Page 33 - The Constructor A5V24 V1

Our Military Affiliations

personnel, as well as taking part in joint exercises, sporting events and outreach projects. Since
being in the South Atlantic, LANCASTER has been providing a constant deterrent and taking part in
tri-service exercises by providing Naval Gunfire Support to troops on the ground, as well as visiting
various settlements and conducting ceremonies to remember those who fell in The Falklands
Conflict.
Since sailing, LANCASTER has travelled over 16,000 nautical miles, navigated through the Panama
Canal, the Magellan Straits and the Mississippi River, with a further 12,000 nautical miles, thirteen
port visits and twelve different countries still to be seen.
The highlight for many of the Ship’s Company was Fleet Week in New Orleans, where LANCASTER
joined three US warships, a US Coastguard vessel and a Canadian warship to celebrate the
longstanding naval tradition of city. During the week LANCASTER offered public tours of the Ship as
well as many other engagements including; sports fixtures and community outreach projects, where
members of the Ship’s Company assisted in the on-going recovery from Hurricane Katrina.
The Ship also produced one of the iconic pictures for the birth of the Royal Baby - Princess Charlotte.
It was no mean feat to take the photo, involving half the Ship’s Company, careful planning, and the
Wildcat helicopter used to take the picture.

© Crown Copyright by kind permission of MOD
So far the deployment has been a successful, rewarding, challenging and overall enjoyable one for
all two hundred sailors and marines on board HMS LANCASTER, which returns to Portsmouth in
December this year.
The Commanding Officer of HMS Lancaster told The Constructor “We continue to be extremely proud
of our affiliation with the Worshipful Company of Constructors and it was a real privilege to be able
to take you to sea last year. We hope to build on our already close ties on return from our
deployment.
Opportunities for our sailors to take part in events with you are very much sought after and, in
particular, the Constructors Prize is highly contested and a great motivational tool. Those who have
won it have thoroughly appreciated it, enjoying the experience from start to finish and have
emphatically raved about the dinner. The remainder of the Ship’s Company have doubled down on
their efforts to be considered for it, resulting in a boost to the Ship’s output.
The reciprocally beneficial nature of our relationship is a fundamental tenet of a successful affiliation
and, I believe, what makes our alliance special.”

Autumn 2015 | The Journal of the Worshipful Company of Constructors | 33