20 May 2016 – it has been reported in the Scottish Daily Record newspaper that following the crash of the Egypt Air Flight MS804 near the Greek Island of Karpathos RFA Lyme Bay has been deployed to the area with an RAF aircraft to provide assistance in a search and recovery operation

22 April 2016 – it has been reported in the Daily Echo newspaper that the Prince Edward, the Earl of Wessex KG, GCVO, ADC  Commodore in Chief of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary Service attended a re-dedication of a memorial to those RFA sailors who were killed during the Falklands conflict in 1982 

26 March 2016 – it has been reported in Parliament in a written reply to Sir Nicholas Soames MP by the Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Defence Procurement) – Mr Phillip Dunne MP that –

As announced in the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015, we plan to procure three Fleet Solid Support (FSS) logistic ships to begin entering service from the mid-2020s

26 March 2016 – it has been reported in Parliament in a written reply to Sir Nicholas Soames MP by the Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Defence Procurement) – Mr Phillip Dunne MP that – 

The consideration of options to deliver the capabilities provided by RFA Diligence and RFA Argus remains ongoing

24 March 2016 – it has been reported in Parliament in a written reply to Sir Nicholas Soames MP by the Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) for the Armed Forces – Ms Penny Mordaunt MP that –

As at 22 March 2016 the Order of Battle for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary is as follows:

11 March 2016 – it has been reported in Hansard of a statement by Earl Howe, the Minister of State, Ministry of Defence concerning British actions in the Aegean Sea concerning human trafficing

The Noble Lord said –

The Royal Navy has deployed RFA Mounts Bay and a Wildcat helicopter to support NATO activity in the Aegean Sea. These will work alongside three Home Office vessels: VOS Grace, which has been deployed since November; the cutter Protector, which is en route to the region; and a further cutter that is expected to start operations later this month.

In addition to RFA Mounts Bay, there are five NATO ships on station at the moment. Canada, Germany, Greece, Italy, and Turkey have each deployed a ship.

NATO ships will provide information to enable Greek and Turkish civilian authorities to intercept migrant vessels and arrest traffickers. It is not an interdiction or search and rescue operation, but RFA Mounts Bay would give assistance to any vessel it found in distress, in accordance with international obligations.

With regards to sufficiency, we note the substantial contribution being made by the UK and other members of NATO, but we always look to see what further contributions members of the Alliance can make

9 March 2016 it has been reported in Hansard of a debate in the House of Commons concerning human trafficing in which RFA Mounts Bay was mentioned

Bob Stewart MP said –

Am I right in assuming that the captain of RFA Mounts Bay has rules of interdiction that allow him to report people-smugglers’ vessels going across the straits between Turkey and Greece and to pick up people in distress, but not to stop any such vessels that do not wish to be picked up? If so, will the Minister tell us why that is the case? More to the point, if those rules pertain, what action are the Turkish security forces taking on the eastern seaboard of Turkey, which we are subsidising, to stop people-smugglers’ vessels setting out towards Greece?

David Liddington MP the Minister for Europe said –

10 February 2016 – it has been reported in the Falmouth Packet Newspaper of the actions taken by tugs in Falmouth during Storm Imogen

The Newspaper published –

The Falmouth Towage Company fleet of tugs, assisted by a Fowey tug, went on red alert as Storm Imogen gathered momentum in the Western Approaches.

With wind speeds over 60 knots expected the tugs Morgawr and Ankorva were deployed to push up on RFA ARGUS to keep her pinned to the Duchy wharf whilst the St Piran assisted RFA LYME BAY on Queen’s wharf. 

The three tugs were pushing up for 27 hours continuously as storm force winds battered Cornwall. Both multi-million-pound RFA ships are undergoing repairs prior to being deployed on military operations.

3 February 2016 – it has been reported in Hansard that the Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) for Defence Procurement – Mr Philip Dunne MP – has, by a written reply, in reply to a question by Ms Emily Thornberry MP who was seeking details of which assets in his Department he plans to decommission over the next 12 months

Mr Philip Dunne MP said in his written reply –

The Ministry of Defence manages a wide range of assets to support the UK Armed Forces. A list of equipment due to be decommissioned in the next 12 months is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

However, the following major equipment platforms are planned to be taken out of service in 2016:

Sea King Mk3, 3a, 4 and 5;

RFA Black Rover – Royal Fleet Auxiliary Fleet Support Tanker.

