HMS Ledbury has spent the past week on an intensive mine warfare exercise off the south coast of France, near to Porquerolles Island.

In company with over a dozen other minehunters from NATO nations, and supported by French and German Navy tankers, frigates, and fast jet aircraft, Ledbury has been clearing the waters of mines off the coast of the fictional nation of ‘Arecomexland’.

Throughout, Ledbury and her allied units have been coming under surveillance and attack from fast power boats and jet aircraft operated by the fictional nations of ‘Tectosagland’ and ‘Commonland’.

The scenario is designed to test Ledbury’s ability to hunt and destroy mines whilst under constant conventional and asymmetric threat. The ship’s company are now in Defence Watches – six hours on, six hours off – so at any one time half of all manpower is awake and ready to react to an incoming threat.

When not beating off Mirage fighter jets or fast RIBS with her Upper Deck Weapons Crews, Ledbury is firmly in minehunting mode, scanning the seabed and water levels with her hyper-accurate 2193 sonar, and investigating contacts with her Remote Controlled Mine Disposal Vehicles or her Mine Clearance Diving Team.

So far Ledbury has herself cleared two stretches of sea, both approximately three square miles in area, which has allowed a French Navy destoyer to close the coast and exercise Naval Gunfire Support. It has also allowed a large French Navy amphibious assault ship to establish a beach-head into Arecomexland territory, to exercise the provision of humanitarian support.

Ledbury will continue the exercise for the next few days before heading off for the next part of her deployment to the Mediterranean in company with a NATO task group.