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Britain had to plead with US to take part in Iran flotilla Britain was forced to plead with the US to take part in the flotilla challenging Iranian power in the Gulf after American commanders decided the Royal Navy had nothing to contribute to the mission. Defence sources have revealed that the Americans only relented and allowed a Royal Navy frigate to join the mission following an intervention from Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president. The revelation that US defence chiefs saw little military value in UK participation will raise new questions about Britain’s international clout after Coalition defence cuts. Amid...

The Royal Navy’s most sophisticated warship is being sent to the South Atlantic in a move that will send a powerful message to Argentina. Dauntless will set sail for the Falkland Islands in the coming weeks armed with a battery of missiles that could "take out all of South America's fighter aircraft let alone Argentina's," ... The Type 45 destroyer is the most advanced anti-aircraft and anti-ballistic ship in the world equipped with 48 Sea Viper missiles and the Sampson radar, which is more advanced than Heathrow air traffic control The ship is in a league of its own in...

Royal Navy reveals new supersonic anti-missile system A new air defence system that can destroy enemy missiles travelling at supersonic speeds has been revealed by the Royal Navy. Sea Ceptor missiles fired from warships will reach speeds of up to Mach 3 and protect an area of around 500 sq miles. The £483 million contract to develop the defence system has been awarded to MBDA (UK). The Ministry of Defence said the five-year project would mean continued employment for around 500 workers. Facilities across the UK including at Stevenage in Hertfordshire, Filton in South Gloucestershire and Lostock in Bolton will...

UK considers Rafale and F-18 as 'interim aircraft' 26 January 2012 Ministry of Defence concerns over the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter have led to military chiefs looking at other fast jets for the UK's aircraft carrier, it has been reported. According to The Times, Admiral Sir Trevor Soar, the current commander-in-chief fleet, said concerns were growing about rising costs and delays in the JSF programme, something now worsened by order cuts from the US. Soar, who was addressing defence companies at the ADS Maritime Interest Group, reportedly said the UK might not receive the $100m per piece F-35 jets until...

UKIP: 'UK must build naval Typhoon' 19 January 2012 The UK should cancel the purchase of the F-35C and invest in developing a naval variant of the Eurofighter Typhoon, the UK Independence Party (UKIP) has said. Lord Alexander Hesketh, UKIP's defence spokesman and former executive deputy chairman of Babcock International Group, said that adopting a naval Typhoon would allow the UK to restore carrier strike capability on its Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers before 2020 while saving money and protecting UK jobs. UKIP estimates suggest it would cost £1.4bn to develop a naval typhoon, with unit costs of around £80m....

Navy's £5bn Harrier jet replacement 'unable to land on aircraft carriers' The Royal Navy's multi-billion pound fighter plane programme is under threat amid claims that its new all-purpose jets cannot land on aircraft carriers, it has emerged. Leaked Pentagon documents claim a design flaw in the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) has caused eight simulated landings to fail. The “F-35 Joint Strike Fighter Concurrency Quick Look Review” claimed the flaw meant that the “arrestor” hook, used to stop the plane during landing, was too close to the plane’s wheels. When a fighter lands on an aircraft carrier an arrestor cable catches...

The Royal Navy has been named in the UK’s top 100 of ‘gay-friendly’ employers based on a major national survey. More than 350 companies, whose workforces total more than 1.9 million people in all – one in every 15 people in employment in the land – took part in the survey by Stonewall, the UK charity which campaigns and lobbies on behalf of lesbian, gay and bisexual men and women. The Naval Service has been one of Stonewall’s ‘diversity champions’ for the past seven years and has taken part in the organisation’s workplace survey since 2006. The RN was placed...

The Royal Navy has captured 13 Somali pirates onboard a sail boat in the Indian Ocean, the Ministry of Defence has said. A combined Nato-led counter-piracy force successfully intercepted the vessel which was known to be operating off the Somali coast. Both Royal Fleet Auxiliary Fort Victoria and United States Ship Carney manoevered into position around the dhow and encouraged her to comply with the British and American forces. After the boat refused to cooperate, a Royal Navy helicopter with Royal Marine maritime snipers was deployed to provide various clear warnings to the suspects to stop. The boat refused to...

