Many of the ship's crew are in their early 20s and this has been their first experience of war.

Leading radio operator Chris Andrews, from Hull, is an exception, having spent 17 years in the Royal Navy and now a full time reservist.

He was called to join Ledbury only days before she sailed due to illness hitting the existing LRO.

Chris served as a signalman during the Falklands War and later served on HMS Hermione, one of the ships monitoring the Gulf region in 1984 during the Iran/Iraq war.

Happy to be at sea, Chris fully expects to head out again shortly.

Just beginning his naval career is 24-year-old Sub-Lieutenant James Norwood, from Gillingham in Kent. Having only passed out of officer training at Dartmouth in December, James was in the rare position of amassing immediate active service experience.

He joined Ledbury on her way back, at Malta, but saw the war from the decks of the 20,700 tonne amphibious helicopter carrier HMS Ocean.

Ocean carried the Sea King, Gazelle and Lynx helicopters of 845 and 847 squadrons and the troops of 40 Commando. Her normal, relatively small complement was swelled to 1,400 with a wardroom of 168 officers - eating in shifts.

James volunteered for fire control duties and said the experience of being at action stations really brought home the fact that he was at war.

Ocean landed the Marines on the Al Faw peninsula at the beginning of the war and lost a member of her own Marine force during a mortar attack in Iraq.