Divers are inspecting the new Glen Sannox following the discovery of a crack in the ship’s hull.

The brand new vessel only began operating in January after being delivered almost seven years late and costing more than four times the original contract price.

All of the Glen Sannox’s Saturday sailings have been cancelled while the MV Alfred will operate an additional service.

CalMac said it would provide an update on Sunday’s sailings once a dive team had carried out a full assessment.

The ship had been operating for just over two months between Troon in South Ayrshire and Brodick in the Isle of Arran.

The vessel was removed from service on Friday after a crack was found on a “weld seam close to the waterline”.

The ferry operator said reports that the boat had hit the harbour or that water was leaking into the car deck were “categorically untrue”.

However, CalMac advised that a “very small amount of water” had entered part of the rear of the ship near the steering gear.

Additional sailings have also been added between Lochranza in Arran and Claonaig in the Kintyre peninsula.

The operator said all passengers should have a booking prior to arriving in Troon, adding that those who had not booked could not be guaranteed travel.

Divers from Shearwater Marine Services arrived at the port on Saturday morning.

A decision about Sunday’s sailings will be taken later, the operator said in a statement on its website.

It added: “We apologise for the disruption, and our port teams and customer engagement centre will be working hard to contact affected customers.”

The Glen Sannox has space for 127 cars and 852 passengers.

The order for Glen Sannox and another ship were placed with the Ferguson shipyard in Port Glasgow nearly a decade ago.

But disputes over the design and claims for extra costs saw the shipyard fall into administration, and then be nationalised in 2019.

The ships have ended up costing more than four times the £97m contract price.

A Scottish government agency owns the ferries, leading to criticism of the SNP from opposition parties.

Scottish Conservative transport spokeswoman Sue Webber called the issue a “hammer blow” for passengers.

And Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP Willie Rennie said: “This has been a never-ending nightmare for this SNP commissioned ferry contract.”