Virtu Ferries – Marine Evacuation System Drill – 18.01.2025

Around 1030 hrs of Saturday 18th January, 2025 the Virtu Ferries Incat built High Speed Craft (HSC) SAINT JOHN PAUL II started a Marine Evacuation System (MES) emergency drill that was due to be done on Friday 17th but due to ESE Force 7 wind, it had to be postponed. The marine evacuation system (MES) is […]
High Speed Craft – HSC PONIENTE JET entering Gibdock Ltd for repairs – 11.06.2024

Early Afternoon of Tuesday 11th June, 2024 the 1999 Incat Built High Speed Craft PONIENTE JET was spotted entering Gibdock Ltd, at Gibraltar for repairs especially her port bow fin. The 640 Passenger with 180 vehicle capacity HSC collided with the wharf last May while she was manoeuvring in the port of Ceuta. She was […]
Virtu Ferries – Schedule Changes for 19th and 20th April 2024 due to weather conditions

Due to weather conditions happening lately in a strange month since normally the month of May is associated with winds VIRTU FERRIES had to make the following changes for today Friday 19th and tomorrow Saturday 20th April, 2024 – M/V ‘Saint John Paul II’ & M/V ‘Jean de la Valette’ – Friday 19th April 2024: […]
Former Military – Yacht PLAN B at Malta

One of the former naval vessels that was given a second life, converted as the luxury yacht PLAN B is the former Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Hydrographic Ship HMAS FLINDERS A 312. She was built by HMA Naval Dockyard at Williamstown, Victoria, Australia. HMAS FLINDERS was commissioned into the RAN in 1973, and was used […]
High Speed Craft – SPEED JET

Last 17th May, 2023 we issued an article regarding the towage of SPEED JET by tug DUKE II in the Mediterranean Sea last October – https://maltashipphotos.com/aerial-photography-duke-ii-towing-high-speed-craft-speed-jet-06-10-2022/ And today we have for you readers the history of this lovely Austal Built AUTO EXPRESS 82… Built in 1996 as FELIX I for the Danish Ferry Operator Scandlines […]
AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY – DUKE II towing High Speed Craft SPEED JET – 06.10.2022

One of the towages around the world operated by Dutch Marine Contractors (DMC) was the towage of the Austal 82 catamaran SPEED JET towed by the 34 metre tug DUKE II was photographed from the air by Malta Ship Photos in the Mediterranean Sea . DUKE II was built by Scheepswerf Gebr. Kooiman BV, Zwijndrecht, […]
State Visit – Pope Francis at Gozo – 02.04.2022

Malta welcomed His Holiness Pope Francis during his Apostolic visit to the country from Saturday 2nd April to Sunday 3rd April of which on Saturday 2nd April he visited the sister island of Gozo. The island of Gozo was wearing Holy Week dress and Vatican City Flags mounted on road roundabouts, balconies, roof flagpoles etc […]
Virtu Ferries – MARIA DOLORES at Mgarr Harbour, Gozo – 22.03.2022.

Two years after the largest catamaran operating in the Mediterranean and the second largest in the world SAINT JOHN PAUL II entered Mgarr Harbour, Gozo last Monday 2nd March, 2020 it was the turn for the Austal built 68.4 metres long High Speed Craft MARIA DOLORES to enter Mgarr Harbour, preparations for the Pope Francis Apostolic Visit […]
Virtu Ferries – 42.2 metres High Speed Craft GOZO EXPRESS to join the fleet for Malta-Gozo route in Q1 of 2022.

On Thursday 13th January, 2022 Virtu Ferries announced it has purchased a new High Speed Craft at a cost of €7 million, for use on the Malta-Gozo route. The High Speed Craft (HSC) GOZO EXPRESS was designed by the Incat Crowther company of Australia. She is 42.2 m long and can carry 322 passengers in […]
Delivery – 96 metre High Speed Craft INCAT 050 at Malta – July 2008
On Friday 11th July,2008 afternoon the 96 metre High Speed Craft INCAT 050 entered Grand Harbour, Malta after finishing her charter to the United States Navy as JOINT VENTURE HSV-XI. INCAT 050 was one of six 96 metre (WPC 96) catamarans built by Incat, Australia in 1998. Under the name DEVIL CAT, she operated for a […]