MV Azzurra
ex Nortia, Scent of the Sea, Kelibia, Corsica Marina, Olau West, Kalle, Grenaa
Roy Thornton Collection
Steel twin screw motor vessel built in 1964 by Schiffbau-Gesellschaft Unterweser A.G., Bremerhaven (Yard No 443) as a Passenger/Ro-Ro Cargo ferry for Grenaa – Hundested Færgefart A/S, Grenaa, Denmark
Technical Data
- Length: 92.41 m (overall) 90.0 m (between perpendiculars)
- Breadth: 17.76 m
- Depth: 5.67 m
- Draught: 4.395 m
- Tonnage: 3077 gross/1480 net/850t deadweight
- Engines: 2 Vee Oil 4SA 10-cylinder MAN-Augsburg 4SA 520-740 diesels
- Power: 5870 kW/7980 bHP
- Speed: 19.0 knots
- Capacity: 1500 passengers/180 cars
- Callsign: OZJP, 9HCM3 ………. ERNH
- IMO Number: 6406373
- Official Number: 2451 (LR 1992 – 93)
- Port of Registry: Hundested/Denmark 🇩🇰, Kalundborg/Denmark 🇩🇰, Juelsminde/Denmark 🇩🇰, Valletta/Malta 🇲🇹, Kingstown/St Vincent & Grenadines 🇻🇨, Giurgiulesti/Moldova 🇲🇩
- Sister Ships: Hundested (444)
History
December 17th 1963: Launched as GRENAA.
April 21st 1964: Delivered to Grenaa – Hundested Færgefart A/S, Grenaa, Denmark.
Roy Thornton Collection
April 22nd 1964: Commenced services between Grenaa – Hundested.
1971: Registered to Jydsk Færgefart, Copenhagen.
November 5th 1971: Renamed KALLE.
July 1st 1972: Final service between Grenaa – Hundested.
August 7th 1972: Juelsminde-Kalundborg Linien services between Juelsminde – Kalundborg.
November 21st 1974: Sold to Olau Line A/S, Hellerup, Denmark and renamed OLAU WEST.
© Fotoflite
December 21st 1974 – January 19th 1975: Services between Copenhagen – Aalborg.
January 19th 1975: Services between Sheerness – Vlissingen.
© Fotoflite (Left) and Roy Thornton Collection (Right)
🆕 © Arjan van Gelder
June 18th 1976 – August 2nd 1976: Chartered to Larvik-Frederikshavns Ferjen, Larvik, Norway for services between Larvik – Frederikshavn.
© Wolfgang Fricke (Frederikshavn, 01/07/1976)
July 1976 © Achim Borchert (Frank Heine Collection)
August 5th 1976 – October 10th 1976: Chartered to Brittany Ferries, Morlaix, France for services between St Malo – Portsmouth.
August 7th 1976: Went aground outside of St Malo and required repairs.
October 10th 1976 – November 1st 1976: Chartered to Nordisk Færgefart, Faaborg, Denmark for services between Faaborg – Gelting.
January 1977 – March 1977: Chartered to Grenaa-Hundested Linien for services between Grenaa – Hundested.
April 1st 1977: Olau Line services between Sheerness – Dunkerque.
Roy Thornton Collection
September 4th 1977: Services between Sheerness – Dunkerque ceased and she was laid up.
November 1977: Sold to Tourship Co Ltd (Corsica Ferries), Panama and renamed CORSICA MARINA.
November 1977: Services between Bastia – Livorno.
June 1983 – August 1983: Chartered to Limadet for services Malaga – Tangier.
© Simonwp (La Spezia, 26/09/1985)
1986: Chartered to Adriatica” di Navigazione S.p.A., Venice, Italy for services between Brindisi – Igoumenitsa.
1990: Sold to Alimar Shipping Co. Ltd, Messina, Italy, and renamed KELIBIA.
1990: Rodriquez SpA services between Trapani – Naples.
© Juan G Mata (1991)
June 1995 – August 1995: Chartered to Limadet for services between Malaga – Tanger.
1996: Laid up in Tanger.
