The remainder of Saddam Hussein’s navy has been prevented from breaking out into the Arabian Gulf after a rapid manoeuvre by Type 22 frigate HMS Chatham, reports Neil Sears of the Daily Mail, who is on board the warship.

Chatham, which on Friday became the first British ship in 21 years to bombard a land target in anger, was called into action in the early hours of Sunday morning, just before dawn.

It came just a day after her 250-strong ship’s company had been shaken by the news that seven comrades had been killed in the helicopter collision close to aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal.

Chatham went into action after a surveillance team some miles inland spotted three Iraqi vessels leaving the area around the port of Basra and heading for the Gulf.

The small flotilla, which included a training ship – believed to be the largest ship in Iraq’s navy except for the presidential yacht – were spotted on the Shatt al’Arab waterway, which marks the border with Iran.

The training ship was flanked by a 210-ton Osa I fast attack boat, which can be armed with anti-ship missiles, and a 245-ton Bogomol-class large patrol boat.

Allied commanders feared that the vessels could be planning a last-ditch attack on the Allies’ 150-ship Naval Task Force, or that senior military officers or members of Saddam’s regime could have been making a desperate bid to escape in the face of the fast-moving Allied invasion.

Chatham, the Royal Navy ship closest to the Iraqi shore, moved fast to cover the mouth of the Shatt al’Arab.

Faced by this sizeable warship, supported by another frigate and three helicopters, the three Iraqi vessels did not venture out into the sea. One of the vessels, the Bogomol, was left crippled in the waterway after Chatham called up an air strike.

Capt The Honouraable Michael Cochrane, Commanding Officer of the British frigate, said he was surprised at news that any of Saddam’s ships could be making for the sea, as the final few miles of the Shatt al’Arab run alongside the strategically-important Al-Faw peninsula, now in the control of the Royal Marines.

Capt Cochrane said: “We were immediately tasked to move up to the mouth of the Shatt al’Arab to form a surface action group, with us in charge, assisted by the Australian frigate Darwin and Royal Navy helicopters.

“There was a fear that the Iraqi vessels could come out for some sort of do-or-die mission against the Task Force.

“It was my job as commander of the group to take whatever measures were necessary to ensure the safety of our ships in this area.

“A British Tornado was called in on a tactical air strike, and I understand that the Bogomol now lies crippled in the river.”

Chatham, its own Harpoon missiles poised for use, remained in position throughout Sunday morning to help secure the deepwater port of Umm Qasr, where pockets of resistance by Iraqi defenders were causing Allied troops some problems.

The frigate had already used its 4.5in gun, which has a range of about 11 miles, to bombard Iraqi military bunkers on Friday, and has also acted as the afloat headquarters of the American-planned ‘psychological operations’ division of the war.

It broadcasts programmes dubbed ‘Radio Free Iraq’, consisting of a mix of modern Middle East music interspersed with messages of peace – and warnings that the Allies will use extreme force against those who do not surrender.

The radio station’s transmitter is so powerful that it reaches much of Iraq, with Arabic-speaking presenters talking between songs.

Allied ships are still wary of the threat of mines after the seizure on Friday of two tugs and a barge carrying more than 100 mines, some hidden in a secret compartment from where they could be launched into the sea unnoticed.

There are fears that some of the mines had already been laid, and Allied commanding officers have been warned of the risk.

The estuary and Khawr waterway have been combed by helicopters hauling mine detectors on sledges, and by minesweepers and minehunters, while Chatham’s helicopter provided air support.

Divers from Britain, Australia and the United States are continuing to check the wharves and jetties of Umm Qasr port.