Royal Navy chiefs set up unit to hunt for Russian spyware near UK’s key nuclear submarine base 

Naval chiefs have established an elite unit to hunt for Russian spyware near the UK’s key nuclear submarine base.

Members of the team are understood to have been deployed to Faslane to track down underwater drones or surveillance equipment placed around the Clyde estuary – the route the Trident missile-armed Royal Navy fleet take to reach open sea.

It comes after an unmanned ‘spy boat’ powered by solar energy and designed to avoid detection was found off the coast of Scotland last month. 

No country has yet come forward to claim it.

Defence bosses fear that if Moscow successfully tracks and captures the unique ‘acoustic signature’ of any of the Vanguard class as they submerge into deep ocean, the Russians would be able to identify them anywhere. 

Last week, The Mail on Sunday revealed a surge in Russian subs in waters previously controlled by the Royal and US navies.

Members of the team are understood to have been deployed to Faslane to track down underwater drones or surveillance equipment placed around the Clyde estuary (pictured, a submarine near Faslane) 

Last night, a defence expert said the formation of a new unit came as no surprise, adding: ‘Capturing the acoustic signature is quite the prize in the cat-and-mouse game of submarine hunting.

‘The Russians know our four Trident boats are a potent threat and knowing exactly what they sound like can help pick them out in a noisy ocean.’

The MoD declined to comment on the new unit.