{{Short description|Ongoing peacetime deployment of the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force}} {{use British English|date=September 2017}} {{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}} {{Infobox military conflict | conflict = | partof = | image = | caption = | date = | place = Persian Gulf & Indian Ocean | status = Ongoing | combatant1 = {{flagicon|United Kingdom}} United Kingdom | combatant2 = | commander1 = {{flagicon|United Kingdom}} Keir Starmer<br />{{flagicon|United Kingdom}} John Healey<br />{{flagicon|United Kingdom|naval}} Commodore Adrian C Fryer (as UK Maritime Component Commander)<ref>{{cite web |title=Operation Kipion |url=https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-latest-activity/operations/red-sea-and-gulf/operation-kipion |website=royalnavy.mod.uk |access-date=10 October 2022}}</ref> {{flagicon|United Kingdom|raf}} Air Commodore Nikki Thomas OBE (as UK Air Component Commander) | commander2 = | strength1 = | strength2 = | casualties1 = | casualties2 = }}
'''Operation Kipion''' has been a long-standing air and maritime presence by the United Kingdom in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean to promote enduring peace and stability in the region, and ensure the safe flow of oil and trade. Up until the early 2020s, a permanent presence of 4 minesweepers formed the '''Mine Countermeasures''' element (9 Mine Countermeasures Squadron) of this tasking. With the return of all crewed minehunters to the U.K., and their planned eventual replacement with autonomous minehunting systems, the configuration of 9 Mine Countermeasures Squadron had been expected to change. Nevertheless, as of the end of 2025, it was reported that both remaining minehunters in the Gulf would be withdrawn; a move completed with the withdrawal of HMS ''Middleton'' in early 2026. Whether they would be replaced with autonomous capabilities in the near-term was unclear.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.navylookout.com/royal-navy-mine-warfare-update-hms-bangor-extended-in-service-for-5-years/|title=Royal Navy mine warfare update – HMS Bangor extended in service for 5 years |date=21 November 2021 |website=Navy Lookout |access-date=21 November 2025 }}</ref>
The Royal Air Force operations in the broader Middle East have also fallen under this operation.<ref>{{cite web |title=Background quality report for the biannual UK Armed Forces and UK entitled civilian operational casualty and fatality statistics |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-armed-forces-and-uk-civilian-operational-casualty-and-fatality-statistics-background-quality-report/background-quality-report-for-the-biannual-uk-armed-forces-and-uk-entitled-civilian-operational-casualty-and-fatality-statistics |website=GOV.UK |access-date=2 September 2020}}</ref>
==Royal Navy==
Historical:
* {{HMS|Daring|D32|6}} with a AgustaWestland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (September 2016 - April 2017) * {{HMS|Dauntless|D33|6}} with a Westland Lynx HMA.8 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (January 2015 - June 2015) * {{HMS|Dragon|D35|6}} with a AgustaWestland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (September 2018 - April 2019) * {{HMS|Defender|D36|6}} with a Westland Lynx HMA.8 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (October 2014 - December 2014) and (December 2015 and July 2016). With a AgustaWestland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (August 2019 - March 2020) * {{HMS|Duncan|D37|6}} with a Westland Lynx HMA.8 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (March 2015 - December 2015).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-latest-activity/news/2015/september/22/150921-duncan-hosts-qatar-armed-forces|title=HMS Duncan hosts Qatar's Armed Forces|publisher=Royal Navy|access-date=27 October 2015}}</ref> With a AgustaWestland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (July 2019 - August 2019) * {{HMS|Monmouth|F235|6}} with a AgustaWestland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (March 2017 - December 2017) * {{HMS|Kent|F78|6}} with a AgustaWestland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (August 2019 - December 2019) * {{ship|RFA|Wave Knight|A389|6}} with a AgustaWestland Wildcat AH1 from 847 Naval Air Squadron (847 NAS) on board - (August 2019 - February 2020) * {{HMS|Argyll|F231|6}} with a