Continued problems with Red Funnel’s Red Eagle vehicle ferry has led to at least another 8 cancelled sailings today (Thursday).
It was on Tuesday afternoon that a problem with the voith unit – a seemingly common issue – arose, leading to the cancellation of 4 sailings on the East Cowes-Southampton route.
With serious repairs needed, the cross-Solent operator then announced the cancellation of 10 timetabled sailings for Wednesday – with the 21:45 from East Cowes also cancelled late last night.
Now, the 05:00, 08:00, 11:00 and 14:00 sailings from Southampton have been pulled alongside the 06:30, 09:30, 12:30 and 15:30 sailings from East Cowes
It’s unclear if there will be any further cancellations today or throughout the week. Previously, Red Eagle was pulled out of service for a week.
It’s said that it will be another 4 years before the aging Raptor-class ferries are replaced, bringing into question how Red Funnel intends to run a full service between now and then.
Red Funnel apologises for any inconvenience caused
UPDATE @ 12:15 – The 18:30 from East Cowes and the 17:00 from Southampton have also been cancelled.
UPDATE @ 19:20 – The 20:15 from Southampton and the 21:45 from East Cowes have also been cancelled.
