M/V Prince of Wales is a ferry operated by the Inter-Island Ferry Authority. She serves as a replacement for her sister ship, M/V Stikine, when she is out of service for maintenance. Her route is from Ketchikan to Hollis in Southeast Alaska.
 M/V Prince of Wales in Ketchikan
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | MV Prince of Wales |
| Namesake | Prince of Wales Island |
| Operator | Inter-Island Ferry Authority |
| Route | Hollis – Ketchikan |
| Builder | Dakota Creek Industries, Anacortes, Washington |
| Maiden voyage | January 13, 2002 |
| Homeport | Hollis, Alaska |
| Identification |
|
| Status | in active service |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Roll-on/roll-off ferry |
| Tonnage | |
| Length | 198 ft (60 m) |
| Beam | 52.8 ft (16.1 m) |
| Decks |
|
| Ramps | Aft and starboard vehicle loading |
| Propulsion | 3,000 hp (2,237 kW) |
| Speed | 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) |
| Capacity |
|
| Crew | 5 |
Origin
editIn 1992 the state of Alaska passed the Municipal Port Authority Act[1] which allows cities and groups of cities to establish port authorities with powers to sell bonds to support local transportation-related operations.[2] In early 1994 the Alaska Department of Transportation granted $50,000 to the city of Craig to study the potential of such an authority to provide ferry service to Prince of Wales Island.[3] The Alaska Marine Highway System supported this study because it was losing money serving the island with intermittent stops by M/V Aurora, and wanted to stop altogether.[4] The residents of the island, on the other hand, wanted daily service and thought that it would stimulate business. In August 1994, the Craig City Council received this report outlining a two-ferry system with a southern route linking Hollis with Ketchikan, and a northern route connecting Prince of Wales Island with Wrangell, and Petersburg. The system would be run by a municipal port authority.[5]
In 1997 six Southeast Alaska communities banded together to form the Inter-Island Ferry Authority. With the help of Alaska's congressional delegation, the authority received a grant of $12.6 million from the Federal Transit Administration, contingent on local matching funding. The state of Alaska declined to support the grant with the local matching funds required, so they were provided by a $200,000 loan from the city of Wrangell, and $1.9 million in municipal bonds backed by a loan guarantee from the Ketchikan Gateway Borough.[6][7] This initial funding launched the agency and paid for Prince of Wales.
Construction and characteristics
editPrince of Wales was designed by the Elliott Bay Design Group of Seattle, Washington.[8][9] Based on this design, Inter-Island Ferry Authority requested bids for the construction of its first ship with an option to purchase the second ship in its plan. It received five proposals by the deadline of September 25, 2000. Dakota Creek Industries of Anacortes, Washington won with the low bid of $12.2 million on the first ship.[10] Sea trials on Prince of Wales began in early November 2001.[11]
Prince of Wales is 197.5 feet (60.2 m) long with a beam of 52.8 feet (16.1 m), and a draft of 11 feet (3.4 m). Her gross tonnage is calculated as 2,309 and her net tonnage as 1,083.[12] Her hull is constructed of welded steel plates.
Prince of Wales cruises at 15 knots. Her propulsion is provided by two Caterpillar 3512B Diesel engines which generate 1,500 hp each. These in turn, drive two 72 inches (1.8 m) four-bladed variable-pitch propellers.[13] She has an Omnithruster HT400 bow thruster to improve maneuverability.[14]
The ship is certified to carry 160 passengers and 30 standard-sized cars.[15] Her passenger amenities include a hot-food cafeteria, solarium, forward observation/recliner lounge, and children's play area. Since she is intended for day-use only, there are no staterooms for passengers or crew. The crew does have a break room, lockers, and a separate restroom.
She normally sails with a crew of five.
Her namesake is Prince of Wales Island, where she is home-ported.
