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HMS Medway hosts Falklands veteran for HMS Sheffield remembrance service
10 April 2026
The crew of HMS Medway hosted a Falklands veteran for a remembrance service in the South Atlantic to mark the 44th anniversary of the loss of HMS Sheffield.
Commander Mike Norman was the destroyer’s Executive Officer when she was lost after being struck by an Argentine Exocet missile on 4 May 1982 with the loss of 20 personnel and another 26 injured.
He joined HMS Medway for a remembrance service over the wreck, some 160 nautical miles east of the Falkland Islands. It was his first visit to the site in more than 40 years.
A wreath was cast into the water before Cdr Norman read out the names of the shipmates who perished.
Cdr Norman recalled the moment the Exocet struck the ship’s starboard side, including that approximately half of those who died did so on impact including several chefs in the galley and weapons specialists in the computer room below the ops room.
He explained that the remaining victims died due to smoke inhalation and carbon monoxide poisoning as the fires spread through the ship’s decks. Cdr Norman described the difficult hours following the impact, noting the terrible heat from the fires that raged for hours within the ship despite valiant efforts to fight it while awaiting rescue.The loss of HMS Sheffield became a watershed moment for the Royal Navy. The lessons learned from this tragic loss improved firefighting systems, breathing apparatus, the removal of flammable internal materials and knowing your escape routes
HMS Medway’s Commanding Officer, Cdr James Tibbitts, said: “It was a huge privilege to host Commander Norman on board and that it served as an important reminder to be ready for the unexpected; that all members of the military must not lose sight of what we may be called upon to do.”
The service came after the offshore patrol vessel returned from supporting the British Antarctic Survey in South Georgia.
HMS Medway took over as the Royal Navy’s permanent presence in the South Atlantic islands from sister ship HMS Forth, who had served in that role for more than six years.