Hai Xia Hao
As The Cat in Yarmouth July 2009
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The Hai Xia Hao is a high-speed motor catamaran ( High Speed Craft ) and a passenger and car ferry, which was built under construction number 59 by the Tasmanian company Incat .
The ship was commissioned by Bay Ferries Limited under the name The Cat in 2002 on the Yarmouth (Nova Scotia) to Bar Harbor , Maine route and operated there in the season from May to October through 2009, when the Maine government suspended its subsidies . At that time it replaced a ferry (hull number 046) that was also built by Incat, which was also called The Cat and had been in operation since 1997. It completed the route in less than three hours (around six hours between Yarmouth and Portland), about half the time a regular ferry would take. There was also a casino on board with slot machines, open while sailing in international waters. Outside the season, the ferry was used between the Bahamas and Florida or in Trinidad and Tobago.
In 2011 the ship was acquired by Fujian Cross Strait Ferry and operates between Taichung and Pingtan Island .
The ship, which is mainly made of aluminum, has a carrying capacity of 721 tons. It is powered by four water jet engines that can be individually adjusted for steering. The top speed when fully loaded is 38 knots .
Four more sister ships of the 98 m class were built at Incat ( Normandie Express , T&T Spirit , Milenium Dos , HSV-2 Swift , Milenium Tres ).
Web links
- The Hai Xia Hao from the manufacturer Incat
- The Hai Xia Hao on the Ferry Site