Newest CalMac ferry arrives in Greenock after maiden voyage from Turkish shipyard

CalMac’s newest ferry has arrived on the Clyde after a 3,000-nautical mile voyage from the Turkish shipyard where it was built.

The MV Isle of Islay arrived in Greenock on Sunday morning after a journey taking around a month.

The vessel will serve residents of its namesake island, as well as the Isle of Jura in the Inner Hebrides.

It has a capacity of 450 people, 100 cars, or 14 commercial vehicles.

MV Isle of Islay is the first of four 95-metre-long ferries being built at Turkey’s Cemre shipyard.

It was handed over to the government agency CMAL in January.

During the voyage to Scotland, the crew on board the ferry took part in a dramatic rescue near Gibraltar.

Amid stormy conditions, the vessel had to leave its berth and take to sea, where the crew spotted a man in the water.

A fast rescue craft was deployed to save him and he was handed over to authorities in Morocco.

The First Minister welcomed the arrival of the ferry on Sunday.

Posting on X, John Swinney said: “Delighted to see MV Isle of Islay arrive in Scotland – a welcome addition to @CalMacFerries fleet.

“My warmest thanks to the crew for handling a challenging journey with great skill and to everyone who has played a part in making this happen.”

CalMac CEO Duncan Mackison said: “It’s the end of the delivery voyage but the start of an exciting new chapter for CalMac.

“The crew, who have been putting the vessel through her paces on an epic voyage across the Mediterranean and North Atlantic in the depths of winter, are delighted to have reached Scotland.

They deserve massive credit for the job they have done in sailing home during treacherous weather and sea conditions and being involved in a CalMac first in saving a life at sea off the coast of Morocco.

“Over the next few weeks, we’ll finalise preparations to get the vessel ready to enter passenger service for Islay and Jura.”