United Kingdom Naval Support Facility

Last updated

United Kingdom Naval Support Facility
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg
Mina Salman Port, Juffair, Manama in  Bahrain
HMS Shoreham deployed on Op KIPION MOD 45167672.jpg
HMS Shoreham alongside in Bahrain whilst deployed on Operation Kipion
Bahrain adm location map.svg
Red pog.svg
UK Naval Support Facility
Location in Bahrain
Coordinates 26°12′20″N50°36′55″E / 26.20556°N 50.61528°E / 26.20556; 50.61528
Typenaval support facility
Area10 acres (40,000 square metres)
Site information
OperatorNaval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg  Royal Navy
Open to
the public		no
Conditionoperational
Site history
Built1934;90 years ago (1934)
In use1934–1971
2018–present
Events
Garrison information
Garrison UK Maritime Component Command
Occupants 9th Mine Counter-Measures Squadron

The United Kingdom Naval Support Facility (UKNSF) is a Royal Navy (RN) base established in Bahrain on 13 April 1935, originally known as HMS Jufair, as part of the port at Mina Salman. In 1950, the United States Navy (USN) leased space in HMS Jufair, and following Bahraini independence in 1971, took over the base. [1] On 6 December 2014, it was announced that HMS Jufair would be reestablished as a permanent Royal Navy base. [2] On 5 April 2018, the UK Naval Support Facility was officially opened by the Crown Prince of Bahrain, Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa and The Duke of York, representing the United Kingdom. [3]

Contents

History

Establishment

The first presence of the Royal Navy in the Persian Gulf came about from the need to control pirates raiding the British Empire ships east of the Gulf of Suez, especially the East India Company routes to India. In the early 1820s the rulers of Bahrain, Salman and Abdullah Al Khalifa, signed an agreement to try and limit piracy in the area. This was strengthened in 1835 through an agreement signed specifically with the Royal Navy, which addressed the need to stop pirates operating in the area, and limit the slave trade. [1] In 1902, the first oil was discovered in the area, but commercial extraction did not begin until 1925, when Frank Holmes was given the first license, with the first oil not exported from Bahrain until 1932. [4]

HMS Jufair

HMS Jufair badge. HMS Jufair Crest.png
HMS Jufair badge.

After the death of Sheikh Isa in 1932, having handed control of the state in 1921 under British diplomatic pressure to his son Hamad, his advisor Charles Belgrave, with whom he had modernised the state systems and key infrastructure, suggested that they should come to an agreement with the British to open a permanent Royal Navy base within the state. HMS Jufair opened on 13 April 1935;89 years ago, as part of the port at Mina Salman. [1] During World War II, it was bombed by the Royal Italian Air Force as part of an Axis Forces effort to cut off one of the three Allied Forces sources of oil in the Persian Gulf. [5]

Transfer to United States Navy

As a result of the Italian raid, and the United States entry into World War II from December 1941, the Royal Navy extended an invitation to the United States Navy (USN), allowing the USN to deploy a small detachment. Post-World War II, the posting was recognised as the U.S. Middle East Force from 1948, a small shore facility that provided logistical and communications support to Marine Expeditionary vessels. [6]

In 1971, with Bahrain gaining independence from the United Kingdom, the permanent Royal Navy presence in Bahrain officially ended. With agreement of the Emir, the USN immediately took on the entire 10 acres (40,000 square metres) site, [1] and eight years later the base was named Administrative Support Unit (ASU) Bahrain. In 1992, the title was slightly modified to Administrative Support Unit Southwest Asia to better reflect its regional role. In 1995, the United States Fifth Fleet was formed with its headquarters at ASU Bahrain. [3] By 2000, the base had again been renamed; as Naval Support Activity Bahrain, abbreviated NSA Bahrain. [6] [7] [ page needed ]

Reestablishment

In December 2014, it was announced that the Royal Navy would be re-opening a permanent naval base east of Suez at Mina Salman Port [3] [8] to be called HMS Juffair [2] or Mina Salman Support Facility, with construction starting during October 2015. [9] Armed Forces Minister Penny Mordaunt confirmed that while the aircraft carriers would be able to access facilities while at anchor in the vicinity of the Mina Salman port, they would not be able to berth directly alongside the support facility itself due to draught constraints. [10] On 5 April 2018, the United Kingdom Naval Support Facility (UKNSF) was officially opened by Bahraini Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa and Britain's Prince Andrew. The new facility can accommodate up to 500 Royal Navy personnel. [11]

