It has been revealed that a quarter of the Royal Navy’s frigates did not spend any days at sea in 2022.
The information was made public after Veterans and Armed Forces Minister James Heappey responded to a written question from shadow Defense Secretary John Healey. It has been revealed that a quarter of the Royal Navy’s frigates did not spend any days at sea in 2022.
The information was made public after Veterans and Armed Forces Minister James Heappey responded to a written question from shadow Defense Secretary John Healey.
Heappey also revealed that a third of the Royal Navy’s 18 frigates and destroyers spent less than a month at sea last year. Three of the Royal Navy’s 12 Type 23 frigates – HMS Iron Duke, HMS St Albans and HMS Sutherland – were not at sea last year.
All three vessels have undergone refits, with HMS Iron Duke returning to sea for the first time last month. Heappey’s reply also showed that one of the six Type 45 destroyers, HMS Daring, did not spend a day at sea. The ship has undergone reform.
“The normal operating cycle of each ship means that they enter different readiness levels based on their schedules, refit periods, and Department planning requirements,” Heappey said in the written response.
He added: “Furthermore, these figures represent days at sea, and it must be borne in mind that while deployed outside the UK, the vessels will spend both days at sea and alongside in ports around the world.”
HMS Diamond was the Type 45 destroyer that spent the most days at sea in 2022 (114 days), while HMS Defender was not far behind (106 days),
HMS Defender has also had a packed schedule this year, having carried out weapons tests in the Outer Hebrides, escorted several Russian units near British waters, as well as sailing to Norway on two occasions.
The Type 23 frigate that spent the longest time at sea in 2022 was HMS Montrose, with a total of 212 days. After nearly 30 years of service, HMS Montrose was decommissioned in April.
Xenia Zubova
