HMS ''Pursuer'' is an P2000
patrol and training vessel of the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
.
History
''Pursuer'' was built at Vosper Thorneycroft and commissioned in 1988. The famous greyhound
Ballyregan Bob
Ballyregan Bob (12 May 1983 to 3 April 1994) was a racing greyhound who, along with Mick the Miller and Scurlogue Champ, is one of the most revered racing hounds in British greyhound racing.
Ballyregan Bob was a brindle dog and was whelped i ...
was guest of honour at her launch, a unique recognition of the greyhound on her badge. Prior to 2003 ''Pursuer'' was the training vessel of
Sussex University Royal Naval Unit (SUSURNU).
''Pursuer'' and were sent to Cyprus ahead of
Operation Telic, the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, transported on board the CEC Mayflower. The
Royal Navy Cyprus Squadron
The Royal Navy Cyprus Squadron (RNCS) was a Royal Naval Squadron based on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus from February 2003 until April 2010.
History
It was formed in February 2003 in support of Operation Telic, the British invasion of Ira ...
was created in February 2003 to protect ships around the
Sovereign Base Areas
Akrotiri and Dhekelia, officially the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia (SBA),, ''Periochés Kyríarchon Váseon Akrotiríou ke Dekélias''; tr, Ağrotur ve Dikelya İngiliz Egemen Üs Bölgeleri is a British Overseas Territory ...
in Cyprus, a vital staging post in the British logistic chain to Iraq. Both were fitted with
Kevlar
Kevlar (para-aramid) is a strong, heat-resistant synthetic fiber, related to other aramids such as Nomex and Technora. Developed by Stephanie Kwolek at DuPont in 1965, the high-strength material was first used commercially in the early 1970s a ...
armour and three
FN MAG general purpose machine guns, with an extra crew member (compared to the P2000s assigned to URNU duties) employed as a Gunners Yeoman.
In 2007 she helped rescue the fishing vessel ''Seafighter3'' which had run aground on
Cape Zevgari.
The Cyprus Squadron was disbanded in 2010 and ''Pursuer'' was assigned to the Faslane Patrol Boat Squadron, protecting the ballistic missile submarines at
HMNB Clyde
His Majesty's Naval Base, Clyde (HMNB Clyde; also HMS ''Neptune''), primarily sited at Faslane on the Gare Loch, is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Devonport and HMNB Portsmouth). It ...
. In September 2012 her force protection duties were taken over by the more modern and she was reassigned to Glasgow URNU.
From 2020 to 2022 she was posted to
Gibraltar Squadron
The Gibraltar Squadron is a unit of the British Royal Navy. It is the only seagoing Royal Naval unit based in Gibraltar, attached to British Forces Gibraltar. It currently includes two ''Cutlass''-class fast patrol boats with a maximum speed of ...
. In July 2020, ''Pursuer'' escorted the Spanish patrol boat ''
Serviola'' out of Gibraltar's territorial waters. The Spanish vessel had remained in British waters for roughly 45 minutes, and the intrusion drew criticism from British maritime officials following the incident.
Notes
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pursuer
Archer-class patrol vessels