MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

HMS Dumbarton Castle: Small Ship, Big Name

HMS Dumbarton Castle at Stanley Harbour

The longest ship name in the Royal Navy is not always an advantage. In fact, it can sometimes weigh a few hundred tons. In this case, the name is longer than the ship herself. When you stand on Victory Green in the heart of Stanley, you can see it. The white name of the final Royal Navy Castle Class Ship set quite literally in stone surrounded by boggy, green undergrowth.

HMS DUMBARTON CASTLE, under the Command of Lieutenant Commander Wood launched and sailed straight into action as part of the task force for the Falklands conflict in 1982, 25 years ago. Now she prepares to leave the Islands for the last time, and will hopefully be remembered fondly by the local residents for the hard work she has done in this challenging and unique area of the world. As a fitting tribute the Ship's Company were asked by the Governor of the Falkland Islands to lay their ship's name in large stones on the camber opposite Stanley, as is tradition for those Ship's that have provided prolonged periods of protection for the Islanders. Not many people had heard of the Falklands until the Conflict in 1982. And now, as the 25th Anniversary of the Liberation approaches, more and more are gaining an interest again as the story captures the interest of the global press. Commemorations have already started as key strategic dates are picked out and memorials take place for those that gave the ultimate sacrifice a quarter of a century ago in order that this small out-post can choose to remain under British Governance. The period of reflection will conclude on June 17th with a live link established between services taking place at San Carlos, Falkland Islands (The landing site for British Forces in 1982) and Horse Guards Parade in London. The task of Dumbarton Castle for the past 25 years has been as the Falkland Islands Patrol Vessel. She has been tasked to overtly patrol the areas of the South Atlantic Islands and deter foreign nations from repeating previous mistakes. Capable of achieving a large variety of tasks, there is no such thing as a standard patrol. The ship is used to transport and insert troops, conduct search and rescue operations, provide a sea based helicopter landing pad, visit remote areas of the South Atlantic Islands including South Georgia and the Sandwhich Islands. In addition it can stop and inspect foreign vessels within the economic zone and provide up-threat air radar coverage to give early warning of hostile elements. However she will be best remembered for visits to out lying Island and remote settlements providing peace of mind and assistance to those living "in camp"; away from the Capital of Stanley. The ship regularly visits the settlements dotted around the islands and when some of the crew visit, it might be the first time the locals have had contact, other than on a radio, for up to three months. However in the autumn of this year HMS Dumbarton Castle will leave the operational theatre of the South Atlantic Islands for the final time. Known affectionately by her crew as 'The Last Castle' because the other 'Castle', (HMS Leeds Castle â€" also a Falklands Conflict veteran) left the RN Service three years ago. Until that time they took it in turns, spending 2 years in the South Atlantic, while the other was in the UK for maintenance and Fishery Protection duties. The crew of the deployed vessel would continuously change every 6 months, not so for the last crew, they are onboard for 12. As the Last Castle leaves she will make room for HMS Clyde, the River Class Helicopter Offshore Patrol Vessel. Purpose built for the task she operates under a Private Partnership Initiative with VT PLC and will spend her life in the South Atlantic. Capable of conducting the same roles as Dumbarton and Leeds Castle she benefits from modern navigation and sensor technology as well as having a range of boats to make landing troops more effective. After extensive trials in the UK she will deploy in the summer of this year. Laying the accolade to Dumbarton Castle seemed straight forward until the shear size was considered. Each letter is about 4 tons and 15 metres high by 7 metres wide. They are laid on top of the bog and each rock is manoeuvred by hand. CPO Jamie Stewart, 48 from Scarborough who co-ordinated the Ship effort, said, 'Talking with the people of Stanley, they said it was too large a job, and it couldn't be done!" The local planning and environmental agency stipulated that chronological order was to be maintained, this required moving the stones spelling out Endurance 200 meters left, additionally a bogus ship name also required lifting. Therefore before the first stone of Dumbarton Castle was laid 45 tonnes had already been moved by hand. Time was limited as the Ship was due back on patrol, the 3 day period assigned for the task was taken from programmed down time in Stanley. As such the Ship's Company were broken down into work parties. After governmental approval, environmental planning permission and of course, the landowner's consent, the marking out of the letters began. The moving of scrub was assisted by the Public Works Department providing a mini digger for two days whilst a separate team from the ship selected many of the rocks from the nearby Pony Pass Quarry. The original rocks on the hill had been used to make the names of Beagle, Barracuda, Protector and Endurance (previous Falkland Island Patrol Vessels granted the privilege). With the help of an Army 4-ton truck the stones were brought to within a mile of the site. After that the sleet, 40 knot winds and snow made it very boggy as Lt Dan Peskett (Marine Engineering Officer) was to find out on a number of occasions whilst at the wheel of one of the Landrovers! However a determined Ship's Company got them the rest of the way and properly laid, "job's a good un" as the crew would say. CPO Stewart said afterwards "You could really sense the belonging of Dumbarton Castle to the Falkland Islands; it was evident in the teamwork between the civilians and the Royal Navy'. The youngest member of the team, Engineer Technician Tom Randall, 21 from Plymouth, added, 'They have all been so good and friendly to us â€" '. The local Sea Cadet unit came in at the end to provide an invaluable service by painting the stones white, the name can now be seen proudly from all over Stanley. The Ship's Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Commander Ian Lynn said, 'It is a privilege to be asked to lay such a permanent reminder of what Dumbarton Castle has meant to the Falkland Islanders. In true Royal Navy fashion my Ship's Company embraced the challenge working extremely hard with a robust sense of humour to achieve this unusual task in challenging conditions. Dumbarton Castle has made her mark positively over the years through an enthusiastic can do approach and professionalism; this is a fitting finale for this dedicated Royal Navy asset, good luck to HMS Clyde on her arrival". As Stanley prepares to host many veterans in June Dumbarton Castle's name will stand proud with the heroes from a quarter of a century ago. (RN)