English: Type 45 HMS Daring is pictured passing through the Suez Canal on the 30th January 2012. This is the first time she has passed through the canal and means she has officially entered her area of operations, another first for the Type 45 Destroyer.

The canal is 120 miles long and 205 meters wide. It provides a much shorter route for ships transiting from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea. The alternative route round Africa and the Cape of Good Hope would be much longer.

It is also a milestone in the life of HMS Daring and is a key marker in her 2012 Gulf Deployment. The passage through the canal now means that Daring has officially entered her area of operations, another first for the Type 45.

HMS Daring is currently deployed for a seven-month deployment to continue the Royal Navy's long-term presence East of the Suez.

The ship will be acting as part of the Royal Navy's standing commitment in the Middle East, providing a range of capabilities from counter piracy to reassurance of the UK's allies in the region. The area of operations is huge, covering the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Gulf.

• Organization: ROYAL NAVY
• Object Name: FG120025043
• Category: MOD
• Supplemental Categories: Equipment, Ships, Destroyers, Type 45
• Keywords: Royal Navy, Equipment, Ship, Destroyer, Type 45, HMS Daring, Suez, Canal, Transit, Passage, Africa, Egypt
• Country: Egypt