Where is MS Herald of Free Enterprise now?

Voydar has no displayable AIS position for MS Herald of Free Enterprise in this profile. A coverage gap does not establish whether the ship is transmitting or where it is now.

What kind of ship is MS Herald of Free Enterprise?

MS Herald of Free Enterprise is a ro-ro ship, built in 1980 by Schichau Seebeckwerft. The vessel is 131.9 m long with a beam of 23.2 m.

What sanctions and inspection records does Voydar hold for MS Herald of Free Enterprise?

Voydar has no matched sanctions record displayed for MS Herald of Free Enterprise from the OFAC SDN list, the UK Sanctions List, the Canadian autonomous sanctions list, the EU list of designated vessels and the New Zealand Russia Sanctions Register. Coverage may be incomplete; this is not sanctions clearance. No matched inspection records are displayed for MS Herald of Free Enterprise. Missing records do not establish whether the ship has been detained.

MS Herald of Free Enterprise

Ro-ro ship · built 1980

IMO7820485No AIS position on record

Open in Terminal

In short

MS Herald of Free Enterprise (Ro-ro ship) has no AIS position on record with Voydar. It can carry up to 1,300 passengers (source: Wikidata).

Vessel type: Ro-ro ship
Flag: —
Year built: 1980
Gross tonnage: —
Size (length × beam): 132 m × 23 m
Registered owner: —

Watch this ship

Get an email when MS Herald of Free Enterprise arrives or leaves port, changes destination, name, flag or owner, or is sanctioned, detained or named in an official release.

We email you a link and a code. That creates a free account, no password or card, and follows MS Herald of Free Enterprise.

Free account, no card: follow up to 5 ships and ports. Plus follows 50, Pro 500.

By continuing you accept the Terms and the Privacy policy.

Photo of MS Herald of Free Enterprise — Photo: Franz Golhen · Licence: Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

Last reported position

No AIS position on record for this vessel. Identity and particulars are below.

A year of history in the Terminal (Plus) · the full archive since June 1, 2026 (Pro)

Try the live demo, no sign-up

Identity & particulars

Name: MS Herald of Free Enterprise
IMO numberWhat is an IMO number?: 7820485
MMSIWhat is an MMSI?: —
Call signWhat is a call sign?: —
Flag: —
Vessel type: Ro-ro ship
Gross tonnageGross tonnage vs deadweight: —
Length overall: 131.9 m
Beam: 23.2 m
Year built: 1980
Passengers (maximum): Source: Wikidata, record Q1607814. Added to Voydar on September 23, 2026. Licence: CC0 1.0.1,300

A tag next to a value names the register that supplied it (hover or tap it for the record and date). Values without a tag come from the ship's own AIS broadcasts or from Wikidata. Position and identity are derived live from AIS.

Ownership & management

Each line shows where the fact comes from. Links backed by an identifier point to the company page.

Operator: P&O European Ferries
Source: Wikidata · reported · confidence 0.8 · retrieved Sep 22, 2026
Builder: Schichau Seebeckwerft
Source: Wikidata · reported · confidence 0.8 · retrieved Sep 22, 2026

About MS Herald of Free Enterprise

MS Herald of Free Enterprise was a roll-on/roll-off (RORO) ferry which capsized moments after leaving the Belgian port of Zeebrugge on the night of 6 March 1987, killing 193 passengers and crew. The eight-deck car and passenger ferry was owned by Townsend Thoresen, designed for rapid loading and unloading on the competitive cross-channel route between Dover and Calais. As is common with RORO ferries, it was built with watertight compartments terminating below the vehicle deck, with the doors at the end of the vehicle deck becoming vital to avoiding uncontrolled flooding. The ship left harbour with her bow door open, and the sea immediately flooded the vehicle deck; within minutes, she was lying on her side in shallow water.

Summary from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA.

Frequently asked questions

Where is MS Herald of Free Enterprise now?: Voydar has no displayable AIS position for MS Herald of Free Enterprise in this profile. A coverage gap does not establish whether the ship is transmitting or where it is now.
What kind of ship is MS Herald of Free Enterprise?: MS Herald of Free Enterprise is a ro-ro ship, built in 1980 by Schichau Seebeckwerft. The vessel is 131.9 m long with a beam of 23.2 m.
What sanctions and inspection records does Voydar hold for MS Herald of Free Enterprise?: Voydar has no matched sanctions record displayed for MS Herald of Free Enterprise from the OFAC SDN list, the UK Sanctions List, the Canadian autonomous sanctions list, the EU list of designated vessels and the New Zealand Russia Sanctions Register. Coverage may be incomplete; this is not sanctions clearance. No matched inspection records are displayed for MS Herald of Free Enterprise. Missing records do not establish whether the ship has been detained.

Use this data

This page is also available as JSON, free, with the source and licence of every section. Sections whose sources do not permit redistribution are listed as withheld.

GET /api/v1/vessels/7820485

View JSON API documentationFree without a key for occasional use; use an API key for more.

Follow by RSS Open data

Using this data in code?

Every account gets a personal API allowance: 2,500 credits a month free, 25,000 with Pro. Pro adds internal business use; API plans add building the data into your own products.

See plans