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00:06Hello and welcome to His Majesty's Naval Base, Devonport, here in Plymouth.
00:11For hundreds of years, this place has been a home to the Royal Navy and around half the
00:15nation's fleet is based here. This is a remarkable place. Thousands of
00:23servicemen and women pass through here every week. There are billions of pounds worth of
00:29warships and weapons and enough food to feed a navy and then there's the staff
00:34and crew who live in and around the base.
00:41We're here at a time of serious international tension, when the Royal
00:45Navy has never been busier and they've given us access across the fleet.
00:55You feel it reverberating through your whole body.
01:00You feel that you can reach out and touch that. That is wild.
01:04Just off our bow is a Russian submarine. Throughout these special programmes, we're
01:11lifting the lid. Oh, what are you doing? On what life is really like in Britain's Navy
01:17today. I'm sure you tied that tie correctly before being dragged through a hedge. You
01:21sound like my mum. Get out of here. Bad moves. Come on. These boys are fit. This is a different
01:26league within a different league. I do feel in very safe hands. Thank you very much.
01:35This is warship. Life in the Royal Navy. Coming up on this episode. Good morning. I'm Lucy.
01:44Welcome to HMS RNG. Thank you very much. I step on board a British warship for the very
01:50first time and end up involved in one of the most amazing dramas of my career. Now we've
02:01definitely got her. This doesn't feel like making telly anymore. Suddenly this feels like
02:06I'm completely out of my depth. Hello and welcome to a brand new series of warship,
02:24life in the Royal Navy. We're on board HMS St. Albans, which is moored here in Devonport,
02:31the Royal Navy base in Plymouth. This place will be our home throughout the series as we
02:35take you on a journey across the length and breadth of the Royal Navy. But actually, we're
02:41going to start the series with something a little bit special, aren't we, Kate?
02:44We are, because I have to confess, before I started working on this series, I had literally
02:51no idea what life on a warship was like. So when I stepped for the very first time onto HMS
02:58Iron Duke, what I didn't expect was that I would end up being part of a mission to find
03:05a Russian nuclear-capable submarine that was reported to be in danger of exploding.
03:12What followed was such an extraordinary story, we've actually dedicated this entire episode
03:18to it. So sit back, relax, and watch this story unfold.
03:34The Royal Navy has granted me special access to learn about how life at sea works by living
03:40on a warship at sea. Good morning. Hiya, good morning. I'm Lucy. Welcome to HMS Iron Duke.
03:49Thank you very much. I'm Kate. It's amazing to be here. Yeah, welcome. You just follow me this way.
03:53Thank you. For the next few days, HMS Iron Duke is going to be my home. This Type 23 frigate
04:02is over 130 metres long and weighs nearly 5,000 tonnes, which means I've got my work cut out,
04:09getting my bearings.
04:14So Kate, the first hurdle you're going to come across is getting down the ladder. Right.
04:19So the way we teach it for safety is to go down facing the ladder. Okay. So opposite to what
04:24you
04:25would expect. So just so you can grab onto the handles. Yeah. And go down this way. Okay.
04:31Helping me settle in is 25-year-old sub-lieutenant Lucy Bell, who knows this ship like the back of
04:37her hand.
04:39Gosh, the treads aren't very wide, are they? Has everyone in the Navy got size three feet?
04:44You'll get used to it as we go.
04:47So now we've reached to deck. Okay. So this is the corridor that runs all the way through the ship.
04:54So if you ever get lost, this is where you're going to go. So literally from back all the
04:59way to the front. Absolutely. Yeah. Gosh, the scale of it is quite extraordinary, isn't it?
05:05Yeah. Well, this is kind of where you get to see the most of it. But where we're going to
05:08be staying is forward. So we're just going to go this way. Okay. How many people are on board?
05:14So at the moment, fully stocked up with air crew and with additional personnel, we've got
05:19about 200 to 220 people. Okay. So as you go down here, you're going to get the galley
05:25on the left. Okay. This is where all of our food is prepared. We've even got our own shop.
