The Russian AGI Viktor Leonov briefly shadowed the Royal Navy-led Carrier Strike group soon after they entered the Mediterranean in early May.
The Leonov had refuelled in Algeria before meeting the CSG in the western Mediterranean. HMS Dauntless is pictured above in company with the AGI on 2nd May. Intelligence gathering attempts by adversary navies are quite normal, and it would be surprising if there were not interactions between the CSG and Russian assets during the deployment. The Viktor Leonov was built in 1988 when the Soviet Union deployed a large fleet of AGIs, routinely trailing NATO warships, watching and attempting to gather signals and electronic intelligence.
Although the CSG may have to modify it is procedures and electronic emissions in the presence of the AGI, in some ways, the Russians’ arrival is useful for the group as they provide non-friendly targets to test reactions and keep everyone on their toes. The rest of the Russian naval presence in the Mediterranean is believed to consist of the frigate RFS Admiral Grigorovich, the corvette RFS Soobrazitelny and two supporting tankers.
The images below cover the tail end of the NATO exercise Neptune Strike and the group preparing for exercise Med Strike, which runs from 5th to 11th May in the Ionian Sea.
I wonder where Tidespring has gone. If she was coming straight home you would have expected her to be back by now.
Which RFA tanker is supporting the CSG
Three of them were with CGS.
Perfectly reasonable for one of them to pop off and leave the others to do tanker stuff.
Maybe she has gone to switch ISOs in a friendly port?
Only 1 was assigned to the CSG, the 2nd was just there at the start.
And the 3rd is Maud
She not she’s going the long way round past C Horn and meeting the CSG once they are the other side of Suez.
The Viktor Leonov — Russia’s barnacled old spy tub — popped up to shadow the UK Carrier Strike Group as it entered the Med, fresh from topping up its tank in Algeria and no doubt its crew with Marlboros and knock-off vodka. HMS Dauntless got up close on 2 May, giving the Russians a good look and an even better idea of what they’re missing.
This sort of thing is standard: NATO does a lap, Russia peers out from behind the curtains with binoculars from 1983. The Leonov was built in the Soviet twilight and seems to exist mainly to remind people that Moscow once had a blue-water navy.
The CSG will have adjusted comms, kept it polite-but-pointed, and probably enjoyed the chance to track a live target that isn’t a drone or a seagull. Nothing gets the lads sharper than a foreign guest star sniffing about.
Exercise Med Strike kicks off shortly — and nothing like a creaky Russian shadow to make sure the choreography stays crisp.
Mousekid
If the russian sailors are confrmed by western “intelligence sources” as smoking Marlboros..
…….then I am afraid to say that our western economic sanctions agains Mr Putin’s very naughty regime are not working very well…
Peter ((Irate Taxpayer)
The doc Warship Live at Sea showed the crew was ordered to give up all mobile phones.
SHAMAN probably got more intel from the barnacle tub than the tub has ever collected.
The tub are probably pleased that they can hear the pipes……
This stuff has been going on for decades and way longer than the average boy sailor can remember.
HMS Richmond looks a right wrecker compared to the other ships 😱
Just wait until they all return!
She is due a deep maintenance period and Lloyds recertification when she returns, hope she’s in a good enough material state to be worth fixing up?
At least she’s got her NSM. Maybe HMS Dauntless will get hers and the CAMM on her return?
I think it’s just adorable the UK thinks Russia is a relevant threat, I’m pretty sure they don’t think the same. Can you please realise all your military is good for is accompanying the US into yet another illegal action to let the American people believe it’s a multinational force? All this wasted effort and fear mongering. What would Russia want, even if they had a functional military which they don’t, with a country that can’t even sustain itself economically?
Usual games since the Cold War.
Interesting. The Russians are clearly desperate to try to glean any hard data they can on the UK sovereign carrier groups capabilities.
What they are failing to fully grasp is that in a war situation this carrier battle group would be heavily reinforced. 2xtype 45s, 3-4 European NATO frigates, possibly a euro NATO destroyer, AiP subs from Norway or Germany or Italy. A second type 23.
In essence it would double or tripple in size very easily making the carrier very heavily protected.
The European allies aren’t daft. They know the key capital ships in Europe would need to be at sea and guarded. So 2XQEC, Charles De Gaulle, ITS Cavour and ITS Trieste, After those 5 it would be amphibious orientated flat tops of the Spanish, French and Turkish fleets that would receive the next level down in terms of protection.
Those amphibious flattops could however be very very useful as ASW flagships and hunting groups performing the role of escort carrier if needed.
Mr Bell
Just like yourself….. I have previously made exactly the same point here (several times)
…… that LPH “flattop” carriers with lots of ASW helicoptors on board would be very very useful for sinking Red Octobers (quickly and nosily) out in the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans
Peter (Irate Taxpayer)
We have Big heavy Tankers (39000t) for our task groups but what we’re missing are small(11500t) tankers for future Frigates & Destroyer,something like a modern day Rover class of similar size (20kts).
And no spy ships but carriers
Then join the Russians. You can bark there if they don’t censor you.
Jason
????
Peter (Irate Taxpayer)