MS ''Skania'' is a fast
ropax ferry
A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...
operated by
Unity Line on their
Świnoujście-
Ystad route. She was built in 1995 by
Schichau Seebeckwerft in
Bremerhaven,
Germany for
Superfast Ferries as MS ''Superfast I''. Between 2004 and 2008 she sailed for
Grimaldi Lines
The Grimaldi Group is a private shipping company owned by the Grimaldi family (Emanuele Grimaldand based in Naples, Italy. Grimaldi operates a large fleet of ro-ro, ro-ro/multipurpose, con-ro multipurpose, PCTC (Pure Car and Truck Carrier), ro ...
as MS ''Eurostar Roma''.
Concept and construction
The ''Superfast I'' was the first ship built for
Attica Group
Attica Holdings S.A. is an operator of international ferry services in Europe. The Group's operations include its subsidiaries Superfast Ferries, which began in 1995 with the launch of its first ships, Superfast I & Superfast II, and Blue Star Fer ...
's subsidiary
Superfast Ferries for their
Adriatic Sea services from
Patras
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to
Ancona.
She is a sister ship of
MS ''Superfast II''.
Service history
1995–2004: ''Superfast I''
The ''Superfast I'' entered service on 14 April 1995 on
Superfast Ferries'
Patras
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—
Ancona route.
In March 1998 after the arrival of the
''Superfast III'' &
''Superfast IV'', ''Superfast I'', along with her sister
''MS Superfast II'' were transferred to a new route
Bari
Bari ( , ; nap, label= Barese, Bare ; lat, Barium) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, southern Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy a ...
–
Igoumenitsa –
Patras
)
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. In January 2004 the ''Superfast I'' was sold to
Grimaldi lines
The Grimaldi Group is a private shipping company owned by the Grimaldi family (Emanuele Grimaldand based in Naples, Italy. Grimaldi operates a large fleet of ro-ro, ro-ro/multipurpose, con-ro multipurpose, PCTC (Pure Car and Truck Carrier), ro ...
, with a delivery date in February of the same year.
2004–2008: ''Eurostar Roma''
Grimaldi Lines took over their new ship on 30 September 2003 and renamed her ''Eurostar Roma''.
On 15 March 2004, after a small refit she began on the
Civitavecchia –
Barcelona route. In March 2008 she was sold to the Polish Steamship Co. with delivery set for May 2008. In April, after the delivery of the new she was put on Civitavecchia/
Salerno
Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...
-
Palermo
Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...
-
Tunis route for a short time.
2008 onwards: ''Skania''
On 5 May she was handed over to her new owners, Polish Steamship Co (Unity Line) and renamed ''Skania''.
She then sailed to
Gdańsk
Gdańsk ( , also ; ; csb, Gduńsk;Stefan Ramułt, ''Słownik języka pomorskiego, czyli kaszubskiego'', Kraków 1893, Gdańsk 2003, ISBN 83-87408-64-6. , Johann Georg Theodor Grässe, ''Orbis latinus oder Verzeichniss der lateinischen Benen ...
for a refit, in which her aft open deck was enclosed, amongst other upgrades for her new role. On 29 August she was Christened in
Szczecin
Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the German border, it is a major s ...
and had public open days for the flowing two days in the port. On 1 September 2008, she started on the over night
Świnoujście–
Ystad route.
On 17 February 2009, the Skania was involved in a collision near Ystad (
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
).
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skania
Ships built in Bremen (state)
1995 ships
Superfast I-class fast ropax ferries