"I have never seen anything like it before in my Royal Navy career." That was how HMS Grafton's commanding officer Rob Bellfield summed up the welcome from hundreds of Suffolk people lining the River Orwell as the ship sailed into Ipswich for probably the last time.
HMS Grafton is being decommissioned by the Navy but Ipswich people will remember her for a long time to come as their own warship.
Commander Bellfield is a local boy. He was educated in Woodbridge and Framlingham and his parents live just outside Ipswich. For him, leading his ship and crew "back home" was a touching moment.
Lined up on the quay were Royal British Legion veterans, youngsters from the Sea Cadets and the Stoke High School Big Band. Overhead were six helicopters of 4 Regiment Army Air Corps at Wattisham. Ahead lay a busy programme of civic and sporting events, including a freedom of the Borough parade through the town centre and two days of welcoming local people on board.
As the Grafton swung into dock, veterans and cadets alike stood to attention in honour of the vessel and her crew. Reg Driver, the President of the Ipswich branch of the Royal British Legion, said: "It seems like only yesterday we first saw her, and now she's leaving. This is for us both a happy and sad occasion."
The Mayor of Ipswich, Councillor Bill Wright, had joined the ship off Felixstowe and stood proudly on deck with captain and crew and other civic leaders. He praised the devotion to duty of the Grafton crew and spoke of the tremendous relationship that had been built up between the ship and the town, which was fiercely proud of its long maritime history.
Cdr Bellfield told a press conference aboard the ship: "I am absolutely delighted to bring HMS Grafton back to Ipswich. It's fantastic to be back and I see this visit, possibly our final one, as a celebration of the excellent relationship between the town of Ipswich and HMS Grafton."