Royal Navy: Portsmouth ship HMS Medway suffers "mechanical issue" during post-refit trials, reports say

Navy Lookout, an analysis website which covers the Royal Navy, reported that sailors on HMS Medway had to deal with complications. They said the ship was towed back to the shores of Gibraltar on June 28 by tug boats.

HMS Medway towed into Gibraltar this afternoon following mechanical issue on post-refit trials,” the website said on X, formerly known as Twitter. HMS Medway was operating around the Falkland Islands for most of last year, a stark contrast compared to her usual tasks in the Caribbean.

She took place of her sister ship HMS Forth, which was undergoing maintenance. Both ships then swapped places, with HMS Medway undergoing engineering work after patrolling the South Atlantic for nine months and racking up 16,500 nautical miles - the equivalent of sailing three quarters of the way around the globe.

She made several visits to South Georgia during the 2023 spell, while spending much of 2024 in Gibraltar. It was expected that the ship will resume regular patrols around British Overseas Territories, being on hand for anti-drug smuggling missions and support relief operations in the event of natural disasters such as hurricanes.

A Royal Navy spokeswoman said: “The Royal Navy continues to fulfil all its commitments. The fleet’s programme remains flexible, undergoing periods of maintenance is routine and vital for a ship’s continued effectiveness.” The duration of refit periods and repairs can vary depending on numerous factors, some of which arise while a ship is being looked over.

HMS Queen Elizabeth faces an extended period in the Rosyth dry dock in Scotland following a propeller shaft misalignment fault discovered earlier this year in Portsmouth. HMS Spey recently suffered a fault while being deployed in Japan, but is since back on operations.