Did anyone get a photo of the old "Spirit of Tasmania III" at/leaving Melbourne as "Mega Express 4"? Would be interesting to see what Corsica Ferries did to her livery after they'd taken delivery.
Had been hoping that one of our Melbourne residents might have got a shot of her during her stay there and before she left. She's bunkering in Gladstone (Queensland) at the present time - next port is Singapore on her delivery trip.
What a shame you didn't know about her - one would expect that all they did was paint out Spirit of Tasmania with hull-red on each side, maybe paint out the logos on the funnel and change the names/registry fore and aft. I think I read somewhere that she'll be painted blue in Corsica Ferries service?
Hello everybody!
I know that the next port-stops are Singapore and Suez. Actually I don't know the arrival port, maybe Genoa (I hope!). She'll enter in service November, the 6 between Toulon and Corsica then, from December, the 23, on Leghorn and Sardinia.
Mike, can you tell me where you read about the blue paint of Mega Express Four? Many thanks,
Matteo
Many thanks, Mike. By the way it doesn't matter if you don't find it!
I've found a photo on Maritime Matters of SoT III with the new name painted on the bow but maybe you'll already know. Here there is the link: http://www.maritimematters.com/shipnewspics.html
Matteo
Hello Mike
She past my way off the Central Coast of NSW on Thursday evening the 11th heading north and there was no visible change in her livery. Mind you there was quite a sea running with a southerly and rain squalls but the “Spirit of Tasmania” was still visible and not painted out.
Thanks for the info - she was in Gladstone on Sunday evening 11th., so presumably you saw her on Saturday evening 10th September? Maybe the Tasmanian Government asked Corsica Ferries not to change her livery so as to take the "Spirit of Tasmania" back to the Mediterranean - bit of free advertising, I suppose!!
Many thanks for the link to the photograph of the name change for "Spirit of Tasmania III" - it looks as if they couldn't have done it cheaper if they'd tried!!
However, have found the reference to the blue hull for "Mega Express Four" - it's in the August 2006 journal of one of our nautical associations here in Australia, wherein it says that "Spirit of Tasmania III" was expected to enter drydock in Sydney in August for the refitting of her previously damaged starboard stabiliser "and emerge with a blue hull in the new owners' colours".
It is obvious now, for whatever reason, that the hull repaint didn't occur!!
I think she went in for a quickie at garden island and came out on the wednesday and last sail on the thursday. She then relieved the spot 1 on the melbourne run so she could dock in sydney and then left after spot 1 returned to service
Mega Express Four arrived on Thursday at Vado
Ligure because in Genoa there isn't a place to moor her. She will go
to Genoa the 15th October to dry dock and she will enter on service
the 6th November. Her maiden voyage will be from Savona to Bastia
and then she will operate on Toulon's routes.
There are some pics of her at http://matteosgallery.fotopic.net/
I have posted in the gallery some pics of Mega Express Four, taken a couple of days ago in Savona. She still has the Spirit of Tasmania livery.
In about a week she'll be in Genoa, where she'll spend some days in drydock. The Corsica-Sardinia Ferries livery will be painted in Genoa.
During the winter she will operate from Toulon (France) to Ile Rousse (Corsica).
In 2007 she will undergo an internal/external restyling.
the newest picture of ex-Superfast II from Micke Asklander's site.
She now operates from Toulon to Bastia or Ajaccio.
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