The base is located in an area of Manama (the capital of Bahrain) that is now officially called Juffair (Arabic : الجفير) in the Latin alphabet by the Bahrain government. [12]

Deployed vessels

UKNSF is the home port for ships deployed as part of Operation Kipion, which is the UK's primary military effort in support of peacekeeping and maritime security in the Gulf region, as well as ensuring the safe flow of oil and trade. [13] In addition to ships deployed to the region as part of other deployments, there are a number of vessels permanently stationed in Bahrain to undertake various tasks:

In February 2023, the autonomous minehunting vessel RNMB Harrier arrived in Bahrain to begin trials of autonomous systems in hot weather. The autonomous vessel operated from Cardigan Bay. [15] As of late 2024, Cardigan Bay returned to the UK for refit [16] and acute personnel shortages in the RFA made her return to the Gulf uncertain. [17] In late 2024, it was reported that Cardigan Bay's refit was delayed until 2026, and that she would be laid up in the UK throughout 2025. [18]

Initially, the quayside at UKNSF was only accessible to the small mine countermeasures vessels assigned to the base, with larger ships having to be moored at other piers within the Mina Salman port area. In June 2020, a refurbishment of the quay meant that larger vessels, including Type 23 frigates and Type 45 destroyers would be able to utilise the mooring facilities within the UK base itself. The shallow draft of the port continued to preclude very large vessels, such as the Royal Navy's Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers, to be able to use the facility itself. [19]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Navy</span> Naval warfare force of the United Kingdom

The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies, and a component of His Majesty's Naval Service. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against France. The modern Royal Navy traces its origins to the English Navy of the early 16th century; the oldest of the UK's armed services, it is consequently known as the Senior Service.

HMS <i>Montrose</i> (F236) Type 23 frigate of the Royal Navy

HMS Montrose was the eighth of the sixteen-ship Type 23 or Duke class of frigates, of the Royal Navy, named after the Duke of Montrose. She was laid down in November 1989 by Yarrow Shipbuilders on the Clyde, and was launched on 31 July 1992 by Edith Rifkind, wife of Malcolm Rifkind, Secretary of State for Defence. She was commissioned into service in June 1994.

RFA <i>Cardigan Bay</i> 2006 Bay-class dock landing ship of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary

RFA Cardigan Bay is a Bay-class landing ship dock of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA). Built by BAE Systems, the ship was dedicated into the RFA at the end of 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Standing Royal Navy deployments</span>

Standing Royal Navy deployments is a list of operations and commitments undertaken by the United Kingdom's Royal Navy on a worldwide basis. The following list details these commitments and deployments sorted by region and in alphabetical order. Routine deployments made by the Navy's nuclear-powered submarines and their location of operations is classified.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMNB Clyde</span> Operating base in Scotland for the Royal Navy

His Majesty's Naval Base, Clyde, primarily sited at Faslane on the Gare Loch, is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy. It is the navy's headquarters in Scotland and is best known as the home of Britain's nuclear weapons, in the form of nuclear submarines armed with Trident missiles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gibraltar Squadron</span> Military unit

The Gibraltar Squadron is a unit of the British Royal Navy. It is the only seagoing Royal Naval unit based in Gibraltar, attached to British Forces Gibraltar. It currently includes two Cutlass-class fast patrol boats with a maximum speed of up to 41-knots. The squadron also uses three Pacific 24 rigid-hulled inflatable boats and deploys one diving support boat. The 2021 defence white paper indicated that henceforth, one River-class offshore patrol vessel, HMS Trent, would also be permanently based in Gibraltar for operations in the Mediterranean and in the Gulf of Guinea. As of 2023, 28 personnel were assigned to the squadron, along with additional personnel assigned to HMS Trent.

