Lieutenant Charlotte Atkinson has taken charge of HMS Brecon

Lieutenant Atkinson, known as "Charlie", has taken over HMS Brecon - a 60-metre, 750-ton Hunt class ship.

The 32-year-old, from Dorset, is the only woman among the 45-strong crew of the ship, which is based at HM Naval Base Clyde at Faslane, near Helensburgh in Scotland.

Her appointment comes 14 years after the Royal Navy first began admitting female officers on equal terms with men.

Preventing smuggling

Lieutenant Atkinson, who joined the Royal Navy in 1994 after graduating from the University of Swansea, is expected to command the ship for about 18 months.

The Brecon is part of the Third Mine Countermeasures Squadron (MCM3) and carries a small detachment of Royal Marines.

The lieutenant recently completed her first command of the vessel in the waters around Northern Ireland.

The Brecon patrols to prevent the smuggling of explosives or firearms by searching merchant vessels and fishing boats in the Irish Sea and North Channel.

Only 9% of the 41,348 personnel in the Royal Navy are women.

Of those, 1,145 serve at sea on board 57 ships, including the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.