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Home» News»Royal Navy’s Icebreaker HMS Protector begins major revamp

Royal Navy’s Icebreaker HMS Protector begins major revamp

The Royal Navy’s only icebreaker HMS Protector is undergoing a major overhaul on Teesside – including preparing the ship to carry unmanned survey devices.

Martin Manaranche 26 May 2020

Royal Navy press release

The distinctive Plymouth-based scientific vessel spends the austral summer – winter back in the UK – charting the waters around the frozen continent and working side-by-side with the British Antarctic Survey to gather information on the southern ocean, ice and sea levels and the region’s unique wildlife. 

Given the unforgiving nature of the Antarctic environment, Protector undergoes maintenance every time she returns from the southern ocean.

And every five years she is subjected to ‘deep maintenance’ – a particularly thorough revamp which will prepare the vessel for the long term, in this case until the middle of the decade.

The advanced icebreaker, which provides a UK presence in the Antarctic and meets treaty obligations on inspections, hydrographical charting and in support of scientific research, is to be equipped with a specially-enhanced PLR-5000 davit from Vestdavit.

So over the summer, shipwrights and engineers at UK Docks are working above and below the waterline, overhauling Protector from bow to stern, topmast to keel.

Her 60-tonne crane – which has repeatedly proven its worth in loading/offloading supplies and equipment in remote locations with no port facilities – and flight deck have already been removed for major servicing and, with the dry dock emptied, extensive work is taking place on the hull; moving at four knots, the 5,000-tonne vessel can cut through ice half a metre thick.

–End–

HMS Protector Icebreaker Royal Navy UK 2020-05-26
Tags HMS Protector Icebreaker Royal Navy UK
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Authors

Posted by : Martin Manaranche
Martin Manaranche is based in Brittany, France. He is currently studying International Relations at Lyon III university. Martin conducted an internship at the French Navy's Ecole Navale in Brest and is therefore particularly fond of naval defense issues.

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