HMS Protector heads back to home port as investigations continue on 'defect'
The Royal Navy's only Ice Patrol Ship has come back to her home port of HMNB Devonport as an investigation into a defect takes place, the Royal Navy has said.
HMS Protector, known as the Navy's 'Swiss army knife', is an ice patrol vessel fitted with two cranes able to hold up to 60 tonnes of stores and equipment.
Her return comes amid heightened tension around the threats to the High North and Arctic after the First Sea Lord said in April that the region's security depends on the UK's ability to act together with allies.
"As part of the Defence Investment Plan, HMS Protector will be replaced with a more modern variant to maintain the ice patrol capability," a Royal Navy spokesperson said.
"She remains part of the fleet and any decisions of her immediate future will be made in due course."
The vessel has several capabilities, including surveys using multi-beam echo sounding and inshore survey equipment, small work boats and multiple inflatable and rigid inflatable motor boats, and her stamina, as she is able to be on the water for more than three months without needing support.
HMS Protector, which is primarily deployed in Antarctica, is run by a group of mountain leader-trained Royal Marines, while hydrographers use the vessel to conduct surveys and make sure that climate guidelines are being followed.
In January 2024, a group of researchers from the University of Portsmouth looked at the damage plastic waste is having on Antarctica.
Dr Kieron Roberts, a senior lecturer in sustainability and the built environment, a member of the Revolution Plastics Institute used a drone to survey the Antarctic coastline, locating where litter was washed ashore.
The DIP states that "support for our overseas Territories will be reinforced" through the vessel's replacement.
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