05:31Wow. So it really is a kind of almost like a floating village. You're completely self-sufficient.
05:37Yeah, for sure. There has to be enough stuff to keep us going whilst we're away at sea for
05:41long periods of time. So we're going to be just in here to the left. Okay. Unlike the
05:49rest of the 200 or so crew on board, I have no idea what I'm letting myself in for. And
05:57this is where we're going to be staying. Oh, wow. So this is your bunk here that's all made
06:02up fresh for you. So there's going to be four of us in here. Just three of us for now.
06:07So
06:07are all the sleeping quarters like this sort of basically four people to a, to a cabin?
06:13So actually most of the accommodation will be triple stacked bunks. Um, and they are split
06:19up into their own messes. A mess is a designated area for crew members to socialize and sleep
06:25in. Some of the crews share bunk spaces with up to 45 people. So I'm lucky to be getting one
06:31of these four birth cabins. So this really is luxurious for sure. This is the cream of
06:38the crop accommodation.
06:42But before I unpack, I've been told to report to the captain. So this is the bridge. Everybody
06:49knows exactly what they're doing. Everybody seems to know exactly where to be, which on
06:54ship this size, it just feels incredibly impressive and quite reassuring. We're basically at the
07:05stage, I think, of being about to leave port. The captain's here and I'm desperate to talk
07:12to him, but he's quite busy. Oh, hello. David.
07:15How are you doing? Lovely to meet you. Um, can I grab you just for 10 seconds?
07:18Of course. Um, to leave port, which sounds like quite a sort of fundamental and simple
07:24thing to do, is actually quite complicated. Yeah, the truth is the ship's company have
07:28been getting ready for this and we're going to leave in about the five, 10 minutes time.
07:31They've been getting ready since about four o'clock this morning.
07:35HMS Iron Duke has spent most of the last year on operations to protect Britain from Russian warships,
07:42submarines and spy vessels. The threat we now face is more serious, more immediate.
07:48than at any time since the Cold War. Russia has a fleet of vessels and they're
07:54being used to map possible sites for sabotage if the conflict with the West increases.
08:00Iron Duke's mission is to head out to sea and hunt down any Russian vessels that stray too
08:06close to UK waters. Intercepting them before they get too close is the sole responsibility
08:12of Captain David Armstrong.
08:16If we get word that there was a Russian ship or a submarine or anything of that nature
08:20coming through UK waters, then we'll be activated to go and escort it.
08:28In the last 12 months, we've escorted 25 Russian ships through UK waters and we've been activated
08:34at short notice about 18 times. And when you say you're escorting a ship, that sounds quite friendly.
08:43But if they're Russian ships, presumably they're enemy.
08:47So for us, the trick is for it to be safe and professional. It's not enough to hope that they
08:53won't get up to no good.
08:54We have to be there to make sure they can't. As we head out to sea, I have to admit
09:01to a sense of trepidation.
09:03I had no idea Russian vessels were so active this close to the UK or that HMS Iron Duke was
09:11the British warship
09:12ordered to protect our waters.
09:16You have the ship. For the bridge, for the log, the navigating officer has the ship.
09:20With nothing but open sea in front of us, who knows what or who we might be about to encounter.
09:45HMS Iron Duke is in the North Sea on orders to hunt for any Russian vessels straying close to UK
09:52waters.
10:02With a hungry crew of over 200 on board, some of the hardest working people on this ship can be
10:09found in the galley.
10:15Now you may think that the most important person on board is the ship's captain.
10:22But you'd be wrong.
10:25Because Lenroy is the most important person on board. How are you?
10:29I'm not so bad, not so bad.
10:31Galley manager Lenroy Gill oversees a team of eight chefs.
10:35He's responsible for menu creation, quality control and ensuring each service runs on time.
10:42How long have you been the chef on Iron Duke?
10:46So I've been with the Iron Duke just over here now.
10:49Okay.
10:50And you're feeding at the moment over 200 people three meals a day.
10:57That is correct.
10:58Am I allowed to get a sneak preview of what's for lunch?
11:02Yes, you would, you would definitely.
