CalMac Western Isles’ staff star in fly-
19 August 2023
The hardworking, dedicated staff who keep the vital Western Isles ferry service running are the focus of the latest behind-
Sunday’s programme of Island Crossings was filmed around last October and November at the beginning of winter overhaul season, an annual headache for CalMac, where vessels are moved around the fleet to replace other vessels going into dry dock.
It’s a tricky puzzle to keep the network moving, but when CalMac's largest ferry -
Area operations manager Fiona Galbraith travels to Stornoway from her home on Benbecula to help out with the freight backlog, and the programme shows the difficulties facing Fiona and her team with late freight and storms rolling in.
While the Seaforth is in dry dock, a patchwork of vessels are brought in to replace her.
With only a fraction of the capacity, the MV Hebridean Isles takes over the freight run, doing twice-
Sisters Natalie and Tanya Mackay from Lewis are now a couple of weeks into their modern apprenticeship with CalMac and are about to join a vessel for the first time.
It’s a big change for the two young women, who have never lived away from the island home they share with their parents and dog.
MV Isle of Mull is covering as relief vessel on the South Uist run and chief engineer John Wilson explains the extent of the work that will take place during her dry dock in Aberdeen.
It is predicted to cost around £2.8 million, the biggest projected spend on one ship in CalMac’s history.
Island Crossings airs at 9pm on Sunday and again on Tuesday at 8pm on BBC Scotland.
Fiona Galbraith, CalMac’s Hebrides’ operations manager