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SIC Ferries

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Shetland Islands Council Ferries
Company typePublic (Council-owned)
IndustryTransport
Founded1972
HeadquartersSella Ness, Sullom Voe, Shetland
Number of locations
17 ports
Area served
Inter-island Shetland
ServicesFerries
OwnerShetland Islands Council
Websitewww.shetland.gov.uk/ferries
Footnotes / references
Previously Zetland County Council Ferries (~1972 - 1975)

Shetland Islands Council Ferries (often named SIC Ferries) is a company operating inter-island ferry services in Shetland, a subarctic archipelago off the northeast coast of Scotland.[1] The company operates 8 services across 9 of the Shetland islands using 12 vessels, one of which is operated by BK Marine.[2]

Services

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Services of the SIC Ferries are:[3]

  • Bluemull service linking the North Isles at Gutcher, Yell; Belmont, Unst; and Hamars Ness, Fetlar. This is done in a triangular service, where one ferry mostly operates between Belmont and Gutcher, with a few trips to Fetlar, and other is based in Fetlar and makes a few daytime trips between Gutcher and Belmont. The Fetlar terminal was changed from Oddsta to Hamars Ness at the end of 2004 after damage to the pier.
  • Bressay service to Maryfield on the Isle of Bressay from Lerwick on the Mainland.
  • Fair Isle service to Fair Isle from Grutness or Lerwick on the Mainland.
  • Foula service to the Isle of Foula from Walls on the Mainland. This service is operated by BK Marine, a Shetland-based workboat hire company.[4][5]
  • Out Skerries service to the Isle of Out Skerries from Symbister (on Whalsay), Vidlin or Lerwick or sometimes Laxo, depending on the timetable and weather conditions, all on the Mainland.
  • Papa Stour service to the Isle of Papa Stour from West Burrafirth on the Mainland.
  • Whalsay service to Symbister on the Isle of Whalsay from Laxo, or Vidlin depending on weather conditions, on the Mainland.
  • Yell service to Ulsta on the southern point of the North Isle of Yell from Toft on the Mainland.

History

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Former Yell, Unst and Bressay Flit boat, MV Tystie, laying derelict.

Before RoRo ferries were brought to Shetland, people and cargo were transported to the islands in two different ways, by steamer from Lerwick and the overland route with flit boats across each of the sounds. Shetlanders also used their private fishing boats and private charter boats to get around the islands.[6]

Steamer Service

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The Shetland Steam Navigation Company was formed in 1868 to provide a service from Lerwick to Unst. The SS Chieftain's Bride was bought from the west coast for £2,100. This vessel proved to be too slow, nicknamed "the Crab", for the service[7], therefore a purpose built SS Earl of Zetland (I) was brought into service in 1877. She continued until 1946 with the new MV Earl of Zetland (II) coming into service in 1939. The new Earl provided 3 sailings per week to Whalsay, Yell and Unst, and once a week to Fetlar and Skerries. By the 1970's, she did 3 trips to Fetlar stopping at Brough with one stop every fortnight at Houbie.

Flit Boats Service

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The flit boats across the sounds were mostly operated by locals and served Bressay; Ulsta, Yell from Mossbank until 1951, then Toft; Unst from Gutcher. The Bressay service was taken over by the Lerwick Harbour Trust in 1973 from local Bressay men. A list of known flit boats are below with mostly rough dates of service:[8]

Vessel Name Bressay Service Yell Sound Service Bluemull Service Extra Information
MV Osprey 1930's - 1973 Relief
MV Donmile c1935
MV Viking 1930's - 1973 Built in Baltasound c1920's - 1930's
MV Tirrick / Norseman 1930's - 1973 1930's - 1973
MV Puffin 1930's - 1973 Relief
MV Tystie 1973 - 12/10/1975 1930's - c1953 c1957 - 19/11/1973 Last vessel on Bluemull Sound and Bressay before RoRos
MV Shalder c1966 - 16/5/1973 Last vessel on Yell Sound before RoRos
MV Thelma 1920's - 1933?
MV Norna 1920's - 1960's Old lifeboat from RMS Oceanic, which ran aground near Foula
MV Brenda 1933 - 1973 Old pinnacle from SMS Hindenburg, which was scuttled in Scapa Flow
MV Viking Queen 1965 - 1973
MV Budding Rose 1973 First vessel bought by Lerwick Harbour Trust

Norwegian Ferry Trials

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In 1965, with the growing traffic to the isles, Shetland Islands Council trialed a Norwegian ferry, MV Rovdehorn, to see how practical it would be to introduce roll on/ roll off ferries would be in Shetland. The Norwegian Government gifted the charter of the ferry for the duration of the trials. Due to the weather conditions across the North Sea, Norwegian submarine depot ship HNoMS Horten escorted MV Rovdehorn to Lerwick. Trials commenced on 23 August 1965[9], with stops at Symbister and Mid Yell and a makeshift wooden linkspan being built in Lerwick to test the loading of the vessel. A video of the news at the time can be viewed at the National Library of Scotland website. After this a large pier and linkspan building program begun alongside the building of 5 new ferries, most of which built in the Faroe Islands.[6]

