The Royal Navy said Devonport-based HMS Somerset's crew was recalled on Christmas Day before it sailed two days later as RFS Soobrazitelny and her two support ships MV Sparta II and MV General Skobelev sailed across the English Channel.

An emissions analysis by CalMac has calculated MV Glen Sannox will emit 10,391 equivalent tonnes of CO2 a year compared with 7,732 for MV Caledonian Isles.

"As a first in class vessel, we will learn more and more about MV Glen Sannox and her fuel consumption as we sail her."

In a tribute to the writer on his 90th birthday last year, MV Shreyams Kumar, the managing director of Mathrubhumi, wrote that Nair was always reading and rereading books.

Pirates say they received a ransom of $5m to release the Bangladesh-flagged MV Abdullah, hijacked in March 2024.