Sailors' farewell to families as new Royal Navy destroyer HMS Daring sets off on maiden deployment to the Middle East By Daily Mail Reporter Heading out to sea from Portsmouth, this is the Royal Navy’s newest and most hi-tech warship setting sail on its maiden deployment. A crowd of family members and well-wishers gathered to wave off HMS Daring as it left its home base for a seven-month mission to the Middle East. The warship is the first of the six new Type 45 destroyers being introduced to the fleet. Daring will take over from a frigate on station east...

The Royal Navy's most formidable warship is being sent to the Gulf for its first mission as tensions rise in the strategically vital region, it can be disclosed. Naval commanders believe the deployment of HMS Daring, a Type 45 destroyer, will send a significant message to the Iranians because of the firepower and world-beating technology carried by the warship.Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, has publicly warned Iran that any blockade of the Strait of Hormuz would be "illegal and unsuccessful".

Britain voices concern over future of F-35 in US WASHINGTON — British Defence Minister Philip Hammond voiced concern on Thursday about possible cuts or delays in the US F-35 fighter program as London plans to equip a future aircraft carrier with the stealthy aircraft. In a visit to the US capital, Hammond said he wanted to hear from Defense Secretary Leon Panetta about the potential effect of a new US military strategy and budget plan on the future of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. "One of the things I hope to understand in the meetings I am to have later...

SAS target Taliban using Royal Navy submarine technology The SAS is targetting Taliban insurgents and Afghan smugglers in the Helmand desert using Royal Navy technology designed to hunt down Soviet submarines, it can be disclosed. The Daily Telegraph has been allowed access to operations along supply routes that involve radar technology traditionally used to spot periscopes breaking the surface and missiles skimming across wave tops. Using a sack-like device with which helicopters carry the radar equipment, the Sea King airborne surveillance and control (Skasac) can spot camel trains, pickup trucks and insurgents on foot dozens of miles away. The Navy...

<p>Top secret papers are set to prove that the warship Belgrano was heading into the Falkland's exclusion zone when it was sunk, and not heading back to port as the Argentinians claimed.</p> <p>For decades debate and recrimination has raged over where the ship was heading when it was torpedoed by a Royal Navy submarine.</p>

Nuclear submarine should be sent to Falklands to show British anger at boat ban decision A nuclear submarine should be sent to the Falkland Islands to illustrate Britain’s anger at a decision by South American countries to ban boats bearing the island's flag, the former head of the Royal Navy said. Lord West, the former the former First Sea Lord, said Britain should also undertake military exercises in response to the “aggressive” decision by the Mercosur bloc to close ports to ships flying the “illegal” flag. The Foreign Office also condemned the decision by the bloc, which includes Argentina, Brazil...

Destroyer keeps watch on Russian carrier 14 December 2011 | Royal Navy destroyer has rushed to intercept a flotilla of Russian ships off Scotland in a return to Cold War tensions. The battlegroup, headed by aircraft carrier the Admiral Kuznetsov, is understood to have sought shelter from a storm in the Firth of Moray. The Admiral Kuznetsov is en route to Syria, in a show of Russian support for the country’s under-fire regime. Along with destroyer escort she has diverted toward the Scottish coast, apparently to take shelter from North Sea storms. At 65,000 tons the Admiral Kuznetsov is roughly...

The aircraft carriers being built for the Royal Navy will be less useful, take longer to finish, and likely cost more than claimed, a parliamentary watchdog warns. The first, HMS Queen Elizabeth, will be mothballed immediately it is launched in 2016, according to the existing plan. However, the second, HMS Prince of Wales, is not now expected to be fully operational until 2031. Moreover, it will only be able to stay at sea for up to 200 days a year, significantly fewer than envisaged, says the Commons public accounts committee. The MPs' report, out on Tuesday, makes clear the quick...

Defence cuts: Carrier 'fully operational in 2030' Britain may be without a fully operational aircraft carrier until 2030, according to a report published by the Commons spending watchdog. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) says two carriers being built will cost more, offer less military capability and be ready much later than planned. It says the Royal Navy will be without a carrier until 2020, which may not be fully operational until 2030. The PAC also says the cost of scaling back the carriers is not fully known. The committee said the adjustments made to the vessels meant just £600m cash...

