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This website has no connection with any shipping company, cruise line, boat operator or other commercial organisation
Strait Shipping
This page is devoted to postcards and photographs of
Strait Shipping
.
An alphabetical list of ships
shown on this page is shown below.
The Table
beneath gives links to complete history pages on selected individual ships. Below the table is a
Fleet List
in chronological order.
Strait Shipping
is a 100% New Zealand owned and managed shipping business - operating Cook Strait ferry services since 1992.
Initially established to offer New Zealanders a choice for moving freight between Wellington, Picton and Nelson -
Strait Shipping
has since diversified into the passenger service market with the launch of its Bluebridge ferry in late 2002.
Strait Shipping
opened a new chapter in New Zealand's maritime history in 1992 with the introduction of
Straitsman
which provided for the carriage of 'walk-on' livestock and roll-on/roll-off freight facilities between Wellington, Picton and Nelson. The service was expanded in 1995 with the introduction of
Suilven
.
Continued demand for roll-on/roll-off freight services saw a further fleet expansion in 2001.
Kent
more than trebled commercial freight opportunities, accommodating everything from private and trade cars up to the largest earth-moving equipment. The arrival of
Santa Regina
in December 2002 saw the launch of
Strait Shipping
's Bluebridge passenger ferry service between Wellington and Picton. Bluebridge offers the travelling public and international visitors a great way to take themselves, and their vehicles, across the Cook Strait. The Bluebridge passenger service complements the all-freight capacity of
Kent
and the addition of the Bluebridge vessel
Santa Regina
saw both
Straitsman
and
Suilven
become surplus to requirements and subsequently sold to Fijian interests.
Ships on This Page:-
Kent
(Strait Shipping: 2001- )
Monte Stello
(Strait Shipping: 2006- )
Santa Regina
(Strait Shipping: 2002- )
Straitsman
(Strait Shipping: 1992-2002)
Suilven
(Strait Shipping: 1995-2002)
Sections on This Page:-
Strait Shipping Fleet List
2005 Bluebridge Brochure
Associated Pages:-
Strait Shipping
Ferry Postcards
Cruise Ship Postcards
Ocean Liner Postcards
Simplon Postcards Home Page
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Table of Ship Histories
Name
Other names
Built
Monte Stello
Palanga
1974
Suilven
1974
Fleet List
Straitsman
(Strait Shipping: 1992-2002)
Straitsman
spent her early days in Bass Strait, Australia, sailing between Melbourne, Tasmania and King Island before launching
Strait Shipping
's service between Wellington, Picton and Nelson, across the equally unpredictable waters of Cook Strait, in 1992.
Straitsman
('Lollipop' as she was affectionately known) saw continuous service until the introduction of
Santa Regina
in 2003 when she was temporarily retired before being sold in 2004. She will continue her life in warmer Fijian waters under the name of
Sinu-I-Wasa
('Flower of the Sea' in Fijian).
Photograph of
Straitsman
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of
Sin-I-Wasa
(ex-
Straitsman
).
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of the fleet on the arrival of
Kent
in 2001.
Ships (left to right) are
Suilven
,
Kent
and
Straitsman
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Suilven
(Strait Shipping: 1995-2004)
Suilven
was built in 1974 by Moss Rosenberg Verft A/S, Moss, Norway. She was ordered by Rederi A/S Alpha, Moss, Norway and intended to be named
Bastø VI
. However, she was bought by Caledonian-macBrayne whilst still under construction, for their Ullapool to Stornoway (Isle of Lewis) service.
Suilven
came into operation for
Strait Shipping
in 1995. For seven years
Suilven
ran between Wellington and Picton before being transferred to the Wellington to Nelson service in late 2002. She was sold and left for a new life in Fiji in April 2004.
Complete history of
Suilven
Photograph of
Suilven
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of
Suilven
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of
Suilven
in a storm.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of
Suilven
in a storm.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Kent
(Strait Shipping: 2001- )
Kent
was built in Japan in 1977 as the
Admiral Nigeria
of Admiral Shipping Services, Oslo. She initially ran on a route Great Yarmouth - Bremerhaven - Hamburg - Antwerpen - Le Havre - Lagos - Monrovia - Tema - Abidjan. In 1979
Admiral Nigeria
was chartered to North Sea Ferries for service between Ipswich and Europoort (Rotterdam). She was then renamed
Admiral Caribe
for a service beyween Miami and Venezuela. In 1982
Admiral Caribe
was renamed
Saint Remy
for service out of Marseille, before passing to Kent Line in 1986 as
Duke of Anglia
for a services from Kent to Zeebrugge. In 1990
Duke of Anglia
was sold to Norfolk Line and renamed
Maersk Anglia
. She was chartered to Cobelfret for their Zeebrugge-Purfleet/Dagenham services. In 2000,
Maersk Anglia
became
Maersk Kent
, shortened to
Kent
when sold to Ross Marine of Castletown, Isle of Man, the following year. She was acquired by
Strait Shipping
shortkly afterwards.
