F/B Ionian Sky - Piraeus

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F/B IONIAN SKY

Photo © Michele Lulurgas, Igoumenitsa sea, 05/08/10 #9890

Ship	Ionian Sky (2004)	Building Spec.	Hayashikane, Shimonoseki, Giappone, 1974 – N° 1177
Call Sign	? (03/2004-06/2004) SYQB (06/2004-01/2007) ? (01/2007-06/2007) SXRK (06/2007-04/2009) 5BRU9 (04/2009à)	IMO Number	7377567
GRT	19.539	DWT	4.213
Dimensions	163,98 x 23,98 x 6,4	Engines	2 Mitsubishi-MAN V7V 52/55, 20.595 kW
Speed	22,5 knots	Passengers	1.100
Beds	347 in 107 cabins	Cars	600
Lane Metres	1.455	Sister ships
Registry Port	Kingstown (03/2004-06/2004) Piraeus (06/2004-01/2007) Panama (01/2007-06/2007) Piraeus (06/2007-04/2009) Limassol (04/2009à)	Flag	St. Vincent & Grenadines (03/2004-06/2004) Greece (06/2004-01/2007) Panama (01/2007-06/2007) Greece (06/2007-04/2009) Cyprus (04/2009à)
Former Names/Own.	Sapporo Maru – Nippon Enkai Ferry 1974-1991 Sun Flower Sapporo – Blue Highway Line 1991-1998 Ionian Victory – Strintzis Lines 1998-1999 Blue Sky – Blue Star Ferries 2000-03/2004
New Names/Owners
Line	Laid up at Perama (Greece) since September 14^th, 2011

Was acquired from Japan, where she linked Tokyo with Sendai on Hokkaido island, by Strintzis Lines in 1998, then deployed first on links from Venice and Ancona to Corfu, Igoumenitsa and Patras, then also on the new direct link Ancona – Patras, until 2000, when she was transferred to Blue Star Ferries, the new brand name of Strintzis Lines, and put on Venice – Corfu – Igoumenitsa – Patras line. Not well suited, in my opinion, for a so long crossing (she lacked a swimming pool, aircraft-type seats, had a little number of beds and so on), on November 2003 she replaced the “Blue Bridge” on her annual refit linking Brindisi to Corfu and Igoumenitsa; on that period Agoudimos Lines purchased her and decided to maintain the ship on that line, performing the same timetable of her when she was under Blue Star Ferries’s ownership (departures from Italy in the morning and from Igoumenitsa at 23.30). Well appreciated on Brindisi – Corfu – Igoumenitsa line, where she faces the competition of G.A. Ferries’s “Alkmini A” in 2004 and then being the best ferry on the route, in 2007 she left the Greek flag for six months, being registered at Panama (she was already registered under another flag, St. Vincent & Grenadines, for three months in 2004), then in 2008 was deployed on Bari – Igoumenitsa – Cephalonia – Patras line to replace the “Ionian Queen” after the end of the joint Agoudimos – Endeavor service. Traffic on Bari line had a drop that year, so the ferry was sent back to Brindisi after the end of Summer; at the end of December, due to mechanical troubles occurred to the “Ionian Spirit” the “Ionian Sky” served also Brindisi – Vlore line until January 2^nd, when was replaced by the “Kapetan Alexandros A”. Later, she alternated lay-up periods with service periods from Brindisi to Corfu and Igoumenitsa, changing also flag another time, in this case to Cyprus, on April 2009. For Summer 2011 was again planned to serve Brindisi line, but these plans switched to Bari – Durres, where she stayed until the end of Summer season, before being laid up at Perama. This choice seems to be very strange to me, as long as she could be very successful on the main service of Italy –Albania trade. Resumed service only for a couple of months in 2012 on Brindisi – Corfu – Igoumenitsa line, between the beginning of July and the beginning of September, sailing mainly overnight on alternate days, spent the main part of the year laid up when, during the Spring of 2013, was rumoured to be chartered to Nel Lines to operate on their core service from Piraeus to Chios and Mytilene. The plans changed after a mechanical failure on the “Theofilos”, with the “Ionian Sky” replacing her on North Aegean services. Also this spell came to an end on September 13^th, 2013, when she was also affected by mechanical troubles and was laid up again.