The flow of migrant boats crossing the English Channel has led to daily rants on social media demanding we “send in the Royal Navy to defend our borders”. Here we briefly look at why using the navy this way is impractical, wasteful and has already proven to be largely pointless.
HMS Tamar and HMS Spey sailed from Portsmouth on 7th September 2021 to be forward deployed in the Pacific for at least the next five years. A year on from their departure we look at what has been achieved and the benefits of a permanent Royal Navy presence in the region.
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The Integrated Review was unclear about the future of the three Batch 1 OPVs but a recent support contract award announcement makes it clear that these ships will remain in service until at least April 2028.
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Two brand new Offshore Patrol Vessels have sailed for the Indo-Pacific where they are expected to spend the next five years or more. Here we look at the outline plan for this deployment and the wider implications of basing these ships in this vast area.
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HMS Tamar has emerged from her recent maintenance period at A&P Falmouth with a new ‘dazzle’ paint scheme. This form of warship camouflage dates back to the First World war and makes visual warship recognition more difficult.
With a no-deal Brexit looking a distinct possibility, conflict over fishing rights looks likely to create a complex enforcement challenge for the Royal Navy’s fishery protection vessels. More
The 4th Batch II River-class OPV, HMS Tamar spent the last week in the high profile berth alongside HMS Belfast in London. We visited the ship to hear about her progress.
Like every aspect of life in the UK, the industry that supports the Royal Navy has been impacted by the effects of COVID-19. We spoke to BAE Systems, the Ministry of Defence’s largest supplier, about how they have adapted to the new conditions.
This week two of the RN’s 32-year old P2000 patrol boats were loaded onto a ship for delivery to Gibraltar. They will replace the existing Gibraltar Squadron patrol boats, HMS Scimitar and HMS Sabre, pending the delivery of brand new vessels.More