Current fleet

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The SIC Ferries fleet of 12 ferries consists of:[4][10]

Image Vessel Name Cars Passengers Service Launched Shipbuilders
MV Hendra 13 95 Whalsay (1982 - 2002, 2005 - )
Yell Sound (2002 - 2004)
Bluemull (2004 - 2005)[11] 		1982 McTay Marine, Bromborough, Merseyside
MV Snolda, ex Filla (I) 6 12 Out Skerries (1983 - 2003)
Papa Stour (2004 - ) 		1983 Simek AS, Flekkefjord, Norway
MV Fivla (II) 11 95 Bluemull (1985 - 2005)
Relief (2005 - )[12] 		1985 Ferguson Ailsa, Troon
MV Good Shepherd IV 1
(Craned on)[13] 		12 Fair Isle (1986 - ) 1986 James N Miller & Son Ltd, St Monans, Fife
MV Geira (II) 11 96 Yell Sound (1988 - 2002)
Whalsay (2002 - 2005)
Bluemull (2005 - ) 		1988 Dunstons, Hestle & Millers, Hessle, Yorkshire
MV Bigga 14 96 Yell Sound (1991 - 2004)
Relief (2004 - 2005)
Bluemull (2005 - ) 		1991 James N Miller & Son Ltd, St Monans, Fife
MV Leirna 19 124 Bressay (1992 - ) 1992 Ferguson Marine, Port Glasgow
MV New Advance
(Operated by BK Marine) 		1
(Craned on) 		12 Foula (1996 - ) 1996 Richardson's Boatyard, Stromness, Orkney
MV Linga 18 95 Whalsay (2002 - ) 2002 Stocznia Polnocna, Gdańsk
MV Filla (II) 9 30 Out Skerries (2003 - ) 2003 Northern Shipbuilders, Gdańsk
MV Daggri 31 144 Yell Sound (2004 - ) 2003 Northern Shipbuilders, Gdańsk
MV Dagalien 31 144 Yell Sound (2004 - ) 2004 Northern Shipbuilders, Gdańsk

Proposed Future Fleet

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The Bressay Ferry, MV Leirna, at Lerwick.

New Vessel

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On 13 February 2025, the council revealed that they are looking into building a new vessel, which would possibly replace or operate alongside the current relief vessel, MV Fivla. This came after the Scottish Government gave the council £10 million funding for island connectivity, which will be used for this project.[14] They put a due date for end of 2028, at which point the oldest vessel in the fleet will be 46 years old. Maritime unions and locals have expressed concerns over this fact due to ferries normally only having a lifespan of 25 years and half the fleet having a grandfather clause allowing them to have passenger accommodation below the waterline, making it inaccessible to many people.[15][16] The council later came with a second option to make a vessel similar to MV Linga, which would operate alongside her at Whalsay, with MV Hendra then becoming a second spare vessel.[17][18]

Fair Isle

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In January 2023, £26.7 million was awarded by the UK Government, as part of the 'levelling up' fund, to the Shetland Islands Council for the purchase of a new ro-ro ferry for Fair Isle and new terminals at both the Grutness and Fair Isle ports, including linkspans. The new ferry is expected to be similar to the MV Snolda, with 25m length and capacity for about 4 cars and a crane. The work is due to be completed by April 2026.[19] Works began at Grutness pier to facilitate this new vessel on 30 April 2025, with all Fair Isle sailings going to Lerwick until they are completed.[20]

The contract was awarded to Parkol Marine Engineering, Whitby, Yorkshire on 10 June 2025, with an expected delivery date of October 2026. The vessel will be a faster and bigger monohull that will have additional lift on capability and ability to operate to the current linkspans.[21] The design, which was done by Chartwell Marine, was presented on the news in September 2025, for delivery end of 2026.[22]

Papa Stour (cancelled)

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There is also a project involving Coastal Workboats and BK Marine to trial a fully electric ro-ro ferry between West Burrafirth and Papa Stour. The cost of project will be roughly £9 million, with £6 million of which funded by the UK Government's Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition. This trial is due to last 4 weeks from March 2025, in hope of it taking full time service, where it would take over from the regular vessel, MV Snolda, for the trial period.[23] In April 2025, it was announced that the project will no longer take place on the Papa Stour route.[24] The island community previously presented their concerns for the project going ahead with little to no consultation.[25]

Previous Fleet

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The following vessels used to be part of the SIC ferries fleet, information left blank is unknown:[11][6][26]

