MV ''Red Eagle'' is a ''Raptor''-class vehicle and passenger ferry operated by

Red Funnel Red Funnel, the trading name of the Southampton Isle of Wight and South of England Royal Mail Steam Packet Company Limited,Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

East Cowes East Cowes is a town and civil parish in the north of the Isle of Wight, on the east bank of the River Medina, next to its west bank neighbour Cowes. The two towns are connected by the Cowes Floating Bridge, a chain ferry operated by the Isle ...

on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a Counties of England, county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the List of islands of England#Largest islands, largest and List of islands of England#Mo ...

. The largest of its class, ''Red Eagle'' is the current flagship for Red Funnel.

History

She entered service in 1996, the latest car ferry to enter service after and in 1994. Between October and December 2004 she underwent modifications by

Remontowa Remontowa (full name: Gdańska Stocznia "Remontowa" im. J. Piłsudskiego S.A.) is a company and shipyard in Gdańsk, Poland. The yard specialises in ship repair and conversions. ''Remontowa S.''A. is one of 26 companies that make up the Remonto ...

in Gdańsk,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

, in order to increase vehicle capacity by 80 and allow a greater passenger capacity. This involved the lengthening of the ship by . She was the last of Red Funnel's ''Raptor''-class ships to undergo the process. When she re-entered service in January 2005, she became the largest vessel regularly crossing

the Solent The Solent ( ) is a strait between the Isle of Wight and Great Britain. It is about long and varies in width between , although the Hurst Spit which projects into the Solent narrows the sea crossing between Hurst Castle and Colwell Bay to ...

, taking this title from her sister, ''Red Osprey''. Prior to beginning her 2018 sailing season, ''Red Eagle'' underwent a refit at Southampton Marine Services that refurbished and expanded her interior spaces. Fabrication work for the new extensions was by Wight Shipyard.

Events

On 27 September 2018 it was reported that the vessel had cut three yachts adrift from their moorings during thick fog. A catamaran and a channel marker were struck during the incident in Cowes harbour, after which two yachts were found drifting outside the harbour. On 11 November 2008 she was used on an excursion to view '' Queen Elizabeth 2'' leaving Southampton for the final time.

Appearances in media

She featured in an episode of ''Top Gear'' in 2002, as part of a review of an Aston Martin. She is featured in the 2008 video game ''Ship Simulator 2008'', along with one of her running mates, ''

Red Jet 4 MV ''Red Jet 4'' is a passenger catamaran ferry operated by Red Funnel on their route from Southampton to Cowes on the Isle of Wight, along with sister ships ''Red Jet 6 and Red Jet 7.'' She was built by North West Bay Ships in Hobart, Tasman ...

'', as a sailable ship.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Red Eagle Ferries of England Ferry transport on the Isle of Wight 1996 ships Ships of Red Funnel