HMS Duncan arrives in Italy ready to lead Nato task group

HMS Duncan, the sixth of the Royal Navy's highly capable Type 45 air defence destroyers has arrived in Italy ready to assume her new duties with Nato.

The Portsmouth-based warship is in the coastal city of Taranto and will be serving as the flagship for Nato's Standing Maritime Group 2.

In June, HMS Duncan was rededicated at Portsmouth Naval Base following a two-year regeneration project.

• HMS Duncan ready for duty at head of Nato Maritime Group
• HMS Duncan 'plays the enemy' in first major exercise after refit
• HMS Duncan's crew bid farewell ahead of next mission with Nato

Nato's Standing Maritime Group 2 is a force of around half a dozen warships that patrol from the Pillars of Hercules, at the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar, to the Bosphorus, Turkey, ensuring security, safety, and peace across the Mediterranean.

HMS Duncan's crew bid farewell to their families and friends earlier this month ahead of their six-month mission.

This is the third time HMS Duncan, Britain's youngest destroyer, has been attached to the long-standing Nato group in the last five years.

She led a Nato task group around the Mediterranean in 2018 and 2019, with the destroyer acting as a shield for the fleet from missile and air attacks.