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Operation Highbrow
Operation Highbrow was a British Ministry of Defence (MoD) operation to evacuate civilians from Beirut as a result of the escalating 2006 Lebanon War. Initially, helicopters started ferrying the most vulnerable to Cyprus with several Royal Navy ships later transporting evacuees across the Mediterranean Sea to Cyprus. The operation involved Royal Navy surface ships and helicopters, with Royal Air Force helicopters also providing support and transit. The operation was described as being the largest evacuation that Britain was involved in since Dunkirk. Background On 12 July 2006, in an effort to kill Mohammed Deif, leader of Hamas' Military Wing, Israeli jets bombed a house in Gaza. In retaliation, Hezbollah entered into Israel from Lebanon and killed three Israeli soldiers, taking two hostage. Later that same day, Israeli aircraft struck several targets inside Lebanon including many main roads in the north of the country, and the main runway at Beirut Airport. The UK Government s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMS Bulwark
Seven ships of the Royal Navy have borne the name HMS ''Bulwark'', after the reference to the Navy as the 'bulwark' (defence) of the country: * HMS ''Bulwark'' was to have been a 74-gun third rate. She was ordered in 1778 but was cancelled in 1783. * was a 74-gun third rate launched in 1807. She had previously planned to be called HMS ''Scipio'', but was renamed in 1806 before being launched. She took part in the blockade of Rochefort in 1813 and fought in the War of 1812. She was broken up in 1826. * HMS ''Bulwark'' was to have been an 81-gun screw propelled second rate. She was laid down in 1859, but work was suspended in 1861, and she was eventually cancelled and broken up in 1873. * HMS ''Bulwark'' was previously the planned 110-gun first rate . She was kept in reserve and was renamed ''Bulwark'' in 1885 when she became a training ship. She was renamed HMS ''Impregnable'' in 1886, and then HMS ''Bulwark'' again in 1919. She was sold for breaking up in 1921. * was a launch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beirut Airport
Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coast. Beirut has been inhabited for more than 5,000 years, and was one of Phoenicia's most prominent city states, making it one of the oldest cities in the world (see Berytus). The first historical mention of Beirut is found in the Amarna letters from the New Kingdom of Egypt, which date to the 14th century BC. Beirut is Lebanon's seat of government and plays a central role in the Lebanese economy, with many banks and corporations based in the city. Beirut is an important seaport for the country and region, and rated a Beta + World City by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. Beirut was severely damaged by the Lebanese Civil War, the 2006 Lebanon War, and the 2020 massive explosion in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RNAS Yeovilton
Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton, or RNAS Yeovilton, (HMS ''Heron'') is an airfield of the Royal Navy and British Army, sited a few miles north of Yeovil, Somerset. It is one of two active Fleet Air Arm bases (the other being RNAS Culdrose) and is currently home to the Royal Navy Wildcat HMA2 and Army Air Corps Wildcat AH1 helicopters as well as the Royal Navy's Commando Helicopter Force Merlin HCi3/4/4A and Wildcat AH1 helicopters. The site consists of of airfield sites plus ranges and minor estates. Royal Naval Air Station (RNAS) Yeovilton is a large multi-role air station with an annual budget of some £61 million. The airfield is also home to the Fleet Air Arm Museum and the station hosts an annual Air Day in July. History In 1938, the potential of the land at Yeovilton for use as an airfield was spotted by Westland Aircraft's chief test pilot Harald Penrose and an offer was made to buy the land. The owners, howeverthe Ecclesiastical Commissioners of the Church o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sea King (helicopter)
The Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King (company designation S-61) is an American twin-engined anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopter designed and built by Sikorsky Aircraft. A landmark design, it was one of the first ASW rotorcraft to use turboshaft engines. The Sea King has its origins in efforts by the United States Navy to counter the growing threat of Soviet Union, Soviet submarines during the 1950s. Accordingly, the helicopter was specifically developed to deliver a capable ASW platform; in particular, it combined the roles of ''hunter'' and ''killer'', which had previously been carried out by two separate helicopters. The Sea King was initially designated ''HSS-2'', which was intended to imply a level of commonality to the earlier Sikorsky H-34, ''HSS-1''; it was subsequently redesignated as the ''SH-3A'' during the early 1960s. Introduced to service in 1961, it was operated by the United States Navy as a key ASW and utility asset for several decades prior to being replaced by the n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinook Helicopter
The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is a tandem rotor helicopter developed by American rotorcraft company Vertol and manufactured by Boeing Vertol. The Chinook is a heavy-lift helicopter that is among the heaviest lifting Western helicopters. Its name, Chinook, is from the Native American Chinook people of Oregon and Washington state. The Chinook was originally designed by Vertol, which had begun work in 1957 on a new tandem-rotor helicopter, designated as the Vertol Model 107 or V-107. Around the same time, the United States Department of the Army announced its intention to replace the piston engine–powered Sikorsky CH-37 Mojave with a new, gas turbine–powered helicopter. During June 1958, the U.S. Army ordered a small number of V-107s from Vertol under the ''YHC-1A'' designation; following testing, it came to be considered by some Army officials to be too heavy for the assault missions and too light for transport purposes. While the YHC-1A would be improved and adopted by the U.S. M ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RFA Fort Victoria
