4 NAVY NEWS, AUGUST 2007
Lancaster’s
silent knights
Irish ayes are smiling...
Admiral takes on
‘task of national
importance’
TWAS the night before
Midsummer, and all through the
FORMER First Sea Lord
ship, not a creature was stirring,
Admiral Sir Alan West is heading
not even the chefs in the galley
the nation’s war on extremists
with their ghettoblaster…
after being named Britain’s
With apologies to Clement
security and counter-terrorism
Clarke Moore, but the quietest
‘tsar’.
people in the RN this past month
The admiral, who retired
have been the men and women of
as Britain’s first sailor at the
the good ship Lancaster.
beginning of last year, has
Why? Because they’ve been on
warned that the nation faces a
a four-day hunt for a submarine
ten to 15-year struggle against
in the waters around Faslane.
fundamentalists – a struggle
Exercise Cable Car (which
which may demand some
has nothing to do with aerial
‘un-British’ methods, such as
railways, rather it’s a codename
‘snitching’ on neighbours for the
picked at random) challenges an
public good.
anti-submarine frigate – which is
“I was honoured and not a
exactly what the Red Rose ship is
little surprised when the Prime
– to hunt down a boat without it
Minister asked me to become the
fi nding the warship.
Parliamentary Under Secretary
And that means silence
of State for Security and Counter
throughout the ship. Not
Terrorism,” the admiral told
merely turning off the chefs’,
Navy News.
sorry logisticians(catering FRESH from her exertions invading Baltic it was perhaps fitting that Albion should above); all four vessels attended the two-
“It was a refl ection of the
services(preparation)), stereo but islands on exercises with NATO, the pace perform that duty; her predecessor HMS day maritime celebration alongside sailing
esteem in which the Navy is held
preventing any noise escaping of life slackened for amphibious assault Fearless was built at the Harland and Wolff ships, lifeboats, and the SS Nomadic, the
that one of its number should
Lancaster’s hull and travelling ship HMS Albion as she entered Belfast yard whose cranes dominate the Belfast transfer vessel which took passengers
be selected for what the Prime
through the waves, so only Lough for the city’s maritime festival. skyline. from Cherbourg to join the Titanic on her
Minister considers a task of
essential kit was left running This was the first visit to Northern Albion shepherded the tall ships Kaskelot, fateful maiden voyage 90 years ago.
national importance.
while the ops room team searched Ireland by a capital ship in 35 years and Zebu and Ruth up the lough (pictured Picture: LA(Phot) Dan Hooper, HMS Albion
“I have also been touched by
for that underwater prey.
the fl ood of letters from my old
“Instead of our normal
colleagues in the Royal Navy both
‘steaming bats’, slippers are worn
serving and retired.”
– leading to an impressive array of
The admiral has taken the new
footwear being displayed by the
title Admiral the Lord West of
ship’s company,” said offi cer of
Spithead... and will continue to
the watch Lt Laura Peacock.
Stealth fi ghters in
read Navy News each month.
“The silence does have its plus-
side. If you’re not on watch you
must go to bed so as not to make
Cattistock
any unnecessary noise.”
The silence paid off as
Lancaster found and tracked her
parties on
prey – which we can’t name for
the war on drugs
operational reasons.
A QUARTER century of fi ne
And operational reasons are
service under the White Ensign
why the Red Rose warship is
holder of the TACDEV trophy,
BRITAIN’S biggest
revealed its presence.
has been celebrated by the good
awarded by the Maritime Wartime warship HMS Ocean
That prompted the suspected
folk of HMS Cattistock.
