MS Pascal Lota

The MS Pascal Lota (ex Superstar) is a fast ferry owned by the Corsica-based Corsica Ferries - Sardinia Ferries. She was built in 2008 at the Fincantieri shipyard in Ancona, Italy.^[2]

Pascal Lota arriving at Nice in 2020.
History
Name	Superstar (2008–2017) Pascal Lota (2017–Present)
Owner	Corsica Ferries
Operator	Medinvest SpA (Corsica Ferries)
Port of registry	2008–2017: Tallinn,  Estonia 2017–2017: Limassol,  Cyprus 2017–Present: Genoa,  Italy
Ordered	5 August 2005[1]
Builder	Fincantieri Ancona, Italy[2]
Cost	€120 million[3]
Yard number	6140[2]
Laid down	18 January 2007[4]
Launched	5 October 2007[5]
Christened	5 October 2007 by Kaia Kanepi[5]
Acquired	8 April 2008[3]
In service	21 April 2008[6]
Identification	Call sign: 5BDQ2 IMO number: 9365398 MMSI number: 210902000
Status	In service
General characteristics [2]
Class and type	Fast cruiseferry
Tonnage	36,400 GT 5,400 DWT
Length	175.10 m (574 ft 6 in)[3]
Beam	27.60 m (90 ft 7 in)
Draught	7.00 m (23 ft)
Ice class	1 A Super[5]
Installed power	Four Wärtsilä diesel engines 50,400 kW (combined)
Speed	27.5 knots (50.9 km/h; 31.6 mph)
Capacity	2,080 passengers[3] 173 berths[3] 665 cars 1,930 lanemeters[3]

Tallink Shuttle ferry, MS Superstar, arriving at Helsinki, Finland from Tallinn, Estonia

Concept and construction

The design of the Superstar is based on Moby Lines' MS Moby Aki.^[2] The original order included an option for a second ship of the same type, which Tallink decided not to exercise.^[1]

The keel of the vessel was laid on January 18, 2007.^[4] On October 5, 2007, the Superstar was christened by the Estonian tennis player Kaia Kanepi.^[5] The ship was delivered on 8 April 2008^[3] and left Ancona for the Baltic Sea a day later.^{[citation needed]}

Service history

Superstar entered service on Tallink's Helsinki–Tallinn route on 21 April 2008.^[2] On 30 April 2008 the ship suffered a hydraulics problem while leaving Tallinn, and one Tallinn–Helsinki roundtrip had to be cancelled.^[7] On 27 February 2009, while en route from Tallinn to Helsinki with 400 passengers on board, the ship's main engines stopped due to problems with the cooling systems at 8:45 am. The ship was adrift for nearly two hours, with emergency generators providing electricity, until full power could be restored at 10:30 am. Superstar arrived in Helsinki at 11:30, two hours behind schedule.^[8][9]

Design

The green external livery of the ship is according to Tallink promotion material "meant to reflect the environmentally friendly aspects of the ship's design".^[5]

The onboard facilities include a three-deck high showlounge, four restaurants, cafeteria, two bars, a casino, a business lounge and various shops.^[5]

Sister ships

• Moby Aki
• Moby Wonder
• MS Finlandia