The ex-HMS Sabre, a high-speed patrol boat, is currently listed for sale on Boatshed Portsmouth – an international yacht brokers. She is currently at the Hornet Marina in Gosport and listed at a price of £150,000. She was previously listed on eBay, but is now in the hands of a different brokerage.
Broker Samantha Cassell said on the Boatshed website: “This former Navy patrol vessel started life being specially built for Special Forces operations in and around Northern Ireland during 'the troubles'. Now with very little work by a new owner she could be suitable as a pilot / crew transfer boat, dive boat, expedition/training craft…. the list goes on.”
MORE LIKE THIS: HMS Sabre decommissioned
The Scimitar-class patrol boat worked incredibly closely with the Gibraltar Squadron for much of her life, safeguarding the area between 2003 and 2020. She was once forced to fire flares at a Spanish research vessel in November 2016 after the ship strayed into British Gibraltar territorial waters. Trainees at HMS Collingwood in Fareham were given “high-octane” practice sessions on HMS Sabre, as it was one of the smallest and fastest patrol vessels the Royal Navy had at their disposal at the time.
HMS Sabre was decommissioned alongside HMS Scimitar on April 1, 2022 – with a ceremony being held at HMNB Portsmouth. She was previously known as Grey Wolf during operations in Northern Ireland throughout “The Troubles”. She initially served as a Royal Marines’ patrol craft after joining the Fleet in 1993.
Lieutenant Chris Cotterill, the last commanding officer of Sabre, previously said: “I feel somewhat emotional about being the last commanding officer of HMS Sabre based on the fact she’s been in the water since before I was even born. There’s a lot of history there.”
