HMS Richmond has set sail from Plymouth to provide resilience to the UK’s presence in the Gulf.
Secretary of State for Defence Grant Shapps provided this update today.
“On 19 December, I updated the House on the maritime security situation in the Red Sea. The situation remains extremely serious, and I would like to provide a further update. The United Kingdom and our international partners condemn the illegal and unjustified attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea by Houthi militants. These attacks, which increased 500% from November to December, risk innocent lives, exacerbate the humanitarian suffering in Yemen, threaten regional security and harm the global economy.
Our message is clear, we call for the Iranian-backed Houthi to immediately cease these illegal attacks. The UK has joined the United States and other partners on Operation Prosperity Guardian to ensure the freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. On Friday, Royal Navy frigate HMS Richmond set sail from Plymouth to provide resilience to the UK’s presence in the Gulf.
We are working with allies and partners to protect freedom of navigation and remain committed to holding malign actors accountable for unlawful seizures and attacks. The Houthis will bear the responsibility of the consequences should they continue to threaten lives and commercial shipping in these critical waterways. As you would expect, while planning is underway for a range of scenarios, no decisions have been made and we continue to pursue all diplomatic routes.
Together with our allies and partners, we call for the immediate end of these illegal attacks and release of unlawfully detained vessels and crews. The UK will not hesitate to take further action should the Houthis continue to ignore our warnings.”
Taken from Navy Outlook, not a bolstering after all.
“Subsequently, Grant Shapps has said HMS Richmond is going to replace either HMS Diamond or HMS Lancaster so there is “not an escalation”.
Correction, that should read Navy Lookout!
The 45s can vector the seaceptor onto a target?
Should these ships all be ‘Home ported’ with or near to Gunbuster, what will the crew rotations be like? Would they not be at almost 100% defence watches – that’s got to be tiring; would they need rotating more often?
Still all the best to the crews, come home safely.
“ The 45s can vector the seaceptor onto a target”
That was the implication of some of the recent testing in the last SINKEX and on ranges.
If you recall a couple of different missiles were vectored in by different platforms to which they were launched from. A system of systems approach.
Defence watches , 1 in 2 50% on watch 50% off watch West Country 1 in 3 third on watch third off watch third working part of ship 1 in 4 normal ship routine
The World’s oceans are the future tension points and the West needs to concentrate on building up its naval strength without delay. The UK’s current build programme is impressive but the numbers being built may fall short?
HMS Richmond has received the PGMU mod enhancing propulsion capability, unfortunately, however, NSM mod is sometime in the future. Mixed picture re capabilities. 🤔
I am surprised that Hms Richmond has received the PGMU? Because she will be the third T23 to be replaced, OSD 2030, by Hms Belfast, now in build in the Govan shed.
Could be an artifact arising from original intent to perform PGMU mod on 11 of 13 T-23s? Reasonably certain there is now a continuous review of all funds planned to be invested in maintaining/upgrading the class, as opposed to expedited acquisition/upgrades of T-26 and, especially, T-31 classes. Certainly an intriguing management model for a naval service that was once first among equals. 🤔😳
Building means nothing if you can’t staff it with sailors. That’s a bigger issue with the UK.
Sounds like Diamond’s replacement, or new partner. Lancaster is based 1500km from the action and I would have thought had a full diary.
Maybe it is joining Lancaster? It’s Arleigh Burke partner USS Stethem has left the region. Can’t see any US ship that has relieved it.
This ship while its down there, seriously needs to Press Gang some Houti Pirates into the Royal Navy
And despite the UK having the 6th largest defence budget, that one frigate is no far off all we can spare, what’s gone wrong??
Waste, mismanagement, incompetence. Cuts, cuts, cuts and more cuts. It’s all coming home to roost.
I have to wonder if the crewing crisis has scuppered the idea of rotating the crews for HMS Lancaster and they are reverting to ship rotation instead ?
Any thoughts anyone ?
A number of scenarios could be happening. It might be to sail with diamond for a bit before she returns home. Diamond could be running low on missiles or has engine troubles and needs a port visit. Could be that Lancaster has had something awful go wrong that is not in fixable in situ.
I would be surprised if it’s to replace Lancaster as she’s not been there long.
Could just be to have another ship on site.
Diamond has been there for less than two months, she won’t be getting replaced.
There’s a reason Lancaster wasn’t used in the role that Diamond is in, and it’s the same reason that means Diamond either won’t be replaced or will be replaced by another T45.
What I expect this is, is Richmond replacing the role Lancaster is in currently, freeing up Lancaster to return to Op Kipion.
I agree, Kipion is becoming more important as their is a good chance Iran may be dragged in when Israel attacks Hezbollah.
There is nothing that cannot be fixed in theatre on any of the vessels.
I have drydocked MCMVs and conducted substantial structural repairs on Patrol craft in dock. Afloat repairs such as engine changes, steel and pipework replacement are all possible on anything from FF/DD up to the biggest 40K tonne supply vessels. As examples I have worked on HMS Ocean,T45, T23, RFAs, USNS Supply Vessels, USN ABs, Ticos, Carriers and all sorts of LHA and LPD Assault ships.
If anyone gets a weapon system snag, they fly a contractor out and I provide logistical assistance.
Lanc RIP’d not long ago and has a new crew on for a few more months.
Crew rotation is more efficient and effective than vessel rotation.
Years ago I was inadvertently involved in the RN change from 6 to 9 month deployments with an FTSP in the middle that then morphed into permanent basing and crew RIPs for the Gulf.
Morning GB. How’s the Middle East “Winter”?
17-19 degrees on the drive into work rising to a balmy mid 20s in the afternoon. Occasional rain shower at night.
Sometimes very thick fog in the morning. Thats fun. The local drivers put their “Hazard flashers of invincibility” on and still tank through at 100km and hour and then wondering why they crash!
Gin n Tonic and Bittburger help me through the cold winter nights!
Hi GB years ago , Lord I feel old when Hunts deployed to the Gulf in the 80ts along with the Dil and a Herald class Survey ship we would do a 9 month there and back deployment with a 21 day home leave where the ship would be locked up alongside either the Dil or Herald .We didn’t rotate crews
Scrapps at Defence questions yesterday; said it was rotating…
You can watch it on BBC Parliament.
The name Grant Shapps just fills me we confidence…. We know we are in safe and knowledgeable hands….
Right !
We need to speed up the testing and deployment of NSM to the T23s
Does anyone out there believe the sudden need for frigates etc in the Med and red sea that it will dawn on Shapps, Hunt, Starmer, Sunak that we actually do need more and that funding for say T32 needs to be provided and going down to 16, even for a short period is not a wise move ?
Seems like going down to 15 is inevitable due to delays in ordering the type 26, and type 31s. If we could order another batch of say 5 type 31s and have them optimised for surface strike and then squeeze 2 more type 26s out of the programme to return to 10 specialised ASW platforms that would suffice. All it takes is political will and funding. Ergo it’s never going to happen and a cut to 15 is inevitable I’m very sad to say. The type 26 programme and type 31 could be accelerated. So squeezing out capacity for more… Read more »
It is AAW and surface strike capability that the RN is more in need of shown up by the recent Gulf Crisis. So the next 3 T26’s could be built as Hunters’s, with hull enlarged with a wider beam and lengthened, to similar to T45. They would not be the substitute for T83.