Gibraltar Squadron

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Cutlass class at a glance

40 knots

Top speed

6 crew

On board

6 personnel

Capacity

19 metres

Overall length

What are we doing?

The two Fast Patrol Boats of the Royal Navy's Gibraltar Squadron, HMS Cutlass and her sister ship HMS Dagger, watch over Gibraltar's shores and support ships in the Strait of Gibraltar.

The two boats, along with three Pacific Rigid Inflatable Boats, also support British exercises and operations in the area, conducting maritime security patrols and providing force protection to visiting coalition warships.

For two weeks every summer, the squadron also plays host to students from the various University Royal Naval Units, giving potential officers a taste of life on a front-line squadron.

Why are we there?

There has been a British Armed Forces presence in Gibraltar for more than a hundred years. With its rocky terrain and Mediterranean climate, the island is used primarily for training purposes and as a stopover for ships and aircraft on their way to or from Africa or the Middle East.

Gibraltar has been a British Overseas Territory since 1704, when the island was captured by the British fleet during the War of the Spanish Succession. And, despite two referendum results in favour of British rule, the island has been subject to an ongoing sovereignty claim from Spain ever since.

Gibraltar Squadron’s mission is to uphold the security of British Gibraltar Territorial Waters and to protect any British, NATO and allied ships that pass through them.