11:04It's turkey cabinet half lunch today.
11:06Wow.
11:06It hasn't been started because I'm going to do that in a bit.
11:08Okay.
11:09Okay.
11:10All right.
11:10Well, put me to work if you'd like me to.
11:12Sure.
11:12Let's go.
11:13Let's go.
11:14Leading lunch service today is 25-year-old chef Keanu, one of the ship's newest recruits
11:21and known to his mates as Shorty.
11:24So how long have you been a chef on board?
11:28I've been cooking on board for about four months now, recently joined.
11:32Okay.
11:33And why, why the Navy?
11:35Traveling.
11:36Traveling.
11:37Yeah.
11:37And I like to travel, so that's as a plus for me as well.
11:39So you do it like a, it looks like a dance and I look like I'm stabbing it.
11:48How about your mum?
11:49Does she miss you?
11:50She misses me a lot.
11:52I bet she does.
11:53Especially my grandparents as well.
11:55Yeah.
11:55Sometimes I call my grandma, she's like, she's praying for me.
12:00The crew don't have long to eat lunch.
12:05Before heading straight back to work in the ship's maze of compartments.
12:11Hi.
12:11Hello.
12:12Can I come in?
12:13Welcome.
12:14After my stint in the galley, I've made my way to two-deck at the back of the warship
12:19to explore a 30-man sleeping compartment, one of the tightest on board, with able seaman David Brennan.
12:27So tell me what this area is here.
12:30So this is the 30-man mess.
12:32Every day, from 3.30 onwards, we have a set of departmental cleaning.
12:38The minute we would clean our mess decks, because it's very important to make sure where we're living is,
12:43we can expand and making sure we're on top of our own living space.
12:49Well, shall we do a little inspection?
12:50Of course.
12:50See if everyone's doing the right thing.
12:52Show me around.
12:53Each mess is broken up into bunk spaces, toilets, shower rooms, and a small recreational area where the crew can
13:02enjoy some downtime.
13:05Is there a kind of pecking order as to who gets the bottom bunk, who gets the middle, and who
13:10gets the top?
13:11So every ship has its own sort of routines.
13:14On here, it's pretty much a mixing match.
13:16Yeah.
13:17A lot of lads come and go throughout the year.
13:20Okay.
13:20So we just kind of, if we know there's a pit available, we'll...
13:24You call them a pit?
13:26Yeah, so the nickname is, like, someone's pit, yeah.
13:29Um, I love the fact that you've got your own duvet cars.
13:33Do you bring them from home?
13:34We do, we do.
13:36And what about all your stuff?
13:38Does everything have to fit into a locker and...?
13:41Everyone gets one locker and an overhead.
13:43Right.
13:44And essentially, we'll have to live with what we have.
13:47Let's have a look at it.
13:50Yeah, that's very ordered.
13:52Probably not this one, because it's got some stuff on there, but that's all mess banter.
14:03Do you make sure it's in its ship shape before the kind of formal inspection?
14:07Oh, 100%.
14:08It's important.
14:09As I said, it's the little things that matter.
14:12It's our own little space in itself, so you want to make sure you're looking after it.
14:17Yeah.
14:26Listen in, lads.
14:27Do you hear there, Captain speaking?
14:29As some of you will have been tracking, a Russian submarine has departed the Mediterranean,
14:35as trapped by our own Gibraltar squadron, and it's accepted as heading back towards UK waters.
14:41We had a call earlier today from the Maritime Operations Centre telling us to intercept the Russian submarine and shadow
14:48it as it transits through UK waters.
14:50We'll, of course, keep you posted as the situation develops and as the timeline unfolds.
15:01A nuclear-capable Russian submarine has been spotted heading for UK waters en route to St. Petersburg.
15:10Intelligence suggests it's suffering mechanical issues and could be at risk of exploding.
15:16This new era of threat demands a new era for defence.
15:22Since the war in Ukraine began, relations with Russia have deteriorated.
15:28The presence of one of Putin's submarines in UK waters cannot go unchecked, so HMS Iron Duke has been ordered
15:37to intercept.
