| Gibraltar Squadron | |
|---|---|
_mooring_in_HM_Naval_Base,_Gibraltar.jpg) HMS Dagger at HM Naval Base, Gibraltar | |
| Active | 28 August 1985 – present |
| Country |  United Kingdom |
| Branch |  Royal Navy |
| Type | Squadron |
| Role | Maritime security and Force Protection |
| Size | 1 Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV), 2 Fast Patrol Boats, 3 Rigid-hulled Inflatable Boats (RHIBS), 1 diving support boat & 28 personnel (+ c. 34-50 assigned to the OPV)[1][2][3][4][5][6] |
| Garrison/HQ | PJOB Gibraltar/HQ British Forces Gibraltar |
| Website | www |
| Commanders | |
| Current commander | Lt Cdr Simon Holden |
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.[7][8] The squadron also uses three Pacific 24 rigid-hulled inflatable boats[9] and deploys one diving support boat (DSB Crabb, named for Royal Navy diver Lionel Crabb). 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.[10] As of 2023, 28 personnel were assigned to the squadron, along with additional personnel assigned to HMS Trent.[11]
- ^ "Up close with the Royal Navy's new OPVs – HMS Medway". Navy Lookout. 28 June 2019.
- ^ "River Class | Royal Navy".
- ^ "River-Class Offshore Patrol Vessels, UK".
- ^ "Introducing the Royal Navy's new Offshore Patrol Vessels".
- ^ "Some 14,000 British servicemen pass through Gibraltar each year". The Diplomat. 25 April 2023.
- ^ @NavyLookout (8 November 2024). "@NavyLookout.@RNGibSqn HMS Cutlass and HMS Dagger in company with Diving Support Boat off #Gibraltar this morning" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "HMS Cutlass, Gibraltar Squadron's new patrol boat, undergoes sea trials".
- ^ "BMT completes successfully trials for High-Speed Patrol Craft HMS Cutlass".
- ^ "Gibraltar Squadron - royalnavy.mod.uk". Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 28 January 2011.
- ^ "What the 2021 Integrated Review means to the Royal Navy ?". 23 March 2021.
- ^ "Some 14,000 British servicemen pass through Gibraltar each year". The Diplomat. 25 April 2023.