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MoD asks for American help in searching for Russian submarines near Scotland MoD asks for American help in searching for Russian submarine near Scotland
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The Ministry of Defence has been forced to request US military assistance for the second time in six weeks to track a suspected Russian submarine off the coast of Scotland. The Ministry of Defence has been forced to request US military assistance to track a suspected Russian submarine off the coast of Scotland.
Anti-submarine patrol activity has been on-going off the coast of Scotland for the past week after the MoD called in two US Navy P3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft to fill what defence experts have labelled the “gaping chasm” in Britain’s anti-submarine capability that emerged after the scrapping of Britain’s Nimrod patrol aircraft fleet in 2010. Two US Navy aircraft have been conducting anti-submarine patrols in the North Atlantic Ocean this week on the trail of a Russian vessel in the area. A Royal Navy anti-submarine frigate has also been dispatched.
The US Navy aircraft are searching for a suspected Russian submarine in transit from Russia and co-operating with a Royal Navy anti-submarine frigate that has been dispatched to the area. It is believed that the Russian submarine’s presence could be linked to the recent reported departure of one of the Royal Navy’s Vanguard missile submarines from the Faslane naval base on the west coast of Scotland. Vanguard submarines carry Britain’s Trident nuclear deterrent.
Defence sources said that “visits” from Russian submarines were “happening quite often” off the north and west coasts of Scotland, but the most recent alert has raised concerns after it emerged the search coincided with the reported departure from Faslane naval base of one of the Royal Navy’s four Vanguard missile submarines carrying Britain’s Trident nuclear deterrent. The US planes - two P3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft - were called in to fill what defence experts have described as a “gapping chasm” in Britain’s anti-submarine capability following the scrapping of the Nimrod patrol aircraft fleet in 2010.
The SNP defence spokesperson Angus Robertson MP said the US Navy’s deployment of two aircraft showed that Britain had resorted to going to its allies with a “begging bowl”, while defence analysts said it created question over the UK’s ability to adequately protect its nuclear deterrent. SNP defence spokesman Angus Robertson MP said the US Navy’s deployment of two aircraft showed that Britain had resorted to going to its allies with a “begging bowl”, while defence analysts said it created question over the UK’s ability to adequately protect its nuclear deterrent.
This week’s operation follows a deployment by maritime patrol aircraft from Canada, France and the US last month, which was first revealed in Aviation Week. On this occasion there were suggested the a suspected Russian submarine may have been trying to track one of the UK’s Vanguard submarines after “unknown submarine periscope” was spotted by a fishing trawler close to the Faslane base on the Clyde. Defence sources said that “visits” from Russian submarines were “happening quite often” off the north and west coasts of Scotland. 
During this week’s search the US patrol aircraft have been cooperating with Royal Navy anti-submarine frigate HMS Somerset which has been operating off Scotland since early December. According to aviation photographer at RAF Lossiemouth the US aircraft, which are known as the Skinny Dragons and are usually based in Hawaii, have been flying up to two missions per day since New Year’s Eve. This week’s operation follows a deployment by maritime patrol aircraft from Canada, France and the U.S last month, which was first revealed in Aviation Week.
On that occasion there were suggested the a suspected Russian submarine may have been trying to track one of the UK’s Vanguard submarines after “unknown submarine periscope” was spotted by a fishing trawler close to the Faslane base on the Clyde.
During this week’s search the US patrol aircraft have been co-operating with Royal Navy anti-submarine frigate HMS Somerset which has been operating off Scotland since early December.
According to aviation photographer at RAF Lossiemouth the US aircraft, which are known as Skinny Dragons and are usually based in Hawaii, have been flying up to two missions per day since New Year’s Eve.
Peter Roberts, a senior fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said: “HMS Somerset is a capable platform and I’ve got no doubt her deployment alongside these US Navy aircraft is related to the reported departure of a Royal Navy Vanguard ballistic missile submarine from Faslane and the countering of any Russian deployment from over the horizon.”Peter Roberts, a senior fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, said: “HMS Somerset is a capable platform and I’ve got no doubt her deployment alongside these US Navy aircraft is related to the reported departure of a Royal Navy Vanguard ballistic missile submarine from Faslane and the countering of any Russian deployment from over the horizon.”
