MV Chelan

MV Chelan in the San Juan Islands
History
Name:	MV Chelan
Owner:	WSDOT
Operator:	Washington State Ferries
Port of registry:	Seattle, Washington,  United States
Route:	Summer: Anacortes-Sidney, BC; Off-Season: Varies
Builder:	Marine Power and Equipment, Seattle
Completed:	1981 Refit: 2004
Identification:	Official Number: 643291 Call Sign: WRA9001[1]
General characteristics
Class & type:	Issaquah 130 Class auto/passenger ferry
Length:	328 ft (100.0 m)
Beam:	78 ft 8 in (24.0 m)
Draft:	15 ft 6 in (4.7 m)
Decks:	2 auto decks/1 passenger deck
Deck clearance:	15 ft 6 in (4.7 m)
Installed power:	Total 5,000 hp from 2 diesel engines
Speed:	16 kn (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Capacity:	1200 passengers 124 vehicles (max 26 commercial) - On the international route, her passenger capacity is 1076 people. [2]

The MV Chelan is an Issaquah 130 Class ferry operated by Washington State Ferries.

History

The Chelan was built in 1981, as an Issaquah Class ferry, for service on the Edmonds-Kingston route. In the late 1990s, newer ferries were built for the Seattle routes, moving the former boats to Edmonds-Kingston. As a result, the Chelan began to serve as replacement ferry. Many of the routes she would serve, she would be replacing an Issaquah 130 ferry, causing service disruptions by carrying fewer vehicles. In 2004, she was refit, much like her sister ships to include a second vehicle deck along the outer bulkheads. After changes in Coast Guard rules required SOLAS requirements for International Travel, the Chelan was upgraded to meet the SOLAS, or Safety Of Life At Sea, standards in 2005. This also coincided with the modification of the interior layout of the Chelan to match that of its sister-ships, which began to have their spartan interiors upgraded in the early 2000s, the exception on the Chelan is the addition of a Duty Free area on board for the international crossings. The Chelan usually does the International route as well as domestic service between Anacortes and the San Juan Islands during the Spring Summer and Fall. During the Winter schedule she tends to move around between Anacortes-San Juans, F-V-SW, Mukilteo Clinton, and in late winter of 2007 she was on the Edmonds-Kingston route for a week due to vessel shortage.

Status

Depending of the time of year, Chelan may be found on nearly any WSF route. Throughout the year, she is found on various routes including the Mukilteo-Clinton route, the Fauntleroy-Southworth-Vashon route and the Seattle-Bremerton route. Chelan is also often the ferry that makes the International Crossing to Sidney, BC, although the Elwha, the other vessel with the SOLAS standards, operates on this route during fall and early spring operations. She was moved around a lot in the summer of 2014. She was out of service for 2 days at the beginning of August and was replaced by the Elwha and went down to Edmonds - Kingston in mid-August due to vessel shifting. She is now back in service again on the Anacortes - Sidney, BC route, where she will remain until the fall.

References