Skyral sponsors first all-female Royal Navy Atlantic Crossing Expedition

LONDON: Skyral will sponsor the first all-female Royal Navy Atlantic rowing crossing expedition, the company announced today. The team of women, known as the HMS Oardacious Valkyries, will row 3,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in December 2024. 

The sponsorship is the first for Skyral, a modelling & simulation technology company that has been equipping the UK Armed Forces with battle-winning software for over a decade. 

Supporting the Valkyries underlines Skyral’s commitment to bolstering social value as a company determined to support the West’s prosperity through technology. The sponsorship is part of Skyral’s investment in  the Team Forces organisation, who create wellbeing through sport, challenge and adventure to improve health, wellbeing, and recovery in the UK Armed Forces community. 

Naomi Hulme, Managing Director, Skyral Government & Co-Founder said:

“We are incredibly excited to sponsor the HMS Oardacious Valkyries as they attempt the ‘World’s Toughest Row.’ We made this commitment after meeting the incredible team of women, and seeing clearly how they represent the bravery, talent, and resilience of the UK Armed Forces.

“We wish them the very best of luck in their training and look forward to sponsoring them and  to champion what women are capable of in the defence and STEM sectors.”

 

The rowers are looking to raise awareness for mental health and wellbeing, building on achievements since 2019. To date, in conjunction with the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity, the campaign has raised more than £200,000 for the Charity to provide mental health and wellbeing support for serving Armed Forces personnel and their families.

Warfare Officer Nic Hall, on behalf The Valkyries, said:

 “We are so delighted to be sponsored by the Skyral team who have showed us that sponsorship is about so much more than advertising; it is an alignment of values and a shared goal of making a difference in our communities. We have a collective interest in developing high-performing teams and we look forward to sharing our challenge with Skyral.”

The crew consists of: skipper Izzy Rawlinson, a Marine Engineering Submariner, Mine Clearance Diver Ali Aindow, Survival Equipment  specialist Aaby Aldridge, trainee Helicopter Pilot Lily-Mae Fisher and Warfare Officer Nic Hall; they plan to set off from San Sebastien de la Gomera in the Canaries on 12 December 2024, and row 3,000miles to Nelson’s Dockyard, Antigua around over a month later.

The team will row in shifts of two hours on, two hours off, all day every day. Rowers will suffer salt sores, blisters, sleep deprivation, sea sickness; they will experience 40ft waves and scorching tropical sunshine as they push themselves to the limit – driven by the goal not merely of completing the epic challenge, but also of beating an all-female British Army team also taking part in the race.

Beyond the physical and mental fortitude the event will take, above all the rowers want to create a platform where they can challenge and change traditional views on women in under-represented areas.

To support the team you can donate here

ENDS

About Skyral

Skyral is a British software company that has been transforming decision making for global enterprises, defence departments, and national security customers for almost a decade. We empower our customers to use technology to represent their complex worlds virtually. 

Through data fusion, visualisation, modelling and simulation, and AI we enable people to make better, faster decisions that solve their hardest challenges. Our product lines, Mirror, Phantom, and Shadow enable the rapid delivery and sustainment of Synthetic Environments, deployed on a flexible Core. 

Learn more at skyral.com

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