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Hoverspeed

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Hoverspeed, formed in 1981 by the merger of Seaspeed and Hoverlloyd, was a ferry company that operated on the English Channel from 1981 until 2005.

The last owners were Sea Containers Ltd; the company ran a small fleet of two high-speed SeaCat Catamaran ferries in its final year.

Hoverspeed is notable for its part in developing the hovercraft, and ran six Mountbatten class hovercraft (SR-N4 craft) and one SEDAM N500 Naviplane. Hoverspeed last operated hovercraft on its Dover to Calais service. They were withdrawn on 1 October 2000 and replaced by Seacat catamarans.

Routes

Throughout its history Hoverspeed has operated several routes. These were:

  • Dover - Calais (1981–2005) Hovercraft, Seacat and SuperSeaCat service

Hoverspeed's primary service was established by British Railways owned Seaspeed in 1968 with the car carrying SRN 4 Hovercraft The Princess Anne and The Princess Margaret. Seaspeed were not the first hovercraft service between Dover and Calais, Townsend Car Ferries had operated a passenger only SRN 6 in 1966. Hoverlloyd also ran hovercraft services in 1966 to Calais but from Ramsgate. Seacats were introduced on the route on 2 June 1991. It was intended that the Seacats would replace the remaining SRN 4 hovercraft but this did not happen until 2000. The Dover – Calais service has seen all members of the Hoverspeed fleet operation on it at some point. The route closed on 7 November 2005, the Seacat Diamant operating the last crossing.

The Dover-Boulogne route was opened in 1966 by Townsend Car Ferries using an SRN6 passenger only hovercraft. In 1993 Hoverspeed closed the Dover-Boulogne route after deciding that the Hoverport at Le Portel (near Boulogne-sur-Mer) was no longer required, and the SeaCat operation moved to nearby Folkestone.

  • Dover - Ostend (1998-2003) Seacat and Superseacat service.

After the failure of the Holyman Sally Line service from Ramsgate to Ostend Holyman became partners with Hoverspeed and moved the service to Dover. The 81m Incat fastcraft used on the service lost their 'Holyman' prefix and became the Rapide and Diamant. Sea Containers later bought Holyman's share in the operation and the fastcraft.

After transferring the Boulogne route to Folkestone, Hoverspeed used Hoverspeed Great Britain and kept the hovercraft at Dover. In 2000 the Hoverspeed service ended and in 2001 the port at Folkestone closed to all ferry traffic after the termination of the Falcon Marfreight service.

Hoverspeed took over the high-speed passenger service after P&O Stena Line's withdrawal the year before. The route was continued using SuperSeaCat One. Hoverspeed's last service on the route was at the end of the 2004 summer season. Despite taking bookings for 2005 they withdrew from the route: a deal that would have seen Transmanche Ferries charter Superseacat One for the route fell through.

Hoverspeed's first Seacat route using the Hoverspeed Great Britain; this was closed on 6 January 1991 after a series of technical problems throughout the operating season.

Hoverspeed briefly ran services from Ramsgate Pegwell Bay Hoverport in 1982 which had been the base of Hoverlloyd hovercraft services.

Fleet

Hovercraft

  • The Princess Anne (built 1968).
Built by British Hovercraft Corporation for Seaspeed and stretched in 1977. Transferred to Hoverspeed on creation of the company in 1981. Withdrawn in 2000. Currently at the Hovercraft Museum at HMS Daedalus.
  • The Princess Margaret (built 1968).
Built by British Hovercraft Corporation for Seaspeed and stretched in 1977. Transferred to Hoverspeed on creation of the company in 1981. Withdrawn in 2000. Currently at the Hovercraft Museum at HMS Daedalus.
  • Swift (built 1969).
Built by British Hovercraft Corporation for Hoverlloyd. Transferred to Hoverspeed on creation of the company in 1981. Withdrawn in 1991. Scrapped in 2004.
  • Sure (built 1969).
Built by British Hovercraft Corporation for Hoverlloyd. Transferred to Hoverspeed on creation of the company in 1981. Withdrawn in 1983. Scrapped at Pegwell Bay between 1983 and 1987.
  • Sir Christopher (built 1972).
Built for by British Hovercraft Corporation for Hoverlloyd. Transferred to Hoverspeed on creation of the company in 1981. Scrapped in 1998.
  • The Prince Of Wales (built 1977).
Built by British Hovercraft Corporation for Hoverlloyd. Transferred to Hoverspeed on creation of the company in 1981. Scrapped after an electrical fire in 1993.
  • Ingénieur Jean Bertin (built 1977).
A SEDAM N500 hovercraft built for Seaspeed by SNCF. Transferred to Hoverspeed in 1983 after a number of modifications, but was returned to the SNCF later that year after Hoverspeed decided that she was not suitable for their services. Scrapped in 1985 at the Boulogne Hoverport.

