New Royal Navy patrol ship hit by engine woe on first voyage rises to the task on first Nato mission

Patrol ship HMS Trent suffered an engine malfunction after leaving Portsmouth last month and needed to head to Gibraltar for repair, national newspapers claimed.

But the 295ft warship soon left the port and joined Operation Sea Guardian, a Nato task group in the Mediterranean tasked with deterring, detecting and disrupting illegal activity.

As well as scanning the horizon for possible threats, the ship’s company also played a key role in detecting criminal and terrorist activity in the region.

Lieutenant Oliver Bekier, Trent's e xecutive officer currently in command of the ship, said: ‘The immediate success seen during our first period of operational tasking, and the way in which Trent has quickly integrated within the broader Nato construct, demonstrates the utility of the Batch 2 offshore patrol vessel in serving Britain’s interests in this area of the world.’

Following the end of the exercise, Trent returned to Gibraltar to resupply.

SEE ALSO: Minehunter is just days away from returning to Portsmouth after three years in the Gulf

Looking for the latest Royal Navy updates from Portsmouth? Join our new Royal Navy news Facebook group to keep up to date.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

Thank you for reading this story. The dramatic events of 2020 are having a major impact on our advertisers and thus our revenues.

The News is more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription to support our journalism.

You can subscribe here for unlimited access to Portsmouth news and information online.

Every subscription helps us continue providing trusted, local journalism and campaign on your behalf for our city.