A mass of Royal Navy muscle has arrived in Bermuda this week after fighting the anti-drugs war in the Caribbean.

The Portsmouth-based frigate HMS Marlborough seized nearly 9.3 tonnes of cocaine from two drug-running ships en route to the United States last month.

The hauls had a staggering combined street value of $2.96 billion -- the largest seizures ever made by the Royal Navy.

The Duke Class Type 23 frigate patrols a large portion of the Western Atlantic and the Caribbean and is involved in a joint UK-US operation to stifle the flow of narcotics.

Officers aboard HMS Marlborough were suspicious of the MV China Breeze when she appeared on radar on May 27, some 200 miles south of Puerto Rico. The 25,000-tonne Panamanian-registered vessel was carrying 200 bales of cocaine hidden among cargo and in sewage tanks.

The second bust was made only four days later aboard another Panamanian merchant vessel, Castor . Four tonnes of drugs were discovered among the cargo when the ship was stopped 20 miles north of the island of Isla Margarita in Venezuela.

"We are able to spot suspicious ships on our radar,'' said Lt. Cdr. Chris Hollis.

"If we see smaller boats converging upon the large ships, it is a sign that drugs are being transported to nearby islands.'' The ship also confiscated three "Go-Fast'' smuggling craft in the operation.

"The UK is determined to stop the traffic in illegal drugs, wherever they are in the world,'' British Defence Secretary George Robertson has pledged on the record.

"We work closely with countries all over the world to stop this dangerous and damaging trade. We will continue our operations to catch the people who deal in drugs, and put them out of action.'' The ship's advanced war capabilities make it all the more effective in intercepting drug-traffickers.

With a Lynx helicopter, the ship can hold back at a distance -- and off other ships' radars -- while scouts are sent ahead to gather information on suspected vessels.

In an article appearing in The News of Portsmouth, Capt. Jamie Miller said: "It would be exactly the same situation we would encounter if it was an enemy group or submarine in a wartime scenario. We use the same skills.'' The ship has been on a six-month deployment to the Western Atlantic and Caribbean as the Royal Navy's West Indies Guardship. Her mission also includes defence, diplomacy and exercises with the Regional Defence Forces of several Caribbean islands, and the US Navy and Coast Guard.

Crew members have worked with civil authorities to deport 16 illegal immigrants in the Caribbean. Turks and Caicos in particular has had problems with Haitians who attempt to flee their poverty-stricken island.

Prior to her arrival in Bermuda waters, HMS Marlborough called at Key West, Grenada, Montserrat, St. Lucia, Puerto Rico, Martinique, Dominica, Barbados, Trinidad, St. Vincent, Antigua and Turks and Caicos.

The crew will participate in the Queen's Birthday Parade fesitivities in Hamilton on Monday. The Captain and Ship's Officers will also host a reception for 100 local dignitaries.

The frigate was launched in 1989 and was accepted into Naval service at Portsmouth in 1991. She weighs in at 3,500 tonnes and is 436 feet in length.

The public is invited to visit the vessel, berthed along Front Street, between 1.30 p.m. and 4 p.m.

HMS Marlborough will leave the Island for the UK on Tuesday.

Photos by Tony Cordeiro "S'en va t'en guerre'': The motto of the HMS Marlborough , meaning "He goes to war''. She is shown above berthed in Dockyard, but has since moved to Hamilton. Below, crew tend to her Lynx helicopter