HMS <i>Bangor</i> (M109) 2000 Sandown-class minehunter of the Royal Navy

HMS Bangor is a Sandown-class minehunter commissioned by the Royal Navy in 2000. Designed to hunt naval mines in depths of up to 200 m (660 ft) using the Sonar 2093 Variable Depth Sonar (VDS) meaning that she can conduct mine clearance operations throughout the continental shelf. She is named after the Northern Ireland seaside city of the same name, and the second Royal Navy vessel to bear the name. As of January 2024, she was the last vessel of her class in active Royal Navy service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Bahraini Naval Force</span> Naval warfare branch of Bahrains military

The Royal Bahraini Naval Force, also called the Royal Bahraini Navy, is the maritime branch of the Bahrain Defence Force. The RBNF consists of 700 personnel, 35 ships, and two helicopters. The fleet includes one frigate, the former U.S. Oliver Hazard Perry-classRBNS Sabha.

HMS <i>Penzance</i> (M106) 1998 Sandown-class minehunter of the Royal Navy

HMS Penzance was a Sandown-class minehunter commissioned by the Royal Navy in 1998. She was named after the seaside town of Penzance in Cornwall, and was the fourth vessel to bear the name. She was decommissioned in January 2024.

Romanian minehunter <i>Sublocotenent Ion Ghiculescu</i> Sandown-class minehunter

Sublocotenent Ion Ghiculescu (M270) is a Sandown-class minehunter of the Romanian Naval Forces. She was built as HMS Blyth (M111), for the Royal Navy, the eleventh of this class of twelve Single-Role Minehunters (SRMH) ships. She was laid down on 30 May 1999 by Vosper Thornycroft at their Woolston, Southampton shipyard, launched in May 2000 and entered service for the Royal Navy in February 2001. She was the second vessel to carry this name, the first being a Bangor-class minesweeper of the Second World War, wearing pennant number J15. Blyth served in the Middle East as part of the 9th Mine Countermeasures Squadron.

HMS <i>Shoreham</i> (M112) Sandown-class minehunter of the Royal Navy

HMS Shoreham was a Sandown-class minehunter of the British Royal Navy. She was the fifth vessel to bear the name. From 2018 to 2021, Shoreham was deployed at UKNSF Bahrain together with three other mine countermeasures ships as part of 9 Mine Countermeasures Squadron on Operation Kipion. In 2022 she was decommissioned and was transferred to Ukraine.

HMS <i>Brocklesby</i> (M33) 1983 Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the Royal Navy

HMS Brocklesby is a Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the British Royal Navy, her primary purpose is to find and neutralise sea mines using a combination of; Sonar, Mine Clearance Divers and the Seafox remotely operated vehicle (ROV). The class are the largest warships of glass-reinforced plastic (GRP) construction, which gives the vessels a low magnetic signature. In addition to her mine countermeasures activities, Brocklesby acts as an offshore patrol vessel, undertaking coastal patrol and fisheries protection duties.

HMS <i>Middleton</i> (M34) 1984 Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the Royal Navy

HMS Middleton is a Hunt-class mine countermeasures vessel of the British Royal Navy. As of 2021, she forms part of 9th Mine Countermeasures Squadron operating out of HMS Jufair in Bahrain.

RFA <i>Wave Ruler</i> (A390) 2003 Wave-class fast fleet tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary

RFA Wave Ruler is a Wave-class fast fleet tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) of the United Kingdom tasked with providing fuel, food, fresh water, ammunition and other supplies to Royal Navy vessels around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naval Support Activity Bahrain</span> American naval base in Bahrain

Naval Support Activity Bahrain is a United States Navy base, situated in the Kingdom of Bahrain and is home to U.S. Naval Forces Central Command and United States Fifth Fleet.

Mina Salman is a seaport located in Manama, Bahrain. Mina Salman was a natural harbour prior to the establishment in 1962 of the port covering 80 hectares. It is the primary cargo port and customs point of Bahrain. The port has 15 container berths, enabling it to handle 2.5 million tonnes a year.

