MV Leif Ericson
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The motor vessel Leif Ericson is a Canadian ice breaking passenger-vehicle ferry operated by Marine Atlantic.
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[edit] Stena
The vessel was built in Fosen, Norway in 1991 as the Stena Challenger for owner Stena Line. She originally operated across the English Channel between Dover, England and Calais, France.
[edit] Marine Atlantic
The vessel was purchased by the Government of Canada for its Crown corporation Marine Atlantic in 2001 and underwent modifications in preparation for operating the 178 km route between North Sydney, Nova Scotia and Port aux Basques, Newfoundland and Labrador.
She was renamed Leif Ericson in honour of the 1000th anniversary of Leif Ericson's settlement in Newfoundland, reportedly the first European to set foot in the "New World".
[edit] Vessel specifications
The vessel has a capacity of 500 passengers and 300 passenger vehicles (combination of automobiles and tractor trailers).
She operates the North Sydney-Port aux Basques route in conjunction with the sister ships MV Caribou and MV Joseph and Clara Smallwood.
