The Royal Navy continues to monitor Russian maritime activities in the waters around Britain. These actions include tracking sanctioned cargo ships and Russian warships, which have been carried out during the first two weeks of October 2023.
Tracking Operations in the English Channel
The warship HMS Dauntless and the patrol vessel HMS Tyne, along with Wildcat and Merlin helicopters, were tasked with monitoring the movements of the Russian frigate RFN Neustrashimy from October 1 to 14. This Russian ship was escorting sanctioned cargo vessels in the English Channel. Royal Navy commanders emphasized that this operation has also been beneficial as part of helicopter training.
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Monitoring Intelligence Ships and NATO Exercises
In this context, Merlin helicopters were transferred from the RNAS Culdrose naval air station in Cornwall to Glasgow Prestwick Airport in Scotland to conduct Operation Iceblast. These helicopters tracked the intelligence ship of the Vishnya class, Viktor Leonov, in the Outer Hebrides from September 29 to October 8. This Russian ship was monitoring NATO vessels participating in the joint exercise Strike Warrior.
This exercise involved over 2000 personnel from six different countries and aimed to test the operational capabilities of NATO forces.
Captain James Hall from RNAS Culdrose explained: "This mission was part of a larger series of operations known collectively as Operation Iceblast, aimed at testing the rapid deployment capabilities of the Merlin helicopter from its main base."
Reports of Increased Russian Activity
After transferring the responsibility of tracking RFN Neustrashimy to HMS Dauntless, HMS Tyne tracked RFN Aleksandr Shabalin from October 11 to 14. This cargo ship was escorting MV Energy-2 along with the tugboat Proton. The Royal Navy reported that Tyne was activated from North Shields to monitor the movement of these vessels towards the Baltic region.
These efforts are part of the regular tracking operations that the Royal Navy continuously conducts. In August, commanders reported that Russian maritime activities around Britain had increased by 25 percent during the first seven months of 2023.
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