31 May 2008

Gavin Morgan

SHETLAND’S oldest working whitefish boat will be celebrating her 50th anniversary at a special ceremony in Scalloway tomorrow (Sunday).

Built in Banff, the Hamnavoe based Comrades LK325 has continuously been fishing from the isles’ since she was launched in May 1958.

With the number of new vessels having entered the Shetland fleet over recent months, such as the new Radiant Star LK71 and the Prolific LK986, the revitalised industry is looking with pride at this old workhorse.

Organised by port missioner Peter Dade, the mission led ceremony to commemorate her anniversary will see a plaque awarded to her skipper Willie Robertson.

The 54 feet wooden vessel first worked out of Whalsay for more than 34 years under skipper Tommy Hutchison who initially started off drift net fishing for herring.

When this tailed off in the early 1970s after the arrival of the Norwegian purse netters Tommy switched to seine. Comrades has done this type of fishing, through thick and thin times, ever since.

Skipper Willie Robertson plus three shareholders bought the vessel on 1 October 1992.

Mr Robertson said his vessel was still going strong: “There is nothing wrong with the boat at all. The hull of her is nearly as good as the day that she was built.”

The first engine on the boat was a 114 horse power Gardner. This was then changed to a six cylinder turbo charged Gardner producing 240 horse powers. The upgrade was done at Moore’s shipyard in 1986.

The 56 year old skipper now is the sole owner and works with just one other crew member, Kenneth Jamieson.

Chief executive of the Shetland Fishermen’s Association Hansen Black said that the Comrades has survived through many great changes in the industry in her 50 years.

“The fleet expanded dramatically through the 50s and 60s, and then went through a modernisation programme in the 70s and 80s where the fleet moved away from seine netting.

“During the 80s the trawl fisheries came to prominence and most of the fishermen moved in that direction. She has seen that period through and most of those boats are now away and the Comrades is still going strong.

“I’d like to pass my congratulations onto the crew and hope that they can go on for a peerie bit longer.”

Mr Robertson hoped that some of the newer boats in the fleet would be able to come to join in on Sunday’s celebrations.