Navy frigate sent to Libya with four missiles A Royal Navy frigate was sent to the Libyan war zone armed with as few as four missiles, it has been disclosed. Royal Navy officers said HMS Westminster was “dangerously under-defended” when it was called on to patrol close to the Libyan port city of Benghazi in March. The warship can carry 32 Seawolf and eight Harpoon missiles but it is understood that military cutbacks left the Westminster and its crew of 190 with only a fraction of that capability. As Seawolf missiles — which are used to intercept incoming missiles —...

Jinxed submarine HMS Astute finally fires its first missile... and it went without a hitch Chris Slack The jinxed submarine HMS Astute has successfully fired its first missile during a test mission in the Gulf of Mexico, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed The submarine fired a series of Tomahawk missiles at up to 550 miles per hour, a spokeswoman confirmed. Each missile is 5.5-metres in length, weighs 1,300kg and has a range of 1,000 miles. The successful firing comes seven months after a crew member was killed during a shooting incident when the submarine was in dock at Southampton....

No Royal Navy warships left to guard Britain DEFENCE HMS Portland was the last ship to be guarding British waters By Michael Powell Published on Tuesday 1 November 2011 15:30 DEFENCE cuts and the war in Libya have left the Royal Navy without a ship on emergency stand-by in British waters for the past four weeks, The News can reveal. A frigate or destroyer is usually tasked to be in the UK at high readiness to respond to an emergency at home or abroad at a moment’s notice. But the slashed navy has become so stretched that admirals have been...

Are the British finally planning revenge for that whole American Revolution dust-up from a couple centuries ago? First Lady Michelle Obama’s security detail is apparently taking no chances. According to the Daily Mail, a British Royal Navy vessel was ordered to turn its onboard guns because they were parked pointing toward at a hotel Mrs. Obama was staying in during her recent visit to South Africa. Fearing the First Lady might be in danger, minders ordered the captain of the HMS Edinburgh stationed in Cape Town, South Africa, to switch them away from her five-star suite. The U.S. agents have...

A British Royal Navy ship was ordered to turn its guns around because they were parked pointing at a hotel room Michelle Obama was staying in. Fearing the First Lady might be in danger, minders ordered the captain of the HMS Edinburgh stationed in Cape Town, South Africa, to switch them away from her five-star suite. The U.S. agents have since been accused of overreacting after it emerged the Sea Dart missiles were, in fact, loaded with blanks having been used during a ceremony in honour of a sailor who had died. Former Royal Navy officer Mike Critchley told the...

Designing the Type 26 frigate 05 September 2011 | By Stuart Nathan The Royal Navy is going through one of the most tumultuous periods in its entire illustrious, five-century existence. It’s a time of conflicting emotions as the old flagship, Ark Royal, is sent into history before its time, according to some commentators while new Type 45 destroyers take their first trip down the Clyde and into service. The submarine fleet is also being refreshed, with the new Astute-class attack boats on sea trials. And nobody could fail to notice the massive sections of the new flagship, Queen Elizabeth, arriving...

BAE SYSTEMS : Enter the Dragon As The Fourth Type 45 Arrives In Portsmouth 31 Aug 2011 | Ref. 159/2011 Portsmouth, United Kingdom: DRAGON, the fourth Type 45 anti-air warfare destroyer built by BAE Systems for the Royal Navy, has arrived in Portsmouth Naval Base, where she will be handed over to the Ministry of Defence (MOD) at a ceremony today. Members of the ship’s company will raise the white ensign for the first time onboard DRAGON, as the Head of Destroyers, Commodore Stephen Braham, formally accepts the destroyer on behalf of the MOD in Portsmouth, where she joins her...

UK proposes building future warships with India Ajai Shukla / New Delhi August 11, 2011, 0:24 IST If deal goes through, one of our new pvt sector shipyards could bag contract With defence ministry shipyards unable to meet the Indian Navy’s growing need for warships, New Delhi had no choice but to look to Russian shipyards. Now, with Britain looking to partner India to cut the UK’s warship building costs, one of India’s new private defence shipyards — which have high-tech facilities but no experience in building large, complex warships — could get the opportunity to build its first line...

Warship to be commanded by a woman for the first time in Navy's 500-year history By Daily Mail Reporter Lieutenant Commander Sarah West is in charge of HMS Portland A woman is to command a frontline warship for the first time in the history of the Royal Navy, it has emerged. Lieutenant Commander Sarah West, 39, is taking charge of HMS Portland - a 5,000-ton Type 23-Frigate which is prepared for 'total warfare'. Women, who were first allowed to go to sea with the Navy in 1990, have until now only commanded small non-fighting ships. Lt Cdr West is said...

