A WARSHIP carrying York’s name has celebrated its 25th birthday. HMS York, a Royal Navy Type 42 destroyer, which is currently undergoing a refit in her home port of Portsmouth, welcomed on board 12 former commanding officers to mark her silver jubilee.

Other guests included the ship’s sponsor, Lady Gosling, and her newest affiliates, The Worshipful Company of Farmers.

Earlier this year, the ship made headlines after intercepting an Argentinean warship, The Drummond, which had encroached into the UK territorial waters near the Falklands.

HMS York had been carrying out “deterrent duties” in the South Atlantic – a busy deployment that saw her travel more than 25,000 nautical miles.

During the six-month operation, she was also involved in a dramatic rescue in high winds, sailing 300 miles to answer an SOS call from a South Pacific fisherman with a suspected ruptured appendix.

Her commanding officer, Commander Simon Staley, said: “York is a terrifically capable ship and one with a proud history dating back to 1654.

“She has a great ship’s company who are hard-working and professional with a great sense of humour – all of which is extremely important to me as a commanding officer.

“It has given me great pleasure to celebrate her 25 years at sea.

“Having so many former commanding officers back on board shows just how important HMS York is and how proud the current ship’s company is to be serving with her.”

HMS York is the 12th ship to bear the name and was accepted into service on March 25, 1985, before being formally commissioned in August the same year.

She has had 17 commanding officers across her lifespan and has covered a total of 706,271 nautical miles. HMS York also holds the title of the fastest Type 42 destroyer in the fleet.