page_title: MV Juno (1974)
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: MV Juno (1974) / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Rosneath caravan park, looking over the Gare Loch towards the former naval base, with MV Juno laid up at the pier, and MV Saturn alongside.
context_page_description: MV Juno was a passenger and vehicle ferry operated by Caledonian MacBrayne on the Firth of Clyde, Scotland between 1974 and 2007. She was the middle of three vessels nicknamed "streakers", the first in the Calmac fleet to be fitted with Voith Schneider Propellers. Juno left service in early 2007 and was laid up at Rosneath for 4 years. On 18 May 2011, she was beached there for scrapping and was gone by the end of July.
context_section_description: MV Juno took to the water at Lamont's in Port Glasgow, on 16 September 1974 and was christened by Mrs W M Little, wife of the Managing Director of the Scottish Transport Group, Calmac's owning company at the time. She was remarkably similar to MV Jupiter, although her internal decoration was brighter, the ticket office faced fore rather than aft, and she had a curved flying bridge (although Jupiter soon incorporated such a bridge). This allowed the skipper a clearer view when berthing. Juno and Jupiter were remarkably manoeuvrable, being the first in the Calmac fleet to be fitted with Voith Schneider Propellers, which allowed the ships to literally turn within their own length. This was revolutionary in large vessels as they could berth and depart far quicker than many of the smaller vessels at the time. They would later become affectionately known as the three "streakers" after the arrival of MV Saturn in 1977.
  Juno spent much of her first decade on the Gourock-Dunoon run, replacing the much smaller MV Maid of Cumbrae. In 1981, the then Secretary of State for Scotland offered the rival firm on the  Hunter's Quay-Mclnroy's Point route, Western Ferries, a grant to buy an additional vessel to provide a frequent, high speed passenger-only service from Gourock to Dunoon. At this point, Calmac considered the termination of their route. This was disallowed, preventing an outrage among the residents of Dunoon and Gourock. This meant that Calmac needed a vessel to offer a passenger-only service on the route, but financially this was not an option. Instead, Calmac resumed service with Juno, but with only one sailing per hour. This allowed popularity to grow with Western Ferries, which would otherwise have been vulnerable to being put out of business by the frequent Calmac service.
  From 1986, the "streakers", MV Jupiter, MV Saturn and Juno provided three rosters on the Upper Clyde: one each at Dunoon and Rothesay and the third (1A Roster) to Kilcreggan with peak sailings to Dunoon and Rothesay. Initially they interchanged roster each month, but this became weekly in 1996. With the introduction of MV Pioneer on the Clyde in summers, one of the "streakers" was freed up to carry out a series of cruises on weekday afternoons. From 1993, a cruise ran to Tighnabruaich twice a week, after the commuter runs. These were popular and the programme was extended to include Loch Long, the Kyles of Bute, with Tarbert, Loch Fyne on Sundays.  The cruises were withdrawn in 2001, leaving two of the "streakers" serving Rothesay, and the other, Dunoon.
caption: Looking over Rosneath bay to the former naval base, with Juno laid up at the pier and MV Saturn alongside.
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