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Auckland ferry operator Fullers has struck more problems, with a Waiheke Island service putting to sea yesterday "technically" overloaded.
Fullers operations manager Ian Greenslade said the 7.20am sailing from the island ended up with an excess of passengers after a crew member failed to turn up for work through illness.
He said the worker's absence was not announced, and left the Superflyte ferry rated to carry only 379 passengers - 100 fewer than when fully crewed.
That meant the 420 passengers actually on board were 41 over the regulatory limit, a situation of which Mr Greenslade said its captain was unaware until the vessel was at sea.
He said the captain discovered the over-crowding soon after leaving Matiatia and was satisfied that easy sea conditions and the familiarity of his regular passengers with emergency drills meant their safety was never in doubt.
"The captain said that, had he known, he would still have made the decision to sail."
That being the case, Mr Greenslade doubted whether the captain would face recriminations, although the company would look at how too many passengers came to be allowed on board.
"We're damned if we do and damned if we don't," he said of the prospect of leaving passengers behind, in the wake of the furore that followed when Fullers left a crowd of passengers to spend the night on the wharf after a ferry reached its maximum load at the end of an all-day dance party at a Waiheke vineyard two weeks ago.
Had the company been forewarned of the staff member's unavailability, he said it would have found a replacement from elsewhere in its fleet. Passengers on yesterday morning's sailing raised concerns in emails about possible recriminations against a supervisor who they said was placed in an impossible situation when faced with so many people rushing to get aboard.
But Mr Greenslade said: "We won't be taking any disciplinary action against any staff."
Waiheke Island commuters are also grumpy about disruption from a delayed sailing from Auckland during the Friday afternoon travel peak, caused by a mechanical fault on Fullers' other regular large ferry, the Quickcat.
The stand-by ferry Jetraider was brought in to replace it but loading difficulties meant the 5pm sailing was delayed by 25 minutes, and up to 60 passengers were left behind.
They were able to board the Superflyte's regular 5.30pm sailing, but Ferry Users' Group spokesman Vern Whitehead said that made it "pretty full" as commuters were packed alongside visitors heading for a busy weekend, which included the annual food and wine festival.
Some commuters thought the disruption was caused by a private charter booking for the Quickcat, but Mr Greenslade said that was incorrect, as the original intention was for that vessel to complete its 5pm sailing before the extracurricular evening duties.
That had been prevented by a mechanical fault, which was fixed too late for the commuter run but in time for the charter.
Mr Whitehead said he believed Waiheke Island residents had been served well by Fullers in the past but "clearly the system is creaking, and that's a real worry".
Meanwhile, Maritime Union vice-president Garry Parsloe has challenged a statement by Fullers chief executive Doug Hudson in the Weekend Herald that the captain of the original ferry that left people stranded on Waiheke refused a company request to make another late-night trip to collect them.
"It's just not true. When he was coming back he rang the company and said, 'I haven't got everyone', and the company said, 'Forget it, don't worry about it", Mr Parsloe said last night.
Mr Greenslade backed Mr Hudson's comment, but said the company respected what he called a decision by the captain not to return to the island on health and safety grounds, particularly given the hours already worked by his crew and "the demeanour of some of those left behind".