MoD urged to buy cheaper Navy jets COST CONCERN An artists impression of a Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft soaring above the Royal Navys two new carriers By Michael Powell Published on Tuesday 2 August 2011 17:30 THE Ministry of Defence is facing internal pressure to pull out of buying F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jets for the Royal Navy’s new aircraft carriers, The News can reveal. A number of MoD officials are understood to be calling for Britain to withdraw from the under-fire Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) programme, which has faced criticism in America and Australia as costs run into...

Risks in British Switch to Carrier Version of F-35 Identified By: Chris Pocock July 18, 2011 A report by the UK’s National Audit Office (NAO) has listed some risks arising from the decision by UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) to switch its Joint Strike Fighter selection from the F-35B STOVL (short takeoff and vertical landing) version to the F-35C carrier version. The decision was part of a defense review that delayed the in-service date of one of two new aircraft carriers to which the MoD was already fully committed, until 2018. The other new carrier will be kept in reserve...

HMS Illustrious, affectionately known as Lusty, made a proud return to her home port of Portsmouth after receiving a £40million upgrade. The Royal Navy's last fixed-wing aircraft carrier has been converted into a helicopter carrier and is now capable of carrying a force of up to 20 helicopters and 600 personnel. The 22,000-tonne ship was based at the Rosyth dockyard in Fife for 16 months while it underwent modifications. ... Illustrious will take over the role currently fulfilled by HMS Ocean when it goes for a refit. It is due for completion by 2014. A Navy spokesman said: 'This will...

Navy's £10bn new aircraft carriers could face the axe because of cash shortfalls By Ian Drury The Royal Navy’s new aircraft carriers could be axed because of cash shortfalls, a damning report warns today. Britain’s spending watchdog said the 65,000-tonne floating fortresses were ‘vulnerable’ unless ministers boosted defence spending. The National Audit Office expressed ‘deep concerns’ over the future of the warships which have already been delayed until 2020 to save money. The NAO warned that the cost of the carriers could spiral to over £10billion – more than twice the original bill. Cash fears: An artist's impression shows what...

Sea King radar at the heart of anti-insurgent operations 15:25 GMT, July 1, 2011 Thales UK’s Searchwater 2000 airborne early warning (AEW) radar, fitted as part of the Cerberus mission system in the Royal Navy (RN) Sea King Mk7s currently deployed in Afghanistan, has been playing a critical role in helping crews combat Taliban operations with its state-of-the-art surveillance capability. During recent operations, deployed Sea King crews have described the radar as 'unique' and both British and coalition partners have stated that it is a 'key contributory factor' in protecting civilians and military personnel from the insurgents, providing the essential...

Royal Navy pilots forced to learn French Royal Navy fighter pilots are being forced to learn French in order to operate on board France’s flagship aircraft carrier. By Martin Evans 12:18PM BST 12 Jun 2011 The Naval aviators are training with the French, whose jets they may have to use while they await the arrival of the new Joint Strike Fighters, which are unlikely to be delivered before 2020. The first five of 30 Royal Navy pilots have begun French language training at the defence college in Paris before they join the carrier, the Charles de Gaulle, where they will...

UK says sees wide interest in new Navy frigate Mon, Jun 6 2011 * UK in talks with Brazil, Malaysia about project - Fox * UK to use market to keep defence projects on budget By Adrian Croft LONDON, June 6 (Reuters) - Britain has seen very wide interest in a planned collaborative project to build a new Navy frigate and talks are being held with partners including Brazil and Malaysia, Defence Secretary Liam Fox said on Monday. The planned new Type 26 frigate, also known as the "global combat ship", is being developed by British group BAE Systems (BAES.L:...

We should share aircraft carrier, say French Britain and France are set to share an aircraft carrier as part of plans for far closer integration between the two navies, the head of France’s fleet has said in an interview with The Daily Telegraph. Admiral Pierre-Francois Forissier also disclosed that the French navy was amazed by the swath of cuts last year that severely reduced the Royal Navy with the axing of aircraft carriers and Harrier jump jets alongside warships. “From a French standpoint, I have to say that we were really stunned because the Royal Navy has always been a...

