A RAPID-FIRE deployment for the sailors of HMS Gloucester upheld Britain’s commitment to the global war against terror.

The ‘Fighting G’ was away from her home of Portsmouth less than two months, working with a NATO task force in the Mediterranean.

Despite the brevity of the deployment, Gloucester’s CO Cdr Mike Paterson said the Senior Service had “sent an important message that the UK is committed to maritime security 365 days a year”.

The destroyer took over from HMS York on Operation Active Endeavour, plugging the ‘Christmas gap’ until HMS Montrose arrived in late January to begin her seven-month tour of duty in the Med.

Gloucester’s brief deployment was marked by poignant ceremonies.

It was the last wish of Kenneth McDonald that his ashes be committed to the deep. And so it was that off Naples the ship’s company gathered on the flight deck for a service to do just that, led by the Rev Andy Duff.

Mr McDonald, a former Royal Marine, served as a bandsman and stretcher bearer on the wartime cruiser; he was one of the few to survive her sinking off Crete in May 1941, but spent the rest of the war as a prisoner. He rejoined the RM Band at the war’s end and eventually retired as a bandmaster.

The ship also took part in ceremonies to mark the fifth anniversary of Operation Active Endeavour.

The destroyer dropped anchor off Nisida island, home to NATO’s maritime headquarters near Naples, and sent a platoon of sailors ashore for ceremonies which were attended by numerous dignitaries including Commander-in-Chief Fleet Admiral Sir James Burnell-Nugent.

The ship spent five days in Naples in the run-up to Christmas. Gloucester’s rugby team demolished the NATO Lions 41-7, while their shipmates preferred to sample the sights of Sorrento, Pompeii and even Rome.

The RN has had an almost constant presence on Active Endeavour since its inception; jointly, the NATO force has interrogated 83,000 vessels and boarded more than 100 of them.

The operation was launched in the wake of the September 11 atrocities; it’s one strand of a concerted effort in Europe, the Middle East and Asia to stop terrorists, smugglers, and traffickers moving by sea.

“Such operations require patience and perseverance and are just one piece of a complex jigsaw without which terrorists would be able to use the high seas with impunity,” Cdr Paterson said.

Ships attached to Operation Enduring Freedom patrol the Indian Ocean from the Horn of Africa to the Arabian Sea, while Task Force 158 safeguards the waters of the Arabian Gulf.