A United Kingdom Royal Navy vessel officially joined the Romanian Naval Forces on Monday, August 4.
The ship, formerly known as HMS Pembroke, is a Sandown-class minehunter and will now sail under the name “Captain Constantin Dumitrescu”, according to PlymouthLive. The acquisition is part of Romania’s “Minehunter” program, approved by the Romanian Parliament in May 2023.
The program, valued at €150 million (excluding VAT), includes three components:
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A government-to-government agreement with the United Kingdom for the transfer of two modernized Sandown-class minehunters and initial logistical support provided by Babcock International Group;
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A procurement contract with Atlas Elektronik UK, the certified Royal Navy contractor responsible for maintaining autonomous mine-hunting systems and SeaFox explosive ordnance disposal payloads;
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Technical support and integration of advanced sonar systems for seabed mine detection.
The Pembroke, now “Captain Constantin Dumitrescu,” previously conducted missions such as locating and disposing of a Russian mine dating back to World War I. The handover ceremony took place in Rosyth Port, Scotland, in the presence of Romanian Navy Chief of Staff Vice Admiral Mihai Panait, Royal Navy Maritime Operations Commander Major General Rich Cantrill, and members of the ship’s crew.
This marks the second ship of its kind delivered to Romania. The first, HMS Blyth, was handed over in September 2023 and renamed M270 “Sublieutenant Ion Ghiculescu.”
The minehunter is NATO-interoperable, displacing 600 tons, with a length of 52.5 meters, width of 10.9 meters, and draft of 2.3 meters. It is equipped with modern Mine Countermeasure (MCM) capabilities, as confirmed by the Romanian Naval Forces.
The ship is crewed by 40 naval personnel, led by Commander Mădălina Drăgan-Ghigalău. In the coming weeks, the crew will undergo training to prepare for the ship’s deployment to Constanța Naval Base, expected to be completed by the end of the year.
“We are pleased to see HMS Pembroke join the Romanian Naval Forces. It will play a vital role in Black Sea security and reflects the growing bond between our two navies,” said Major General Rich Cantrill.
