Interislander ferry, Kaitaki, which departed Wellington for Picton at 8.30pm last night, was forced to return back to Wellington after developing issues with its steering just outside of the Wellington heads.

It retained full steering control, via backup systems.

A spokeswoman said “to ensure safety the ships’ master decided it would not berth at Kaiwharawhara without being guided by tugs, which were not available until around 7am this morning. Kaitaki is now at the berth.

 “There were only a small number of passengers onboard, primarily Commercial Vehicle drivers. Each was provided a cabin for the night.

 “Our engineers are working to fix the issue and there will be delays to some sailings today as a result. We held this morning’s Aratere sailing so it could take some of the passengers.

 We apologise to the passengers for this disruption and are working to resolve the issue as quickly as we can.”