Royal Navy: Mechanical fault on HMS Prince of Wales may impact ship’s program

The Royal Navy has issued a statement regarding a recent mechanical issue which happened onboard Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales while en route to its Atlantic mission.

Aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales left Portsmouth on 27 August for “landmark aviation trials” in the US. However, soon after departing Portsmouth Naval Base, the ship experienced a mechanical issue and had to be anchored for further inspection, the navy officials revealed. A mechanical fault was discovered with the ship’s starboard shaft.

Now, Rear Admiral Steve Moorhouse gave an update on the situation onboard the British aircraft carrier stating that “the fault will require repars which may impact the ship’s program”.

The vessel will also be moved to “a more sheltered anchorage” for further inspection. Once the inspection is completed, more details will be available about the issue and the impact to its schedule, Moorhouse added.

Along with port stops in New York, Halifax in Canada, and the Caribbean, the next three months were supposed to see HMS Prince of Wales task group work closely with US, operating F-35B jets and uncrewed systems.

The 65,000-tonne warship was planned to deploy alongside frigate HMS Richmond, tanker RFA Tideforce and an air group of helicopters and drones, before F-35B stealth fighters join the deployment once the ship arrives in North America for the Westlant 22 deployment.