RFA Lyme Bay will make full use of Gibraltar’s Forward Mounting Base facilities when she calls into HM Naval Base tomorrow.

The Bay Class amphibious landing ship has recently completed a two-week UK based Anglo-French Tri-Service exercise on sea, land and air.

Eight warships from the Royal Navy and Marine Nationale took part: Royal Navy flagship HMS Ocean, HMS Bulwark, HMS Sutherland, as well as RFA Lyme Bay and French frigates FS Cassard and La Motte-Picquet, helicopter carrier Dixmude and tanker Var.

Exercise Griffin Strike demonstrated how UK and French maritime, land and air forces can work together for a wide range of operations and, if called upon, unite as part of a NATO, EU or UN coalition.

Captain James Parkin, Commanding Officer of HMS Bulwark, said: “Griffin Strike is an excellent training opportunity and builds on our existing strong links with our French allies.

“Bulwark and Dixmude exercised together only last October and such close co-operation in realistic scenarios is hugely beneficial in maximising our respective military capabilities.”

As well as the warships, Griffin Strike featured 3,500 UK personnel, 2,000 French personnel, 11 UK aircraft – Wildcat from 847 Naval Air Squadron, Apache helicopters from the Army Air Corps and Chinook helicopters from 27 Squadron RAF – and ten French aircraft, including three maritime patrol Atlantique 2.

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