Commander Sarah West

From the Mirror:

A woman yesterday took command of a frontline warship for the first time in the Navy’s 500-year history.

Commander Sarah West, 40, is now in sole control of HMS Portland, a Type 23 frigate and its mostly male crew of 185.

And it could be just the start as senior Navy sources said last night that three more war vessels will be commanded by women by the end of this year.

Cmdr West will have her own cabin and steward on HMS Portland, but will dine alone each night unless invited to join other officers.

She joined the Navy in 1995 with a degree in maths.

After training as a warfare officer, she served on HMS ­Sheffield in the Middle East and joined the task force that dramatically helped in the evacuation of thousands of Britons from Beirut in 2006.