The Jonathan Swift

The Jonathan Swift passes Holyhead's breakwater © Maritime Photographic

Irish Ferries entered the high speed era with the DUBLINSwift service in 1999. Built at a cost of IR£29mn, the Jonathan Swift's speed of 39 knots reduced the crossing time from Dublin City to Holyhead to just one hour 49 minutes. The craft, which offers space for 800 passengers and 200 cars, affrived in Dublin after a 23-day voyage from Western Australia on 5 May 1999. Under the command of Captains Tony Canavan, Steve Hutson and Paul Devaney and with a complement of twenty crew, her route home was via the Indian Ocean, Suez canal Mediterranean and through the Bay of Biscay with stops along the way for refuelling.