UK Aircraft Carrier HMS Prince of Wales breaks down ahead of NATO military drills
The second of the UK’s flagship aircraft carriers has broken down outside Portsmouth and is unable to travel to planned NATO military drills in the North Atlantic. It will be replaced by its sister flagship, the HMS Queen Elizabeth, which had planned to head to the Mediterranean.
According to Rear Admiral Steve Moorhouse, there is “significant damage to the shaft on the propeller and some superficial damage to the rudder”.
Broken propellor shaft sends HMS Prince of Wales back to port
The super carrier is currently docked in Portsmouth for checks and possible repairs. However, it may have to make its way back to its home port in Edinburgh to replace the broken propellor shaft.
Though there are always teething issues when launching new warships, this is clearly a highly embarrassing situation for the Royal Navy. Built at a cost of £3 billion, the HMS Prince of Wales is one of the most advanced aircraft carriers on the planet, weighing in at 65,000 tonnes and a length of 280m.
This breakdown has come at a time when there are heightened tensions between NATO and Russia, following the latter’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.
Though the mission will instead go ahead with the HMS Queen Elizabeth, the Royal Navy will need to get the ship up and running as soon as possible so both ships can help the Royal Navy fulfil its repsonsibilities and to project British power around the globe.