Centre in HMS Collingwood to
bagged her second multi-
traffi ckers to hurriedly ditch their
The minehunter marked the
the ship or unit which suggests
cargo back into the Caribbean.
milestone with a visit to the
the best ideas for improving the
million-pound haul of The Merlin released sonobuoys
village for which she is named.
front-line punch of the RN.
drugs on her Caribbean
– normally used in the helicopters
Of course, the ship cannot
Lancaster’s work with her deployment after a tense
anti-submarine warfare role
herself sail to deepest Dorset, so
Merlin helicopter during a
night-time operation
– to mark the drop site, then
the Hunt-class warship tied up in
drug-busting deployment in the
scoured the sea in the dark for the
Poole and invited Cattistock (near
Caribbean provided many useful
involving her helicopters abandoned drugs.
Dorchester) to come to her for a
ideas for the MWC team and
and Royal Marines.
The helicopter lifted six bales
weekend of celebrations.
earned the ship the 2006 trophy.
Sea Kings of 854 Naval Air
from the water then headed back
Upon arriving in Poole
The Portsmouth-based frigate
Squadron tracked a light aircraft
to Ocean, while local coastguards
Harbour, the ship found herself
arrived in Faslane fresh from a
over the Caribbean as it headed
plucked a further four bales out of
the centre of attention as she was
visit to Lancashire’s county town
for a mid-ocean rendezvous with
the sea.
invited to start a race between
where her sailors paraded through
a boat intended to ferry the bales
After safely depositing the haul
local fi shing vessels…
the streets and were treated to a
of cocaine and heroin – with an
of drugs in one of the helicopter
… which seemed more
reception with traditional hot pot.
estimated street value of £25m
assault ship’s armouries, the
interested in a water fi ght than
– ashore.
Merlin returned to the drop zone
a race, as the various trawlers
As the ‘bagger’ Sea Kings with
and continued to search the waters
decided to spray anyone who
their hi-tech Airborne Surveillance
for more bales, this time aided by
came close, including Cattistock.
and Control kit monitored the
the Royal Marines whose landing
The RN sailors put an end to
aircraft’s progress as night began
craft had arrived at the site.
such shenanigans by turning
to fall over the Caribbean, Ocean
The subsequent search, which
the fi re hoses on the madcap
scrambled a Merlin of 700M NAS
continued as dawn shed light on
fi shermen.
to fl y to the suspected drop-off
the Caribbean, brought fi ve more
The race proved to be no less
point.
bales of drugs.
chaotic; timekeepers and judges
The Devonport-based warship
By the end of the operation,
lost track of the racers resulting in
also sent two landing craft, packed
Ocean was safeguarding a
no clear winners or losers.
with commandos of 9 Assault
suspected narcotics haul of 331kg
One race was decisive, however.
Squadron Royal Marines and
(730lbs) of cocaine and 18kg
While the fi shing folk raced
offi cers from the US Coast Guard
(39lbs) of heroin – an extremely
around the harbour, AB(MW)
Law Enforcement Detachment
rare product to fi nd being
‘Pinkie’ Perkins challenged
Gannet handle
attached to Ocean for counter-
smuggled from South America.
allcomers to beat him over 500
drugs work, crashing through the
The cocaine has a street value
metres on the indoor racing row
sea bound for the drop zone.
of $44m and the smaller, but more
(all failed; his closest rival was ten
The Merlin quickly picked up
valuable, heroin would have been
seconds behind him).
a load of bull
a small vessel sending a beam of
sold for over $7m – roughly £25m
Indoor rowing over, outdoor
light into the night sky and waited
in total.
rowing took its place as Pinkie
while the light aircraft dropped its
It was the second bust of
climbed into a boat with three
DID you hear the one about the
cargo into the water.
Ocean’s four-month deploy-
shipmates for a race in the
randy bull and the helicopter
The aircrew waited as three men
ment to the region; in May an
harbour; the Cattistockers lost out
crew?
in the craft hauled the bundles
almost identical operation snared
in the end to a technically inferior
No, we’re not about to launch
of drugs in – unaware they were
cocained valued at £28m.
but physically larger team.
into a blue joke but one of the
being spied on.
