UK Ministry of Defence, After one of the longest patrols in submarine history, the nuclear powered HMS Sceptre has returned home to HM Naval Base Clyde today, Wednesday 24 October 2007.
Although most of the crew have served six month duties, some have been on board throughout the entire nine month patrol.
Around 200 family and friends cheered Sceptre's return as she passed by the village of Rhu on Scotland's west coast. They then boarded a fleet of buses to get to the Naval Base in time for her arrival, where emotional scenes followed as the 130 officers and crew were reunited with their loved ones.
Sceptre's voyage took her to the Gulf, South Africa and Australia. Her work involved close cooperation with the South African, Australian and US Navies.
Before her arrival home Captain Richard Baum, Captain of Submarines at HM Naval Base Clyde, said :
“When HMS Sceptre arrives back at the Base, submariners everywhere will touch their caps as a mark of respect for what can only be described as a magnificent example of the professionalism of those in the Trade.
“The living conditions on these boats are tight, to say the least, tolerable but not comfortable. A nine month deployment is something that probably only another submariner could appreciate.
“That is why submariners around the world share a unique bond of friendship and take a special pride in wearing the Dolphin badge of the Submarine Service.
“Praise too must go to Sceptre herself – a remarkable piece of engineering that has responded to every demand asked of her. Believe me, to keep a submarine at sea for nine months is no mean feat.
“She might look a bit tired and weary when she comes in but then she has travelled the equivalent distance of circumnavigating the globe during her deployment.”
HMS Sceptre is nuclear powered but conventionally armed and is one of the last in the line of Swiftsure Class submarines. Her nuclear powered propulsion means she has great endurance without having to re-fuel. She is 82.9 metres long and has a beam of 9.8m. She weighs 4,900 tonnes.
Like all the fleet's submarines Sceptre contributes to peace and security by providing a conventional deterrence. She can travel anywhere in the world undetected and her firepower, which includes Spearfish torpedoes and Tomahawk cruise missiles, means that she is a very formidable asset. Submarines also have the ability to provide situational awareness to maritime commanders through surveillance at sea as well as of coastlines.
That she was launched 31 years ago is testimony to the skills of her designers, engineers, crew and the maintenance staff at HM Naval Base Clyde, which is her home port. She will be replaced by the Astute Class of submarines in the near future.
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