The United States and the United Kingdom sank a decommissioned American frigate off the coast of Scotland — media reports
Kyiv • UNN
American and British forces attacked the decommissioned USS Klakring with missiles and a torpedo off Scotland. The ship sank at a depth of 1.8 km.
The U.S. and British navies sank the decommissioned American frigate USS Klakring during the joint Atlantic Thunder 2026 exercise near the Hebrides, UNN reports, citing Bild.
Details
The ship was attacked from the sea, air, and underwater: the American destroyer USS Paul Ignatius launched the anti-ship version of the SM-6 missile, the British HMS Portland fired a Naval Strike missile, and a Wildcat helicopter used a Sea Venom missile against a surface target for the first time.
The final strike was delivered by the American nuclear-powered submarine USS Massachusetts with a heavy Mk 48 torpedo. The former warship then sank approximately 150 nautical miles from the northwest coast of Scotland and came to rest on the seabed at a depth of about 1.8 kilometers.
USS Klakring served in the U.S. Navy from 1983 to 2013. Uncrewed underwater vehicles will now survey the wreckage so that experts can assess the impact of different types of weaponry.
Before the sinking, potentially environmentally hazardous materials were removed from the frigate. As the specialist publication Navy Lookout notes, the use of an American ship was explained, among other things, by the division of costs: the United States paid for preparing and transporting the frigate across the Atlantic, while the United Kingdom paid for use of the range.