AgustaWestland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (March 2020 - September 2020) * {{ship|RFA|Cardigan Bay|L3009|6}} <ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|date=April 2018|title=Naval Deployments|journal=Navy News}}</ref> with a Westland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (June 2017 - May 2021) * {{HMS|Montrose|F236|6}} with a AgustaWestland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (April 2019 – November 2022) * {{ship|RFA|Lyme Bay|L3007|6}} (May 2021 – April 2022) * {{HMS|Diamond|D34|6}} with a AgustaWestland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (November 2023 – June 2024)<ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-11-30 |title=Royal Navy sends second warship to Gulf |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-67572536 |access-date=2023-11-30}}</ref> * {{ship|RFA|Cardigan Bay|L3009|6}} (June 2022 – April 2024)<ref>{{Cite Twitter profile|rfacardiganbay}}</ref> *{{HMS|Chiddingfold|M37|6}} (mid-2020 - early-2025)<ref name=":1">{{cite news|date=24 December 2021|title=Kipion|work=Navy Lookout|url=https://twitter.com/NavyLookout/status/1474347879854661632|access-date=11 January 2022}}</ref> * {{HMS|Lancaster|F229|6}} with a AgustaWestland Wildcat HMA2 from 815 Naval Air Squadron (815 NAS) on board - (December 2022 – December 2025)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.navylookout.com/hms-lancaster-to-be-decomissioned-in-bahrain/|title=HMS Lancaster to be decommissioned in Bahrain |date=5 December 2025 |website=Navy Lookout |access-date=5 December 2025 }}</ref> * HMS Bangor (mid-2021 - 2025; damaged by collision, January 2024 and effectively out of service; returned to the U.K. for refit as of end 2025)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.navylookout.com/royal-navy-mine-warfare-update-hms-bangor-extended-in-service-for-5-years/|title=Royal Navy mine warfare update – HMS Bangor extended in service for 5 years |date=21 November 2021 |website=Navy Lookout |access-date=21 November 2025 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|date=8 January 2022|title=A mother and her babies|work=Chief of Joint Operations - Lieutenant-General Stickland|url=https://twitter.com/LtGenStickland/status/1479704696768106496|access-date=11 January 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Allison |first=George |date=2024-01-19 |title=British minehunters collide in Gulf, damage to be assessed |url=https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/british-minehunters-collide-in-gulf-damage-to-be-assessed/ |publisher=UK Defence Journal}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-01-22 |title=A naval accident in context – Royal Navy minehunters collide in Bahrain |url=https://www.navylookout.com/a-naval-accident-in-context-royal-navy-minehunters-collide-in-bahrain/ |publisher=Navy Lookout}}</ref><ref>{{cite tweet |url=https://x.com/NavyLookout/status/1995183552481071128?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet |title=@NavyLookout Welcome home @HMSBangor, arriving today on heavy lift vessel MV Mighty Servant 2 - on her way into Rosyth following epic journey from Bahrain. |number=1995183552481071128 |user=NavyLookout |date=30 November 2025 |access-date=1 December 2025}}</ref> *{{HMS|Middleton|M34|6}} (mid-2021 - 2026)<ref name=":1"/><ref>{{cite news| title=UK minehunter joins operations in region | publisher=ZAWYA | date=28 July 2021 | url=https://www.zawya.com/en/economy/uk-minehunter-joins-operations-in-region-iosq7lpr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.navylookout.com/royal-navys-last-gulf-minehunter-hms-middleton-has-returned-to-uk/|title=Royal Navy’s last Gulf minehunter HMS Middleton has returned to UK |website=Navy Lookout |date=6 March 2026}}</ref>
==Royal Air Force==
Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar - 901 Expeditionary Air Wing RAF
RAFO Musannah, Oman - 902 Expeditionary Air Wing RAF
Al Minhad Air Base, UAE - 906 Expeditionary Air Wing RAF
== See also ==
* Standing Royal Navy deployments
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{official website|http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-latest-activity/operations/red-sea-and-persian-gulf/kipion}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kipion, Operation}} Category:Military operations involving the United Kingdom Category:Conflicts in 2014 Category:Conflicts in 2015
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