Islay disruption continues as Finlaggan suspended after suffering breakdown

CalMac sailings between Islay and the mainland faced further disruption earlier this week after the largest vessel on the route suffered a breakdown, writes

Finn Nixon.

The MV Finlaggan was withdrawn from service on Monday evening due to engine issues, causing disruption for passengers attempting to travel from Kennacraig to Islay’s two ports. This disruption continued on Tuesday and, at the time of writing, was expected to continue into Wednesday due to issues with the vessel’s starboard engine.

A CalMac spokesperson said: “Due to an ongoing technical issue with MV Finlaggan’s starboard main engine, which requires further investigation and repair, a number of KennacraigIslay sailings on Tuesday July 4 have been amended or cancelled. “We remain committed to engaging with island communities and doing everything in our power to deliver the services communities deserve.” On Monday and Tuesday, Finlaggan’s services that did sail in her absence, were operated by the Isle of Arran, with a lower capacity and some timetable changes.

This latest setback came just a week after the Finlaggan had returned from drydock on Tuesday June 27.

Her return freed up the MV Lord of the Isles to provide ferry services between Mallaig and South Uist after that service was hit by nearly a month of cancellations.

It was also hoped that Finlaggan’s return would ease some of the capacity issues which have been experienced on Islay and Jura’s ferry services, with the MV Isle of Arran remaining as the smaller vessel on these routes. The Isle of Arran can continue to operate while the Finlaggan remains suspended, but this will mean potential passenger numbers will be more than halved, as the Finlaggan can carry 102 more passengers and nine more cars than her older counterpart.