Operating history
editPrince of Wales arrived in Ketchikan for the first time on December 29, 2001.[13] Her maiden voyage between Hollis and Ketchikan occurred on January 13, 2002.[16][6] Later that month she was taken out of service for several days for lack of spare filters for her variable-pitch propeller system.[16] Another early difficulty was that the restaurant concessionaire aboard found that its operations were not economic and broke its 5-year contract after nine months.[17] The restaurant was replaced with the current cafeteria service.
Inter-Island Ferry Authority's second ship MV Stikine was launched in 2006 to support the northern route during summers. During the winter, the two ships took turns maintaining service on the southern route during maintenance periods. In early 2007, for example, Prince of Wales returned to Anacortes to receive some of the upgrades built in to Stikine from the start, including a more powerful bow thruster, a third generator, and enclosed bridge wings. Meanwhile, Stikine maintained the company's sailing schedule on the southern route between Hollis and Ketchikan.[18]
The northern route could not sustain Stikine economically, so after the summer of 2008 both ships were used on the southern route. As Stikine had slightly greater capacity, she became the primary ferry on the Hollis–Ketchikan route, with Prince of Wales becoming a reserve for when Stikine broke down or was scheduled for routine maintenance. She was an expensive back-up plan, and cost the authority about $200,000 a year in moorage, insurance, and maintenance. In 2012 Inter-Island Ferry Authority considered selling the ship to save money, but this was never executed.[19]
In May and June 2020 Prince of Wales proved an inadequate back-up for Stikine. She suffered a major propulsion system failure while Stikine was already in the shipyard for repairs. This left Prince of Wales Island without ferry service. To assist island residents M/V Lituya, operated by the Alaska Marine Highway System, made several runs on the Hollis–Ketchikan route before Stikine could be returned to service.[20]
References
edit- ^ AK Stat 29.35.600 - 29.35.730 (2019)
- ^ Burnham, Chuck (2015). Municipal Port Authorities in Alaska under AS §§ 29.35.600‐730 (PDF). Alaska State Legislature.
- ^ "Town gains grant to develop ferry". Fairbanks Daily News Miner. April 3, 1994.
- ^ Alaska Marine Highway System: Hollis Ferry Boat (PDF). Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. 2001.
- ^ "Prince of Wales Ferry Planned". Sitka Daily Sentinel. August 11, 1994.
- ^ a b "Hollis-Ketchikan Ferry Launches New Service". Sitka Daily Sentinel. January 15, 2002.
- ^ "Inter Island Ferry Enjoys Smoother Financial Waters". Sitka Daily Sentinel. August 20, 2003.
- ^ "Elliott Bay Design Group | projects | ferry design". Elliott Bay Design Group. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
- ^ Johnson, Brian F. (August 26, 1999). "IFA planners visit to discuss vessel". Petersburg Pilot.
- ^ Johnson, Brian F. (October 5, 2000). "IFA considering bids on ferry". Petersburg Pilot.
- ^ "Design Detailings: UW seeks architecture professor". www.djc.com. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
- ^ "USCG PSIX Search Page". cgmix.uscg.mil. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
- ^ a b "Sitnews -Stories in the News - Ketchikan, Alaska - News, Features, Opinion Polls". www.sitnews.org. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
- ^ "Wesmar Thrusters Propel Alaska Ferry to Success". MarineLink. 2002-09-11. Retrieved 2020-08-28.
- ^ "New SE ferry in the Works". Sitka Daily Sentinel. December 1, 2004.
- ^ a b "New SE Ferry Out for Repairs". Sitka Daily Sentinel. February 1, 2002.
- ^ "New Inter-Island Ferry Restaurant Shuts Down". Sitka Daily Sentinel. November 15, 2002.
- ^ "Inter-Island Ferry service Little Norway Festival". Petersburg Pilot. March 22, 2007.
- ^ Lichtenstein, Matt (2012-03-27). "IFA to actively pursue sale of older vessel soon". KFSK. Retrieved 2020-08-29.
- ^ "Prince of Wales Ferry Service Interrupted". Pacific Maritime Magazine: 13. July 2020.