She looks very unfinished. There’s a lot of deformation

Experts warned yesterday that the partially-built ferries are risking serious damage after studying our photographs.

They pointed to potentially serious issues with the Glen Sannox, which has been left floating on the Clyde since the First Minister officially launched it in 2017.

We showed photos of the ferry to Dr Spyros Hirdaris, a professor of maritime safety, and naval architect Laurence Hildesley. Both said the ship should have been built undercover, not left exposed to elements, which has led to rust and corrosion.

They also said steel panels appear deformed, which could weaken the structural integrity.

Dr Spyros Hirdaris, a maritime safety professor at Aalto University in Finland, said: “One thing that drew my attention immediately is the indentations on the side of the ship. I would not expect to see buckled plates on the side cell of a new ship. Such structural defects weaken the hull and would lead me to examine the quality assurance during construction. In open waters and bad weather, the hull may be weaker than it should be. If there was a collision accident, the consequences could be water ingress.

“Looking at the overall condition of the hull, there is clearly a lot of rust. The more she stays in water without operating and following regular maintenance intervals, the more corrosion and rust will be obvious.”

Mr Hildesley, managing director of marine consultancy Keel Marine, said: “One of the biggest issues is the ships have been sitting out there in the open for so long and there will be remedial works to be done.

“She’s very unfinished and is obviously going to require some paint corrections and there’s an awful lot of plate deformation.

“Some of the panels have what we call the hungry horse effect, where you can see the ribs. You can also see all the frames and the longitudinal structure.

“You’ll always get that on a vessel like this but this looks pretty bad for a new vessel. If there’s excessive indentation you can have a weakness. The bulbous bow also looks like it could be finished better.”

A parliamentary inquiry was told the bow would have to be cut off and replaced because it does not meet specifications.

Marine growth on the underside of the Glen Sannox will also need blasted off and re-coated. The second ship, Vessel 802, is on the slipway but its paintwork is degrading. Water is getting into both ships, leading to damage.