Photo: MoD
The crew of a Royal Navy ship has celebrated Christmas on the ice caps of Antarctica, Vigilance can report.
According to a source at the MoD HMS Protector is currently deployed to the Antarctic to carry out survey and patrol operations. As the ship will be at sea on Christmas Day, the crew decided to hold their festive celebrations early.
Vigilance learnt the Ship’s Company enjoyed a game of football before settling down to a roast turkey dinner in a real life winter wonderland.
Commanding Officer, Captain Rhett Hatcher, said: “Spending Christmas in the coldest, windiest and driest place on earth comes with a number of challenges but it is a truly unique privilege.With 21 hours of daylight we need to remind ourselves to take a break from operations, but when we do so we know that despite being a very long way from our families and friends at home, we are proud to be on patrol for the Royal Navy and in the best possible Company over the Christmas.”
HMS Protector sailed from Portsmouth in October, travelling to the Antarctic Peninsula via Cape Verde, Rio de Janeiro and South Georgia.
The British Antarctic Territory is the UK’s largest Overseas Territory and HMS Protector’s role is to provide a sovereign presence in the region. The 5,000 tonne ice patrol ship is also conducting research on behalf of the UK Hydrographic Office and providing logistical support to the British Antarctic Survey organisation.
RAF VOYAGER SPREADS ITS WINGS ON FIRST FLIGHT TO AFGHANISTAN
Also, Vigilance learnt Service personnel returning home from Afghanistan this Christmas are the first to fly all the way from Camp Bastion to Brize Norton on board the RAF’s new Voyager aircraft.
Service personnel returning home from Afghanistan this Christmas are the first to fly all the way from Camp Bastion to Brize Norton on board the RAF’s new Voyager aircraft.
A source at the MoD said Two Voyagers had begun flying to and from Helmand to support the operational airbridge that transports all personnel to and from theatre, adding the first flights have taken place months ahead of schedule.
The source revealed a converted A330 aircraft, that has been specially adapted for a military role, Voyager gives passengers heading home for R&R or at the end of their tour more space and greater comfort for the long journey between Afghanistan and the UK.
The multi role aircraft is more efficient and more capable than the Tristar fleet it will eventually replace. Voyager is capable of carrying:
- 300 passengers over a 6,000 mile (9,700km) range;
- 111 tonnes of fuel , some of which is used for the air-to-air refuelling of RAF Tornados and Typhoons;
- Up to 40 stretchers and critical care facilities for medical evacuations; and
- 43 tonnes of cargo.
Major Peter Jennings, who is currently on operations in Afghanistan, said: “I’ve missed my family whilst away, it’s fantastic to be going home to spend Christmas with them. Being away puts life in perspective and as the saying goes, ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder’. I am now looking forward to spending quality time with my family. Having previously flown on different RAF aircraft, they do not compare to Voyager – it’s streets ahead!”
Minister for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology, Philip Dunne said: “Voyager is testament to our commitment to provide world-leading equipment for our Armed Forces. Voyager’s greatest strength is its versatility. Not only can troops now have a more comfortable and reliable journey to and from operations, the aircraft can also refuel our fighter jets and in future will support humanitarian aid efforts.”
Whilst Wing Commander Ronnie Trasler, Commanding Officer, No 101 Squadron, said: “Voyager performs its air transport role with great reliability. 101 Squadron’s new role in support of the forthcoming drawdown and bringing troops to and from Afghanistan is a further development of the aircraft’s operational capability.”
Six aircraft are already in service with the RAF and the core fleet of nine aircraft are on track to be in service by May 2014.
In another development the MOD has, for the first time, opened the doors to its Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) control centre, based in the UK., Vigilance can confirm.
DEFENCE SECRETARY MEETS THE MILITARY’S REMOTE-CONTROL PILOTS
The MOD has, for the first time, opened the doors to its Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) control centre, based in the UK., Vigilance can confirm.
Pictures and footage released today (Wednesday 18 December) show the hi-tech operations room at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshirewhere members of XIII Squadron remotely operate the RAF’s Reaper aircraft in Afghanistan.
Reaper is just one of a range of UAS, including remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS), operated by all three Services providing vital, life saving intelligence, reconnaissance and surveillance on operations.
Showing this work is a key way to dispel some common myths about the role of the equipment, which UK forces use predominantly inAfghanistan.
During a visit to RAF Waddington Defence Secretary Philip Hammond viewed the full range of current and future equipment including:
- Hermes 450 (Army)
- Black Hornet Nano (Army)
- Tarantula Hawk (Army)
- Watchkeeper (Army)
- Scan Eagle (Royal Navy)
Mr Hammond also spoke to infantry soldiers recently returned from Afghanistan who spoke of the benefits the ‘eyes in the sky’ can provide troops on the ground.
Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said: “Vital to our efforts to protect our forces and the people of Afghanistan, this battle-winning technology allows us to: understand the situation on the ground more clearly; develop better intelligence; and precisely strike, within our rules of engagement, those who threaten or hurt the people we are protecting. Much of the criticism of Unmanned Aerial Systems is based on misunderstanding. This event provides a great opportunity to better inform people about these life-saving assets and their variety of purpose.”
Air Vice-Marshal Philip Osborn, Joint Force Command Capability Director, said: “The UK’s unmanned aircraft systems – or as they are increasingly called ‘remotely piloted air systems’ – provide UK and Coalition Forces with vital intelligence derived from the aircraft’s unique ability to loiter over the enemy for hours, and provide persistent surveillance of enemy positions without putting our Servicemen and women at unnecessary risk. In today's operational environment, unmanned and remotely piloted air systems are increasingly vital to keep one step ahead of the enemy, and to save military and civilian lives. Highly trained and experienced personnel are at the heart of the capability, and human oversight and control is always paramount. This is a capability just like every other across Defence – it has skilled and motivated people at its core, people who are in charge of technology and use it in strict accordance with the law.”
Viewing the inside of a Reaper control cabin, the Defence Secretary was able to see how it is guided and controlled at all times by a team of highly trained and skilled people. Pilots, sensor operators and analysts all make decisions in real time, exactly like the crew of a traditional aircraft. In over 54,000 hours of operations, the UK’s Reaper, the only armed system used by British Armed Forces, has just fired 459 precision weapons. When a precision strike capability is required from RAF Reaper aircraft by ground commanders this is always in accordance with International Humanitarian Law and the Law of Armed Conflict, and is governed by strict rules of engagement – exactly the same as manned aircraft.