RFA Lyme Bay and RFA Argus conduct flying training with Merlins in the Pacific

Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) vessels Lyme Bay and Argus have been busy in the Pacific, carrying out training with Royal Navy helicopters.

The training featured the seamless co-ordination of the Merlin helicopters, from 845 Naval Air Squadron, embarked on RFA Argus.

RFA Argus is an aviation training ship, as well as a 'hospital ship' with 100 medical beds on board.  

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Before becoming RFA Argus, the vessel was known as MV Contender Bezant and served during the Falklands War.

In an urgent response to the conflict, she was hurriedly converted in Devonport from a container ship to a helicopter carrier, equipped with a makeshift hangar and flight deck.

After the war, she was returned to her British owners, Sea Containers Ltd, before the decision was made to convert her permanently into an aviation training ship for the Royal Navy.

RFA Argus entered service between 1992 and 1994, fulfilling the role of a helicopter carrier during operations off the former Yugoslavia.

The two RFA ships are part of the Royal Navy's Littoral Strike Group South (LRG(S)) based in Duqm, Oman.

LRG(S) covers a large area of operations that extends from the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, the Persian Gulf, the Indian Ocean and the Pacific.