MS Amorella west of Yxlan in the Stockholm archipelago, 2005. |
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| Career | |
|---|---|
| Name: | MS Amorella |
| Owner: | 1988–1995: SF Line 1995 onwards: Viking Line[1] |
| Operator: | 1988–1995: SF Line (in Viking Line traffic) 1995 onwards: Viking Line[1] |
| Port of registry: | Mariehamn, Åland[1] |
| Route: | Turku–Mariehamn/Långnäs–Stockholm (as of 2009) |
| Ordered: | 3 February 1986[1] |
| Builder: | Brodogradilište Split, Split, Yugoslavia (now Croatia)[1] |
| Yard number: | 356[1] |
| Launched: | 18 July 1987[1] |
| Acquired: | 28 September 1988[1] |
| In service: | 14 October 1988[1] |
| Identification: | IMO number: 8601915[1] Signal letters OIWS |
| Status: | In service |
| General characteristics [2] | |
| Class and type: | Amorella-class cruiseferry |
| Tonnage: | 34,384 GT (gross tonnage) 3,690 metric tons deadweight (DWT) |
| Length: | 169.40 m (555 ft 9 in) |
| Beam: | 27.61 m (90 ft 7 in) |
| Draught: | 6.35 m (20 ft 10 in) |
| Depth: | 13.99 m (45 ft 11 in) |
| Decks: | 12[3] |
| Ice class: | 1 A Super |
| Installed power: | 4 × Wärtsilä-Pielstick 12PC26V-400 diesels combined 24,000 kW (32,000 hp)[1] |
| Propulsion: | 2 propellers[4] |
| Speed: | 21.5 knots (39.82 km/h; 24.74 mph)[1] |
| Capacity: | 2,420 passengers 1,986 berths 550 cars 970 lanemeters[1] |
MS Amorella is a cruiseferry operated by the Finnish ferry company Viking Line on the route Turku–Mariehamn/Långnäs–Stockholm. She was built in 1988 by Brodogradiliste Split in Yugoslavia.
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The Amorella was ordered in 1986 by SF Line, one of the partners in Viking Line consortium. Although Brodogradiliste Split outbid other shipyards, the Finnish State offered to subsidise construction of the ship if she was built at a Finnish shipyard. This was a common practice in the 1980s to bring more jobs to Finland, but this time SF Line declined and had the ship built in Yugoslavia. The original planned delivery date for the Amorella was in March 1988, but due to delays in construction she was not completed until September, which meant SF Line was forced to operate the lucrative summer season with old tonnage.
Except for short periods of time in 1997, 1998 and 2002, the Amorella has always served on the Turku–Mariehamn/Långnäs–Stockholm route, making her the longest-lasting ship on that route. Originally she only called in Mariehamn during day crossing, but in July 1999 she had to start calling at the Åland Islands in both directions to maintain tax free sales onboard, and as a result a call at Långnäs was added to the night crossing.
Like all ships the Amorella has suffered occasional misfortune. In 1993 the ship ran aground near Stockholm. She was able to come off by her own power, but her bottom was damaged in the process; she started taking in water and diesel oil leaked from a damaged fuel tank. The ship continued to Stockholm, and after unloading passengers and cargo she sailed to Luonnonmaan Telakka, Naantali for repairs. In 1995, and again in 2001, there was a fire in one of the cabins but the ship's own firefighters managed to put it out. In May 2005 there was a fire in a car parked on the cardeck on Deck 5, but that too was put out by the ship's crew. In March 2010, the ship had to be rescued by ice breakers after becoming stranded in thick ice along with several other vessels.
In January 2010 Viking Line's future CEO Mikael Backman stated the company are negotiating with several different shipyards about the possibility of constructing a pair of 60,000 GT ships to replace Amorella and Isabella on the Turku–Stockholm service.[5][6] The projected delivery dates for the new vessels are in May 2012 and February 2013.[7] Amorella's future in the Viking Line fleet is unknown, should the planned orders for new ships be realised.
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Amorella_(ship,_1988) Amorella (ship, 1988)] at Wikimedia Commons
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