SALISH ORCA

General information

Course/Position

Latest news

Sailings cancelled due to propulsion trouble

BC Ferries has cancelled two sailings of the 'Salish Orca' on the Powell River-to-Comox route on Feb 17, 2024, due to mechanical issues with the vessel’s propulsion system. Affected were the 3:25 p.m. sailing from Comox and the 5:15 p.m. sailing from Powell River. The 7:10 p.m. from Comox and the 8:45 from Powell River wer ealso in danger of being cancelled. Passengers weren’t informed of the cancellation until 15 minutes before the scheduled sailing time. The ship was back on its route the same day.

Ferry suffered thruster failure

One of the bow thrusters of the 'Salish Orca' broke down off Powell River in the afternoon of Sep 9, 2021, but the ferry managed to offload its passengers and continue to Comox. After the thruster failed, a tug helped the ferry to dock at Powell River and then Comox. B.C. Ferries received special permission from Transport Canada to use a tug to dock. There were 281 passengers on board the sailing to Powell River and 147 passengers on the sailing returning to Comox. It was not yet known when the ferry will be back in service. B.C. Ferries urged passengers to check the status of sailings in coming days. While the 'Salish Orca' is out of service, the 'Salish Eagle' was redeployed from its duties providing extra service on the Tsawwassen-Southern Gulf Islands route. She started service in the evening of Sep 10 on the Comox-Powell River route until further notice. In tthe morning of Sep 10, the 'Salish Orca' left Comox for Tsawwassen, where engineers and technicians were to assess the vessel and develop a repair plan. The goal was to repair the ship while it’s docked at Tsawwassen.

Ferry sidelined in Comox due to compressor trouble

Due to the mechanical issue, the 3:25 p.m. sailing of the "Salish Orca" from Comox to Powell River on May 13, 2018, has been cancelled. The 5:15 p.m. sailing from Powell River to Comox abd the 11:50 a.m. sailing out of Powell River’s Westview terminal to Comox have also been cancelled by BC Ferries. The ferry had a problem with the forward air compressor motor. For further updates, visit bcferries.com.