28 January 2016 – it has been reported in Hansard that the Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) for Defence Procurement – Mr Philip Dunne MP – has, by a written reply, in reply to a question by Mr Tim Farron MP seeking details of how much steel by (a) market value and (b) weight has been purchased from each country for the manufacture of the TIDE Class Royal Fleet Auxiliary tankers.

Mr Philip Dunne MP said in his written reply –

Under European and UK procurement regulations, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) could not contractually mandate the use of particular suppliers. Decisions on the source of steel are a matter for the contractors who take into account the cost, timeliness of availability and the quality of steel used in defence contracts. These considerations allow defence contractors to deliver value for money for the taxpayer.

The Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability contract to build the four Tide Class tankers was awarded to Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering in March 2012. Although UK companies participated in the competition to supply the vessels, none submitted a final bid.

In January 2015, the MOD awarded a contract worth approximately £15 million to A&P Group Ltd in the UK for the provision of UK customisation, Capability Assessment Trials and Support for all four tankers. The work will be managed by A&P Group Ltd’s Falmouth shipyard.

Manufacture of the four Tide Class tankers will in total require 44,000 tonnes of steel. Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering source this steel locally in South Korea. The market value of steel depends upon a number of factors, including geographical location and quality. The MOD does not hold information from which the market value of the steel used in the manufacture of the Tide Class tankers could be determined.

19 January 2016 – it has been reported by the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in a statement that Lieutenant-General Edward Davis CB CBE arrived in Gibraltar today onboard RFA MOUNTS BAY. Following a short welcome ceremony and 17-gun salute from the Royal Gibraltar Regiment, Lieutenant-General Davis took the oaths of allegiance and Execution of Office at a swearing-in ceremony at the Gibraltar Parliament

14 January 2016 – it has been reported in Hansard that the Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) for the Armed Forces – Ms Penny Mordaunt – has, by a written reply, in reply to a question by John Spellar MP advised that – “Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships, as well as Short Term Training Teams (STTTs), work episodically to assist in building the capacity of maritime forces in West Africa in order that they may mitigate a range of security threats, including piracy. In 2015 HMS DRAGON, HMS LANCASTER and RFA GOLD ROVER delivered capacity-building training to maritime forces in Angola, Benin, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Mauritania, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Togo. In partnership with US maritime forces, STTTs conducted training in Angola, Cameroon, Gabon and Ghana while bilateral training was delivered in Mauritania, Morocco and Nigeria. In 2016/17 there are plans for RFA GOLD ROVER and HMS PORTLAND to continue these capacity building efforts and for an STTT to return to Nigeria”

12 January 2016 – it has been reported in Hansard that the Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) for the Armed Forces – Ms Penny Mordaunt – has, by a written reply, in reply to a question by John Spellar MP advised that – “The Royal Fleet Auxiliary will continue to provide front line logistical support that is scaled to meet our current and projected commitments. In addition, a shipbuilding programme is under way to deliver four TIDE Class tankers as well three new Future Solid Support Ships announced in the Strategic Defence and Security Review 2015″

21 December 2015 it has been reported in a statement issued by the British Embassy in Havana, Cuba that – on 30th November, the United Kingdom hosted a multi-national Disaster Management Workshop on board a visiting UK ship – RFA LYME BAY, captained by Kim Watts. RFA LYME BAY was berthed in Havana Cruise Ship Terminal from 27 November to 1 December.

The workshop brought together representatives from the UK, including the Defence Advisor to the Caribbean Patrick Brown, and the British Consul Jane Atkinson; from Cuba (Ministry for Transport, Ministry for the Armed Forces, the Navy, and from Civil Defence); and observers from Canada, the United States, and Russia.

Officers from RFA LYME BAY discussed their recent humanitarian and disaster relief work in Dominica, following Tropical Storm Erika, and in the Bahamas following Hurricane Joaquin. The workshop then went into a detailed discussion about possible disaster scenarios in the Caribbean, and possible responses

10 December 2015 it has been reported in Hansard that the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Defence) – Mr Julian Brazier – has, by a written reply, to a question by Ian Mearns MP, advised that –

“The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) started an Apprentice scheme with Ratings in 2015 and so far 50 apprentices have started training.

The numbers of Officer Cadets the RFA has trained in each year since 2009-10 are as follows: