Minehunter arrives back home to warm welcome after five months away
DOZENS of people braved the freezing cold yesterday to welcome home loved ones onboard HMS Quorn.
The Royal Navy minehunter returned to Portsmouth Naval Base after a five-month deployment covering both sides of the Atlantic.
The ship's homecoming was a poignant moment for her commanding officer, Lieutenant Commander Tim Neild, whose wife Claire gave birth to their first son while the ship was at sea.
Lt Cdr Neild was able to leave the ship and briefly see his son Joshua for the birth 10 weeks ago but had only spent 48 hours with the baby.
After dismissing the crew, Lt Cdr Neild, from Hill Head, raced off the ship and swept his three-year-old daughter Lucy into his arms.
He said: 'It's a very proud moment for me. We had a little boy towards the first week of the deployment.
'Fortunately someone took over the running of the ship for me for five days so I could be with my wife but I only spent 48 hours with my son.
'My wife Claire has done a fantastic job. She's assured me I'll be doing the midnight feed tonight.'
HMS Quorn covered both sides of the Atlantic during her five months at sea – the longest minehunter journey in her class since the Falklands War.
The crew represented the Royal Navy at the 9/11 remembrance services and Lt Cdr Neild laid a wreath at Ground Zero in New York.
The ship also took part in minehunting exercises with ships from eight other Nato countries and was called in for a real emergency off Denmark, where a 700kg Second World War sea mine was found.
'Helping the Danish navy with the mine detonation meant our deployment quite literally went out with a bang,' said Lt Cdr Neild.
'My clearance divers did an excellent job, and now we are all overjoyed to be back for Christmas.'
To mark the homecoming, a Second World War HMS Quorn veteran was welcomed aboard.
Leslie Penhye, 85, served as an Able Seaman on the ship's namesake – a wartime destroyer – from 1943 until it was torpedoed and sank off Le Havre, France, in the early hours of August, 3 1944, killing 130 men.
Mr Penhye, who lives in Hove, East Sussex, said: 'They've really made a fuss of me. The crew and the officers have been very friendly.'
Thinking back to the horrifying attack 65 years ago, he said: 'It was not a very pleasant thing at all – 130 were lost and I think it was only about 15 of us who survived it.'
HMS Quorn will now undergo a refit at Portsmouth Naval Base and is due to be redeployed in March next year.
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Weather for Portsmouth
Friday 25 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 13 C to 25 C
Wind Speed: 22 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 13 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 24 mph
Wind direction: East
