Assessors are deciding whether to repair a ship stuck in Portsmouth or whether to scrap her.

RFA Argus has been shackled to the naval base since July after having her safety certificate withdrawn. Described as being “hollowed out”, the primary casualty receiving ship was due to travel to Falmouth in Cornwall for further maintenance when the problems arose.

RFA Argus could be scrapped as teams are assessing whether to repair the ship, currently stuck at the Royal Navy base in Portsmouth. | Royal Navy

placeholder image — RFA Argus could be scrapped as teams are assessing whether to repair the ship, currently stuck at the Royal Navy base in Portsmouth. | Royal Navy

Baroness Annabel Goldie, a Conservative peer in the House of Lords, asked the government if a cost benefit analysis is being made whether to repair the vessel or decommission her. She also asked what plans are in place to replace RFA Argus.

Lord Vernon Coaker, Labour defence peer, responded: “Regarding RFA Argus, The Royal Fleet Auxiliary continue to work alongside Defence Equipment and Support surveyors and commercial partners to assess the cost and value of effecting the required repairs.”

Baroness Goldie also asked if a risk assessment has been carried out to determine the consequences of having no RFA amphibious ship active and in service. The government has increased pay for RFA sailors and promised more help for the fleet to better support the Royal Navy, but the number of personnel is slowly decreasing and many of the ships are showing their age.

Visit our newsletter page today and sign up for a great range of free emails featuring the city’s biggest news and sport headlines

Lord Coaker added: “The RFA retains three Bay Class Landing Ships Dock (Auxiliary) to support UK amphibious capability. The RFA has committed to at least one of these vessels maintaining appropriate readiness, while the others undergo deeper maintenance and upkeep.”

Inspectors from Lloyds Register and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency took away the vessel’s safety certificate. They are currently overseeing the ship. The RFA plays a vital role in providing logistical support operations for the Royal Navy, often on the frontline.

A former Commanding Officer of RFA Argus, Captain Simon Booth, previously said the vessel should have been replaced due to her age, despite being a fantastic capability. He added: “I had issues with the steering gear when I was there and they took ages to fix it, because she’s so old and we hadn’t done the repair work the original manufacturer recommended twenty-plus years before. When you don’t do that, you run into problems.”