SAILORS are fighting to stop one Navy minehunter from sinking after another reversed into it.

       A mechanical fault was blamed for HMS Chiddingfold lurching backwards, leaving HMS Bangor with a gaping hole in its side.

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       HMS Bangor was left with a gaping hole in its side after another Royal Navy ship crashed into it Credit: 2

       The collision took place off the coast of Bahrain with the ships limping back to port Credit:

       The Sun was told the impact off Bahrain nearly destroyed the galley and bedrooms, but none of the 39 crew on board was reported hurt.

       HMS Bangor, a Sandown-class minehunter, was left trying to limp back to port.

       It is made from fibreglass instead of steel to counteract the threat from magnetic mines.

       It was with HMS Chiddingold, a Hunt-class minehunter, as part of Operation Kipion — aiming to safeguard oil and trade routes.

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       More than 160 large merchant ships each day pass through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the nearby Strait of Hormuz.

       Houthi terrorists in Yemen have been targeting shipping.