15:40Not really sure how to react to this news.
15:47You know, it's fascinating to see how a ship works and discover what everybody does, but this now feels like
15:56almost I'm intruding on a really important naval operation.
16:06One that is diplomatically incredibly sensitive.
16:11And suddenly this doesn't feel like making telly anymore.
16:16Suddenly this feels like I'm in a situation where I'm completely out of my depth.
16:23And if we do see this submarine, I have no idea how I'm going to react to it.
16:28But I do definitely at the moment feel a little bit like I'm in with the grown-ups and I'm
16:35not grown up enough.
16:38I'm hoping Captain David Armstrong will be able to tell me more.
16:45Hi, David. Thank you.
16:47And there's one big question on my mind.
16:50Is it dangerous?
16:51You know, it's inherently dangerous in that it's a nuclear-capable Russian submarine.
16:57We think it might have some mechanical issues.
16:59Right.
17:01Which probably increases the risk a little bit.
17:04And how does that impact you?
17:06If it were to break down and, God forbid, sink on the south coast, that would be an environmental catastrophe.
17:14So that's just another factor for us to consider.
17:17We've got a Russian submarine going through the Dover Straits.
17:21Yeah.
17:22You know, that feels like an act of aggression to me.
17:25I totally understand.
17:26The problem we've got is, or the problem I've got specifically, and we have as a command team is,
17:31if I make a tactical mistake, it could have strategic consequences.
17:35What does that mean?
17:36I don't wish to be sensationalist, but if I was to interfere with a Russian submarine or an innocent passage,
17:45I could start a war by accident, without wishing to be flippant.
17:49Yeah.
17:50But if I don't act in a professional manner, and professional manner is all that's required here,
17:56we just need to make sure that they can't interfere with our interests.
18:00This is basically it.
18:02This is it.
18:03This is, this is what we've been, this is what we've been trained to do.
18:14This is CXA with your evening syrup pipe.
18:18As you can tell, the weather has increased over the last four hours.
18:22And we're looking at a sea state six in the coming 12 hours.
18:27This is as Storm Amy batters the UK.
18:31The weather is going to pick up again as we push out into the English Channel.
18:35As Iron Duke heads urgently round the southeast coast and towards the Russian submarine,
18:41a huge storm now stands in its way.
18:45Storm Amy has swept into the UK, bringing heavy rain and strong winds.
18:50An amber wind warning remains in place for parts of Northern Scotland,
18:53and 60,000 homes are without power across the country.
19:01As Storm Amy begins to bite, the waves outside Iron Duke are building.
19:09It's actually rather beautiful in a terrifying way.
19:14Well, this is going to be a big one.
19:15Oh, my goodness.
19:19I can't help but wonder if waves of this size will make the hunt for the damaged Russian submarine more
19:25difficult,
19:26or if the storm will further increase the chances of it exploding.
19:54HMS Iron Duke is heading along the English Channel
19:57to intercept a badly damaged Russian submarine with nuclear capabilities.
20:06But Storm Amy is currently battering most of the UK and the ship.
20:19Oh, my God.
20:21You need to fit very well.
20:23You're, like, six metres.
20:28Our sea state ramped up through the night, and the ship has just been pitching and rolling,
20:36but drew the curtains and pretended I was anywhere but out at sea in a force-eight gale.
20:45Do you hear that? Navigating officers are speaking.
20:47Compartment custodians are to ensure that their compartments are secured for Sea State 7.
20:52That is all.
20:55Despite the difficult conditions, the senior officers must focus on the mission.
21:01Finding the Russian submarine.
21:04Relax, please.
21:06The purpose of this brief is to get the general detail down to make sure that we have all the
21:11building blocks in place.
21:14I'm heading down to the ops room because the captain has invited me to a special briefing with all the
21:23heads of department.
21:29Captain, sir, team, our primary contact of interest is Russian Federation Navy Kilo-class SSK subsurface killer submarine.
21:37Sir, she has a diesel-electric engine configuration designed to make her difficult to track and quiet.
21:43Her length is 72.6 metres.
