Two US Navy vessels remain off Iceland’s Westfjords

Two vessels operating for the US Navy have been stationed off the Jökulfirðir fjords in Iceland’s Westfjords, Morgunblaðið reports. The sister ships, HOS Red Rock and HOS Red Dawn, are 89 metres long and each measures more than 3,900 gross tonnes.

Red Dawn had been in the same position off Hesteyrafjörður for about four days when Red Rock arrived on Sunday. Red Rock had stopped in Reykjavík before the weekend. Both ships have remained in the area since.

Hornbeck Offshore, which owns the vessels, says it provides a range of defence-related services, including maritime intelligence gathering and support for US submarines. The US Navy also lists both ships as conducting SURTASS submarine surveillance, which detects sound from quiet submarines powered by either nuclear energy or diesel and electricity.

Hrólfur Vagnsson, caretaker of Læknishúsið at Hesteyri, said the ships had caught the attention of people spending the winter in the area. One had been brightly lit and fixed in the same position at the entrance to Jökulfirðir, he said. Vagnsson recalled a similar vessel staying nearby for several days in early July about two years ago, and said the large ships were an unusual sight among the small boats in the area.

The Icelandic Coast Guard confirmed that the ships are operating for the US Navy and have permission from Icelandic authorities to call at port and receive services in the country. The vessels are operating outside Iceland’s exclusive economic zone, so they are not required to obtain research permits or provide further details about their missions, the Coast Guard said. While in Icelandic territorial waters, they must communicate with the Coast Guard’s operations centre.