Inverclyde's only remaining shipbuilder celebrated the successful launch of their their latest vessel, giving workers good reason to look forward to a prosperous future.

Workers at Ferguson Marine wasted no time in getting back into action after the pandemic lockdown, sending a state-of-the-art air cushioned barge down the ways and into the Clyde to be fitted out before heading for service in the Caspian Sea. The launch heralds a new, post-lockdown era for the yard and one that will hopefully see many more vessels built in Port Glasgow.

Our picture archive features many images of the yard's successes, some of which have featured on this page before. Here we take a look back at some more shots taken in years gone by.

Pic1:

Nicola Sturgeon displayed a sense of humour when she joked with craftsmen on a visit to Ferguson Marine in 2014.

The First Minister marked the start of construction of hybrid ferries in the yard and watched as the first steel plate was laser cut in the company's fabrication shed.

Pic2:

The skills of the Fergusons workforce reached beyond the vessels seen on the stalks from street level - as this picture shows.

Workers at the yard waved a goodbye to a section of the giant aircraft carrier Prince of Wales they had been working on in collaboration with other shipyards in the UK. As the towering module passed the yard on its way to Rosyth where it would be attached to the deck of the navy ship, the crew who helped in its construction held their hats high in a fond farewell in the shadow of their next project, Calmac ferry Catriona, nearing completion.

Pic3:

The steel hull of Catriona kissed the cold waters of the Clyde in 2015 amid the cheering and flag waving of schoolchildren who were given supervised access to the yard.

The kids got to witness something not many of their contemporaries are likely to see and is, no doubt, a memory that has stayed with them since. Workers and children watched the successful launch of the £12 million ferry in calm but bitterly cold December conditions.

Pic4:

Inverclyde school children were treated to the spectacle of a launch under a blue September sky in 2004 when Fergusons celebrated their second vessel to leave the yard in a month.

The kids kindly posed up in front of chain ferry Tamar II as she was guided into the care of attending tugs that would eventually take her to the fitting-out quay nearby.

Pic5:

White water swirled around the newly painted hull of MPV Mina when she came down the ways into a cold River Clyde in 2003.

Over 200 people turned out on a cold February day to see the launch. The offshore/onshore marine protection vessel, built for the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency, performs a wide range of tasks for the Scottish Government.