21:45Good look out for officer the watches on the bridge spotting her.
21:49And she has a formidable armament of heavyweight torpedoes, calibre missiles.
21:53Sir, these calibre missiles can be land attack and surface-to-surface ship capable.
21:59You're full of good news.
22:00Good brief, thanks very much.
22:02Sir, over the course of the next 24 hours, we are going to conduct an RV with the contacts of
22:07interest and then transit east.
22:08We will continue to escort them to our UK area of responsibility eastern limit where we will then hand over
22:15to other NATO allies.
22:19Once they find the Russian sub, HMS Iron Duke will try to understand how badly damaged it really is before
22:26following it wherever it goes until it no longer poses a threat to the UK.
22:35Hello, Captain. How are you? How's it going? How are you doing?
22:37Good. Yes. Yes. So, that briefing was fascinating.
22:43Oh, good. A little bit terrifying.
22:45It shouldn't be terrifying.
22:47There will be an uptick in energy when we do the intercept.
22:52Certainly in the warfare teams in the ops room, they'll be laser-focused as we intercept.
22:58Possibly vessel there in 325, distance 1912.
23:02The ops room is the control centre for the ship's weapons and radars.
23:06It's run by principal warfare officer Tom Adlam.
23:10So, you are head of operations?
23:12Correct.
23:13And this is your domain?
23:14It is, yeah. Our unconventional office space.
23:17So, the operations room in the heart of the ship.
23:20Tom and his team will likely be the first to locate the Russian submarine.
23:25If the situation becomes heightened, is this where you put together the kind of, the right response?
23:35I mean, I suppose I'm hedging my bets here, but if you had to fire any weapons or anything, is
23:40that controlled from here?
23:41It is. It is. And that would be mine and the other principal warfare officer's responsibility when we're down here.
23:47This will be my seat.
23:49Okay.
23:49Captain will sit here.
23:51Right.
23:51And will maintain oversight and we will essentially fight the ship.
23:55Yeah.
23:55In support of the captain's aims and objectives.
23:58Yeah.
23:58In order to make sure that she maintains the fighting edge.
24:02Yeah.
24:02And be at the tip of the spear.
24:06Outside the warship, Storm Amy has finally cleared.
24:11Set course to starboard zero, eight to five.
24:16Nothing now stands in the way of HMS Iron Duke performing her mission.
24:21More information on the condition of the Russian sub has just been shared with the crew.
24:26We are now sailing on a course to intercept the Russian submarine.
24:32The submarine, which has the capability of carrying nuclear warheads, is partially flooded by diesel.
24:41And if that's the case, then it has the potential to explode.
24:45The search for the submarine continues, but with an added frisson of danger.
24:54Iron Duke is closing in on the Russian submarine, which is currently positioned off the northwest coast of France, heading
25:02east into the English Channel.
25:07At times like these, the crew often turn to a friendly face.
25:11And I think I could do with one of those too.
25:17Tina.
25:18Hello.
25:18Are you here?
25:19Yeah.
25:19I'm reporting for duty.
25:20Hello there.
25:21How are you?
25:22I'm good, thank you.
25:23And you?
25:23Yes, I'm all right.
25:25Tina Clift is the civilian manager of the ship's onboard shop, known as the Naffy.
25:31I'm always very busy.
25:33The lads come here sometimes not to buy stuff just for a chat.
25:36Yeah.
25:36So it's quite nice because it's like just that break from work.
25:39Okay.
25:40And if people are sad, sometimes they come and they just have a chat or they knock and come in
25:44and sit down and we just...
25:45Because I think it's important and we call this the happy place.
25:49This is the no judgment zone.
25:50So no one's allowed to judge what anyone else is buying.
25:53Right.
25:54Because people need to do what they need to do to get through a day.
25:56Yeah.
25:57And we have a positivity ball which gets shaken to death.
26:00So what do you do with the positivity ball?
26:02So you literally ask it a question, shake it, turn it upside down and then it gives you some sort
26:06of answer at the bottom.
26:09So you're opening...
26:11Now.
