HMS Cattistock (M31) explained

HMS Cattistock, the third ship of this name, is a of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1981 and commissioned on 5 March 1982, the third ship of her class.

Operational history

In 1991, she was placed under the command of Sir George Zambellas, who was First Sea Lord from 2013 until 2016.

In July 1997 she suffered an engine room fire and was under repair at Rosyth Dockyard for 14 months. In September 1999 she replaced the minehunter in the NATO Mine Countermeasures Force North West Europe.[1]

She was mentioned in the media in December 2002 after colliding with a jetty as she was leaving her homeport of HMNB Portsmouth in late November. She was left with a 2feet hole in her side, although no crew were hurt in the collision. It was the third such collision that year: the submarine ran aground off the Isle of Skye earlier in November and the destroyer hit rocks off the coast of Australia in July.[2]

In 2012 she assisted in the location of two Royal Air Force Panavia Tornados which had crashed in the Moray Firth.[3]

From early February 2013[4] Cattistock led Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 2, in a four-month deployment to the Mediterranean,[5] conducting maritime security operations and providing force protection,[6] and also taking part in a multinational mine hunting exercise (MINEX 13–1) off the coast of Spain in April,[7] before eventually returning to her home port in early May.[6]

In October 2013 she took part in Exercise Joint Warrior.[8] She took part in further training programmes in February 2014, and in April was engaged in survey operations in the approaches to the Clyde Estuary.[9]

In 2014–2015 Cattistock received a major upgrade, including two new Caterpillar C32 diesel engines, at BAE Systems, Portsmouth, eventually returning to active service in November 2015[10] [11] after 18 months.[12]

In November 2017 Cattistock destroyed a World War II-era 500lb bomb which had been discovered off the coast of Norfolk close to a major North Sea gas pipeline.[13]

In early January 2018, she sailed from Portsmouth to join the Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 (SNMCMG1) as part of a deployment to the Baltic.[14] She carried out various operations, including a search around Oslo, in which ten mines and torpedoes dating back to World War II were found.[15] Cattistock finally returned home after four months in mid-April.[16]

Between 2021 and 2023, Cattistock underwent a prolonged refit. She returned to sea for post-refit sea trials in September 2023.[17] In November 2023, Cattistock deployed with the minehunter and other Royal Navy warships to patrol northern European waters with vulnerable undersea critical infrastructure in order to assist in protecting such assets.[18]

In May 2024, the ship docked in Poole Quay[19] ahead of being granted the Freedom of Poole.[20]

Affiliates

HMS Cattistock is affiliated with the following:[21]

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Ships of the Royal Navy: No. 531: Busy times for HMS Cattistock . . February 2000 . 5 . 24 March 2019.
  2. Web site: Minesweeper holed after hitting jetty . 3 December 2002 . BBC News . 16 April 2009.
  3. Web site: Tornado jet crash: Wreckage located on seabed . 6 July 2012 . BBC News . 6 July 2012.
  4. Web site: Portsmouth Minehunter Heads For The Med . 4 February 2013 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  5. Web site: HMS Cattistock on mine-hunter duties in the Mediterranean . 3 April 2013 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  6. Web site: Cattistock village's own warship calls at Poole after three-months' ops . 2 May 2013 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  7. Web site: HMS Cattistock heads up multi-national mine exercise . 19 April 2013 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  8. Web site: Scotland set to host Exercise Joint Warrior . 2 October 2013 . Royal Navy . 14 March 2019 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20131004215756/http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/News-and-Events/Latest-News/2013/October/02/131002-joint-warrior . 4 October 2013.
  9. Web site: Busy year for HMS Cattistock . 2 April 2014 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  10. Web site: HMS Cattistock joined by First Sea Lord to mark return to service after upgrade . 2 November 2015 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  11. Web site: The March of the Robots? . Hawser . Anita . 25 September 2017 . Defence Procurement International . 15 March 2019.
  12. Web site: Navy engineers rewarded for excellence at home and abroad . 2 March 2016 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  13. Web site: Royal Navy divers destroy wartime bomb near major North Sea gas pipe . 17 November 2017 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  14. Web site: HMS Cattistock deploys for NATO duties in the Baltic . 12 January 2018 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  15. Web site: Echoes of WW2 as HMS Cattistock clears mines around Oslo . 7 March 2018 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  16. Web site: HMS Cattistock returns home to Portsmouth after NATO tasking . 17 April 2018 . Royal Navy . 15 March 2019.
  17. 1707679652150468981. @HMSCattistock heads out of Portsmouth this morning to begin sea trials following a refit lasting 2½ years. . NavyLookout . 29 September 2023. 29 September 2023.
  18. Web site: Analysis: Royal Navy deploys seven ships on underwater infrastructure patrols . navylookout.com . 3 December 2023 . 3 December 2023.
  19. Web site: 2024-05-03 . Royal Navy ship docked in Poole ahead of receiving freedom of town . 2024-05-04 . Bournemouth Echo . en.
  20. News: 2024-04-29 . HMS Cattistock: Navy warship granted Freedom of Poole . 2024-05-04 . BBC News . en-GB.
  21. Web site: HMS Cattistock Affiliations . Royal Navy . 14 March 2019.

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