Kent
is a versatile, freight only vessel. With a full width stern ramp, 4.8 metre head room in the main deck and internal ramps giving access to the upper and lower decks she is capable of carrying most kinds of cargo. Comfortable facilities are provided for commercial drivers on board
Kent
, including double en suite cabins. Complimentary meals are served in the dining room on every crossing, while a television lounge provides space for relaxation. A laundry enables drivers to wash and dry their gear en route.
Kent Specifications
Built: Ishikawajima Ship & Chemical Plant, Tokyo, Japan, 1977
Length Overall: 123m
Beam Overall: 21m
Gross Tonnage: 6862
Draft: 4.76m
Main Engines: Two Pielstick diesels
Service Speed: 16 knots
Bow thruster
Freight capacity: 1100 lane metres
Passengers: 12 commercial drivers
Photograph of
Duke of Anglia
of Kent Line, on their Kent-Zeebrugge service.
Photo: © Ingvar Andersson - Scan:
Fakta om Fartyg
Photograph of
Maersk Anglia
of Norfolk Line.
On charter to Cobelfret for their service to Ford's Dagenham plant.
Photo: © Andreas Wörteler - Scan:
Fakta om Fartyg
Photograph of
Kent
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of
Kent
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of the fleet on the arrival of
Kent
in 2001.
Ships (left to right) are
Suilven
,
Kent
and
Straitsman
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Santa Regina
(Strait Shipping: 2002- )
Santa Regina
arrived in Wellington from France on December 26th 2002 and made her inaugural voyage, launching the Bluebridge service, in early 2003 - she had 99 passengers onboard. Her previous role was an overnight service between Marseilles and Corsica in the Mediterranean with
Compagnie Meridionale de Navigation (CMN)
and consequently she had a large number of passenger cabins.
Santa Regina
operated routes to Calvi, Propriano and Port Torres. She was built in 1985 by Ateliers et Chantiers du Havre. Her sistership is
Monte Cinto
of
SNCM
. Most of the cabins have been removed as part of a major refurbishment of the ship - whilst still retaining the comfortable elegance of old. In addition to passenger capacity,
Santa Regina
's ample freight capability complements
Kent
on the Wellington/Picton service.
Santa Regina Specifications
Built: Ateliers et Chantiers du Havre, Le Havre, France, 1985
Length Overall: 137M
Beam Overall: 22.5m
Gross Tonnage: 14588
Draft: 6.0m
Main Engines: Two Pieslstick diesels.
Service Speed: 18 knots
Two Bow thrusters, Denny Brown Stabilisers
Freight capacity: 1300 lane metres
Passengers: 370
Official
Strait Shipping
postcard of
Santa Regina
.
Official 2007
Strait Shipping
postcard of
Santa Regina
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Click to open larger image in new window
Official 2007
Strait Shipping
postcard of
Santa Regina
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Click to open larger image in new window
Photograph of
Santa Regina
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of
Santa Regina
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of
Santa Regina
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of
Santa Regina
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Photograph of
Santa Regina
.
Photo: ©
www.Seapixonline.com
Photograph of
Santa Regina
.
Photo: ©
www.Seapixonline.com
Photograph of
Santa Regina
.
Photo: ©
www.Seapixonline.com
Photograph of
Santa Regina
.
Photo: © Christian Bursche, 22nd Septmber 2004 - Scan:
Fakta om Fartyg
Monte Stello
(Strait Shipping: 2006- )
Monte Stello
was built for
Société Nationale Maritime Corse-Méditerranée (SNCM)
in 1979 by Ateliers & Chantiers du Havre, Le Havre (249). She operated ro-pax services between Marseille and Corsica. Her sister ship was the
Porto Cardo
of
CMN
. She was sold to Rutelag Askøy-Bergen, Bergen, in 1994, followed by further sale to the Lithuanien Shipping Company, Klapeida, in 1996. She was renamed
Palanga
and put into service between Klapeida and Kiel (later also Stockholm and Karlshamn). Registered owners became Lisco Baltic Service in 2001 when a majority holding was acquired by
DFDS
. In 2004
Palanga
was transferred onto the DFDS Tor Line services between Esbjerg-Harwich and then Lübeck-Ventspils, followed by a charter to Trasmediterranea. In December 2005 she was sold to Strait Shipping of New Zealand, entering service the following year between Wellington and Picton. She reverted to original name
Monte Stello
.
Complete history of
Monte Stello
Official 2007
Strait Shipping
postcard of
Monte Stello
.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Click to open larger image in new window
Monte Stello
in Strait Shipping colours, leaving Aukland for Wellington after dry-docking.
Photo: ©
Strait Shipping
Click to open larger image in new window
2005 Bluebridge Brochure
2005 Bluebridge Brochure - Side-1
Click on image to open a larger version in a new window.