Putin SUBMARINE seen in channel in another Russian show of force – but Royal Navy ‘Swordfish’ sub-hunter keeps close eye

ONE of Putin's slayer submarines appeared successful the English Channel successful different amusement of Russian force, and was stalked by Royal Navy choppers and a tanker.

The onslaught sub Novorossiysk was forced to sail backmost from the Mediterranean aft Moscow mislaid usage of a cardinal larboard successful Syria.

The diesel-electric powered sub was watched by Royal Navy Merlin sub-hunting choppers and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary Tidespring.

The incidental this period happened days earlier a Russian spy vessel called Yantar reappeared successful the Channel.

A Royal Navy atomic submarine was forced to surface next to that aforesaid vas backmost successful November to ward it off, arsenic revealed by Defence Secretary John Healey to parliament yesterday.

Now a representation of the Russian onslaught sub Novorossiysk has emerged aft Britain vowed “robust action” successful effect to Russian navy spying connected underwater cables.

A immense acheronian hull tin beryllium seen looming done the water's aboveground with 2 sinister hooded figures presiding implicit it.

In the inheritance is the Royal Navy's tanker RFA Tidesurge which shadowed the submarine for days arsenic it headed northbound up the channel.

Tidesurge joined forces with a specialised submarine hunting Merlin chopper called Swordfish Flight.

Lieutenant Commander Mike Curd, the formation commander, said: “Shadowing Russian units passing adjacent to the UK is regular business, and having the anti-submarine warfare specialists from the RN’s Merlin Helicopter Force embarked adds different furniture of information and quality to way the submarine should it dive.

“The 814 Naval Air Squadron regularly embark their craft successful Type 23 Frigates – and RFA units specified arsenic Tidesurge – some for grooming and regular constabulary operations astir the British Isles.”

This was the 2nd clip successful 3 weeks Tidesurge shepherded Russian vessels past the UK aft it was scrambled connected Christmas Day to show Putin's Corvette RFS Soobrazitelny.

And yesterday, Healey revealed successful parliament that 1 of the Royal Navy's submarines surfaced adjacent a Russian spy ship successful November.

Healey said the spy vessel called Yantar had been monitored loitering implicit UK captious nationalist infrastructure and was "used for gathering intelligence".

And helium ordered HMS Astute, a Royal Navy atomic powered sub, to aboveground yards distant from the Yanatar successful a melodramatic amusement of unit past year.

The Kremlin said that reports of Russian ships spying connected British infrastructure successful the transmission were "absolutely unfounded".

It had the feature to impeach Britain of being the main perpetrator "destabilising and provocative actions" astatine sea.

The propaganda instrumentality added: "We enactment that the question of anti-Russian alarmism raised by the British constitution and the media controlled by them is being utilized by London and its allies to purposefully escalate hostility successful the Baltic and North Sea regions."

It comes arsenic the MoD is owed to pledge £9bn for caller atomic reactors to power submarines.

Defence Secretary John Healey said the 8 twelvemonth woody with Rolls Royce volition beryllium “a wide objection of our committedness to the UK’s atomic deterrent, which is our eventual insurance argumentation successful a much unsafe world”.

The reactors volition supports caller Dreadnought atomic equipped subs nether constructions successful Barrow-in-Furness.

It volition besides boost plans to physique atomic submarines for the Royal Australian Navy, the MoD said.

The authorities insisted the woody volition make up to 1,000 jobs and safeguard 4,000 more.

The MoD said: “It is portion of our nationalist endeavour to support a continuous astatine oversea deterrent.”

The Navy has 4 atomic equipped Vanguard people submarines equipped with Trident 2 doomsday missiles.

One is ever astatine sea, arsenic a deterrent, acceptable to blast Britain‘a enemies to oblivion successful the lawsuit of a atomic archetypal strike.

The ageing Vanguard subs, which archetypal entered work 30 years ago, are owed to beryllium replaced by caller Dreadnaught people subs successful the 2030s.

Russia’s Navy is successful turmoil aft their state Bashar Al-Assad was forced to fly Damascus by rebels.

Moscow had usage of a cardinal larboard successful Tartus but Syria’s caller rulers person scrapped deal.

The Russian cargo vessel Ursa Major, reportedly sent to evacuate Tartus, sank successful the Mediterranean past month.