With the soaring heights of Rio’s hills above her, HMS Ocean is dwarfed as she makes her way into Brazil’s most famous city on the next stage of her intercontinental tour. The Royal Navy’s largest warship arrived under cloudy skies on Thursday, where many crew members got their first view of Sugarloaf Mountain and the iconic statue of Christ the Redeemer.
The crew of the helicopter and Royal Marine Commando carrier enjoyed the harbour before heading off today for an amphibious exercise. First on the military schedule are beach landings and other amphibious serials 50 miles down the coast as part of a joint exercise between the ship and Royal Marines and the Brazilian Marines.
The military tasks are followed by diplomatic engagements including the signing of a political agreement between the two countries on their navies continuing to work together. G erald Howarth, the British Minister for International Security Strategy, will sign the agreement on behalf of the British Government.
The ship’s photographer Leading Airman (Phot) Guy Pool was able to capture his ship against the famous Rio landmarks. He said: “Nine years ago I came into Rio with HMS Endurance and stood in for the ship’s photographer. This time I had the full training and it was an excellent opportunity to take the pictures for HMS Ocean.”
The ship’s wide ranging major deployment has so far included the largest exercise in many years with the US Navy and most recently a counter narcotics patrol of the Caribbean. The ship will spend the next week in Brazil.
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