Image Vessel Name Cars Passengers Service Launched Left Shipbuilders
MV Westering Homewards (II) N/A 12 Rejected Build, meant to be for Foula 1990 1990 Jones Buckie Slip & Shipyard Ltd, Buckie
FV Ivy Leaf N/A 12 Papa Stour (1981 - 1986 (Charter)) 1986
MV Thora 10 93 Yell Sound (1976 - 1980 (summer), 1980 - 1991)[27]
Relief (1991 - 1998)
Whalsay (1998 - 2002)
Relief (2002 - 2015) 		1975 2015 Thorshavnor Skipasmidja, Faroe Isles
MV Fylga 10 93 Yell Sound (1975 - 1976, 1982 - 1988)
Whalsay (1976 - 1982)
Bluemull (1988 - 2004) 		1975 2005 Thorshavnor Skipasmidja, Faroe Isles
MV Grima 10 93 Yell Sound (1974 - 1975 (summer spare))
Lerwick - Whalsay (1975 - 1976 (Charter))
Bressay (1976 - 1992)
Whalsay (1993)
Relief (1993 - 2004) 		1974 2004 Bideford Shipyard, Devon
MV Geira (I) 10 93 Yell - Unst (1973 - 1974)
Bluemull (1974 - 1985) 		1973 1986 Thorshavnor Skipasmidja, Faroe Isles
MV Fivla (I) 10 93 Yell Sound (1973 - 1975, 1976 - 1982)
Bressay (1975 - 1976) 		1973 1982 Thorshavnor Skipasmidja, Faroe Isles
MV Koada ex Good Shepherd III 12 Fair Isle (1972 - 1984 (local run), 1984 - 1986 (SIC))
Papa Stour (1986 - 2004)
Foula (1990 - 1996) 		1969 2004 Bideford Shipyard, Devon
MV Westering Homewards (I) N/A 12 Foula (1962 - 1978 (local run), 1978 - 1990 (SIC)) 1962 1990 Shetland Isles
MV Kjella 12 63 Whalsay (1980 - 1998)
Relief (winter (normally Bressay & Yell Sound)) 		1957 1998 Kaarbos MY NS, Harstad,Norway
MV Spes Clara 12 Out Skerries (1975 - 1983)
Spare, Cargo to Isles (1983 - 2003) 		1947 2003 Herd & McKenzie, Buckie

References

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  1. ^ "Home". Shetland Islands Council. Retrieved 23 May 2011.
  2. ^ "Shetland Islands Council - Ferries - A Brief History". 28 May 2007. Archived from the original on 28 May 2007. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  3. ^ "Ferry Status".
  4. ^ a b "route map". Shetland Islands Council. Archived from the original on 26 September 2018. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  5. ^ "Foula Ferry Booking Information | BK Marine". www.bkmarine.co.uk. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  6. ^ a b c Shetland Islands Council, Ferry Services (May 2004). A Brief History of Shetland Islands Ferry Services. Shetland Islands Council.
  7. ^ "Google". www.google.com.hk. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  8. ^ "Shetland Museum and Archives::Search Results". photos.shetlandmuseumandarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  9. ^ "Shetland Museum and Archives::First car ferry in Lerwick harbour". photos.shetlandmuseumandarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  10. ^ "official document reviewing status of ferries in scotland, p. 18" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 January 2020. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  11. ^ a b Widdows, Nick (May 2005). Ferries 2005: British Isles and Northern Europe. Ferry Publications. pp. 118–119. ISBN 1-871947-80-4.
  12. ^ Sawkins, James. "Docking Schedule". Shetland Islands Council. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  13. ^ "A Guide to Using Our Ferries". Shetland Island Council Ferries. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
  14. ^ "SIC looking into building a new ferry to ease pressure on inter-island service". Shetland News. 13 February 2025. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
  15. ^ "Maritime union has 'serious concern' about internal ferry fleet". Shetland News. 30 April 2025. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
  16. ^ "Accessibility issue leaves 79-year-old sitting 'freezing' on ferry deck". Shetland News. 21 April 2023. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
  17. ^ "'Encouraging' feedback from naval architects on SIC new ferry project". Shetland News. 10 March 2025. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
  18. ^ "Council exploring building two new ferries with £10m government grant". Shetland News. 4 March 2025. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
  19. ^ "Work on new Fair Isle ferry project underway to meet tight deadlines". Shetland News. 12 February 2023. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  20. ^ Council, Shetland Islands. "Operational note: Grutness Harbour works begin – Shetland Islands Council". Shetland Islands Council. Archived from the original on 1 May 2025. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
  21. ^ "New Fair Isle ferry to be built in Yorkshire as SIC awards contract". Shetland News. 10 June 2025. Retrieved 10 June 2025.
  22. ^ "First look at new Fair Isle ferry". Shetland News. 11 September 2025. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  23. ^ "Electric boat to be trialled between West Burrafirth and Papa Stour after government funding award". Shetland News. 17 February 2023. Retrieved 23 August 2023.
  24. ^ "Plans for 'pie in the sky' electric boat trial shelved". Shetland News. 8 April 2025. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
  25. ^ "Papa Stour community's concern at 'lack of consultation' on electric boat trial". Shetland News. 23 February 2023. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
  26. ^ "Shetland Islands Council - local ferries - Simplon Postcards". simplonpc.co.uk. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  27. ^ King, Neil (19 October 2008), Yell Ferry, 1988, retrieved 31 October 2025
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