US and UK Navies to Conduct Joint Ship-Sinking Drill off Scotland Next Month

The United States Navy and Britain’s Royal Navy have finalized plans to sink the ex-frigate USS Klakring during the Atlantic Thunder 26 exercise scheduled for September. The 4,100-ton, 453-foot vessel, decommissioned in March 2013, will serve as a live-fire target in the QinetiQ Hebrides range off north-west Scotland. The operation follows a previous SINKEX in 2022 that used the former USS Boone, and it will likely involve the Sea Venom anti-ship missile, a Wildcat helicopter, and possibly sea-based drones to assess weapon performance.

The ship left the Philadelphia Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility on August 12 and is being towed down the Delaware River before crossing the Atlantic. Organizers cite the US’s experience in environmentally preparing retired ships as a reason for using an American hull rather than a British one. The exercise aims to gather data on emerging maritime technologies rather than simply demonstrate firepower.