A proud day for the Royal Navy with families set to be reunited with sailors deployed in the Middle East

Eager crowds are waiting expectantly to see their loved ones aboard HMS Dragon after a long deployment.

The Royal Navy warship returned home to HMNB Portsmouth at 12:35pm. Despite the wintery weather and bleak conditions, loved ones were not been put off and are gathered on The Hot Walls to show their support for the personnel.

The Type 45 destroyer sailed past The Round Tower in Old Portsmouth at midday and proceeded to the naval base itself, where around 950 family members and friends waited for their loved ones.

Brother Nick Evans, father Alan Evans, Leading Seaman Harry Evans and mum Lesley Evans reunited after 214 days | Sarah Standing

placeholder image — Brother Nick Evans, father Alan Evans, Leading Seaman Harry Evans and mum Lesley Evans reunited after 214 days | Sarah Standing

HMS Dragon was originally deployed from HMNB Portsmouth on March 10. Earlier that month, a British base in Cyprus - RAF Akrotiri - was hit by a Shahed style kamikaze drone. It was believed to have been fired by a pro-Iranian militia in Iraq.

Bombing raids were conducted by the US-Israeli coalition, with Tehran retaliating and causing a hostile environment throughout the Middle East. The Daring-class warship was initially sent to protect British air space. Intense training serials followed to prepare the ship’s company for any scenario. Air defences on the RAF Akrotiri base itself were also enhanced.

Sailors disembark HMS Dragon | Sarah Standing

HMS Dragon then proceeded through the Red Sea and into the Middle East for various workup drills. One of these involved joining forces with the huge French aircraft carrier FS Charles de Gaulle.

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British forces in the region were bolstered by RFA Lyme Bay, a Landing Ship Dock bristling with autonomous mine-hunting technology and drones. Both ships were assigned to join a Nato taskforce which would keep the Strait of Hormuz open once the war had ended.

Tehran had laid mines and other explosives in the sea. Commercial ships were also attacked by drones and missiles. With US President Donald Trump failing to secure an official ceasefire, and talks dragging on for months, HMS Dragon was removed from the Middle East and brought home. It’s expected that another Type 45 destroyer will be deployed there.

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