Hunter-killer submarine HMS Ambush returned home to Faslane from a six-month operational deployment this week.
The Astute-class submarine left the Clyde in May to spend the summer conducting UK operations as well as NATO activities and exercises.
Her deployment saw Ambush take part in NATO’s largest and most demanding Anti-Submarine Warfare exercise, Dynamic Manta 15, where Ambush repeatedly tested her fighting capabilities against five surface ships and seven maritime patrol aircraft and helicopters.
“HMS Ambush has proven her capabilities as one of the most advanced submarines in the world and this successful deployment is proof that the Astute-class can operate anywhere in the world,” said her captain, Commander Alan Daveney.
She was one of a flotilla of seven submarines from the US, Spanish, Turkish, Greek, French and Italian navies, which pitted their wits against the surface ships of NATO’s Standing Maritime Group 2, led by the German frigate FGS Hamburg, in the Ionian Sea in September.
Ambush also provided operational experience for 25 trainee submariners who had joined the boat as part of the process of earning their dolphins, the final step in being awarded the unique badge which signifies their hard-won status as fully qualified submariners.
Ambush also made port visits to Gibraltar and Soudha Bay in Crete, and became the first UK nuclear submarine to visit Limassol, where she hosted visitors including the Cypriot Defence Minister.
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