THE Ballista is a 200t iron steamship used as a salvage vessel.
She became a shipwreck while salvaging coal from a vessel called the River Tay, which she sunk directly on top of after a severe gale swept Scotland on the 5/6th February 1973, breaking her stern mooring.

The wreck's mast was visible for many years on the westerly point of Eilean Rubha an Ridire, but has now sunk, although parts of the superstructure still appear above the surface at low springs.

She lies between 3-10 metres and despite the hull being intact, otherwise she is a shell but sheltered from the strong currents of the sound, with the keel of the River Tay still visible beneath her.

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