During a training trip to the sea, a Ukrainian flag was raised over one of the Sandown minehunters. This is reported by Militarnyi with reference to UkDefenceJournal.

We remind that Great Britain handed over two Sandown-class ships to the Navy of Ukraine. These are ships of a rather rare class – minehunters, unlike minesweepers, do not clear entire minefields, but actively search for and destroy individual sea mines. In addition, these ships can be used as patrols. The agreement was made public in the summer of 2021.

Ukraine received the HMS Grimsby and HMS Shoreham ships, which were withdrawn from the Royal Navy and given new names – Chernihiv and Cherkasy, respectively. These are among the newest ships of the Sandown class, having been built in 1998 and 2001.

The Ukrainian flag was raised over the Sandown-class ships Cherkasy and Chernihiv

Now, near the coast of Scotland, Ukrainian crews are undergoing training on ships. As can be seen in the photo taken by photographers Michael Cuthbert and Dave Cullen, new ship numbers, names, and coats of arms of the respective Ukrainian cities were applied to the ship. During one of the trips to the sea, the Ukrainian flag was raised above the leading ship.

After the losses that the Ukrainian Navy suffered at the beginning of a full-scale war, the new ships will be useful. In addition, the number of mines in the Black Sea that will have to be destroyed after victory is very large, so the mine hunters will have a lot to do.

Thank you Great Britain!

The Ukrainian flag was raised over the Sandown-class ships Cherkasy and Chernihiv

General specifications of Sandown-class ships
Displacement – 600 tons
Length – 52.5 m
Beam – 10.9 m
Draught – 2.3 m
Propulsion – Paxman Valenta 6RP200E diesel with a power of 1523 hp. (1136 kW); diesel-electric drive Combimac 100 kW; Schottel bow thrusters
Speed – 13 knots (24 km/h)
Crew – 34 sailors (accommodation up to 40 people)
Sensors and processing systems – Radar type 1007 I-Band/Kelvin Hughes Ltd SharpEye navigation radar; Type 2093 sonar
Equipment – SeaFox drones for demining
Armament – 1 × 30-mm DS30M Mark 2 automatic gun; 3 × 7.62 mm M134 Minigun multi-barreled machine guns; 2 × 7.62 mm FN MAG machine guns