Incat 74 m Catamarans

Former holder of the Hales Trophy for fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. initially entered service on Portsmouth – Cherbourg but transferred to Dover – Calais/Boulogne and later to Folkestone – Boulogne. Chartered to Emeraude Jersey Ferries in 2004 and was renamed Emeraude GB. In 2005 she was chartered to Aegean Speed Lines in Greece running from Piraeus (Athens) - Folegandros as Speedrunner 1.

In service with Hoverspeed 1990 - 1991, 1993 - 2000 and 2002 - 2003. Left fleet in 2003, laid up.

  • Hoverspeed France (built 1991).

Operated for Hoverspeed under several names, she was renamed Seacat Boulogne in 1993, transferred to the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company (IOMSPC) as Seacat Isle of Man in 1994 but returned under that name to Hoverspeed in 1996 and 1997. In 1996 renamed Seacat Norge and chartered to ColorSeacat, a joint venture between Sea Containers Ltd and Color Line. Renamed Seacat Isle of Man again in 1997 and had her final season with Hoverspeed on the Dover - Calais route in 1998 before returning to IOMSPC as "Seacat Isle of Man" In 2005 She was chartered to Irish Sea Express and renamed "Sea Express 1" for the duration. The charter ended later that year and she reverted to Steam Packet service. On February 3rd 2007 she collided with the "Alaska Rainbow" in thick fog off in the River Mersey, sustaining severe damage to her Starboard hull. Over 2007 she was laid up and latterly repaired. She was renamed "Snaefell" in December 2007 and prepared for service in 2008 for the Steam Packet.

In service with Hoverspeed 1991 - 1992, 1993 - 1994, 1996 - 1997 and 1997 - 1998. Left fleet in 1998, sold.

  • Hoverspeed Belgium (built 1991).

Was renamed Hoverspeed Boulogne before entering service in 1992. In 1993 she was transferred to Sea Containers Ltd route from Frederikshavn to Göteborg as Seacatamaran Danmark, this was shortened to Seacat Danmark in 1994. Up to 1997 she provided overhall cover on various Hoverspeed and Sea Containers Ltd ferry routes but remained on Dover - Calais between 2000 to 2003. She was transferred to SNAV in a joint venture with Sea Containers Ltd initially as Pescara Jet but is now named Zara Jet.

In service with Hoverspeed 1991 - 1993, 1996 - 1997 and 2000 - 2003. Left fleet in 2003, laid up.

  • Seacat Tasmania (built 1990).

Operated for Hoverspeed in 1992 on the Folkestone - Boulogne route and in 1993 on Dover - Calais along with the Folkestone service. Renamed Seacat Calais in mid-1993 before being chartered out in late 1993. She returned to Hoverspeed in 1999 and ran on the Dover-Calais service. In 2000 she moved to the SNAV/Sea Containers Ltd joint venture as Croazia Jet before again returning to Hoverspeed in 2002 as Seacat France. She was chartered by Emeraude Jersey Ferries as Emeraude France for two months in 2005. She was sold to an unknown buyer for a reported US $2 million in February 2007 though has not yet departed her Tilbury lay-up. She was found to be sold to Maritime Charter Sales of Douglas, Isle of Man. She is to be used on the Isle of Man Steam Packet's routes starting Monday 12 March 2007.

In service with Hoverspeed 1992 - 1993, 1999 - 2000, 2002 and 2004 - 2005. Left fleet in 2005. Sold in 2007 and currently on charter.

  • Seacat Scotland (built 1992).

Built for Sea Containers Ltd Stranraer - Belfast SeaCat service, which in 2000 changed to Belfast - Troon which is only 30 minutes from Glasgow, the service closing altogether, on Monday 1 November 2004. SeaCat Scotland left Belfast seemingly for ever on Thursday 28 November 2002 at 0600. She has operated for Hoverspeed on the Dover - Calais route in 1992, 2003 and 2004.

