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 The Melissa Ann in Eliott Bay on the Downtown Seattle-West Seattle route with Mount Rainier in the background on November 9, 2012
| |
| General characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Type | Catamaran passenger ferry |
| Length | 77 ft (23.5 m) |
| Beam | 29 ft (8.8 m) |
| Draft | 5 ft (1.5 m) |
| Decks | 2 |
| Installed power | 2 x 1400 HP |
| Speed | 28 kn |
| Capacity | 172 passengers |
| Crew | 3 |
The Melissa Ann is a 77-foot (23 m), 172 passenger passenger-only ferry owned by Four Seasons Marine and operated by Kitsap Transit as part of the Kitsap Fast Ferries fleet.
History
Melissa Ann was built in 1988 along with her sister Rachel Marie at Nichols Boat Builders in Freeland, Washington for the United States Army. She was later sold to Four Seasons Marie which leased the vessel for various Passenger-Only ferry services, including to Kitsap Transit for a Passenger-Only ferry route between Seattle and Bremerton and to the city of Honolulu for a Passenger-Only ferry route on Oahu.
From October 2009 through 2015, she was operated by the King County Ferry District (later the King County Department of Transportation Marine Division) on the Downtown Seattle to Vashon Island route as part of the King County Water Taxi. In 2018, the ferry was leased by Kitsap Transit again, this time as a backup vessel for the Seattle-Kingston Fast Ferry route, before being returned to Four Seasons Marine in 2022.
Currently, the Melissa Ann is being operated by Catalina Passenger Service in Newport Beach, CA as a secondary boat for their Newport To Avalon Route.
Technical information
The Melissa Ann has a catamaran hull and uses two 1,400 horsepower propulsion engines to cruise at an average speed of 28 knots. The vessel also is equipped with two radar systems, a GPS plotter, a depth sounder, and an automated information system transponder.
References
- ^ Vessels, King County Water Taxi, King County Department of Transportation, retrieved April 5, 2013
- Vosler, Christian (April 3, 2018). "Kitsap Transit leases backup boat for Kingston route". Kitsap Sun. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
- "A RESOLUTION OF KITSAP TRANSIT BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS AUTHORIZING A SETTLEMENT AND MUTUAL RELEASE OF THE LEASED PASSENGER VESSEL M/V MELISSA ANN WITH FOUR SEASONS MARINE SERVICES CORP" (PDF). Kitsap Transit.