Royal Navy patrol craft intercepted a Russian missile submarine as it prowled waters just a few miles off Britain
A ROYAL Navy patrol craft has intercepted a Russian missile submarine prowling the English Channel.
HMS Tyne has also been stalking a group of Russian warships which had been lurking in the Moray Firth.
The Navy today confirmed it had intercepted the vessels during a mission which fell under “Defence Task One” – launched to protect the territorial integrity of Britain.
HMS Tyne, which is lightly armed with a single 20mm weapon and two machine guns, successfully monitored the vessels which had spent a number of days in the Moray Firth.
Spy ship Viktor Leonov and her support vessel Sergey Osipov were spotted less than 30 miles from RAF Lossiemouth, home of the UK’s fleet of P-8 Poseidon maritime spy planes.
The Navy said the Viktor Leonov was “an intelligence gathering vessel”.
SPY SHIPS
She was bristling with antennae and hi-tech radar sensors capable of tracking planes, intercepting signals, including mobile phones.
The mission comes just weeks after HMS Tyne shadowed a surfaced Russian submarine sailing through the English Channel.
The Navy did not name the submarine but it is understood it was sailing from the eastern Mediterranean to its base in the Baltic.
Kilo-class submarines have been supporting Russian operations in Syria.
The Viktor Leonov, a Vishnya-class spy ship, spotted last week in the North Sea, is armed with cannons, guns and ship to air missiles.
The Navy said the 300ft Viktor Leonov was sheltering from Storm Aidan which battered the UK last week with winds of up to 79mph.
In a statement, it added: “Patrol ship HMS Tyne has been monitoring the actions of intelligence-gathering vessel Viktor Leonov and her supporting tanker Sergey Osipov which have been sailing around the Moray Firth.
“In that role she has been observing the Russian vessels as they sheltered from Storm Aiden and carried out replenishment operations, before the Osipov left UK waters.”
Patrol ship HMS Tyne has been monitoring the actions of intelligence-gathering vessel Viktor Leonov and her supporting tanker Sergey Osipov which have been sailing around the Moray Firth."
Royal Navy
The Navy did not say if the spy ship had left as well.
Lieutenant Justin Shirtcliff, HMS Tyne’s operations officer, said: “It was apparent these two ships were making use of the shelter from the high winds and inclement seas of Storm Aiden, and Tyne remained close by to monitor their activity.”
It was the third time in a month that HMS Tyne, a river-class offshore patrol vessel, has shadowed foreign warships in home waters, the Navy said.
HMS Tyne also monitored a group of Russian warships including corvette Vasily Bykov, a Kilo-class submarine and an ocean going tug, which sails alongside in case they break down.
The Portuguese frigate NRP Corte Real worked with HMS Tyne as part of Nato maritime taskforce.
The Navy added: “Having handed over monitoring duties to the UK’s allies, Tyne headed south to observe another Russian unit, the Smolny, a cadet training ship, as it transited through UK waters.
INTERCEPTED
“In addition to monitoring duties, Tyne has also conducted her regular duties safeguarding the UK’s fishing stock by checking hauls of vessels encountered off the east coast of the UK.”
Navy chiefs have warned that Russian naval activity is at its highest level since the end of the Cold War.
A Naval source said: "They are in international waters and they are allowed to be there but we kept a very close eye on them."
WHAT IS THE VISHNYA-CLASS SPY SHIP?
- The Vishnya Class ship is one of the Russian navy's outstanding intelligence gathering vessels.
- There are seven active ships and two in Russia's Northern Fleet of Vishnya ships - which are likely to be these two.
- Radars on the ships can monitor take-off and landing of the P8 Poseidon fleet, which scan the seas around Britain for signs of Russian submarines.
- RAF Lossiemouth contains considerable UK military assets - including the new Poseidon MRA1 maritime patrol aircraft as well as four squadrons of Typhoon FGR4 fighters.
- The spy ships are reminiscent of Soviet ‘fishing trawlers’ which used to operate off Scotland during the Cold War, as part of the KGB’s extensive espionage operations.
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In August the RAF scrambled a Poseidon spy plane to track the Vasily Bykov, which is armed with torpedoes, Kalibr-NK anti-ship missiles and Buk Anti-Aircraft missiles.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Last year, The Sun reported that the Royal Navy had tripled its interceptions of Russian warships in UK waters amid rising tensions with Vladimir Putin.
British ships headed out 31 times in 2018 to track Moscow’s vessels but just 11 times in 2014 to combat “bully” Putin’s “sabre-rattling”.
