Royal Navy patrol boats visit Wick on summer deployment
FOUR Royal Navy patrol boats have left Wick after spending time in Caithness and Orkney waters as part of their summer deployment.
The ships – HMS Trumpeter, HMS Archer, HMS Explorer and HMS Example – have been spending a fortnight training on the east coast and in the north of Scotland.
The P2000 Archer-class vessels were in Wick from July 8-10 before continuing to Kirkwall and Stromness. They returned to Wick on Friday and headed off again this morning.
Normally on such a deployment, visits would be arranged for community groups to find out more about the patrol boats and the work of the Royal Navy, but this was not possible due to the present restrictions.
Nevertheless the boats attracted much interest. Explorer was berthed in Wick Bay for a spell on Friday, just off the Proudfoot area.
At just over 20 metres long, the P2000s are some of the smallest ships in the fleet and are regarded as ideal for navigation and seamanship training.
Speaking ahead of the visit, Captain Chris Smith, naval regional commander for Scotland and Northern Ireland, said: “It is great to be able to bring the Royal Navy near to some of our smaller communities which, because of harbour size, don’t usually get a visit from our ships.
“The P2000s may be small but they pack a punch, and regularly exercise around the UK and Europe as well as supporting the fleet.
“Usually we would be hosting visits from local groups and organisations while alongside, but with the current situation this is unfortunately not possible. We hope to engage with local organisations across social media and using technology.”
Each of the vessels is affiliated to universities around the country and has a core crew of full-time Royal Navy sailors which in normal times would be augmented by members of University Royal Naval Units.
