Submarine HMS Vengeance Returns to Scotland After Record 217-Day Patrol
HMS Vengeance has returned to the Faslane naval base in Scotland after a record seven-month deployment carrying Britain's Trident nuclear missiles, according to The Guardian.
The submarine began its patrol on 12 April and spent 217 days underwater before coming back to port. That tour is longer than the 205-day record set by HMS Vanguard, the previous holder of the mark for the longest Trident patrol.
Trident is the name of Britain's nuclear weapons system. Its missiles are carried by four submarines, and Vengeance is one of them. Each boat spends long periods at sea, which is why the length of a patrol matters to the navy and the crews who serve on board.
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting greeted the crew at Faslane when the submarine arrived. He was accompanied by First Secretary of State Lou Haigh.
The Vanguard-class submarines, which entered service in the 1990s, were designed to carry three to four months of food for a crew of about 140. Vengeance's patrol lasted 217 days, or just over seven months, a new record for a Trident tour.
