UNFINISHED Glen Sannox was in danger of making an unscheduled first trip out to sea as Storm Malik lashed Inverclyde at the weekend.

Two tug boats battled to keep the 336-foot ship — which has been languishing at the state-owned shipyard for nearly five years — at her berth amid gusts of more than 50mph.

The boats, Switzer Milford and CMS Wrestler, pushed against the hull of the scaffolding-clad Glen Sannox at the height of Saturday's storm to prevent her from breaking loose.

She was due to enter service on one of Scotland's busiest crossings between Ardrossan and Arran in 2018 after First Minister Nicola Sturgeon 'launched' her in November of 2017. But a catalogue of issues over the design of the ship which resulted in a Holyrood committee branding the management process a 'catastrophic failure' means that she remains incomplete.

Outgoing Ferguson's 'turnaround director' Tim Hair — who has presided over a further delay in delivering Glen Sannox — recently warned that there could be a further impact on finishing the job by the re-jigged timescale of between July 25 and September 25 this year.

In his final update to Holyrood's Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee, Mr Hair said: "Delivery of [Glen Sannox] in the time window described is achievable but remains challenging.

"The planned increase in production activity in January and February is critical to the achievement of this delivery schedule."

The collapse of Ferguson Marine Engineering Limited (FMEL) in August 2019, came amid soaring costs and delays to the construction of Glen Sannox and her unnamed sister Hull 802, and resulted in the yard being nationalised.

Ministers have said they believe they were acting in the public interest in taking control of FMEL in August 2019, saving it from closure, rescuing more than 300 jobs, and ensuring that the two vessels under construction will be completed.