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Second former Royal Navy minehunter joins Romanian Navy
4 August 2025
A former Royal Navy minehunter has been commissioned into the Romanian Navy where she will contribute to NATO’s mission supporting security in the Black Sea.
Sandown-class Mine Counter Measure Vessel HMS Pembroke was sold to Romania, along with sister ship HMS Blyth, by the Defence Equipment Sales Authority, which disposes of vehicles and equipment no longer needed by UK Armed Forces.
Pembroke was commissioned into the Romanian Navy where she will be known as Capitan Constantin Dumitrescu (M217) during a ceremony at Rosyth in Scotland.
She joins her sister ship, the former HMS Blyth, which was commissioned into the Romanian Navy as M270 Sublocotenent Ion Ghiculescu in September 2023.
Attending the Pembroke ceremony was the Romanian Chief of the Navy Vice Admiral Mihai Panait, the Royal Navy’s Commander Operations Major General Rich Cantrill, and representatives from Babcock.
The Romanian flag was hoisted on the minehunter for the first time, and the ceremony concluded with a tour of the ship.
“We are pleased to see former HMS Pembroke commissioned into the Romanian Naval Forces,” said Maj Gen Cantrill. “She will play a key role in Black Sea security going forward and this demonstrates the strengthening bond between our two Nations’ militaries.”
Prior to the handovers, the Ships Support team at Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) worked with Babcock to refurbish both minehunters before they were transferred to their new owners.
Commodore Richard Whalley, Former Head of Sales and Exports at DE&S and now Deputy Director Exports and Sales, International Collaboration and Exports at the National Armaments Director Group said: “We are pleased to have found HMS Pembroke a new home with the Romanian Navy. This agreement highlights the strong relationship we have with our allies and feeds into NATO’s collective mission of supporting global security.”
The former Sandown Class ship is 52.5m long, weigh 485 tonnes and has a range of more than 2,500 nautical miles without refuelling.
She will play a key role in Black Sea security going forward and this demonstrates the strengthening bond between our two Nations’ militaries.
Specialising in mine warfare in deep water, she uses high-definition sonar to scour the world’s seabeds for mines and lost explosives, which are then safely destroyed by the ship’s clearance diving teams or the ATLAS Seafox mine disposal system.
The minehunters worked closely with regional and coalition partners to maintain the security of the sea lanes of communications, crucial to international shipping and the global economy.
One of HMS Pembroke’s most notable successes was the discovery and safe disposal of a Russian mine from the First World War. A remote underwater vehicle was deployed to identify the device off the coast of Lithuania before it was safely disposed of.
Chief Executive of Babcock’s Marine Sector, Sir Nick Hine, said: “This milestone reflects the importance of international collaboration and capability-building. At Babcock we’re honoured to have played a role in her regeneration.”
The Sandown Class are being replaced by autonomous mine-hunting systems operating from HMS Stirling Castle.
In the context of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, drifting mines pose a direct threat to Black Sea states, and sea lines of communication. This sale will enable Romania, a key NATO ally, to have a direct, positive contribution to the maritime security of the region.
It follows other minehunter sales made by MOD Export & Sales including HMS Quorn, Dulverton and Cottesmore to Lithuania, HMS Sandown, Inverness and Bridport to Estonia, HMS Berkeley and Bicester to Greece, HMS Atherstone to maritime contractor Harland & Wolff, and HMS Grimsby and Shoreham to the Ukrainian Navy in 2023.