Suitably dried off, the sailors
marina Ocean beat, pages 24-27
more unusual (and amusing)
With the bales aboard, the drug
prepared for the big birthday
rescues by the fl iers of HMS
runners made for a Caribbean
event, a cocktail party for
● (Right) The haul of heroin and
Gannet.
island – until they were caught cocaine is carried to Ocean’s
affi liates and friends, including 30
The overly-amorous bull
in the full glare of the Merlin’s armoury by regulators
Cattistock villagers (getting on for
(pictured above) was chasing his
searchlights as the helicopter Picture: LA(Phot) Ray Jones, HMS Ocean
one tenth of its residents).
intended conquest around the The following day, Sea Scouts
fi elds of Tom-na-Dhubh farm in and Sea Cadets from Lilliput
Argyll and Bute when he slipped, SCC were guests of honour,
fell into a ditch and injured his leg treated to a comprehensive tour
(Typical male – Ed).
‘Above and beyond the call of duty’
of the ship courtesy of navigator
Unable to shift the wounded Lt Hugh Harris.
Casanova, the farmer called upon FELLOW aircrew have praised the bravery of when Ms Potgieter and RNLI lifeguard Shane Showers, gusts and rocks all conspired It was a tour 2,000 members of
the services of Gannet’s SAR Search and Rescue diver/winchman who risked Davis went exploring the coastline and became against the rescue attempt. the public duly enjoyed too when
team for what proved to be a less his life to save a woman trapped in a Cornish stuck in the cave when Ms Potgieter got into The Sea King had to hover 200ft above the they wandered aboard for ‘ship
than orthodox rescue. cave. difficulties in the water. cave entrance, very close to the overhanging open to visitors’.
First the creature had to be dug PO Julian ‘Bungy’ Williams released himself Around 100 people, three lifeboats, plus cliff face. And then with the weekend
out of the mud – not easy as he from the cable attaching him to the Sea King the helicopter from Culdrose, scoured the “The rescue tested the whole team,” said Lt over it was back to business. Fleet
weighed about a tonne – before a of 771 NAS so he could search the cave coastline for the missing couple but it was only Barker. “We had to get as near to the cave as navigators clambered aboard for
net could be secured around him. near Mawgan Porth, where swimmer Renee when Mr Davis managed to swim out of the possible, but turbulent wind and an overhang the return trip to Portsmouth to
With the net in place, Potgieter was stuck – and suffering from cave and reach a rescue boat that the location made the mouth of the cave itself impossible. assess the bridge team’s adeptness
the animal was rather hypothermia. of his stranded fellow swimmer was revealed. “This meant we had to swing Julian into at using the WECDIS electronic
unceremoniously hauled through He scoured the cave and found the 22-year- The 771 team – aircraft commander Lt Cdr the rock. He was very much on his own in the charting system.
the air slung 100ft below a Sea old despite the midnight gloom, picked her up, Matt Shrimpton, pilot Capt Damian May RM, darkness and in choosing to detach, he acted That the bridge team used
King Mk5 until he was gently set carried her to the cave entrance. observer Lt Tim Barker, PO Williams and RAF above and beyond the call of duty.” very well, for after two days of
down at the farm about a mile There the senior rating could only signal to medic Sgt Mark White – realised that a boat Once aboard the Sea King, Ms Potgieter manoeuvres and exercises, the
away, where a vet was waiting to the Sea King with his torch – the sea water had rescue was impossible given the fierce seas. was treated initially by Sgt White before she Fleet navigators were happy for
treat him. ruined his radio. The solution was to winch the aircrewman was flown to the Royal Cornwall Hospital for Cattistock to banish paper charts
■ Letters, page 28 The drama began some 12 hours earlier into the cave to save the stranded swimmer. urgent medical attention. to the history books.
NNEW 004_NN_Aug.indd 1EW 004_NN_Aug.indd 1 226/7/07 10:11:306/7/07 10:11:30
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