#RoyalNavieS – The UK’s Royal Navy Faslane-based mine hunter HMS Ramsey has returned Scottish home waters this week, after a successful term of deployment as part of Standing Mine Counter Measures Group 1 (MCM1) NATO flotilla which Afloat adds visited the capital in April.

The Helensburgh Advertiser writes that crew seven from the MCM1, have most recently been operating the ‘Sandown’ Class vessel. The activity came after the visit to Dublin where the crew of HMS Ramsey hosted His Excellency the British Ambassador to Ireland, Dominick Chilcott.

The vessel trained alongside the Irish Navy when the NATO task group (incl. The Netherlands) sailed in the company of OPV90 LÉ James Joyce. She is second ‘Samuel-Beckett’ class off-shore patrol vessel and Afloat adds is a sister of LÉ William Butler Yeats that is to begin builder’s trials in early July. Also reported today is a new ‘fourth’ sister has been ordered by the Irish Government.

A Dutch Navy auxiliary ship, HNLMS Van Kinsbergen is next to call to Dublin Port with an arrival on Saturday. The small stout looking training ship of only 40m has an extra bridge fully equipped to enable trainees to work the 528 gross tonnage vessel.