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Fastest Ever Diesel Powered Vehicle Ferry
01 Oct 2007
The first of two Multi-Purpose Auto Express 65m high speed ferries built for the Sultanate of Oman was launched at the Austal Image Henderson shipbuilding facility in Australia last month. With a top speed in excess of 50 knots the vessels will be the fastest diesel powered vehicle ferries ever built.
Scheduled for delivery in 2008, the two catamarans will provide a new tourism service to Oman’s rugged Musandam Peninsular and will be the flagship in the Sultanate’s expanded marine transport network.
As well as reaching speeds of over 50 knots, the ferries carry 208 passengers and 56 cars along an intended 180 nautical mile route. Passengers will experience comfort across three classes, Tourist, First Class and VIP. High quality seating and catering facilities are all located on a single deck, with seakeeping comfort enhanced by the Austal SeaState Motion Control System.
Onboard features also include a helicopter landing facility suitable for a medium class helicopter, which will be capable of assisting in search and rescue and medivac operations.
Both vessels are powered by four MTU 20 cylinder 1163 series diesel engines each producing 6,500 kW and driving a Rolls-Royce/Kamewa waterjets. The vessels are being built in accordance with the requirements and under the survey of Det Norske Veritas, conforming to the IMO's High Speed Craft code (HSC 2000).
The first vessel will arrive in Oman early next year.
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