MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

HMS Liverpool Sails For South Atlantic

Royal Navy warship HMS Liverpool leaves her Portsmouth home yesterday to take up duties as the South Atlantic patrol ship.

The Type 42 destroyer will spend six months providing a maritime presence to protect the UK's interests in the region, taking over from fellow Portsmouth ship HMS Southampton. She will provide reassurance to UK Overseas Territories and act as a deterrent to potential aggressors threatening UK interests.

Liverpool will also help maintain British sovereignty of the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. Her role includes a range of exercises - some with the British Army and RAF - and reassurance visits to some of the islands. While heading south Liverpool will visit Sierra Leone and Ghana to demonstrate the UK's continuing commitment to the region. Her 280 ship's company will also find time there to assist with on-going projects such as repairing and maintaining schools and orphanages.

Commanding Officer, Commander Henry Duffy, said: "Liverpool is trained and ready to conduct this challenging deployment and demonstrate to the wider community the real relevance of the Royal Navy today. We will be able to display the capabilities of this fine ship both in Africa and further a field and enjoy the experience of visiting new and different areas of the world."

The Type 42 Destroyers form the backbone of the Royal Navy's anti-air capability. They are equipped with the Sea Dart medium range air defence missile system, which in its primary role is designed to provide area air defence to a group of ships, although it is also effective against surface targets at sea. In addition to their role as an air defence platform the Type 42 Destroyers operate independently carrying out patrol and boarding operations.

HMS Liverpool was the last of the Batch 2 destroyers - built at Cammell Laird in Birkenhead, she entered service just before a tranche of modifications was made to the class as a result of lessons learned in the Falklands War. (RN)