HMS Dragon seen departing from Gibraltar as she continues voyage to Eastern Med

After a brief stop in Gibraltar to take on supplies and conduct a personnel change, HMS Dragon has resumed her voyage towards the Eastern Mediterranean.

The Type 45 destroyer still has some 1,900 nautical miles to reach Cyprus and is not expected to arrive there until next week. 

The deployment comes amid criticism of Prime Minister Keir Starmer over the timing of the UK's response to the conflict with Iran, with HMS Dragon now expected to arrive in the Eastern Mediterranean weeks after a drone struck RAF Akrotiri. 

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A report by the Telegraph suggested that her "slower-than-normal progress" was due to the ship being struck by strong winds as it transitioned through the Bay of Biscay, to the west of France. 

It is also understood that the ship's company is undergoing a rapid and intensive series of drills that will prepare them to combat the threat of swarm drone attacks and ballistic missile strikes, which have reportedly taken extra time.

Protecting an area five times the size of Cyprus

HMS Dragon, which is based in Portsmouth and has a crew of around 200 sailors, is one of six Type 45 destroyers in the Royal Navy.

They are the fleet's first line of defence against aerial threats, whether that be aircraft, missiles or drones, and are capable of protecting an area up to five times the size of Cyprus.

HMS Dragon can track hundreds of targets simultaneously and eliminate them with her Sea Viper system, which can launch eight missiles in under 10 seconds and direct up to 16 missiles onto their targets simultaneously.

The Sea Viper's Aster missiles can close in on a target at up to four times the speed of sound.

The system – and the men and women who operate it – has proven itself time and again in the Red Sea when HMS Diamond repeatedly downed drones and at least one missile launched at passing shipping by Houthi rebels.

Last year, Dragon herself became the first British warship to destroy a missile travelling at supersonic speed during an international exercise off Scotland, obliterating the target despite its attempts to corkscrew and weave to avoid Sea Viper.