The Royal Navy destroyer HMS Dragon was delayed in its deployment to the Mediterranean while software updates were carried out on its weapons system, The i Paper has learned. The ship finally set sail on Tuesday, a week after being ordered to deploy and 10 days after the war in Iran began.
The Type 45 destroyer’s primary role will be to protect RAF Akrotiri on Cyprus, which was hit by an Iranian drone earlier this month. The ship is expected to arrive in the region within a week.
Royal Navy and private military contracting sources said the hold-up was partly due to issues with software that commands the Sea Viper weapons system, as well as the AI-driven Sycoiea defence and missile-tracking technology.
—
