A former Rutland College pupil is in the middle of overseeing an intensive mission against piracy off the coast of Somalia.
Royal Navy Commander Johnny Ley has the ultimate responsibility for the 5,500-tonne HMS Cornwall warship and its 275 men and women.
The 40-year-old, who spent many of his childhood years in Oakham, is based off the African coast on Counter Piracy
Operations, as part of an eight- month deployment.
HMS Cornwall is the British contribution to Standing Nato Maritime Group 2, along with ships from America, Greece, Italy and Turkey, tackling piracy which has resulted in kidnapping, theft and murder.
Cdr Ley took charge of the ship in September last year and admits he has a tough role.
He said: "The perception of a pirate being some romantic Johnny Depp character is fatally flawed. The reality is they are highly-organised, well-armed, violent gangs, often drugged, who will have little hesitation in using deadly force to seize innocent people and ships."
HMS Cornwall is a state-of-the art warship with a top speed of 30 knots. It is armed with an array of supersonic missiles and gun systems and has her own Lynx helicopter. It has since taken on the role of flagship for the entire Nato group.
Cdr Ley has always possessed the drive and determination to succeed – according to the person who knows him best.
His mother, Angela Thomas, who lives at the home Cdr Ley was raised, in Catmose Street, Oakham, expressed her pride.
She said: "Jonathan has done amazingly well. What can I say, other than that we are exceptionally proud of him."
Cdr Ley joined the navy in 1988 and has served in Iraq and Northern Ireland.
He now lives in Devon, and is married to Elisa. They have an eight-year-old son, Gabriel.
Cdr Ley said he missed his family and, in particular, not being able to pick up his son from school or take him surfing.
He added that he would be returning to Rutland this Christmas.
"Of course I miss my family and friends. Eight months is an exceptionally long time to be away from home," he said.
"I miss the day-to-day, routine, which others might take for granted. But, ultimately, this is what I do – my family understands that, and they cope tremendously well. I will be back in Oakham visiting family over Christmas, so I hope to catch up with a lot of old friends then."
