2 NAVY NEWS, FEBRUARY 2011


HMS Dauntless


845 NAS/846 NAS/847 NAS/ 854 NAS/FDG/1710 NAS


HMS Sabre/Scimitar I-TAM(N)


HMS Cornwall HMS Triumph FASLANE ROSYTH HMS Gannet HMS Clyde 800 NAS YEOVILTON DEVONPORT


CULDROSE 771 NAS


45 Cdo PORTSMOUTH


HMS Gloucester HMS Antelope RFA Black Rover


Plus one ballistic missile submarine on patrol somewhere beneath the Seven Seas


HMS Tireless HMS Cumberland HMS Enterprise HMS Chiddingfold HMS Middleton HMS Pembroke HMS Grimsby RFA Bayleaf RFA Diligence RFA Lyme Bay


Fleet Focus Fleet Focus DIFFERENT year, same story.


In the Gulf. In Afghanistan. In the Indian Ocean. In the UK. 2011 opened with the men and women of the Royal Navy heavily com- mitted in all these waters.


And it also opened with the aftershocks of October’s defence


centre pages); HMS Illustrious will be decommissioned one year earlier than planned and HMS Albion mothballed (see right) – but not before the latter leads a task force to the Med and Middle East (see opposite). The Sword of Damocles hangs over Type 22s HMS Cumberland


and Cornwall, which will pay off once their current deployments end (as we write, their sisters Chatham and Campbeltown are paying farewell visits to affiliates in home waters before bowing out).


In Cornwall’s case, her final tour of duty is chasing pirates (see page 19), while Cumberland is on Operation Telic duties (see pages 4-5).


The Fighting Sausage was one of around a dozen RN ships east of Suez at the turn of the year. Six of those vessels – Cumberland plus minehunters Grimsby, Middleton, Chiddingfold and Pembroke, and tanker RFA Bayleaf – spent the New Year in Dubai. Homeward bound from the Gulf was RFA Cardigan Bay, whose mission training the Iraqi Navy has come to an end – as evidenced by the arrival of new fast patrol boats in Umm Qasr, home of the RN-led I-TAM(N) – Iraq Training and Advisory Mission (Navy) (see page 6). HMS Ambush, the second of the seven-strong Astute-class submarines, has taken to the water after a formal naming ceremony in the cavernous dock hall in Barrow (see page 8). As for the existing fleet of boats, HMS Triumph has been on Perisher duties in Scotland while her sister Turbulent received a glowing testimonial from those hard-to-please folk at FOST (see page 8).


In the world of the Type 45 destroyers, HMS Dragon has completed her sea trials while her older sister Dauntless is engaged on cold weather trials in Norway (see opposite). Three ships are already bound for east of Suez – HMS Iron


Crew 7’s stint on HMS Middleton has come to an end; Crew 2 have taken charge of the minehunter in Bahrain, while Crew 7 are settling in on HMS Ledbury in Portsmouth (see page 6). From the spring 3 Commando Brigade will be the lead British formation on the ground in Afghanistan. The brigade has been preparing methodically for the deployment: 45 Cdo headed to a mock Afghan village in Norfolk (see pages 16-17); naval medics decamped to Chivenor for some (mock) bloody training (see page 15). Already in theatre are 847 NAS who’ve flown out with new


Duke heading to the Gulf for the first time (see page 7); HMS Echo to carry out survey work; and HMS Richmond to tackle pirates before making for the Far East (see page 6). Pirate duties are finished for HMS Montrose (right), while MCM


Gannet – began 2011 as it ended 2010... busy (see page 9). Plus ça change...


wreck of HMS Antelope, sunk in the 1982 conflict (see page 10). Today’s Naval guardian of the islands, HMS Clyde, took part in festive period events, including the Stanley raft race where, for once, they didn’t win the wooden spoon (see page 42). And finally, Britain’s busiest Search and Rescue unit – HMS


Lynx to support their Commando Helicopter Force Sea King comrades (see opposite). Sailors in the Falklands replaced the White Ensign on the


review still rippling through the entire Senior Service. The Harriers of 800 NAS have flown for the last time (see the