Royal Navy welcomes new destroyer Monday, May 09, 2011 HMS Diamond – the third of the Royal Navy’s new formidable Type 45 air-defence destroyers – has today been formally commissioned into the fleet.. She is one of six multi-role vessels being built for the Royal Navy which will provide air defence using the Sea Viper missile system. She can embark 60 troops and their equipment, supported by a modern medical facility that can deliver a surgical capability. She could also carry up to 700 people to support a civilian evacuation. Defence Secretary, Dr Liam Fox, said: "The Type 45 programme...

Politicians hide their plans to put French jets on Royal Navy carriers The Royal Navy won't be flying Anglo-US Joint Strike Fighters, but providing a platform for French Rafales as part of an EU force, writes Christopher Booker. The magnificent military pageantry of the royal wedding coincided, sadly, with yet another humiliating instance of the precipitate decline in Britain’s military power. There has long been something very odd about the two giant aircraft carriers which are to be the centrepiece of Britain’s defence capability over the next 50 years – one to be instantly mothballed, the other not due in...

When a Royal Navy warship captured a crew of Somali pirates, it seemed like a rare chance to strike back at the ruthless sea gangsters. The 17 outlaws were armed with an arsenal of AK 47s and rocket-propelled grenades, and had forced hostages on a hijacked fishing vessel to work as slaves for three months. But instead of bringing them to justice, the British servicemen were ordered to provide the pirates halal meals, medical checks, cigarettes – and in one case even a nicotine patch – before releasing them in their own boats. The extraordinary treatment – revealed in a...

Life in a ‘rather cramped’ A Class nuclear submarine MARTIN WILLIAMS Share 9 Apr 2011 IT’S a cramped and monotonous lifestyle on HMS Astute, but they are conditions all submariners are trained to deal with. That’s the view of those who have served on claustrophobic Navy submarines and who know what it is like to cope with the tight confines, the weeks away at sea away from their loved ones and the boredom. The nuclear submarine yesterday became the centre of a major police investigation after one person died and another was said to be fighting for their life after...

How the Royal Navy changed US naval aviation By Stephen Trimble Americans may have invented it, but the British made naval aviation work. Jet-powered flight introduced a new set of challenges for aircraft carriers nearly 40 years after Eugene Ely's famous plunge off the foredeck of the USS Birmingham in November 1910. Adapting the aircraft carrier's floating runway for the jet age meant reconsidering almost everything about carrier-deck design and operations that was known and proven during the crucible of the Second World War. Making that transition would occupy the US Navy and the Royal Navy most of the decade...

Libya: Navy running short of Tomahawk missiles The Navy could run out of Tomahawk missiles after a fifth of the Navy stockpile has been used against Libya, sources disclosed yesterday. By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent Defence insiders say as many as 12 of the weapons have been fired from the hunter–killer submarine Triumph in the past four days. If this is correct, the Navy will have used up to 20 per cent of its 64 Tomahawks in the opening salvos of the war, leading to fears that it is "burning through" its armoury. The situation could become an embarrassment for...

Ottawa won't be working with U.K. on building warships The Canadian Press Updated: Sun. Mar. 6 2011 6:33 PM ET OTTAWA — The Conservative government is slamming the door shut on a British proposal that wants the two countries to work together in building new warships. "Canada will not be pursuing collaboration with the United Kingdom on our new surface combatant fleet," Jay Paxton, a spokesman for Defence Minister Peter MacKay, said Sunday. Paxton was reacting to comments made by London's top diplomat in Ottawa, who told The Canadian Press that Canada and Britain could make better use of scarce...

Britain-Canada talk about building frigates in joint program: U.K. minister By: Murray Brewster, The Canadian Press OTTAWA - Canada and Britain have been holding quiet but lengthy discussions to develop replacement frigates for both of their navies. The shipbuilding program is being proposed by British defence giant BAE Systems Inc., but has also been pitched to other countries including Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand and Turkey in what could be described as a watered-down naval version of the F-35 fighter jet. Word of the talks emerged recently in debate before the British House of Commons. Britain's parliamentary secretary for defence, Gerald...

