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Tomorrow will be a historic day for HMS Ocean as she sails into Plymouth for the very last time as a serving Royal Navy vessel.

The Royal Navy’s Fleet Flagship, which is due to be sold to Brazil, will enter Devonport Naval Base for the last time under a White Ensign before she is decommissioned later this year.

The ship will come alongside with her decks lined by the ship’s company in dress uniforms, with the traditional 130 metre-long decommissioning pennant flying and accompanying tugs firing water hoses into the air.

She is due to arrive at the base at about 11am.

After the homecoming, she will enter into a maintenance period to prepare her for "onward disposal".

HMS Ocean has delivered 20 years of sterling service to the nation.

Since commissioning into Royal Navy service in 1998 she has been involved in operations off Sierra Leone (2000), Operation Telic off Iraq (2003), operations off Libya (2011) and most recently, humanitarian operations in the Caribbean.

HMS Ocean: The impressive numbers The 667ft-long HMS Ocean is an amphibious helicopter carrier and the Royal Navy's biggest ship at a staggering 21,500 tonnes. With a top speed of 18 knots - equivalent to around 21 mph - the ship can accommodate almost 1,300 people and 40 vehicles. And there is still enough space left on board for 18 helicopters, including the Apache, the Merlin Mk3 and the Chinook Mk2. The ship was first launched on 11 October 1995, and was later named at Barrow by Her Majesty the Queen in February 1998. Since then, she has been deployed on various Royal Navy missions - including reducing stranded military personnel after the air travel disruption after the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption. In 2002, the ship sparked a diplomatic incident when she accidentally landed on the San Felipe beach in the Spanish town of La Linea instead of Gibraltar, as various media outlets labelled the mistake as an "invasion". But in November 2015, the Ministry of Defence confirmed HMS Ocean is to be decommissioned in 2018 - despite recently undergoing a £65million refit - as part of cost saving measures with no like-for-like replacement. Under the 2015 Strategic Defence Review, one of two 65,000-ton Queen Elizabeth-class carriers would instead be "enhanced" to support Royal Marine amphibious operations.

HMS Ocean to be sold to Brazil

The Royal Navy flagship HMS Ocean is to be given a new name by the Brazilian Navy, it has emerged.

In January, the Ministry of Defence confirmed it was in advanced talks with the Brazilian Government over the sale of the Devonport-based aircraft carrier.

According to The UK Defence Journal, a well- respected online publication covering military matters, the Brazilians have even thought of a new name for the ship.

It reports that “Minas Gerais” – the name of a Brazlian battleship, since decommissioned and a state in the south east of the country – is the favourite.

The Journal reported that the impressive vessel, due to be decommissioned early this year, had been sold for £84 million.

In January, an MOD spokesperson said: “Discussions with Brazil over the long-planned sale of HMS Ocean are at an advanced stage, but no final decisions have been made.

"HMS Ocean has served admirably with us since 1998 and the revenue she generates will be reinvested in defence as we bolster our Royal Navy with two types of brand new frigates and two huge aircraft carriers.”

The UK Defence Journal broke the news in March 2017 that Brazil was interested in Ocean – a fact since confirmed by the Brazilian government. The Brazilian Navy reportedly proposed to pay for the vessel by instalments.

(Image: Royal Navy)

HMS Ocean has been used to effectively transport Royal Marines to trouble spots around the world. She is designed to support amphibious landing operations and to support the staff of Commander UK Amphibious Force and Commander UK Landing Force.

Brazilian journalist Roberto Lopes revealed news of the deal to buy the vessel in an e-mail to the UK Defence Journal. He said the Commander of the Brazilian Navy, Admiral Eduardo Leal Ferreira, claimed that the price of Ocean seemed “convenient”.

HMS Ocean was constructed in the mid-1990s and commissioned in September 1998.

In November 2015, the MoD confirmed that she was to be decommissioned in 2018 with no like-for-like replacement.

She returned to Devonport before Christmas after her last deployment, which included being diverted to the Caribbean to assist with aid following the hurricane which caused devastation to a number of British overseas territories.