In service with Hoverspeed 2003 - 2004. Left fleet in 2004, sold in 2007. Now named Al Huda I.

Fincantieri MDV1200 Superseacats

Four Superseacats were order by Hoverspeed's parent company Sea Containers Ltd after the original Superseacat design built by Austal Ships failed to meet the speed required.

  • Superseacat One (built 1997). Entered service in 1997.
After operating on Sea Containers Ltd Frederikshavn to Göteborg route the vessel entered service with Hoverspeed in 2000 on the Newhaven - Dieppe route. In 2001 she moved to operated with two of her sisters on the Dover - Calais and Ostend routes. She returned to the Dieppe route in 2002 where she remained until the end of the 2004 summer season when the Hoverspeed service from the port ended.

In service with Hoverspeed 1999 - 2004. Left fleet in 2004, chartered.

  • Superseacat Two (built 1997). Entered service in 1997.
Entered service with Hoverspeed in June 1997 on the Dover - Calais service where she remained until March 1998. She moved to the Sea Containers Ltd/IOMSPC Liverpool - Dublin service. She was replaced in that service by her sister Superseacat Three in 1999 so she moved back to Hoverspeed for the Newhaven - Dieppe service for a season. She returned to with Hoverspeed in 2000 on the Newhaven - Dieppe route. In 2001 she returned to Dover to operate with two of her sisters on the Dover - Calais and Ostend routes. At somepoint she operated on the Heysham - Belfast route before returning again to the Dieppe route in 2003.

In serviced with Hoverspeed 1997, 1999 and 2001. Left fleet in 2001, sold.

  • Superseacat Three (built 1999).
Entered service on the Sea Containers Ltd/IOMSPC Liverpool - Dublin service in 1999 before moving to Hoverspeed to Dover to operate with two of her sisters on the Dover - Calais and Ostend routes. She was transferred to the Baltic Sea operations of Silja Line but was not included in the 2006 sale of the company to Tallink.

In service with Hoverspeed 2001. Left fleet in 2001, returned to SeaCat.

Incat 81m Catamarans

  • Diamant (built 1996).
Purchased by Holyman before completion in 1996 she was launched as Holyman Express but was renamed Holyman Diamant in 1997 as a result of a competition to decide the names of the fast ferries for use on the Holyman Sally service between Ramsgate and Ostend. In 1998 Holyman Hoverspeed was formed and the vessel's name was shortened to Diamant. Her UK base of operations was moved to Dover and she received Seacat livery. Hoverspeed eventually purchased Holymans share and Diamant came under Sea Containers Ltd ownership. She remained on the Dover - Ostend route until 2001 where she operated on the Newhaven - Dieppe route for the summer season. In 2002 she briefly operated for IOMSPC before commencing her last summer on Newhaven - Dieppe. In 2004 she transferred to Dover - Calais where she more or less ramained until the closure of the service. For her last two seasons in Hoverspeed service she wore a distinctive Union Flag livery in an attempt to show how British Hoverspeed were, Diamant was built in Australia, owned by a Bermuda registered company and the vessel itself was registered in Nassau, Bahamas and later moved to the Italian Registry as Seacat Diamant. Along with her sister she has been reported as sold to Balearia. She left Liverpool (where she was chartered to the Isle of Man Steam Packet to provide additional capacity for the 2006 TT races period) for Oporto, Portugal (unlike Rapide which sailed to Algeciras) on 20 June 2006, two days after her sister left Tilbury. As of July 2006, she was chartered to Balearia Eurolineas of Spain and renamed Jaume III.
  • Rapide (built 1996)
Built for Holyman as Condor 12 she initially operated for Condor Ferries which at the time was part owned by Holyman. She was replaced by a larger fastcraft in 1997 and moved to Holyman Sally's Ramsgate - Ostend service. As was the case with the Diamant she was renamed Holyman Rapide as a result of a competition. In 1998 she was transferred to Holyman Hoverspeed along with her sister and the vessel's name was shortened to Rapide. She briefly returned to Condor Ferries to cover for the refit of Condor Express and operated between Poole and the Channel Islands for one month. As with the Diamant, Rapide came under Sea Containers Ltd ownership. She remained on the Dover - Ostend route until 2001 when she moved to the Sea Containers Ltd/IOMSPC Liverpool - Dublin service. In 2002 she moved to Heysham - Belfast and eventually replaced Seacat Scotland on the Belfast - Troon service in 2003 until the end of the 2004 season.. In 2005 she transferred to Dover - Calais alongside her sister where she more or less ramained until the closure of the service. She was renamed Seacat Rapide upon her transfer to the Italian register. She also received the Hoverspeed Union Flag livery. On 18 June 2006 she sailed from her lay-up spot at Tilbury, London to Algeciras. She has now been sold to Balearia Eurolineas and renamed Jaume II.