26:11Right now.
26:12They'll tell you what they want.
26:14Okay.
26:14You bring it to me and I scan it.
26:15Okay.
26:16And then we've got to put it in a basket.
26:17Oh look, here they are.
26:18Shut up darling.
26:20Right, come on then chaps, what are you after?
26:23Can I get a pack of half of strawberries please?
26:26Is it one of your five a day?
26:28Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.
26:31100%.
26:36You alright Joe?
26:37I'm good Joe.
26:38Yeah, I'm alright.
26:39I'm alright.
26:40How are you feeling?
26:41About great.
26:43What question are you asking?
26:45I'm not getting home this weekend.
26:46You're not giving me a fair amount.
26:52Give it a chance, you keep shaking it too much.
26:54Let it rest for a minute.
26:56Oh no, what does it say?
26:57Patience pays.
26:59See?
26:59I don't need to shake you.
27:03Okay darling.
27:05So, when there's no wifi and no connection home, is your little corner of the ship kind
27:14of even more important?
27:15It is and I don't think they would manage without it.
27:19So do they come for the chocolate or do they come for you?
27:21Maybe a bit of hope.
27:22I'm hoping.
27:24Who knows?
27:29Just continue to look at the organic sensors and just make sure that we're able to pick
27:34her up as early as possible.
27:37The Russians are believed to have now entered the English Channel, just a few miles ahead
27:42of HMS Iron Duke's position.
27:45Okay.
27:46So how are we looking?
27:47In the ops room, Tom and his team have their eyes trained on the radar screens, trying to
27:53pinpoint the sub's exact location.
27:56the possibility that it's, what, 5-3-5-4?
27:595-3-5-4.
28:02Have the bridge got anything visual at this moment?
28:34It's on the head, no, the door.
28:36on the bridge the crew scour the horizon
28:44there she is
28:47bearing 283
28:51all positions also watch
28:53search to investigate unknown contact
28:55bearing 283
28:57distance 7 nautical miles
28:59all reports on route line 2
29:02yep navs we've definitely got her
29:07that's her right navs
29:09take station at standard distance
29:12astern of the ssk
29:14all right so check quarters
29:19navigating officer speaking due to our
29:21proximity to the unit we will be
29:23shallowing assume head state red
29:27i'm not sure i can describe how surreal
29:30this feels
29:32just off our bow
29:34barely a mile away
29:36is a russian submarine
29:41around 35 nautical miles off the north
29:44coast of france at the mouth of the
29:46english channel
29:47hms iron duke finally has eyes on the
29:51russian vessel
29:52next course is clear visually take the
29:55ship in hand
29:55and begin to immediately follow it
29:57the crew must now maintain a 24-7 watch over putin's forces
30:07so now that this submarine is under your watch
30:11yes what happens with the ship but you know what changes as far as you and the ship's company
30:17is concerned i mean this is this is our day job
30:21you know all of our sensors are being uh being constantly watched to give us a really good
30:26um situational awareness we know exactly where the submarine is we know exactly where the submarine is we know exactly
30:29what it's doing it's transiting on the surface but of course it's not enough to hope that that will be
30:34the case we have to be here to make sure that it that it can't do anything other than that
30:40submarines would never surface unless there's no other option
30:44the damage inside must be severe for them to give away their position
30:51that's pretty interesting isn't it that guy looks like he's got a camera
30:55we're watching them they're watching us
30:57on the shoulder as well
30:58it's definitely when are we just out there before they were facing us with the bar noise
31:01well i would imagine that's probably their ceo
31:07can you gather intelligence from a submarine in this situation
31:11yeah certainly so we'll use our embarked helicopter to do what's called an int look
31:15so we will we'll take the opportunity because it's entirely within our gift in our own backyard
31:19yeah to take some photographs and just make sure we understand what's going on
31:25to gather more intelligence hms iron dukes wildcat helicopter is being launched in the direction of the russian sub
31:36armed with a high-definition long-range camera
31:40captain relax please it's the ideal tool for gathering intelligence on the russian submarine
31:47uh initially it'll be an end look on the kilo the bridge team um you're gonna have to do some
31:53jiggery pokery with your current course and speed we're very heavy with full fuel and a lot of pack
32:01the pilots must get close enough to capture clear images to learn how badly damaged the submarine is
32:09i'm just going to come to a general hover ahead of the submarine but without causing an international incident
