MV Finest
MV Finest pierside in Kingston, Washington
History
OwnerPort Imperial Ferry Corp.
RouteManhattan–Port Imperial, New Jersey
BuilderDerecktor Shipyards
Completed1996
IdentificationMMSI 366990580, IMO number: 9132076
OwnerKitsap Transit
Port of registryBremerton, Washington, United States
RouteSeattle–Port of Kingston, Kitsap County
AcquiredOctober 2018
RefitMarch–October 2018, Nichols Brothers shipyard, Whidbey Island, $5 million
StatusStarted commuter service November 26, 2018
General characteristics
TypeCatamaran high-speed craft (fast ferry)
Tonnage408 GT[1]
Length38 m (124 ft 8 in)[1]
Beam10 m (32 ft 10 in)[1]
Height6 m (19 ft 8 in)
Draft3 m (9 ft 10 in)
Installed power2 × MTU 16V398 TE74 L marine diesel engines,[2]: 4–1  4,000 kW (5,400 hp) total[3]
PropulsionWater jet drive[2]: 1–3 
Speed35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph)[4]
Capacity350 passengers[5] and 16 bicycles
NotesVessel data via US Coast Guard Vessel Information Service unless noted

MV Finest is an aluminum-hulled[6] catamaran fast passenger ferry built at Derecktor Shipyards in 1997 for New York Fast Ferry Services. She is owned and operated by Kitsap Transit on a Seattle–Kingston route since 2018. Finest is a former NY Waterway vessel and at one point provided service from the Massachusetts mainland to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket.[7]

9/11 maritime evacuation

MV Finest on the Hudson in 2013

While in service in New York Harbor for New York Fast Ferry Services, Finest participated in the maritime evacuation of Lower Manhattan after the September 11, 2001 World Trade Center attacks.[5][8] According to her captain, she was the second vessel to arrive at Manhattan to transfer injured people off the island.[9]

Puget Sound service

After her purchase by Kitsap Transit, she was moved through the Panama Canal in February 2018, on the back of another vessel, then overhauled in Washington State for more than $7.5 million.[5][4]

In early November 2018, Kitsap Transit announced that Finest would begin Kitsap Fast Ferries passenger service on November 26 that year.[10] The state governor visited the ship and terminal at Kingston while attending a ribbon-cutting ceremony on November 19 in advance of scheduled service.[11][12]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Vesselfinder
  2. 1 2 Invitation for bids: M/V Finest refurbishment (PDF), Kitsap Transit, December 8, 2017, KT 17-591
  3. ↑ Engine specifications, MTU, accessed 2018-11-02
  4. 1 2 Vosler, Christian (October 19, 2018), "Kitsap Transit takes delivery of M/V Finest", Kitsap Sun
  5. 1 2 3 Vosler, Christian (February 2, 2018), Foot ferry, which will work Kingston-Seattle route, begins journey to Kitsap: The M/V Finest will journey through the Panama Canal to get to Puget Sound., Seattle: KING-TV
  6. ↑ MV Finest Coast Guard Vessel Documentation via National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Marine Fisheries Service Office of Science and Technology – retrieved November 1, 2018
  7. ↑ Kate Stone Lombardi (August 16, 1998), "Shipyard To Launch Its Biggest Vessel Ever", The New York Times
  8. ↑ 9/11 maritime response Portside New York
  9. ↑ ""We stopped counting:" Former captain of Kingston's newest ferry recalls evacuating thousands on 9/11", Kitsap Daily News, Poulsbo, Washington, August 16, 2018
  10. ↑ David Gutman (November 7, 2018), "Kitsap Transit launching Kingston-to-Seattle fast ferry service after Thanksgiving", The Seattle Times
  11. ↑ "Governor Inslee on Facebook", Official website, Office of the Governor of the State of Washington, November 19, 2018, retrieved 2018-11-19
  12. ↑ Kitsap Transit launches Fast Ferry service from Kingston to Seattle, Tacoma: KCPQ television news, retrieved 2018-11-19
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