WORLDShipsOCIETYDorsetBRANCH

EVENTS 2023 ~~ online & local venue  ~~ see EVENTS for details and to join.

Our 2023 events are "hybrid" ~ enjoy online or at our Dorset venue ~ see & hear about Horizon, Vision of the Seas, Dwarka and many more ships - brought to you by our enthusiastic speakers. 

Talks & Meetings on Ocean Liners, Cargo Ships, Ferries, Mariner's Memoirs, Paddle Steamers, Cruise Ships, Naval History, Ship Design, Maritime Memories and much more ~ enjoyed by ships & shipping enthusiasts ~ a community with common interests 

   JOIN US ... take a look at our EVENTS section!

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~SHIPS~DORSET~ Images of the Month for April 2023 ~ 1of2 ~ ~ MN Pelican ~ inbound to Poole - January 2023  

We’ve appreciated the constancy of MN Pelican sailing between Poole and Bilbao over the past seven years and recently we’ve been waiting to catch a glimpse of her new wing sail. Thanks to Ray Sexton and his new Instant_Wanderer identity we can enjoy a recent arrival with the sail “stowed away” and in a second image (further below) MN Pelican “sets sail” with her new wing sail (unusually - we presume) deployed as she departs Poole on the 22nd March.

Shipowner Compagnie Maritime Nantaise currently have a seven ship fleet. Brittany Ferries has chartered MN Pelican from them since 2016 and for the majority of that time the ship has undertaken two round trips per week on their Poole/Bilbao/Poole service.

~SHIPS~DORSET~ Images of the Month for April 2023 ~ 2of2 ~ ~ MN Pelican ~ "sets sail" from Poole - March 2023  

In October 2022 the base was installed immediately forward of MN Pelican's funnel to take the Michelin WISAMO inflatable, retractable, automated wing sail. The WISAMO project can be fitted on both merchant ships and pleasure craft. The system is the product of a collaborative venture between Michelin and two Swiss inventors. The inflatable wing sail harnesses the wind as a free, universal and inexhaustible source of propulsion enabling the ship to reduce its fuel consumption.

Key Dimensions for MN Pelican ... Gross Tonnage = 12,076 ... Length = 155m ... Beam = 23m ... Service Speed = 19 knots … Capacity c100 freight units … registered in France … Built 1999 - in service with Brittany Ferries since 2016. 

To view previous "Images of the Month" click our Image Archive link ...