The Philippine Ship Spotters Society - PSSS

13/09/2026

SHIP UPDATE | Roble Shipping Inc's brand-new ROPAX Vessel: M/V Mother Immaculate Stars is currently on its way to the Philippines

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Roble Shipping Inc. is expanding its operational capacity with the addition of its newly constructed Roll-on/Roll-off Passenger (ROPAX) vessel, M/V Mother Immaculate Stars.

She was built in Taizhou Boyang Shipping Co., Ltd., in Taizhou, China. She has a length overall of 91.45 meters, a breadth of 19.8 meters, a depth of 5.8 meters, a Gross Tonnage of 2950 Tons, and a design speed capable of reaching 13.5 knots at 85% MCR. She is equipped with 2 Ningdong G6300ZC Marine Diesel Engines and uses Hangzhou Qianjin GWC4954 series gearbox.
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Moreover, she has two passenger decks and an extra deck above her sundeck, with an overall passenger capacity of 1,000. ‎She is carrying IMO number 1124528 and is currently in the vicinity of Itbayat, Batanes, and is expected to arrive in Puerto Princesa, Palawan, on September 19th.

MV Mother Immaculate Stars is designed to accommodate both rolling cargo and passenger traffic, strengthening sea transport connections and trade capacity across the sea.

Congratulations, Roble Shipping Inc!

📸 Photo Credits: Engr. Jasper F. Roble

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13/09/2026

Sunday Classics

A clipping from the Manila Bulletin dated August 26, 1988, features Sulpicio Lines' acquisition of its flagship passenger vessel, the M.V. Filipina Princess.

13/09/2026

Sunday Classics
Barko ng Kahapon

M/V VICTOR
William Lines Inc.

Sailing Back in Time:
The Legacy of M/V Victor

​Before the era of modern superferries, the workhorses of Philippine inter-island maritime transport were built from grit, history, and postwar ingenuity. A prime example was the M/V Victor, an iconic passenger-cargo liner operated by the legendary William Lines Inc.

​Named after one of the sons of company founder Don William L. Chiongbian, the Victor played a pivotal role in re-establishing vital sea routes across the Visayas and Mindanao during the post-WWII maritime boom.

​Vessel Specifications & History
​Original Identity: Ex-U.S. Army FS Ship (FS-372, Freight & Supply)
​Operator: William Lines Incorporated
​Length Overall (LOA): 62.6 meters (Lengthened from the standard ~53.9 m FS hull to expand passenger & cargo capacity)
​Gross Register Tonnage (GRT): 699 tons (Upgraded from the standard ~560 GRT design)
​Key Routes: Connecting Manila, Cebu, Dumaguete, Zamboanga, Ozamiz, and Davao
​Service Life: Active throughout the mid-to-late 20th century before being officially retired and broken up for scrap around 1985.

​From serving as a military transport during the war to carrying generations of passengers, cargo, and trade across domestic waters, vessels like the M/V Victor laid the very foundation of modern Philippine shipping.

12/09/2026

Byahe na from
Batangas to Calapan
vice versa mga squad!
with Starlite Ferries Inc
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Batangas ↔️ Calapan
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12/09/2026

Barko ng Kahapon!

Journey of Trans-Asia’s
Original "Asia Korea"

​Before she became a familiar sight in Batangas waters, this vessel was a staple of the VisMin sea lanes! Here is a quick look back at the history and specs of the ferry originally introduced as MV Asia Korea.

​VESSEL PROFILE
​Original Name: Hakodate Maru No. 10 (Built 1971, Japan)
​IMO Number: 7109465
​Type: RoPax / Overnight Passenger Ferry
​TIMELINE & IDENTITY
​1988 — Trans-Asia Acquisition: Joined Trans-Asia Shipping Lines as MV Asia Korea, serving key overnight routes out of Cebu Pier to destinations like Iloilo, Tagbilaran, and Cagayan de Oro.
​1998 — Renamed Asia Hongkong: Rebranded to MV Asia Hongkong to make way for later fleet additions.
​2009 — Montenegro Shipping Lines: Acquired and renamed MV Reina del Rosario, bringing comfortable Visayas-style overnight bunk amenities to Southern Luzon / Batangas–Mindoro routes.

