Cancelled Portsmouth ferry moved to St Malo route

The Stena Vinga was switched to the Jersey to St Malo route

DFDS says it cancelled a Jersey to Portsmouth sailing on Wednesday so the ferry could be used on the St Malo route.

The ferry operator said it had to move the Stena Vinga from its scheduled sailing to England so it could take passengers between Jersey and France instead.

It said this was because the high-speed ferry, the Tarifa Jet, had not yet been approved by the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency to carry passengers.

DFDS said it had brought in a backup boat to cover sailings to Portsmouth but it was not available for the journey which had to be cancelled.

The replacement vessel, Côte D'Albâtre, was due to re-commence journeys from Portsmouth on Thursday after arriving from Dieppe.

The company said it had contacted affected passengers about the cancellation on Wednesday evening and offered them free amendments to their bookings and accommodation.

Jersey Route Director Chris Parker said: "We apologise to customers affected by these changes and appreciate their understanding and patience at this time.

He said: "Our focus remains on ensuring our passengers can travel with minimal disruption."

The company has just taken over the contract to operate the ferry for the next 20 years.

Its first scheduled passenger sailing between Jersey and St Malo was cancelled last week because of technical issues with the Tarifa Jet.