Royal Navy tracks Russian warship and sanctioned oil tanker via English Channel
Portsmouth-based HMS Tyne and a Wildcat helicopter from 815 Naval Air Squadron were deployed to observe Russian Navy Ropucha-class landing ship Aleksandr Otrakovsky and merchant vessel Sparta IV
A Royal Navy warship and helicopter have completed a focused 48-hour operation monitoring Russian activity in UK waters(Image: MOD / SWNS)
A Royal Navy warship and helicopter have been shadowing a Russian warship and a sanctioned oil tanker in the English Channel for 48 hours. The Portsmouth-based HMS Mersey and a Wildcat helicopter were dispatched to monitor the Russian Steregushchiy-class frigate RFN Soobrazitelny and tanker MV Anatoly Kolodkin.
A spokesperson for the Royal Navy explained that the operation was co-ordinated with Nato, stating: “Patrol ship Mersey and the Yeovilton-based Wildcat kept close watch, utilising powerful radars and sensors to gather valuable intelligence, as the two Russian vessels sailed westward through the English Channel.
“The two Russian ships separated at the western end of the Channel, with the Royal Navy tracking Soobrazitelny back eastwards through the Channel as the Anatoly Kolodkin continued to sail into the Atlantic.”
Lieutenant Commander Dan Wardle, commanding officer of HMS Mersey, commented: “This operation provides a clear example of Mersey’s readiness and operational capability in monitoring Russian vessel movements through our waters.
“Our co-ordination with allied forces further amplifies our situational awareness and response capacity, ensuring we are able to safeguard the integrity of our maritime environment.”
Fleet commander Vice-Admiral Steve Moorhouse added: “In an increasingly contested and uncertain world, the work of HMS Mersey and 815 Naval Air Squadron is another example of the Royal Navy’s enduring commitment to protecting UK home waters.”
The surveillance mission follows two weeks after the Royal Navy tracked two sanctioned Russian cargo vessels and their accompanying warships in UK waters from the Mediterranean to the North Sea.
Portsmouth-based HMS Tyne and a Wildcat helicopter from 815 Naval Air Squadron were deployed to observe Russian Navy Ropucha-class landing ship Aleksandr Otrakovsky and merchant vessel Sparta IV.
The vessels were initially observed by HMS Cutlass of the Royal Navy’s Gibraltar Squadron as they navigated through the Strait of Gibraltar’s Traffic Separation Scheme, before an allied warship followed the journey northward, before HMS Tyne assumed the surveillance duties.
And 48 hours later, Tyne and a Wildcat were deployed once more to monitor another Russian Ropucha-class warship, Aleksandr Shabalin, and cargo vessel MV Sabetta as they travelled westward through the English Channel.
