Warships welcomed home

Families were reunited after many months apart

Two Royal Navy frigates have returned to Plymouth after deployment in the Gulf.

HMS Chatham and Northumberland were welcomed by hundreds of people at Devonport after a tour of duty which included supporting the war in Iraq.

Royal Marines from Cornwall and Devon were on board during HMS Chatham's time in the Gulf.

RFA Grey Rover also returned to Plymouth after serving for two years in the Falklands, the Gulf and the Far East.

HMS Northumberland was away from Plymouth for seven months

HMS Chatham left Plymouth in January to take part in an exercise in the Gulf, but the ship was diverted to support the British forces when the war in Iraq broke out.

The crew of HMS Chatham provided support for the Royal Marines from the South West who were the among the first ground troops into Iraq.

The ship also led a mission to protect key oil platforms off the Iraqi coast and helped secure a route for humanitarian aid convoys into the country.

Hundreds of people greeted the return of the ships

The ship's commanding officer, Captain Michael Cochrane, said: "We couldn't have done these deployments if it was not for the people of Plymouth.

"The support from the dockyards has been tremendous, so has the support from the stores depot and the armaments depot.

"There are very important organisations based in the West Country and if they didn't exist we couldn't do our business, so we are really just the last link in a chain which is run by a lot of people in the West Country and for which we are extremely grateful."