The 9th Mine Countermeasures Squadron is a front-line squadron of the Royal Navy with responsibility for mine warfare in the Persian Gulf region. The squadron is based in Bahrain and, as of 2024-25, is equipped with three mine countermeasure vessels. Normally, a Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) support ship has also been assigned to the squadron. However, in late 2024 the squadron's normal support ship, RFA Cardigan Bay, returned to the UK for refit and acute personnel shortages in the RFA made her replacement in the Gulf uncertain.

The Senior Naval Officer, Persian Gulf, was a Royal Navy command appointment who was responsible for administering the Persian Gulf Station military formation including its establishments and naval forces known as the Persian Gulf Squadron later called the Persian Gulf Division. Initially located at Basidu, Qishm Island, in Persia, then Henjam Island in Persia (1911–1935), and finally Ras Al-Jufair, Bahrain (1935–1972).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UK Joint Logistics Support Base</span> British military base in central-eastern Oman

The United Kingdom Joint Logistics Support Base (UKJLSB) is a military base located within the Al Duqm Port and Drydock of Duqm in the Al Wusta governorate of Oman. As a British overseas military base, it is used to facilitate the deployment of the British Armed Forces in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean, along with the wider British maritime operations in the region.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Combined Maritime Forces (CMF)". RoyalNavy.MoD.uk. Royal Navy. n.d. Archived from the original on 13 October 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  2. 1 2 Gardner, Frank (1 November 2015). "UK builds first permanent Middle East base for 40 years". BBC News . Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 El Yakoubi, Aziz; Dadouch, Sarah (5 April 2018). Roche, Andrew (ed.). "UK opens permanent military base in Bahrain". Riyadh: Reuters. Archived from the original on 5 April 2018. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  4. ↑ Luscombe, Stephen (n.d.). "Middle East: Bahrain Protectorate". BritishEmpire.co.uk. The British Empire. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  5. ↑ Fiore, Massimiliano (1 November 2022). "Mission impossible: the Italian air bombing of Bahrain and the British response". British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies . 51 (4). doi:10.1080/13530194.2022.2151417 . Retrieved 30 December 2024– via ResearchGate.net.
  6. 1 2 "Naval Support Activity Bahrain – History". CNREurAfCent.CNIC.Navy.mil. Commander, Navy Region Europe, Africa, Central; United States Navy. n.d. Retrieved 30 December 2024.
  7. ↑ Cragg, Dan (2000). Guide to Military Installations (6th ed.). Stackpole Books. ISBN   9780811727815 – via Google Books.
  8. ↑ "UK to establish £15m permanent Mid East military base". BBC News. 6 December 2014. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
  9. ↑ "Foreign Secretary attends ceremony for new Royal Navy facility in Bahrain". Royal Navy. 5 November 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  10. ↑ "Bahrain: Military Bases: Written question - 20811". UK Parliament. 4 January 2016.
  11. ↑ "UK opens Persian Gulf military base in Bahrain". The Washington Post . Archived from the original on 5 April 2018. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  12. ↑ "Map of Bahrain – Ministry of Information | وزارة الاعلام | Kingdom of Bahrain" . Retrieved 8 April 2023.
  13. ↑ "Red Sea and Gulf – Operation Kipion". RoyalNavy.MoD.uk. Royal Navy . Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  14. ↑ "HMS Lancaster sails for three years forward-deployed in the Gulf". NavyLookout.com. Navy Lookout. 13 August 2022.
  15. ↑ @NavyLookout (13 February 2023). "Autonomous minehunting vessel RNMB Harrier has arrived in Bahrain and will be based on @RFACardiganBay" (Tweet). Retrieved 13 February 2023– via Twitter.
  16. ↑ "RFA Cardigan Bay returns to UK but no sailors available to take her to shipyard for refit". NavyLookout.com. Navy Lookout. 17 September 2024.
  17. ↑ "HMS Bangor being repaired in Bahrain following damage sustained earlier this year". NavyLookout.com. Navy Lookout. 9 November 2024.
  18. ↑ "The Royal Navy's fading presence in the Middle East". NavyLookout.com. Navy Lookout. 16 December 2024. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
  19. ↑ Allison, George (23 June 2020). "New 'big ship jetty' opens at British naval base in Bahrain". UK Defence Journal . Retrieved 23 June 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.