Royal Navy: Well-travelled HMS Iron Duke enters "major maintenance period" after shadowing Russian warships

HMS Iron Duke, originally based in Portsmouth but now in Plymouth, has spent the past 12 months conducting various assignments including the shadowing of Russian warships. A statement posted on the ship’s social media account details just how packed their recent schedule was.

It said the Type 23 frigate was entering “a major maintenance period” after “a rewarding 12 months”. Over the past year, HMS Iron Duke completed nine weeks of operational training, covered 28,128 nautical miles, spent 231 days at high readiness, carried out 61 aviation sorties, 294 launch and recoveries, 58 pilotages and six replenishment at sea drills.

She was maintained at high-readiness for 231 days, with her crew taking on 82 additional trainees and making nine port visits. The frigate was activated 13 times over the past 12 months, including when she was heavily involved in shadowing Moscow affiliated warships on November 10, 2025. Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer was also hosted on board before Christmas 2024.

Russian forces sailed in both directions through the English Channel, one bound for the Atlantic and the other towards the Baltic. HMS Iron Duke and tanker RFA Tideforce were activated to shadow the Admiral Gorshkov-class frigate Admiral Golovko. RFS Golovko passed through the North Sea and was accompanied by oceanographic research vessel Yantar - considered a spy ship by government officials - and supporting tanker Vyazma. The frigate also completed several training missions in the Baltic Sea.

Most recently, HMS Iron Duke visited Oslo after conducting various operations. The weather conditions were so misty that the bridge team to make a ‘blind pilotage’ into the prime berth their hosts.

Lieutenant Simon Vernon, Navigating Officer, said: “After challenging pilotages into Hamburg and Jersey, the opportunity to visit Oslo and further hone our bridge team skills on a long and technical pilotage was welcome. The visibility on approach, sometimes down to 50 yards, enabled us to conduct blind pilotage using our radar.”