Montrose’s tangible impact on piracy


A HUG for HMS Montrose’s ET(ME) Tom Hillman from family – a moment of warmth on an otherwise bitter winter’s day in


deployment – chasing pirates off Somalia – in 2010. Temperatures were more Brrrrr than Arrggh in Montrose’s native base, Devonport, but that did not stop a sizeable crowd of friends and family waiting in the cold to welcome the frigate home after fi ve months east of Suez. Since departing the West Country last summer,


the frigate has been attached to a NATO task force executing Operation Shield, safeguarding merchantmen and putting Somali pirates under the knout.


There was quite a lot of the latter with ‘Pirate Action Groups’ – whalers and small skiffs packed with fuel and weapons – blown up and the freeing of the crew of the freighter MV Beluga Fortune in the wake of an abortive assault by the Somali brigands. The ship’s 815 Naval Air Squadron Lynx conducted scores of hours of surveillance fl ights along the coast of Somalia, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions of the known pirate camps to gather details for the coalition on the movements of the freebooters and their craft. As well as policing the Horn of Africa and environs, Montrose also visited the Seychelles


Devonport. Montrose was the last ship to return from


and Tanzania to provide engineering support and training in board-and-search techniques so these nations’ defence forces can take a greater role in anti-piracy operations. “I am very proud of my ship’s company for


what they have achieved with tangible results after deterring pirate activity by our presence and by our actions,” said the frigate’s CO Cdr Jonathan Lett. His marine engineer offi cer Lt Cdr Duncan Humphery added: “This was one of the most successful and enjoyable deployments I have been on in the Navy. Not only did we see and were able to measure the successful results of our counter-piracy action, but also visited some interesting countries when we had the chance of a break.” Robert Smith stepped off the gangway to be hugged by his partner Natalie, their baby son Kai and mother-in-law Jenny Williams who braved the snowy weather in Hull to make the 350-mile journey to Devonport. “Robert has been longing to cuddle Kai who was


only two weeks old when he sailed,” said Natalie. “I have been sending him so many photos by email to keep him up to date with how Kai has changed.” Now the ship’s company are back from leave


there’s some maintenance to carry out on the frigate, followed by a trip to Scotland to take part in the next Joint Warrior war game, then Operational Sea Training off Plymouth which will determine that Montrose is ready to deploy once again. Picture: LA(Phot) Dan Hooper, FRPU West


Cuts details thrashed out


HMS Illustrious will be axed one year early and amphibious fl agship HMS Albion will be mothballed in the autumn after details of the Strategic Defence and Security Review were thrashed out. No Type 22 frigate will fl y the White Ensign beyond April and three RFA support vessels are also being paid off that same month, Defence Secretary Dr Liam Fox has told MPs.


His announcement follows October’s review which warned that apart from HMS Ark Royal being decommissioned early, the axe would fall on all Type 22 frigates, one of two remaining carriers – either Illustrious or Ocean – and either Albion or Bulwark would be put into extended readiness. The review also stated that one


Bay class landing ship and other RFA vessels would leave service; a smaller Fleet meant fewer support ships would be required. After two months’ work, the


fi ne details of the cuts have been worked out, Dr Fox said:


■ HMS Illustrious, currently in refi t in Scotland, will run until 2014 when she will be decommissioned as HMS Ocean emerges from refi t; the Mighty O will serve as the nation’s on-call carrier until HMS Queen Elizabeth enters service in the middle of the decade. ■ HMS Chatham, Campbeltown and Cumberland (currently deployed in the Gulf) will all be out of service by April 1; Cornwall will pay off when she returns from her anti- piracy patrol in late April. ■ HMS Albion will enter extended readiness in the autumn when her sister Bulwark is declared fully operational after her refi t; the two ships will trade places in 2016 when Bulwark enters refi t again. ■ RFA Largs Bay will be withdrawn from service in April after just four and a half years’ service. ■ Veteran tanker RFA Bayleaf and one-stop support ship RFA Fort George will also be paid off in April.


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