RFA ''Fort Victoria'' is a Fort-class combined fleet stores ship and tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary of the United Kingdom tasked with providing ammunition, fuel, food and other supplies to Royal Navy vessels around the world. She is now the only member of her class. Construction ''Fort Victoria'' was ordered from Harland and Wolff in 1986, and was launched in 1990. She is named after Fort Victoria on the Isle of Wight. On 6 September 1990, while ''Fort Victoria'' was at dock and less than three months after being christened, a Provisional IRA (IRA) unit planted two explosive devices on board. After a telephone warning from the IRA, one of the bombs exploded, causing extensive damage inside the engine room, which was holed and subsequently flooded. The ship listed 45 degrees, and the chances of sinking were high. The ship was saved after hours of work by emergency teams, who pumped the water out of the engine room. Sir John Parker, chairman and CEO of Harland & Wolff, prai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMS Bulwark (L15)
HMS ''Bulwark'' is the second ship of the Royal Navy's assault ships. She is one of the United Kingdom's two amphibious transport docks designed to put Royal Marines ashore by air and by sea. Although launched in 2001, delays caused the delivery date to be put back, and the ship entered service In 28 April 2005. Together with , and other amphibious ships, she has provided a larger and more effective amphibious capability than the previous vessels. Between October 2011 and June 2015 she was the fleet flagship of the Royal Navy. She has been in extended upkeep since 2020. The ship is designed to send large numbers of troops and vehicles to shore as quickly as possible. ''Bulwark'' has supported a permanently embarked Royal Marines landing craft unit, 4 Assault Squadron Royal Marines. The rear of ''Bulwark'' opens and floods a compartment, allowing the boats inside to be launched. The flight deck is able to take two Sea King HC4 or Merlin medium-lift helicopters and stow ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMS St Albans (F83)
HMS ''St Albans'' is a Type 23 frigate of the Royal Navy. She is the sixth ship to bear the name and is the sixteenth and final ship in the 'Duke' class of frigates. She is based in Devonport, Plymouth. Operational history 2000–2010 The ship was launched on the River Clyde on Saturday 6 May 2000. She was built at BAE Systems' Yarrows Yard in Scotstoun, Glasgow. On 27 October 2002, before entering operational service, ''St Albans'' was struck by the P&O ferry when gale-force winds pushed the ferry into the ship whilst secure on her berth in Portsmouth. ''St Albans'' suffered damage to the gun deck, the sea boat supports (davits) and the bridge wing. However, no members of the crew were injured. In 2004, Commander Steve Dainton RN took command and the ship was deployed on Operation Oracle duties in the Arabian Sea. In July that year the crew were granted the Freedom of the City by the Mayor of St Albans. On 13 February 2006, ''St Albans'' departed on a six-mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMS York (D98)
HMS ''York'' was a Batch III Type 42 destroyer of the Royal Navy. Launched on 20 June 1982 at Wallsend, Tyne and Wear and sponsored by Lady Gosling, ''York'' was the last Type 42 ordered. The ship's crest was the White Rose of York, and the "red cross with lions passant" funnel badge was derived from the coat of arms of the City of York. With a maximum speed of , she was the Royal Navy's fastest destroyer. Operational history 1985-1990 In the summer of 1990, HMS ''York'' was serving on a routine patrol in the Persian Gulf as part of The Armilla Patrol which had been undertaken by a series of Royal Navy warships over many years. On 2 August that year, Saddam Hussein's forces invaded Kuwait. Instead of heading off to the Far East and Australia for series of "waving the flag" port visits, she remained on patrol in the Persian Gulf for an extra three months. This period was conducted when at sea mostly on a war-ready footing, involving virtually everyone onboard working Defence ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMS Gloucester (D96)
HMS ''Gloucester'' was a Batch 3 Type 42 destroyer of the Royal Navy, built by Vosper Thorneycroft at Woolston, Southampton and launched on 2 November 1982 by The Duchess of Gloucester. ''Gloucester'' was one of the modified last four of the class to be built, having a lengthened hull design giving better seakeeping qualities, greater endurance and an external 'strake' to counter longitudinal cracking, seen on earlier ships of the type. The flight deck recognition letters worn by ''Gloucester'' were GC, and her international callsign was GBBF. History In January 1987 ''Gloucester'' sailed for her first deployment; Armilla patrol, protecting civilian ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Port visits included Djibouti City; Sharjah; Manama; Karachi; Mombasa and Naples, returning to her homeport in June 1987. In January 1988 the ship again deployed to the Gulf for an Armilla patrol. Port visits this time included Bahrain; Dubai; Mombasa and Rhodes. Further visits were planned ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
HMS Illustrious (R06)
HMS ''Illustrious'' was a light aircraft carrier of the Royal Navy and the second of three ships constructed in the late 1970s and early 1980s. She was the fifth warship and second aircraft carrier to bear the name ''Illustrious'', and was affectionately known to her crew as ''"Lusty"''. In 1982, the conflict in the Falklands necessitated that ''Illustrious'' be completed and rushed south to join her sister ship and the veteran carrier . To this end, she was brought forward by three months for completion at Swan Hunter Shipyard, then commissioned on 20 June 1982 at sea en route to Portsmouth Dockyard to take on board extra stores and crew. She arrived in the Falklands to relieve ''Invincible'' on 28 August 1982 in a steam past. Returning to the United Kingdom, she was not formally commissioned into the fleet until 20 March 1983. After her South Atlantic deployment, she was deployed on Operation Southern Watch in Iraq, then Operation Deny Flight in Bosnia during the 1990s and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
