The new ferry to service Largs-Cumbrae Slip, named MV Loch Shira, has been successfully launched from Ferguson’s yard at Port Glasgow today (Friday, December 8 at 1300.)
 
A large crowd from the surrounding area of Port Glasgow, including hundreds of school children, witnessed the event, which was also watched from the River Clyde by a special cruise on CalMac Ferries’ MV Saturn.
 
The new ship, which has cost £6.4million, was launched by Mrs Elspeth Sinclair, wife of CalMac Ferries’ Managing Director Lawrie Sinclair.
 
This is the first new vessel to be launched since the restructuring of Caledonian MacBrayne Ltd into a vessel owning company, Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) and an operating company CalMac Ferries Ltd. CMAL will own the vessel and lease it to the operator of the Clyde and Hebrides ferry services.

CalMac Ferries’ Chairman, Peter Timms said: “It is always a pleasure to launch a new ship and the addition of MV Loch Shira to the CalMac fleet will enable us to make further improvements to the service to the Isle of Cumbrae and also further north when we redeploy one of the ships from the Largs route. I am delighted that we have once again been able to launch a ship on the Clyde and I am grateful to Ferguson’s for all the work they have done on the ship to date, particularly in the last four weeks when the weather has been less than helpful in the pre-launch preparation period. I am particularly delighted that we had such a strong attendance from Cumbrae itself with the school children from the Primary School being our special guests. I am grateful too to Rev Marjory MacKay for the Ship’s Blessing, and to Mrs Sinclair for doing the honour of launching the first of the ships to be named under my Chairmanship.”
 
The new ship, which is named after an Argyll-shire loch, is due to enter service around March 2007 and will now be finished in Ferguson’s shipyard, Port Glasgow. There are three glens at or near the head of Loch Fyne - Glen Fyne itself, Glen Aray (which leads to Inveraray) and Glen Shira, which opens into Loch Shira (which is really an indentation in Loch Fyne). At its head still stands a fine Georgian Bridge that used to be part of the main road.
 
Funding for the Largs vessel was confirmed by the then Minister for Transport Nicol Stephen in Parliament on Wednesday, December 8, 2004.
 
MV Loch Shira can carry up to 250 passengers, 24 cars or a mix of cars and goods vehicles, including those that carry dangerous goods.
 
The vessel is a modern double ended RO-RO passenger ferry to operate in UK sheltered waters with an open vehicle deck and hinged vehicle access ramps at each end.  The 230 tonne vessel is some 54 metres long and almost 14 metres wide and is capable of a speed of 10 knots.
 
The passenger facilities comprise a lower lounge capable of accommodating 60 people and a panoramic upper lounge straddling the vehicle deck together with external seating at this upper level. The bridge contains the most modern navigation and communicating equipment and controls for propulsion.
 
Ferguson Shipbuilders Ltd. tendered for the construction of MV Loch Shira in 2005 and were awarded the contract in November 2005.