Jeffrey Lewis, a nuclear policy expert with the Monterey Institute of International Studies, said: “I would put my money on it being a Russian attack submarine with cruise missiles on a patrol taking it past Britain and into the north Atlantic and on the US eastern seaboard.” Jeffrey Lewis, a nuclear policy expert with the Monterey Institute of International Studies, said: “I would put my money on it being a Russian attack submarine with cruise missiles on a patrol taking it past Britain and into the north Atlantic and on the US eastern seaboard.” He added: “The Russians are trying to threaten NATO and NATO is threatening them right back by showing that we can shadow them and that if they tried this for real we would be able to kill them.”
He added: “Perfecting anti-submarine warfare requires constant practise, so it is no surprise at all that we are seeing more US submarine-hunting aircraft locating to where there are clearly more Russian submarines to shadow. The Russians are trying to threaten NATO and NATO is threatening them right back by showing that we can shadow them and that if they tried this for real we would be able to kill them.” However the US Navy intervention has led to questions over the UK’s ability to screen its nuclear deterrent since the scrapping of the Royal Navy Nimrod fleet. Mr Roberts said: “MoD chiefs have been scratching their heads ever since Nimrod was scrapped in a highly political decision. It has left a gapping chasm in the UK’s capabilities and left us highly dependent on co-operation from our Allies.”
However the US Navy intervention has led to questions over the UK’s ability to screen its nuclear deterrent since the scrapping of the Royal Navy Nimrod fleet in 2010. Mr Roberts said the controversial £200m cost-cutting measure had placed the UK’s nuclear deterrent at “a higher level of risk” as it enters and exits Faslane naval base. The scrapped Nimrod MRA4s were due to replace Britain’s ageing maritime patrol fleet - with a main job of ensuring no foreign submarines could track the Vanguards as they came in and out of their base at Faslane. They were scrapped despite a National Audit Commission ruling that the loss of the aircraft would have “an adverse effect on the protection of the strategic nuclear deterrent, the provision of which is one of the Ministry of Defence’s standing strategic tasks”.
He said: “MoD chiefs have been scratching their heads ever since Nimrod was scrapped in a highly political decision. It has left a gapping chasm in the UK’s capabilities and left us highly dependent on co-operation from our Allies.” A spokesperson for the MoD said, “We can confirm that the UK recently requested assistance from allied forces for basing of maritime patrol aircraft at RAF Lossiemouth for a limited period. The aircraft have been conducting maritime patrol activity with the Royal Navy; we do not discuss the detail of maritime operations”.
The scrapped Nimrod MRA4s were due to replace Britain’s ageing maritime patrol fleet in the role of ensuring no foreign submarines could track the Vanguards as they came in and out of their base at Faslane, however they were destroyed despite a National Audit Commission ruling that the loss of the aircraft would have “an adverse effect on the protection of the strategic nuclear deterrent, the provision of which is one of the Ministry of Defence’s standing strategic tasks”. The spokesman added: “Tough decisions had to be taken in order to rebalance the Defence budget, which included removing the Nimrod MR2 from service. However, maritime surveillance is provided through a combination of layered capabilities including surface ships, submarines, and air assets such as the RAF Hercules which searched for the missing yacht Cheeki Rafiki in May. The UK continues to work closely with its NATO allies in the operation of Maritime Patrol Aircraft.”
The Cold War-style cat and mouse hunt off Scotland this week follows a rise in tensions over the Ukraine crisis and a dramatic rise in the number of incidents of Russian fighter jets carrying out flights in European airspace to test Nato response times.
Russia has also recently announced new military spending on bases in the Arctic as well as plans for advanced cruise missile technology and new attack submarines, which are both of rising concern to US defence establishment  according to Mr Lewis. He said it was “no accident” that Russian submarines bound patrols in the Atlantic and off the American coast transited past Scotland and the nuclear base at Faslane “where they know Nato submarines, including British ballistic submarines, are going to be.”
A spokesperson for the MoD said, “We can confirm that the UK recently requested assistance from allied forces for basing of maritime patrol aircraft at RAF Lossiemouth for a limited period.  The aircraft have been conducting maritime patrol activity with the Royal Navy; we do not discuss the detail of maritime operations”
A spokesperson for the US Navy confirmed that two P3 Orion submarine hunter aircraft are currently operating from RAF Lossiemouth, but refused to be drawn over the nature or length of the deployment.