HMS Somerset, together with her Merlin helicopter and an RAF P-8A Poseidon aircraft, monitored a Russian corvette and cargo ship passing eastward through the English Channel in the past few days.
This three-day operation involved tracking the Russian corvette RFS Boikiy, which was escorting the merchant ship MV Baltic Leader on its voyage from Syria. HMS Somerset left from Stavanger in Norway, where she had been aligning weapons and sensors at the NATO FORCAS range. She sailed on the 28th February, to join the operation run in collaboration with NATO allies. (HMS Richmond is also in Norway, recently visiting Haakonsvern Naval Base in Bergen, the 3rd of the Type 23 frigates to embark an outfit of Naval Strike Missiles.)
HMS Somerset began shadowing Boikiy on 1st March, as the corvette headed south through the North Sea and English Channel to meet the MV Baltic Leader. The Russian ships met near the traffic separation scheme at Ushant, near France, before sailing through the Channel and into the North Sea.
Two weeks prior, HMS Iron Duke, HMS Tyne, and RFA Tideforce had monitored five ships, including three merchant vessels, as they conducted another transit carrying military supplies from Syria. What is likely to be the final group of Russian ships to leave Syria sailed from Tartus on 2nd March, comprising 3 cargo ships escorted by the frigate RFS Admiral Grigorovich and the Tank Landing Ship RFS Alexandr Shabalin.
This routine work underscores the RN’s commitment to maintaining maritime security and monitoring naval movements in UK waters.
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To be fair, It’s not just the RN that does this, the French and many others do this all the way along these ship’s travels.
Just saying because on other places, people seem to not know and get all puffed up and silly.
It’s the same with Russian Aircraft, It’s not just the RAF but a whole chain of different Air forces. I know most of us here know that but some might not.
Fair to make the point as the article doesn’t!
In these very weird times.
Thanks, I just see so many comments on different sites that are a bit lacking in the way this all works.
And yes, this article doesn’t really explain the process so it doesn’t help to educate the knee jerk brigade.
I wonder why the Russian Navy feel the need to escort a merchant ship through the Channel. Do we have well-armed extremists lining the Kent coast? Was it an excuse to sent a corvette through a couple of times and if so why?
This Cargo Ship is Retreating from Syria having loaded Russian arms and equipment, It’s an on going thing. Basically Russian forces were expelled from Syria at the same time mass killer Assad fled.
They can’t take the short route to home ports in the Black Sea so they have to take the long route which is either through the English Channel or up and around Scotland.
I wasn’t asking about the merchant behaviour. I was asking about the corvette that came south, presumably from the Northern or Baltic Fleets, met up with the merchant, and went back north again.
The Merchant went south a few weeks back to load Russian stuff…. The Corvette was it’s escort. Sorry if my reply annoyed you.
Not at all. My fault for not being clear. My question is why didn’t the mechant need an escort all the way between Syria and Western France, but still needed one through the English Channel? And needed one so urgently that a corvette was sent south specifically to meet it at Ushant (off Brest). Why didn’t the merchant simply go home without a military escort? I just think it odd behaviour. Were the Russians afraid it would be boarded? Or was someone was signalling something, although I can’t think what?
They were probably afraid that she would be boarded for some reason.
There was probably something not quite kocha on board I would *guess* chemical weapons based.
Russian cargo ships can transit the Bosporus, as they can transit the Danish Str or the English Channel.
Its only their warships like those of other Black Sea nations who cant go back and forth
Why is my latest comment being held for approval ? same thing happens on “the other site” .
Tech has been dodgy in the other place for quite a few days now. As for the algorithms here which decide if contributions are dodgy, I haven’t figured anything out at all.
Well it now looks like my reply to your question has been deleted. There was nothing in my reply that warranted any deletion… Must be some sort of AI glitch ?
My comment on the subs appeared for a few mins then disappeared. Perhaps I was a tad too political, but so is the article
It’s a worry that these sites seem to be having lots of issues lately.
Jon, I like your comments, you seem to be rather balanced and non combatant unlike some on here.
Quite why your comments disappear evades me.
Thank you. It’s back now.
Jon
I must admit that, just like you, I was wondering why this Russian flagged merchie was being escoted, by a small enemy warship, through our home waters
Jim
So thank you, Jim, for your quite-detailed explainitory remarks / comments etc.
Peter (Irate Taxpayer)
Jim most likely too many postings in a short time.
Hopefully events in Syria and the closure of the Dardanelles have effectively ended Russian activities in the Mediterranean for the foreseeable future.