'I served on a Sunderland ship in the Falklands War. I hope Wearside people will come to HMS Arrow's reunion'
Golden memories of a Royal Navy ship with close Sunderland links will come flooding back at an anniversary event.
The 50th anniversary of HMS Arrow’s commissioning as a Sunderland ship will be here in July.
The occasion will be marked with a reunion event at the Naval Club in Roker Avenue with details listed below.
The Type-21 frigate was commissioned in Sunderland in 1976 and she went on to have a huge history which included service during the Falklands War.
The ship rescued most of the surviving crew from HMS Sheffield after it was struck and heavily damaged by an Exocet air-launched anti-ship missile.
Sunderland-born David Wright, who now lives in Washington, was a chef on board HMS Arrow at the time and said: “I served on board for three years.
Arrow was also the first British ship to see action when she shelled Argentine positions around Port Stanley airfield 44 years ago and was the first to be hit by an Argentine aircraft.
But Arrow’s illustrious history did not end there. She also escorted the Royal Yacht Britannia when Her Majesty the Queen was on an official visit to Germany and David was on board for that as well.
Now he is urging people to attend an event at Sunderland’s Naval Club in Roker Avenue on July 25. He is hoping people will arrive at around 3pm and remember the ship which served so well.
‘I was on board for three years from 1977 and left in 1980 when I went to HMS Inskip.”
He later became a leading caterer in Scotland before moving on to become a fish merchant in the North Shields area.
Sunderland still has many links to HMS Arrow. The bell from the ship, which was decommissioned in 1993, remains in the city.
Previous reunions have been held including in 2015 when ex-service personnel from Sunderland’s former adopted warship came together.
Among the crew were men who served on the ship from her build on the Clyde between 1972-74 up to her sale to the Pakistan Navy in 1994. There was also several sailors in attendance who served on her during the Falklands conflict in 1982.
HMS Arrow was adopted by Sunderland on June 23, 1975. She was commissioned in the city on July 29, 1976, and was a regular visitor to Wearside throughout her years in service.
In 1989, along with Kate Adie, the vessel was awarded the freedom of Sunderland, and paid her last visit on August 26, 1993.