Red Funnel has responded to concerns about ongoing issues affecting its Red Jet operation following disruption to the high-speed service.
Questions have been raised about the situation at the operator’s Southampton terminal and what it could mean for passengers travelling between the Isle of Wight and the mainland.
Red Funnel has confirmed that its main Red Jet berth is currently out of use after a recent periodic inspection identified that “some work is required”.
The operator says it is working with contractors, with services currently operating from its secondary berth at Terminal 2 in Southampton.
The situation was compounded yesterday when Red Jet 7 developed an electrical fault and had to be moved to the maintenance berth while the problem was resolved.
A separate staffing issue also affected the service after a captain was unexpectedly taken ill. Red Funnel says it did everything possible to provide cover, but a number of crossings had to be cancelled.
The company has acknowledged that operational changes introduced while work is completed on the main Red Jet pontoon have added further challenges.
A Red Funnel spokesperson has said:
“In the morning, we experienced staff shortage due to a captain being unexpectedly taken ill and this impacted a number of crossings. We did everything possible to provide cover but unfortunately some services had to be cancelled.
“Separately, Red Jet 7 experienced an electrical fault and had to be moved to our maintenance berth while this was resolved. At the same time, operational changes put in place while works are completed to our main Red Jet pontoon added further challenges to the operation.
“As our regular customers will be aware, we are currently operating from our secondary berth in Southampton, following a recent periodic inspection of the main berth. This identified that some work is required and we are currently working with our contractors on this.
“We’ll provide an update as soon as we can, but the service is operating as advertised from the secondary berth at Terminal 2.”
