HMS Dragon has made a brief stopover in Malta – the first Type 45 destroyer to visit the Mediterranean island.
She arrived on a rainy Armistice Day to take on stores before continuing with her journey back to the UK.
While on the island the ship’s company took the opportunity to attend a Remembrance Day event at the Upper Barrakka Saluting Battery overlooking the Grand Harbour.
Dragon’s Commanding Officer, Captain Iain Lower, said:
“It is a privilege to be able to visit Malta, and especially to take part in an act of Remembrance alongside the Maltese and the numerous Naval associations that are still on the island.”
For one member of the ship’s company the visit was especially poignant as Dragon’s Logistics Officer, Lt Cdr Andy Bray, is half Maltese and spent time growing up on the island.
He said, “I spent many happy times in Malta as a child and this was usually on holiday in my grandmother’s flat in St Pauls.
“I think my mother, who is Maltese, will be most jealous that I have sailed into Valletta – something I know she has always wanted to do. It is great to be back and especially at this time of Remembrance.”
HMS Dragon is due home in Portsmouth later this month.
[mappress] Press Release, November 15, 2013; Image: Royal Navy