MV Blue Puttees (ex-Stena Trader) is a Ro-Pax passenger/vehicle ferry operated by Marine Atlantic between the islands of Newfoundland and Cape Breton in eastern Canada. She is named after the nickname of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment.
Largely built in Russia, her assembly was finished in Norway. As part of Stena Line she regularly ran between The Netherlands and the United Kingdom from 2007 to 2009. After being leased by Marine Atlantic, she was taken to Bremerhaven, Germany to be converted so as to better suit the North Sydney to Channel-Port aux Basques route, which she would be taking over. This conversion included the addition of a third bow thruster, increase and renovation of the passenger areas, and shortening of the vessel by 12m to help facilitate docking at Channel-Port aux Basques.[1] She entered regular passenger service with Marine Atlantic in early March 2011.[2] Her nearly identical sister ship MV Highlanders followed her into service a few weeks later. In May 2015, Marine Atlantic announced that it had purchased both vessels from Stena for Can$100 million each.[3]
^"Government of Canada Invests in Two Ferries for Marine Atlantic Inc" (Press release). Transport Canada. May 21, 2010. Archived from the original on August 5, 2013. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
^Hinchliffe, Aethne (January 11, 2011). "MV Blue Puttees draws rave reviews". The Telegram. Retrieved August 2, 2013.
Atlantic in mid April 2011 shortly after her nearly identical sister ship MVBluePuttees. In May 2015, Marine Atlantic announced that it had purchased both...
Marine Atlantic announced the names of the new vessels: MVBluePuttees and MV Highlanders. BluePuttees went into service March 2011, with Highlanders following...
and Clara Smallwood was retired in March 2011, to make way for MVBluePuttees and MV Highlanders which were on a five-year charter from Stena Line. On...
aux Basques route. Passenger traffic is usually handled by the MVBluePuttees and MV Highlanders and the Ala'suinu from late September to mid June. "Leif...
the MV Joseph and Clara Smallwood ferry (14 hours crossing time) on the Argentia summer run, until 2011, when it was replaced by the MVBluePuttees and...
fourth vessel, named Yakutia, took place on May 26, 2020. MV Highlanders and MVBluePuttees are ferries with Marine Atlantic built mostly in this shipyard...