HMS Sutherland is a Type 23

Type 23 frigate

The Type 23 frigate is a class of frigate built for the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. All the ships were first named after British Dukes, thus the class is also known as the Duke class. The first Type 23 was commissioned in 1989, and the sixteenth, was launched in May 2000 and commissioned in...

 frigate

Frigate

A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

 of the British Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

. She is the thirteenth ship in the Duke class of frigates and is the third ship to bear the name, more than 200 years since the name was last used.

She was launched in 1996 by Lady Christina Walmsley, wife of Sir Robert Walmsley KCB

Robert Walmsley

Admiral Sir Robert Walmsley KCB was Chief of Defence Procurement at the UK Ministry of Defence from 1996 to 2003, and is a retired admiral in the Royal Navy.-Early career:...

. Before this occasion, Royal Navy ships had always been launched with a bottle of champagne, but Lady Walmsley broke with tradition and used a bottle of Macallan Whiskey

The Macallan

The Macallan is a brand of single malt Scotch whisky first distilled in 1824 at The Macallan Distillery near Easter Elchies House, at Craigellachie, in Moray...

.

There is a keen golf

Golf

Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

ing community on-board, and the crew sometimes use the facilities of their affiliate golf course

Golf course

A golf course comprises a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, fairway, rough and other hazards, and a green with a flagstick and cup, all designed for the game of golf. A standard round of golf consists of playing 18 holes, thus most golf courses have this number of holes...

 in the Royal Burgh of Dornoch

Dornoch

Dornoch is a town and seaside resort, and former Royal burgh in the Highlands of Scotland. It lies on the north shore of the Dornoch Firth, near to where it opens into the Moray Firth to the east...

.

Operational history

She was deployed to the Falkland Islands

Falkland Islands

The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...

 in the winter 1998/1999. In 2000, she was part of the task force NTG2000, the first time Royal Navy ships have circumnavigated the globe since 1986. In December 2007, major upgrades worth ₤35 million were announced making Sutherland the "most powerful frigate in the fleet". The upgrades included Sonar 2087, an upgrade to Seawolf, an improvement to the 4.5 inch gun to allow it to fire long-range ammunition, and a reshaped stern to cut fuel use.

She was due to be given the freedom of the county of Sutherland but had her visit cut short, with "operational commitments" as the given reason. This was eventually revealed as her deployment as part of the UK Response Force Task Group

Response Force Task Group

The Response Force Task Group is a new initiative announced in the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review and is the heart of the UK’s maritime contingent capability, held at very high readiness to respond to unexpected global events...

's (RFTG) first deployment, named COUGAR' 11.

In May 2011, she made a port visit to Patras

Patras

Patras , ) is Greece's third largest urban area and the regional capital of West Greece, located in northern Peloponnese, 215 kilometers west of Athens...

, Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

 following participation in exercises off Crete

Crete

Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...

, after which she became involved in the operations

2011 military intervention in Libya

On 19 March 2011, a multi-state coalition began a military intervention in Libya to implement United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973, which was taken in response to events during the 2011 Libyan civil war...

 off the Libyan coast.

On 16 June 2011, Sutherland visited Souda Bay

Souda Bay

Souda Bay is a bay and natural harbour on the northwest coast of the Greek island of Crete. The bay is about 15 km long and only two to four km wide, and a deep natural harbour. It is formed between the Akrotiri peninsula and Cape Drapano, and runs west to east...

 in Crete to commerorate the 70th anniversay of the Battle of Crete

Battle of Crete

The Battle of Crete was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the code-name Unternehmen Merkur...

, before sailing to Kalamata

Kalamata

Kalamata is the second-largest city of the Peloponnese in southern Greece. The capital and chief port of the Messenia prefecture, it lies along the Nedon River at the head of the Messenian Gulf...

 in Greece

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

 to conduct further World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 memorials.

On 24th July 2011 HMS Sutherland returned to the coast of Libya as part of Operation Ellamy

Operation Ellamy

Operation Ellamy was the codename for the United Kingdom participation in the 2011 military intervention in Libya. The operation was part of an international coalition aimed at enforcing a Libyan no-fly zone in accordance with the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 which stipulated...

.

On the 18 October 2011 HMS Sutherland passed through Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, England, over the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, from which it takes its name...

 in London and docked next to HMS Belfast

HMS Belfast (C35)

HMS Belfast is a museum ship, originally a Royal Navy light cruiser, permanently moored in London on the River Thames and operated by the Imperial War Museum....

, returning back through the bridge on 22 October 2011.

Affiliations

• The Highlanders
  The Highlanders (Seaforth, Gordons and Camerons)
  The Highlanders, 4th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland.Prior to 28 March 2006, the Highlanders was an infantry regiment in its own right; The Highlanders , part of the Scottish Division...
  
  , 4th Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland
• County of Sutherland
• Honourable Company of Master Mariners, Livery
• Sherborne School, CCF
• Clifton College, Bristol CCF's
  Clifton College
  Clifton College is a co-educational independent school in Clifton, Bristol, England, founded in 1862. In its early years it was notable for emphasising science in the curriculum, and for being less concerned with social elitism, e.g. by admitting day-boys on equal terms and providing a dedicated...
  
  
• TS Grenville, Paisley (Sea Cadets)
• TS Duchess, Biggleswade (Sea Cadets)
• The Royal Dornoch Golf Club