A massive harbour manoeuvre involving two old ferries has all the hallmarks of a military operation, including some of its secrecy | christopherzinn
In a spectacular harbour shuffle, two of Sydney’s most historic ships will take to the waters from April 1 in an ambitious make-or-break operation to guarantee their future.
The operation called SWAP is the culmination of 25 years’ work as the much-loved ferry waited her turn tethered at the Rozelle heritage docks for the completion of works on the John Oxley, and before her, the 1874 barque James Craig. The opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge 90 years ago this month meant the scrapheap for many ferries. But the steel-hulled Kanangra, with a 1000 passenger capacity, carried on with the Cockatoo Island run and others until her decommissioning in 1985.
“We’ve identified shallow areas that if we were to run into any issues, we know that we would be able to go into those safe havens if she was suffering any major emergency,” he says.With all the hallmarks of a military operation, including some of its secrecy, the SWAP project is all the more remarkable as it’s run by volunteers.
“We come in at 10 per cent of the commercial cost, and it’s Sydney Heritage Fleet volunteers who make the difference,” he says. “They’re not pipe dreamers. It’s slow because of lack of finance, but it does happen with a lot of effort to keep this boat afloat,” Winning says. “As we’ve seen with the Baragoola, once they’ve gone, that’s the end of it.”After the SWAP is complete, the Kanangra will take pride of place at the Rozelle dockyards giving passing motorists a new maritime restoration project to admire for at least the next five years. The John Oxley restoration will continue for at least three years.
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