Chinese bid for UK carrier fails Created: 2011-2-2 Author:Yang Jian BRITAIN has rejected a 5 million pound (US$8 million) bid for a junked aircraft carrier from a UK-based Chinese businessman. The offer was more than double the expected price but Lam Kin-bong, from south China's Guangdong Province, said yesterday he was told he had "failed to provide all the necessary information." The light aircraft carrier HMS Invincible was decommissioned in 2005 and stripped of engines and weapons. The 17,000-ton hull was sold by the Disposal Services Agency, an online auction platform under the UK Ministry of Defence. A Turkish ship...

India's sole current aircraft carrier, the 29,000 ton INS Viraat, is running out of Harrier aircraft. Two years ago, Viraat emerged from 18 months in a shipyard getting maintenance and upgrades. With its engine and hull refurbished, and its electronics upgraded, India has announced that Viraat will serve for another decade. But back in 2009, one Harrier had just crashed, and now only ten of the original 30 Harriers are operational. Since Britain recently retired the last of its Harriers, there's always the possibility of India getting some of those before they are scrapped

British Anti-Submarine Warfare Force In Flux Jan 21, 2011 By Robert Wall YEOVIL, England — Concerns are mounting in the U.K. that anti-submarine warfare (ASW) skills are beginning to erode because of competing operational demands and equipment decisions. The fear, voiced by government and industry officials, goes beyond the decision last year to cancel the Nimrod MRA4 maritime patrol aircraft project. Some high-end skills to hunt submarines are no longer getting adequate training, warns an industry official. Additionally, the community is having to contend with the evolution of the threat and the emergence of diesel-electric submarines operating near the coast...

Australian defense minister considers to use UK amphibious vessel English.news.cn 2011-01-19 16:48:49 CANBERRA, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Australia will consider whether to buy an amphibious vessel from the United Kingdom (UK), Defense Minister Stephen Smith said on Wednesday. Australia has ordered a number of the amphibious vessels from Spain, but they will not be ready until 2015. Following Australia-United Kingdom Ministerial Dialogue (AUKMIN) meetings in Sydney on Tuesday, UK Defense Minister Liam Fox visited South Australia (SA) with Smith on Wednesday to look at the defense science technology organizations and other defense capabilities. Smith said the bilateral defense talks had...

.K. military officials are preparing plans to bridge capability gaps that have emerged out of last year’s Strategic Defense and Security Review (SDSR) even as they brace for further cuts to plug remaining funding shortfalls. On the agenda for a Jan. 25 meeting are issues such as how to transition carrier strike capability in the absence of a fully operational aircraft carrier, and whether the planned Scavenger medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft program can take on missions associated with the canceled Nimrod MRA4 maritime patrol aircraft and R1 Sentinel. The latter is due to be withdrawn from service once Afghanistan operations...

Heavy demand for Royal Navy Merlins January 14, 2011 The Royal Navy's Merlin helicopter force is busier than it has ever been, according to the fleet's commander. 'Whether it’s the anti-piracy work or the anti-narcotics mission, everyone wants a Merlin,' Commander Kevin Dodd, chief of the Fleet Air Arm's (FAA’s) Merlin force, told Rotorhub.com. Since the first FAA Merlin entered service in 1997, the fleet has been extremely busy on a wide-range of deployments not only on the back of the Royal Navy's Type 23 frigates but also its carriers and the Royal Fleet Auxiliaries. 'The aircraft's versatility makes it...

Royal Navy's Falklands ship turned away by Brazil The Royal Navy's Falkland Islands protection ship has been turned away from docking in Rio de Janeiro in an indication that Brazil's new government could back Argentine claims to the islands. By Robin Yapp, Sao Paulo Despite continuing tensions with Argentina over the Falkland Islands, the Navy had until now enjoyed cordial relations with its Brazilian equivalent. But last week, within days of the former left-wing guerilla Dilma Rousseff succeeding Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as Brazil's president, HMS Clyde was refused permission to stop in Rio. Miss Rousseff is due to...

Dragon roaring to life 06 January 2011 REMEMBER, remember the fifth of November. Not for any of that Guy Fawkes malarkey, but if you can cast your minds back two months it was the day when HMS Dragon first put to sea. The ship has now resumed fitting out and tests on the Clyde at Scotstoun with the engineers and ship’s company more than pleased with her performance on her first stint of sea trials. Indeed, the ship surpassed the 29kts top speed expected of her when the class was ordered a decade ago. She ‘throttled up’ to reach 32...