: 7330040
FateScrapped, at Alang, India, in 2022.
General characteristics
TypeRO-RO/Passenger Ship
Tonnage4,590 GRT as built, 7,821 gt 1,189 DWT
Length115.40 metres (378 ft 7 in)
Beam19.23 metres (63 ft 1 in)
Draught4.19 metres (13 ft 9 in)
Decks350 metres (1,150 ft)
Installed power2 SEMT Pielstick 16 cylinder diesel engines 11,768 kilowatts (15,781 hp)
Speed18.5 knots (21.3 mph)
Capacity1,707 passengers; 260 vehicles

The MV Al Salmy 4 was a former

RO-RO
/Passenger ferry.

Built in 1974 as the Chartres for

Minoan Flying Dolphins in 1999, and then transferred to Hellenic Seaways in 2005, the ship operated charters from 2007 to 2014 within the Portuguese archipelago of the Azores with Atlântico Line. She was sold to Portucalence Shipping in 2014, and then was sold to Emirati
company SAMC in 2016, taking the name Al Salmy 4. In 2021 she was sold to Seajets as Aqua Myth. In 2022 she was sold for scrap as Myth in Alang, India.

History

Chartres

Solent

The Chartres was one of three Sealink multipurpose train ferries built in the early 1970s, complementing the British Rail's Vortigern and the Saint Eloi of Sealink UK's French subsidiary ALA.[1] The Chartres was built in Nantes by Dubigeon-Normandie S.A. (later Chantiers Dubigeon S.A.) in 1974 for SNCF (French Railways) operations between Dover-Dunkerque and passenger service between Dover-Calais.[1] Although the three ships were similar, there were small structural differences that included size of windows and design of funnels.[1]

The Chartres was delivered to SNCF on 9 January 1974 and visited

Dunkerque on 15 February. Chartres entered service on the Dunkerque-Dover route on 25 February. She was christened at Calais on 6 March 1973.[1]

Launched on 12 September 1973, the Chartres briefly operated train ferry operations and was quickly transferred to Dieppe. From 1973, Chartres operated as a car and passenger ferry on the Boulogne-Dover and Calais-Dover routes during the summer; and as a train ferry on the

Newhaven routes between 1983 and 1990.[1]

She continued to service the English Channel until the summer of 1990, along the Dover-Calais route, on behalf of ALA from her berth at Dover's Western Docks.[1] She replaced the Saint Eloi (which had been rechristened the Channel Entente) when the latter was sold to the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company.[1] In this role she operated cross-channel passenger service until the end of the 1993 season.[1] Following the opening of the Channel Tunnel train ferry service ceased from the Dover Western Docks and Nord pas-de-Calais ceased, and she began to operate passenger traffic.[1] Chartres collided with the Calais pilot boat Louis Magniez in 1978.[2]

Chartres operated on the Dieppe - Newhaven route from 29 May 1982. She was placed into service on the Dunkerque - Dover route in 1986 and again in 1988. On 25 January 1990, Chartres collided with the breakwater at Dieppe and was severely damaged. She was repaired at

First Gulf War. She operated between Toulon and Yanbu, Saudi Arabia until June 1991.[2] On return from trooping duties, she was chartered by Angleterre-Lorraine-Alsace, the French subsidiary of Sealink.[3] During the winter of 1991–92, she operated on the Dún Laoghaire - Holyhead route. In May 1993, she was placed in service on the Calais - Dover route, making her final voyages on 24 September.[2]

Express Santorini

Express Santorini at the port of Vila do Porto

The vessel was acquired by Agapitos Express Ferries on 5 November 1993, and renamed the Express Santorini.

Ios
-Santorini route.

In 2005 while still operating on the same route, Hellas Flying Dolphins adopted the Hellenic Seaways name, and the ferry appeared in a revised blue hull colours.[1]

In July 2006, she was laid-up in Drapetsona, following a major engine failure in June.[1]

Express Santorini at São Miguel Island

Beginning in the summer of 2007, Express Santorini was chartered by Atlantico Line to operate in the Azores between the islands of Faial, Pico and Sao Jorge, until 30 September.[1] Alternately, during the winter season, she continued to Piraeus where she operated local services.[1] Following a further period laid up at Drapetsona, Express Santorini was again chartered by Atlantico Line between June and September 2008; she was also chartered between May and October from 2009 to 2014.[2] That year she was sold to Portucalence Shipping and remained in service in the Azores until the fall of 2016, when she was sold to Emirati company SAMC,[citation needed] taking the name Al Salmy 4. In 2021 she was sold to Seajets and renamed Aqua Myth.[4] In 2022 she was sold for scrap as Myth in Alang, India.[citation needed]

Description

The ship was 115.40 metres (378 ft 7 in) long, with a beam of 19.23 metres (63 ft 1 in) and a draught of 4.19 metres (13 ft 9 in). She was assessed at 4,590 

Pielstick 16PC2V400 diesel engines producing 11,768 kilowatts (15,781 hp).[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Chartres Sealink/SNCF, HHVFerry, retrieved 9 September 2016
  2. ^ a b c d e "M / S CHARTRES" (in Swedish). Fakta om Fartyg. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
  3. ^ "CHARTRES". HHV. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
  4. ^ "AL SAMY 4 Renamed AQUA MYTH and Getting Ready for Greece". Ferry Shipping News. 1 July 2021. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=MV_Al_Salmy_4&oldid=1161044713"