Engine Issues Disrupt Service on Glen Sannox Ferry
The ferry ‘Glen Sannox’ faced multiple technical problems, leading to significant disruptions on the Troon to Brodick route. The latest incident occurred on March 20, when the port side main engine experienced a malfunction. This issue triggered the oil mist detector alarm, resulting in the cancellation of scheduled sailings from Troon at 06:30 p.m. and 10:20 a.m., as well as departures from Brodick at 07:15 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Passengers were advised to travel as foot passengers or to use the Claonaig to Loch Ranza route due to limited capacity on the Ardrossan to Brodick service. Although the engine issue was resolved on March 21, the ferry’s 03:50 p.m. sailing from Troon and the 06:00 p.m. departure from Brodick remained at risk of cancellation due to fog conditions at both ports.
Previous Engine Faults and Ongoing Repairs
Prior to the most recent incident, the ‘Glen Sannox’ suffered engine issues on March 16. Engineers were called in for further investigations, which led to the cancellation of additional sailings. The ferry’s scheduled departures from Troon at 10:20 a.m. and from Brodick at 12:30 p.m. were canceled as engineers worked to resolve the ongoing problems. The ferry’s position was affected, causing the cancellation of the 07:15 a.m. sailing from Brodick on March 17 as well. The situation escalated, leading to the suspension of the ferry service for a second day. A spare part had been fitted during repairs, but the oil mist detector alarm sounded again when the ferry approached Troon, indicating unresolved issues with the port side main engine. As a result, the ferry was sidelined once more on March 18, and sea trials were conducted at 4:45 p.m. before returning to Troon for overnight berthing. To assist affected foot passengers, shuttle buses were provided from Ardrossan and Troon at various times.
Hull Cracking Issues and Engineering Solutions
Ferguson Marine has identified the cause of hull cracking on the ‘Glen Sannox’ and plans to implement engineering changes to prevent similar issues in the future. The problem was traced to propeller cavitation, which caused vibrations that led to a 20 mm crack in the hull. Propeller cavitation occurs when bubbles form around the blades, collapsing and creating pressure on the ship’s structure. To address this, Ferguson Marine has introduced a two-part solution. The first step involved adding structural reinforcement to reduce the vibrations, which has already been completed. The second step is to redesign the propellers to minimize cavitation. These redesigned propellers have been tested and validated in a model basin in Austria, with manufacturing expected to take several months. The repair work on the ‘Glen Sannox’ has exceeded £1 million, but the shipyard is optimistic that the combination of structural enhancements and redesigned propellers will eliminate the vibration issues that caused the original crack. Additionally, lessons learned from the ‘Glen Sannox’ will be applied to the sister ship, ‘Glen Rosa,’ which is still under construction.
