So, correct me if im wrong but what you're saying is, Triumph shot 6 over 6 days and then took a week or so to return to Plymouth to reload?
Delighted to oblige.
As any
well-informed poster would know, Trafalgar could have reloaded at any NATO naval base in the Med. She returned to Plymouth for maintenance and leave after completing her deployment which would mainly have involved stooging off the Libyan coast monitoring shipping activity and gathering INT. She probably had TLAMs to spare but only launched what was ordered.
Trafalgar Class SSNs can carry up to 30 TLAMs/torpedoes while the new
Astute Class can carry up to 38.
Don't smirk too much. Unlike some forces personnel who spend 16 months out of 20 sitting at their base in the UK (see RAF Harmony Guidelines below) and deploy to places like RAF Club Med in Italy, RN submariners (and other Naval Service personnel (RN including FAA & RM)) deploy on operations for much longer. Indeed, one submarine only recently returned from over 10 months (307 days to be precise) away from home (
MoD website link):
Service Harmony Guidelines comprise:
- Royal Navy and Royal Marines – 60 per cent deployed and 40 per cent at base in a 3-year cycle with no more than 660 days away from home over a rolling 3-year period
- Army – 6 months on operations in every 30-month period with separated service no more than 415 days away over a rolling 30-month period.
- RAF – 4 months on operations in a 20-month period with separated service no more than 280 days over a rolling 24-month period.