A trio of Brittany Ferries vessels, when off Land’s End, England, and on the Celtic Sea, are operating between Ireland, France, and Spain this morning, writes Jehan Ashmore.
They are the former Guernsey-based Condor Ferries ropax, Commodore Clipper, still retaining its livery (photo above); its new owners’ flagship cruise ferry, Pont-Aven; and the E-flexer class Salamanca.
Commodore Clipper departed Cherbourg yesterday and is bound for Rosslare, where it is due this afternoon on what is its first leg of a final round trip that the ropax is rostered on this year on the popular Ireland-France route. The service has recorded a notable 28,3722 passengers, an increase in passengers of 37% year-on-year.
On completion of Commodore Clipper’s role, it will return this month to the familiar waters of the Channel Islands, where it will operate an inter-island service between Guernsey and Jersey.
The Wexford-Normandy route continues to operate year-round by the ropax Cotentin (see photo-related coverage) and a trio of the E-Flexer class: Galicia, Salamanca, and Santoña, and another ferry as outlined below.
A clear indicator of Brittany Ferries stepping up capacity following Stena Line’s closure last month of the Rosslare-Cherbourg service will be the replacement of the Commodore Clipper with a fifth and much larger cruise ferry. This will involve Armorique, having completed its role on the ‘seasonal’ Cork-Roscoff midweek sailings, is operating from Cherbourg on 4 November and arriving the next day at Rosslare Europort.
The flagship Pont-Aven had departed Roscoff yesterday on its first leg of a final weekend round trip on the 'seasonal' route to Cork, with a sailing tonight returning to France. The Brittany-Munster route resumes service from Roscoff with a crossing of the Celtic Sea on 31 March, 2026, served by Armorique and followed by the flagship three days later.
As for Salamanca, unlike its fleetmates, the cruise-ferry is not heading for France but Bilbao in northern Spain, running one round trip weekly. Taking its place on the year-round operated route in December will be Santoña, and it will likewise be running at the same frequency.
The E-Flexer class totals five in the overall fleet, featuring ‘green’ credential technologies that have been introduced in recent years across the Brittany Ferries network, including the UK-France/Spain routes. Combined they have proved to be a major factor in boosting passenger volumes, as highlighted by the Breton-based company’s figures released this week.