March 1998: Sold to Carretel Malta Shipping Ltd, (Eurolines S.A.) Valletta, Malta and renamed SCENT OF SEA.
June 20th 1998 – October 1998: Planned to put her into Eurolines service between La Spezia – Bastia but developed engine problems resulting in her being laid up in La Spezia.
© Carlo Martinelli (La Spezia, 27/08/1998)
1999: Sold to Etruria Shipping, Genoa, Italy.
July 3rd 1999: Arrived in Genoa for refit.
August 1999: Renamed NORTIA and laid up in Genoa.
© Carlo Martinelli (Genoa, 23/08/1999)
May 2000: Services between Livorno – Portoferraio (Elba).
August 2000: Laid up in Livorno.
September 8th 2000: Laid up in Genoa.
June 2001: Sold to Adriatic Shipping Company Ltd, Kingstown, St Vincent and renamed AZZURRA.
July 26th 2001: Services between Bari – Dubrovnik – Hvar (Croatia).
July 6th 2002 – September 14th 2002: Services between Ortona/Bari – Dubrovnik.
© Aleksi Lindström (Bari, July 2002)
2003: Services between Brindisi – Durres.
July 5th 2003 – September 2003: Services between Bari – Dubrovnik.
2003: Commenced services between Brindisi – Durres.
July 15th 2004 – September 19th 2004: Services between Bari – Dubrovnik, as well as between Bari – Corfu.
September 21st 2004: Services between Brindisi – Durres.
July 3rd 2005: Services between Bari – Dubrovnik, as well as between Bari – Kotor.
September 26th 2005: Services between Brindisi – Durres – Bari.
© Benoit Donne (Kotor, 21/08/06)
October 2010: Sold to Fergun Shipping Co. Ltd., Mersin, Turkey.
October 2010: Services between Tasucu – Tuzla.
December 13th 2010: Fergun Ferries East Med Lines services between Mersin – Tripoli.
March 5th 2011: Arrived in Valletta.
March 11th 2001: Left Valletta for Tripoli to assist in the evacuation of foreigners during the Libyan Civil War.
March 16th 2011: Arrived Alexandria with 1310 passengers.
March 16th 2011: Left Alexandria for Benghazi.
March 27th 2011: Left Benghazi for Tripoli.
March 29th 2011: Left Tripoli for Tartous and onward to Tasucu.
April 2nd 2011: Left Tasucu for Misrata via Benghazi.
April 8th 2011: Left Benghazi for Latakia.
April 13th 2011: Left Latakia for Misurata.
April 20th 2011: Arrived in Alexandria.
April 21st 2011: Left Alexandria for Tasucu.
May 2011: Chartered to International Organization for Migration (IOM).
May 17th 2011: Left Tripoli for Misrata.
May 23rd 2011: Arrived in Benghazi with 726 passengers.
May 2011: Services between Benghazi – Misurata.
June 24th 2011: Left Benghazi for Tasucu.
July 1st 2011: Services between Tasucu – Tripoli.
August 22nd 2011: Left Tasucu for Benghazi.
August 27th 2011: Arrived Tripoli.
August 28th 2011: Left Tripoli for Benghazi.
September 1st 2011: Arrived Tripoli, where her IOM charter was completed.
October 29th 2011 – November 1st 2011: Left Tasucu for Valletta.
November 9th 2011: Chartered to Med Maritime Service (Zammit/ Fergün Shipping/ BH International) for services between Valletta – Tripoli.
© Emmanuel L (Valletta, 09/01/2012)
April 2012: Arrested in Tripoli, Libya.
June 2012: Ferün Ferries East Med Line services between Mersin – Tripoli.
March 2013: Sold to Turkish breakers.
© Selim San
All information is believed to be correct and no responsibility is accepted for any errors or omissions. All items included in this article are subject to © copyright. We would like to take this opportunity of thanking: Wolfgang Fricke, Arjan van Gelder, Emmanuel L, Aleksi Lindström, Carlo Martinelli, Juan G Mata, Selim San, Simonwp and Andreas Wörteler for their assistance in producing this feature.
Article © Nigel Thornton and Ray Goodfellow (Dover Ferry Photos Group)