32:24what was the thing to do
32:34hms iron duke is in the english channel just a few miles off the coast of the uk
32:43tracking a damaged Russian submarine that's been forced to surface and is now heading east
32:54with the nuclear-capable submarine believed to be at risk of exploding a collision with
33:01another vessel could be disastrous so the ops room are monitoring every single ship in the area
33:08what are we actually looking at here what are we seeing so on on the screen at the minute um
33:14what
33:14we've got us is in the very center so we have a particular course that we're steering which is
33:19indicated uh by the arrow here yeah and what we have is a series of contacts uh around in our
33:25vicinity so we'll be monitoring all of the civilian traffic uh as well as all military contacts in the
33:29area but then you've also got the submarine and it is the the job of the team behind us to
33:34interpret
33:35all of that information so they would be looking at that merchant ship yeah and working out whether
33:43it might end up on a collision course yeah absolutely it feels like this ship is staying you know quite
33:51a
33:51quite a distance from her i imagine that you would be right there so we want to give her enough
33:58space
33:59to operate safely right so what we will do is is not uh come any closer than two miles that's
34:05absolutely necessary yeah but if we need to we can be right on top of her in a matter of
34:10minutes
34:10yeah this ship can be very very quickly turned from a general purpose frigate into a submarine hunting
34:16unit and presumably they know that too they do
34:24it's a diplomatic show of strength we're here don't mess around because if you do there'll be trouble
34:35correct
34:46back on the bridge sub lieutenant officer of the watch alex field has been given a delicate task
34:53i think it's a i think it's a yacht
35:0425 year old alex is in charge of tracking the russians through the dover strait
35:10one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world
35:15i know it's famously busy but there are a lot of ships out there there's a lot of shipping and
35:21it's a unique challenge following a russian submarine which is quite low to the waterline
35:28she's not displaying on any identification software so that means no other ships would be
35:35necessarily aware that she's there unless they're specifically looking at their radar they won't
35:40they won't see her right and she'll also be really really small on radar and we're lucky
35:44because we know she's there yeah but a lot of people won't with the russians keeping a low profile
35:51in a busy shipping lane alex must stay in radio contact with other vessels in the area to warn them
35:58about the submarine's presence
36:02hello
36:07yeah of course what was a bearing in range
36:11that's great
36:11thanks for us
36:12cheers
36:21as the transit past dover continues
36:28the wildcat is back from its reconnaissance mission
36:35we've now gathered imagery on the vessel of interest and with help from the squadron of 825
36:41we've been able to get really good imagery as well with my assistant ab mccarthy
36:46having one of moscow's subs on the surface presents a rare opportunity to get some close-up pictures
36:54and here's a really good photo of the conning tower and this time with a third master we can
36:59see up as well as a better shot of that russian ensign and interesting to see that she hasn't got
37:04a
37:05navigational radar up so from initial interaction we can notice she isn't using the navigational radar
37:10which is interesting in such a busy shipping lane yeah so the purpose of these initial photos is that
37:17by gathering these images we can make quite a lot of assumptions for example if they're using their diesel
37:22engines on the surface the chances are they're not going to dive that's really useful information
37:26for us the fact that they're not using a navigational radar again that's really important for us
37:32because we're going through some of the busiest shipping lanes in the world
37:36is this all really useful material long term there's a lot of much more detailed analysis
37:42that we'll do based on these photographs yeah that we can't really discuss on camera sure so the purpose
37:47of these initial images is just to inform what can we learn just by looking at the submarine that will
37:54make our job easier we'll learn what we can yeah this is exactly the right thing to do yeah and
38:00clearly
38:00quite a good photographer yeah indeed good job
38:13whilst the bridge and ops room keep an eye on the russians
38:19below decks for most of the crew their jobs remain unchanged hey shorty hello the only difference
38:27is that this close to a russian submarine mobile phone use is prohibited now that none of us can
