The Sun Rises on a New Day, a New Season, and a New Era for the Steamship Authority

Updated at 4:00 PM 

The sun rose this morning over a cool, bright, new day in Hyannis. This is quite appropriate as today is also the first full day of spring and the beginning of a whole new era in high speed water transportation between Hyannis and Nantucket for the Steamship Authority.  

"Iyanough" the legendary Chief Sachem of the Cummaquid Tribe would be proud! Our town is known world-wide as Hyannis. Hundreds of years ago the Pilgrims called this Iyanough's Land. Later, through laziness, time constraints, or just short speak, this area became known as Iyannos which has eventually morphed into the name Hyannis.

Today, Chief Iyanough can stand tall and mighty. Somehow, I think his wise eyes are smiling down on Hyannis Harbor as he is honored with his name emblazoned on a sleek, smooth, shining, new high speed ferry! It is a vessel the Chief could never have imagined in a time when all ships were tall ships. (Think Mayflower?)    

The Iyanough, is the 154 foot, $9.7 Million Dollar, 393 passenger high speed ferry that is the newest addition to the fleet of the Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Steamship Authority. She is a stately 40' wide, is all state-of-the-art stem to stern, and even includes high Speed Wi-Fi Access while at sea with power outlets for passengers at most tables. High Resolution Flat panel wide-screen video monitors are logically positioned around the interior of the Iyanough. They are capable of showing valuable information about the islands, movies, emergency instructions, and even up-to-the-minute vessel positioning on an electronic chart while under way.

Steamship Authority officials including General Manager Wayne Lamson, Director of Engineering and Maintenance Carl Walker, Iyanough Senior Captain Robert Buckley, and Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding President Peter Duclos held a special media press conference onboard the Iyanough this morning. Photos taken during that press conference and tour are included throughout this article.

The Iyanough will begin regularly scheduled service to Nantucket on March 28th following a commissioning ceremony on Nantucket Island March 24th. Steamship Employees and their families will enjoy an introductory special trip aboard the Iyanough this weekend on Sunday.

This morning as I walked aboard the High Speed Catamaran Iyanough for the first time, I was expecting just another delicate “Aluminum Can” type construction that is the earmark of so many High Speed vessels these days. Often quality and strength are sacrificed to gain speed through weight reduction.

As I stepped aboard the Iyanough, before I even went inside, I stopped dead in my tracks. One glance at her superstructure and I knew the Iyanough was different. This is no aluminum can! I was struck with its solid high quality construction first. This is a real ship!  Beautiful and sleek and definitely built to last, the Iyanough is a major step forward for the Steamship Authority's High Speed Service. The Iyanough was built by Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding of Somerset, MA.  She is fast, rugged, and built to last.  She has a wide open design that would make any jumbo jet jealous. This vessel is a win-win for everyone!

The Iyanough was built right here in Massachusetts by a local company with a great reputation. They built all the Hy-Lines fast ferries. It is a win for the Massachusetts economy and the citizens of Massachusetts.

Gladding Hearn’s President Peter Duclos stated in the press conference that they really wanted --- in fact “needed” this project. Determined to get it they worked hard to be the low bidder. It is a win for Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation and its approximately 100 craftsmen and employees.

The Steamship Authority was hoping to keep the construction local and as it turned out Gladding Hearn was the low bidder. With this project so successful it is a big win for the Steamship Management and its hundreds of employees.

But the biggest winners of all will be the millions of passengers who will ride the Iyanough in the years to come. This vessel is designed to be faster and smoother and more reliable than its predecessors the Finest and the Flying Cloud.

To the credit of Gladding-Hearn and the Steamship Authority management, this vessel was delivered on time and essentially on budget in sharp contrast to other recent projects in Massachusetts. It is amazing what can be accomplished when entities work together for the common good and the Iyanough is a perfect example.

The Iyanough features 4 MTU 12 V 4000 engines delivering a total of 9400 HP. She can cruise on 4 engines at 35 knots at only 70% power – hardly breaking a sweat. As she has 4 engines, if one engine fails it is not a big deal. With power to spare and with the blessings of the Coast Guard the Iyanough can operate completely safely on 3 engines and since there is power to spare she will loose little or no speed. Passengers would not likely even be aware if it was necessary to shut down an engine for any reason. Since the Iyanough has so much reserve power she can cruise at a relatively fuel efficient level while maintaining the advertised speed.

As with the former SSA fast ferries, the luggage area is forward near the bow of the vessel. With the Iyanough however, the luggage is contained in a secure compartment isolated from the passenger areas with massive freight doors forward that are able to withstand the impact of a heavy wave should that ever happen. Even if a wave were to ever penetrate the cargo area it would not make it into the passenger area. This is a huge safety improvement. The luggage area can hold up to 30 luggage carts and 3 bicycle carts with 10 bicycles per cart.  

The Iyanough will make the trip between Hyannis and Nantucket in approximately one hour. One half of the trip is simply going into an out of the harbors where she must slow down to conventional vessel harbor speeds.  Another big improvement in passenger comfort is that the entire passenger area is suspended on rubber mounts from the rest of the hull helping to eliminate vibration and inducing quiet by isolating it from the engines.

This Sunday on March 25^th, the Iyanough will hold an open house for the general public from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. This is a great opportunity for the traveling public to get a preview of the new generation fast ferry of the Steamship Authority. But the best is yet to come when she starts service on March 28^th.

Hyannis News will keep you up to date with news of the Iyanough as she enters service. She is a ship that we can all be proud of.  For additional information about the Iyanough and the other Steamship Authority vessels, schedules and reservations please visit http://web3.steamshipauthority.com/ssa/