In broad terms 2019 was a positive year for the Naval Service, building on the successes of 2018. The political turmoil that enveloped Westminster left significant decisions about the future on hold but, apart from events in the Arabian Gulf, it was mostly business as usual.
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Another illuminating modern submarine memoir was published this year. Several recent books have documented the Cold War-era submarine service but this is the first to focus purely on the unique experience of serving onboard a deterrent boat.
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In yet another broadside published in The Times from the Royal Navy’s most opinionated critic, Max Hastings has described the new aircraft carriers as “dinosaurs… expensive, impractical and alarmingly vulnerable”. Here we examine Hastings’ pontifications and provide a more balanced view.
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On the day HMS Prince of Wales commissioned into the Royal Navy, we spoke to the Commander UK Carrier Strike Group, Commodore Mike Utley, about the medium-term plans for the aircraft carriers.
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The delivery of the RN’s second aircraft carrier has deservedly been celebrated as a great success for British industry but behind the scenes, in the naval bases and shipyards, all is not well. 2019 has seen a number of important maintenance projects stalled or delayed. Here we summarise the situation.
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This week HMS Queen Elizabeth returned home from the Westlant 19 deployment to the US. She joined her sister HMS Prince of Wales alongside in Portsmouth together for the first time. Here we look at the new facilities that will support both aircraft carriers.
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After the arrival of jets onboard HMS Queen Elizabeth in October, the Operational Test (OT-1) flying programme got into full swing. This photo essay covers the UK Carrier Strike Group during this period which was followed by diplomatic visits to the United States.
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On 16th November the second of the Royal Navy’s aircraft carriers, HMS Prince of Wales entered her home port for the first time. We witnessed the ship’s arrival and went on board to find out more about her progress and future programme.
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The schedule to build five Type 31 frigates for the Royal Navy by the mid-2020s has been described as ‘aggressive’. Here we examine the timeline for the delivery these ships and the challenges that have to be overcome
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