38:35have our phones on and there's no communication at all with the outside world is it even more important
38:41to do sort of good food to keep morale up we try our best to give them a boost as
38:47well and how's everybody
38:48in the kitchen doing is everyone okay yeah does it feel weird to know that there is a russian submarine
38:56just
38:57there just there i mean it's a good feeling that we're doing something for the king as well and the
39:06entire
39:06royal navy do you think their food is as good as yours no they ain't definitely not
39:16yeah i'm happy it's drawing right for us is it drawing right for the submarine as well
39:25as hms iron duke begins to emerge from the dover strait and head out of the english channel
39:31she's being met by a group of foreign warships
39:36so suddenly we seem to be kind of surrounded by other vessels are these all friendlies yeah so we're
39:44getting to the north of the dover tss now right um you know to the bit where our responsibility ends
39:50yeah we've got um two belgian uh patrol vessels that have now joined the shadow right and then
39:56we've got a dutch patrol vessel who is going to take it over formally from us
40:00iron duke's nato allies will continue tracking the russians all the way back to st petersburg
40:06they're perfectly placed to take this escort starts to head east up towards the entrance to the baltic
40:16is there symbolism in it i think i think there's probably symbolism for
40:21for the submariners on the russian submarine you know if i was on that submarine that would speak
40:26volumes to me of of a of a group of ships not from the same nation but all singing off
40:32the same
40:32msheet we'll give it a few more minutes and then we'll um bring on a gas turbine and get home
40:48with other nato warships taking over the escorting duty
40:51iron duke can head back to plymouth for some well-earned rnr
40:56our part in this operation is now finished naps sir increase max take us home
41:02about the forecast our buying engaged product
41:04that roaring sound behind me is the gas turbine being turned on
41:14that means the ship is turning away from the submarine and heading home we're waving goodbye to the russians
41:27that's it that's it job done that is it um their priority now is to get the ship's company home
41:34to
41:34their families yeah yeah and i've missed my 17th wedding anniversary so i need i desperately need to
41:39get home and i need a haircut it's been an eventful time on hms iron duke i was only supposed
41:49to be on
41:50board for three days and it ended up being nearly two weeks so this really is luxurious for sure this
41:57is the cream of the crop accommodation i've witnessed a crew receive urgent new orders
42:03to be prepared to intercept the russian submarine as it transits through uk waters survived storm amy
42:15and watched in awe as a nuclear capable russian submarine was hunted down
42:22248 back in association russian killer class up 248
42:27yep now so we've definitely got her throughout this whole experience i've been struck by the
42:32professionalism and camaraderie of the men and women on board
42:37who faced every challenge head on sir these caliber missiles can be land attacked and surface
42:45to surface check the cake book you're full of good news this is an experience that will live with me
43:01forever
43:01wow what a journey i mean welcome to the royal navy thank you i know i mean i seem to
43:08have spent 30
43:08years looking for badges and now i've graduated to being a submarine hunter wow amazing and a massive
43:15thank you to the crew of hms iron duke not just for the job that they did but also for
43:19taking such good
43:20care of your lovely they were amazing thank you all yeah well there's plenty more like that to come
43:28next time kate delves into the top secret world of royal navy submarines we're gonna have
43:35to stop filming for the moment and becomes the first television presenter to be invited on board
43:39a nuclear-powered hunter killer i've been given permission to take you and the team down our
43:46submarine wow our intrepid reporter duane fields uncovers the story of how the royal navy helped
43:54keep britain's hopes alive in world war ii those supply lines were crucial yes britain may have faced
44:01starvation that's it yeah nice and quick and one year after failing the commando endurance test i wasn't
44:07tough enough to get the job done i make my return to the royal marines commando training center to give
44:13it
44:13one last try final straight now final straight all the way to the end all the way to the end
44:17but will
44:18i make it don't even think about missing it see you then bye bye bye
44:43you
44:51you
44:53you
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