Seen here arriving in Portsmouth @ 08:35hrs, 12/8/05.

The fifth and current HMS Mersey has ended the long absence of a Mersey in the Fleet. She is a River Class Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) designed primarily for fishery protection duties around UK waters and was launched at Southampton. She was commissioned into the Fleet on the 28th November 2003, though she was not expected to begin fishery protection duties till February 2004. She is expected to be the pinnacle in OPV's for some time into the 21st century.
Displacement: 1,677 tonnes
Length: 79.5 metres
Beam: 13.6 metres
Speed: 16.5 knots
Range: 7800 nautical miles at a speed of 12 knots
Complement:Ship's boats: 2 x Halmatic Jet Pacific 22 Rigid Inflatable Boats (RIB)
30 (plus Royal Marines boarding party)
Armament: 1 x 20mm BMARC KAA Gun, 2 x General Purpose Machine Guns(GPMG)