Arahanga ZMBN

Radio Officer Roger Wincer aboard Arahanga - ZMBN in January 1973
Radio Officer Roger Wincer ZL2RX aboard Arahanga ZMBN in January 1973. Photo: Le Cren. Archives New Zealand/Te Whare Tohu Tuhituhinga O Aotearoa [Archives Reference AAVK W3493, B21606]
Radio room aboard the inter-island freight ferry Arahanga in 1975
Radio room aboard Arahanga, 11 March 1979. In the middle of the console, behind the operator’s arm, is a solid-state Marconi Apollo receiver. Courtesy Chris Underwood

Operating between Wellington and Picton, Arahanga was a New Zealand Railways freight ferry and the first to be crewed by NZ Railways staff. Previously, the Cook Strait ferries were operated by the Union Steam Ship Co.

NZ Railways ferry Arahanga
Arahanga in NZ Railways colours
Photo: Chris Howell on shipspotting.com

Gross tonnage: 3914
Builder: Upper Clyde Shipbuilders, Glasgow, Scotland
Entered service: 1972
Finished service: 2001
Scrapped: 2001
More information

Arahanga reversing into the dock at Picton
Arahanga reversing into the dock at Picton, 27 July 1999
Photo: GothPhil on Flickr

Read more about New Zealand’s rail ferries at nzmaritime.co.nz and kiwirail.co.nz.