HMS Daring Returns To Portsmouth

One of the Royal Navy's newest warships has returned to port after completing her maiden operational deployment to the Middle East.

HMS Daring came alongside at Portsmouth Naval Base on August the 1st to cheers from friends and loved ones of the crew.

The £1 billion state-of-the-art vessel is the first Type 45 destroyer to deploy fully on operations and she has been at sea since January.

Daring's Commanding Officer, Captain Guy Robinson, said: ''This has been a most rewarding deployment where we have been able to explore Daring's capability in the challenging conditions of the Gulf.

''Unsurprisingly, there has been a lot of interest in the ship, particularly from the other navies we have worked with.

''We have hosted a large number of visitors throughout the last six months and we have done much to raise the profile of Type 45 and the Royal Navy.''

Daring was sent to the region as part of the longstanding Royal Navy presence in the Middle East where, with other nations, she conducted tasks ranging from maritime security and counter piracy to the wider maritime security effort dedicated to maintaining stability in the region.

Daring, which is the first operational vessel of the six in the class ordered, visited a number of countries including Saudi Arabia, India, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

She also worked with the US Navy and its three aircraft carriers stationed in the region.

During the deployment, Daring travelled more than 34,642 nautical miles, spending 139 days at sea, and visited 12 different countries.