HMS Dragon D35 Type 45 Destroyer April 2026 Off Crete Photo Print

HMS Dragon (D35), a Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer, lies off the coast of Crete on 18 April 2026, photographed from low on the water in one of her own sea boats. She is seen side-on from the port side with her bow to the left, D35 painted at both bow and stern, and the brown hills of the Cretan coast behind her under a clear sky with thin cloud. A whitecap breaks in the foreground of a lively, deep blue sea while the ship tests boat communications during her Operational Capability Confidence Check at the NATO range off Crete. Dragon was the fourth of the six Type 45 destroyers. She was launched on the Clyde in November 2008 and commissioned on 20 April 2012, so this photo was taken two days short of her fourteenth year in commission. Built around the Sea Viper missile system and the Sampson radar in the sphere at the top of her foremast, she is designed to protect a fleet from air attack. In 2026 she was sent to the eastern Mediterranean to help with the air defence of Cyprus and the Sovereign Base Areas there. You can read more about the history of HMS Dragon HERE This print is ideal for Royal Navy veterans, especially seamen and boat crews who have launched a sea boat from a Type 45, and anyone with a connection to HMS Dragon. Product Details Image Taken: 18th April 2026 Photographer: LPhot Helayna Birkett © Crown copyright 2026 - UK MOD Licensed under the Open Government Licence (OGV3)