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HEBRIDES

Shipbuildervessel built by Hall, Russell & Company, Limited (Aberdeen, Scotland, 1864 - 1992)

Date20 November 1964

Object NameFERRY

MediumSTEEL

ClassificationsShip

Dimensionslength 220' x breadth 43' x depth 13'
tonnage 2104 ton

Object numberABDSHIP002596

Keywords

Aberdeen Built Ships

About MeYard: Hall, Russell & Co.
Yard Number: 910
Official Number: 6401165
Subsequent Names: DEVONIUN (1985); ILLYRIA (1993)

Fate: Demolished in India, September 2003.

Propulsion: Motor
Description: Passenger and vehicle Ro/Ro ferry, poop and bridge deck 151', quarterdeck 66', forecastle 45', twin screw, welded construction.

Owners:
1964: Secretary of State for Scotland (Managers Caledonian MacBrayne), registered at Leith.
1985: Torbay Seaways
1993: Illiria Lines.
07/2003: Sold to Turkey for breaking.

General History:
HEBRIDES was the first of three ships being ordered by Caledonian MacBrayne for service to the Western Isles of Scotland. The other two ships were the CLANSMAN (Yard no. 911) and COLUMBA (Yard no. 912) which was still operating in 2010 as the HEBRIDEAN PRINCESS. The ferries were built as side loading car ferries with a ramp and lift forward of the bridge front and twin propellers aft.
(Alistair Deayton (2015), 'CalMac: An Illustrated History of Caledonian MacBrayne' (Chalford: Amberley Publishing))

Throughout her Western Isles career (1964-85) HEBRIDES was employed on the Uig (Skye) - Tarbet (Harris) - Lochmaddy (North Uist) service.
Service: She proved very reliable except in 1981, when she lost a rudder and was towed to Greenock for replacement. It had to be manufactured and she did not return in service until 1 July, having been off duty for a month.
One of her most unusual 'passengers' was in September 1980, when she carried from Lochmaddy to Uig the (at that time) celebrated grizzly bear Hercules, which had been loose in N. Uist for 3 weeks (Liverpool Echo, 17/09/1980).
In 1979 the crew presented a retiring pier worker at Uig with a silver tea set to thank him for awaiting the arrival of the ship regardless of the weather for 9 years (Press & Journal, 27/11/1979).
In 1981 Highland Regional Council awarded a contract for removing silt from the berth used by HEBRIDES at Uig (Press & Journal, 14/05/1981).
The most frequent diversions by Hebrides from her normal roster were to make livestock sailings, usually, to Oban - from Lochboisdale, Castlebay, Lochmaddy, Tiree, Coll and Colonsay.
For her last 4 years in CalMac service she was laid up at Greenock in late winter, usually for 2 months. She made her final CalMac sailings on 13 November 1985 and was sold to Torbay Seaways for planned service from Torquay to Channel Islands.
By 1993 she worked under the name ILLYRIA between Italy and Albania, for the Greek owned Illiria Lines.
During 1998 she was in the Caribbean working out of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
In 1999 ILLYRIA caught fire in Eleusis Bay, Greece, and was laid-up due to the damage.

Notes: 2400 bhp, Engines by Crossley Bros Ltd, Manchester.