The new Spirit of Tasmania IV is on the home stretch to Australia after a marathon six-week voyage from Scotland.
The 212-metre ferry is just hours from docking in Perth. It is set to enter waters off Western Australia at 7am Perth time on Tuesday.
The arrival will mark the second-last leg of a 14,857-nautical-mile journey that has taken it past Gibraltar, the Cape Verde Islands, Cape Town and Mauritius.
Its arrival is a “historic moment” in Tasmania’s ferry fleet upgrade, even if delays mean it will not officially set sail with passengers until late 2026.
Once in Fremantle, the ship will spend four days undergoing importation checks along with customs and immigration formalities.
From there, it will head for Hobart, arriving in late August for its final fit-out.
“We look forward to welcoming Spirit of Tasmania IV into Tasmania later in the month,’ operator TT-Line said.
While it won’t start commercial sailings until new Devonport infrastructure is ready next year, the ship is expected to significantly boost capacity on the vital Bass Strait service.
Its sister ship Spirit of Tasmania V is still in Finland and is expected to follow the same route to Australia in the months ahead.
