DIAMOND Home – The Type 45 Destroyer DIAMOND has returned home to Portsmouth from a maiden deployment “East of Suez” in time for Christmas (2012), the last returnee before the festive season.   The DIAMOND clocked up more than 31,000 miles on security and counter-piracy patrols in the Indian Ocean, Gulf of Oman and Gulf.   During the deployment, apart from being a sea the DIAMOND visited Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman and the United Arab Emirates, as well as Gibraltar and Crete plus the cities of Athens and Barcelona.

The embarked 208 Flight/815 Naval Air Squadron (LYNX HMA8) had flown home to Yeovilton the day before the ship docked.   The flight comprised two aircrew, eight maintainers, a controller and two Royal Marines commandos to support their comrades in the DIAMOND’s sea boats.    The LYNX made well over 100 sorties during the six month deployment.