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HMS DRAGON Spreads Her Wings On Scottish Coast
Fourth Type 45 Destroyer goes through her paces...

EMBLAZONED with a huge red mythical creature on her bow, HMS Dragon makes her maiden appearance on the (rather lively) high seas.


The fourth of Britain’s six Type 45 destroyers is in the middle of her first four-week programme of sea trials off the Scottish coast.

Having been ushered down the Clyde from BAE Systems’ yard at Scotstoun, where she was fitted out, by (Clyde Marine) tugs Bruiser and Battler, Dragon ‘throttled up’ in more open waters.

D35 is in the hands of a mixed crew: sailors and engineers from builders BAE Systems, RN personnel and contractors.

“We’ve been looking forward to Dragon spreading her wings,” said Cdr Ian Jackson, the ship’s Senior Naval Officer.

“There is always a sense of anticipation when proceeding to sea, particularly so when the final lines were slipped and we made our way down the Clyde.

“It has been very pleasing to see the many strands of work finally coming together to produce a ship that is ready to go to sea. Dragon is in great shape and we are proud to have worked alongside our BAE colleagues to make this happen.”

The trials include speed runs, crash stops, sharp turns and general manoeuvres and will continue until the beginning of December.

Then Dragon will return to Scotstoun for continued fitting out, then a further period of trials, before she’s handed over to the RN in the second half of next year.

You can follow the destroyer’s trials courtesy of her Automatic Identification System – a transmitter which provides details of her location, speed and movement (don’t worry, it’s turned off in times of war...) – at http://www.shipais.com/showship.php?mmsi=235053408

Source: Navy News

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