Princess Anne visits HMS Sultan as base marks 70th anniversary

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The Princess Royal has visited HMS Sultan as part of its 70th anniversary celebrations.

She attended the ceremonial divisions in Gosport as guest of honour, marking seven decades of service at the Royal Navy’s centre of professional engineering training.

During her visit, The Princess Royal took the salute from officers and ratings on parade, presented awards for academic achievement and engineering excellence, and inspected the Guard of Honour.

Captain Mark Hamilton, commanding officer of HMS Sultan, said: "It was our very great honour to welcome Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal to Sultan today, and to mark seventy years of this extraordinary establishment.

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Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal inspects the Ceremonial Divisions. (Image: LPhot Tim Lombard)

"The expertise trained here spans the full breadth of naval engineering, from the Marine Engineers who keep our fleet at sea, to the Air Engineering and Survival Equipment technicians on whom our people's lives depend.

"As we look ahead, we are focused on transforming how we deliver that training, expanding our use of simulated and emulated environments and growing our work with NATO allies and partner nations.

"Agility will be central to how we operate in the years ahead, as the Naval Service becomes more complex and more demanding.

"And as new platforms arrive under a hybrid Navy, Sultan will remain what it has always been, the engineering heartbeat of the Naval Service, powering naval engineering for generations to come."

Her Royal Highness reviewed HM Royal Marines Band Lympstone, who provided musical accompaniment throughout the ceremony.

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Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal meets members of the Ceremonial Divisions. (Image: LPhot Tim Lombard)

HMS Sultan is home to the Marine Engineering Training Group, the Royal Naval Air Engineering and Survival Equipment School, and the Nuclear Department.

The establishment delivers more than 320 courses to more than 7,700 trainees annually, including personnel from NATO and international partners.

During the ceremony, Lieutenant Commander Bart Allen-West received a Long Service and Good Conduct Second Bar from The Princess Royal.

Lt Cdr Allen-West said: "It is a massive honour to receive this award from Her Royal Highness and a privilege to be part of HMS Sultan's 70th birthday celebrations.

"Having joined the Royal Navy in 1990, this medal is recognition not only of my long service and good conduct, but also of the sacrifice and unwavering support of my family throughout my career."

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