Clock ticking for Royal Navy’s HMS Queen Elizabeth repairs amid claims she's 'months behind schedule'
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Modification work on a Royal Navy aircraft carrier is scheduled to be completed soon - but this could be lapsing after claims about the project being “several months behind schedule”.
Work to restore HMS Queen Elizabeth has been progressing since September last year when she entered the Rosyth dry dock. The £3.2bn warship carried out sea trials en-route to Scotland before being place into a planned seven-month docking period.
With repairs and modifications beginning in September, April will be the seven-month cut-off point for when she’s expected to be readied for operations, though this may lapse further. Navy Lookout reports that the certification period is “several months behind schedule” and “it could be some time before she returns to service”.
The Royal Navy remained tight-lipped about HMS Queen Elizabeth’s progress. A spokeswoman said: “HMS Queen Elizabeth remains in Rosyth and continues with her planned maintenance period.”
The huge aircraft carrier was sent to Rosyth after mechanical problems were found while alongside HMNB Portsmouth. Issues were identified during routine machinery trials. Commanding Officer Captain Claire Thompson previously said “significant upgrades” were made to the warship’s propulsion system before the voyage to Scotland, alongside other modifications. HMS Queen Elizabeth is currently in the second phase of her maintenance programme, with the initial stage taking nine months to complete. She has not been on a major deployment for over a year.
Ship availability has been put under the spotlight in recent weeks given the conflict in Iran and subsequent drone strike - believed to be from a militia group in Lebanon or western Iraq - on RFA Akrotiri in Cyprus. Type 45 destroyer HMS Dragon is being readied in Portsmouth ahead of her eastern Mediterranean deployment, with support ship RFA Lyme Bay due to sail alongside her.
The government has cooled suggestions that HMS Prince of Wales, the Royal Navy’s flagship, will follow suite and be sent on a Middle East mission. Reports over the weekend suggested she was put at a state of advanced readiness, but no decisions have been made regarding a deployment. US President Donald Trump had criticised the UK for its reluctance to join the US-led conflict in the Middle East, stating “we don’t need them any longer” and “we don’t need people that join wars after we’ve already won”.