Closure

After years of losses due to strong competition and the Channel Tunnel link, Hoverspeed announced that they would cease operations on the Dover-Calais route, ending over 40 years of service. The last ferry run was on November 7, 2005.

It was initially thought that both the 81m Seacats would move to Sea Containers Mediterranean services; however in March 2006 Rapide and Diamant were put up for sale by Sea Containers. Superseacat 1 which had operated for Hoverspeed on its now closed Newhaven - Dieppe (2000 and 2002-2004) and Dover - Calais / Ostend (2001) fast ferry services was sold in April 2006 to Acciona Transmediterranea and was renamed 'Almudaina Dos'. Although the company ended Hovercraft service, they still retained ownership of the remaining 2 SRN 4 until 2006 when they were sold to a super yacht owner with the intention of using the hovercraft engine as spares for his own Proteus-powered boat. They currently reside at the Hovercraft Museum in HMS Daedalus.

Since the closure of Hoverspeed the Dover Hoverport had remained unused. SpeedFerries has now moved to the site from the eastern docks and has been operating since Easter 2007. Plans have also been drawn up to redevelop the site into a new ferry port to complement the current facilities at the eastern docks.

Possible replacements for Hoverspeed

Two companies have announced their intentions to operate services to replace Hoverspeed.

Navmed Limited planned to operate a Seacat service to Calais, Boulogne and Ostend. Navmed had planned to start operations on the May 15, 2006 but as of April 2006 do not have any vessels or berthing slots in Dover. Navmed had made attempts to purchase the Canadian ferry Spirit of Ontario I but the owners were in serious negotiations with another buyer which later turned out to be Euroferries.

The Dover Express newspaper reported on 13 April 2006 that Navmed would no longer be involved in the attempt to run a replacement service. Instead Illinois Chikara Holdings plans to run service under a brand new name yet to be released.

Navmed featured in 2 October 2006 edition of the BBC South East program 'Inside Out' [1] where it was revealed that their backers had pulled out and the company had yet to pay many staff that it employed in its short life. Another edition of Inside Out on the 25 April 2008 featured Chikara Holdings again [2].

Euroferries

Euroferries Limited are also attempting to launch a service to replace those of Hoverspeed. Led by former Hoverspeed boss Geoffrey Ede the company intends to run services between Dover and Calais and Dover and Boulogne in competition with SpeedFerries but not as a budget operator. It was thought likely that former Hoverspeed vessels Rapide and Diamant were to be used by this company should it actually begin operations. In May 2006 it was announced that the company had been successful in its attempts to purchase the Spirit of Ontario I, they were to pay $29.8 million for the vessel. She was expected to be deployed on the Dover-Boulogne route. The ship which was owned by the City of Rochester, New York had received 7 bids for the vessel. Mayor Duffy of Rochester said Euroferries' bid was the highest of seven bids that they took seriously. Shortly after the announcement of the sale WHEC-TV stated that the fast ferry would move to the UK "no later than June 21st". This did not happen.

By October 2006 Euroferries had yet to pay for the Spirit of Ontario I and the City of Rochester had begun to look to other buyers. Euroferries also featured in a BBC South East Inside Out investigation [3].

It was announced on 17 March 2007 that the City of Rochester had run of patience with Euroferries and cut off active negotiations [4]. Two other potential buyers were reported to be interested in the vessel. The vessel was eventually sold to FRS Iberia S.L. Euroferries claim that they were unable to complete the purchase of the vessel due to UK port restrictions, the maritime press however reported that they did not have the finance available to purchase the ship.

Euroferries claim they are currently evaluating other alternative fast ferries which they believe will be able to commence service on their proposed route from Dover to Calais and Boulogne during the course of summer 2007, with an additional vessel to commence service during 2008 [5]. As of June 2007 there has been no sign of a service commencing.

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