Did you know? During her Trans-Asia era, she featured a unique quadruple-engine, twin-synchronizer setup designed for flexible cruising power, though it was known for being a complex system to maintain!

11/09/2026

Barko ng Kahapon

OUR LADY OF SACRED HEART
WG&A SuperFerry

MV Our Lady of Sacred Heart.
​Originally built in 1978 by Mitsui Shipbuilding in Osaka, Japan, as the cargo ship Shinsei Maru, she was lengthened in 1979 before being acquired by Carlos A. Gothong Lines Inc. (CAGLI) in 1990. She later joined the iconic WG&A Lines fleet during the historic 1996 "Great Merger".

​What made OLOSH truly remarkable wasn't just her classic profile, but her incredible operational efficiency. Packing nearly 2,000 passengers and 90 TEU containers into a 123-meter hull—all powered by a single 8,000 hp Mitsui main engine—she remains a benchmark for fuel-efficient liner design in Philippine maritime history.

​Vessel Snapshot:
​IMO: 7718589
​Dimensions: 123.0m (LOA) x 18.0m (Beam)
​Passenger Capacity: ~1,903 pax
​Sister Ship: MV Sto. Niño de Cebu / MV Our Lady of Medjugorje (ex-Shin Ka Maru)
​Propulsion: 1x Mitsui Main Engine (8,000 hp) | ~16-17 knots

10/09/2026

Port of Dumaguete
Night Shot 📷

10/09/2026

Atienza Interisland Ferries Inc. Official Statement for the incident involving M/V June Aster caught firee off Coron ⬇️⬇️

For assistance, please kindly reach us thru the following numbers:

Manila office: 0998-532-6553
Coron: 0939-912-6840
El Nido: 0998-881-7226

10/09/2026

‎PCG Rescues 42, Searches for Unaccounted Passengers After M/V June Aster Catches Fire Off Palawan Coast.
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‎The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has launched a search and rescue operation following a fire aboard the passenger vessel M/V June Aster off the waters of Coron, Palawan.
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‎Operated by Atienza Interisland Ferries Inc. (Atienza Shipping Lines), a ROPAX vessel was carrying 117 passengers and 17 crew members after departing from the Port of Manila bound for Coron.
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‎Emergency response efforts immediately began after the fire broke out around 2.2 kilometers off the coast. Teams from the PCG Sub-Station Turda, local disaster response units, nearby vessels, and local fishermen responded to assist the vessel and pull survivors from the water.
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‎According to initial reports from the Coast Guard, 42 people—comprising 38 passengers and 4 crew members—have been safely rescued and brought ashore to Barangay Turda in Coron. Five fatalities have been confirmed, while response teams continue search operations for 87 individuals who remain unaccounted for.
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‎Firefighting and search-and-rescue maneuvers remain ongoing as maritime authorities work to secure the vessel and determine the cause of the blaze.
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10/09/2026

MISAMIS OCCIDENTAL
William Lines Inc

Delivered brandnew in December 1970 from Japan’s renowned Hayashikane Shipbuilding & Engineering Co., the MV Misamis Occidental was named after the home province of founder Don William Chiongbian. Marketed as the company’s first true "luxury liner," she set new standards for speed, comfort, and service across the Philippine seas.

​📋 VESSEL SPECIFICATIONS & HIGHLIGHTS
​Shipbuilder: Hayashikane Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. (Nagasaki, Japan)
​Year Delivered: December 1970
​Length / Beam: 88.9 meters × 13.5 meters
​Gross Tonnage: 1,945 GRT
​Service Speed: 18 knots
​Passenger Capacity: ~650 passengers

​⚓ A LEGENDARY SERVICE HISTORY

​During her prime with William Lines, she proudly operated key long-haul routes connecting Manila to Cebu, Ozamiz, Iligan, and Dumaguete, later transitioning into a reliable overnight ferry on the popular Cebu–Ozamiz run.

​With the historic 1996 merger that birthed WG&A Philippines, she was reassigned to subsidiary Cebu Ferries Corporation. As RoRo shipping swept across the archipelago, this classic cruiser was re-engined, refurbished, and renamed MV Our Lady of Montserrat, remaining a faithful servant to Vis-Min travelers until her retirement and scrapping in China in June 2000.