Just on the second day of the supposedly months-long deployment to the US, the United Kingdom (UK)'s biggest aircraft carrier broke down.
According to The Business Insider, HMS Prince of Wales, a £3 billion ($3.5 billion) aircraft carrier, suffered a mechanical issue on Sunday. Because of this, it has to remain near its base in Portsmouth on the southern coast of UK.
HMS Prince of Wales is Being Investigated for an Emerging Mechanical Issue
Just one day after departing from Portsmouth, the Royal Navy aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales has broken down.
A Royal Navy spokesperson said on Sunday that the 65,000-tonne warship has to stay in the south coast exercise area near the Isle of Wight while the Royal Navy are conducting "investigations into an emerging mechanical issue."
The propeller shaft of the 930-foot carrier is already being inspected by divers after damage was reported on the said part of the vessel, according to The Guardian (via Navy Lookout news site).
According to a Royal Navy spokesperson, the ship is already receiving "external support" for "ongoing investigations."
"Having successfully sailed from Portsmouth, HMS Prince of Wales remains in the South Coast Exercise Area," the spokesperson added.
As planned, the ship is expected to continue it Westlant 22 deployment in the coming days.
According to The Guardian, HMS Prince of Wales is Britain's largest warship and Nato's flagship carrier.
In the past, the vessel experienced a number of problems. At the end of 2020, it was stranded in Portsmouth due to a flooding in its engine room that damaged the electrics.
Moreover, the carrier reportedly spent fewer than 90 days at sea during its first two years in service because of springing leaks twice in five months.
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HMS Prince of Wales is Bound to Sail to Canada, New York and the Caribbean
HMS Prince of Wales was supposed to cross the Atlantic with its crew of 1,600. It is bound to stop in Halifax, Canada as well as in New York and the Caribbean.
According to The Guardian, the vessel's crew is scheduled to be a part of a training with the US military and the Royal Canadian Navy. They will be part of a program involving F-35B jets and uncrewed systems.
The aircraft carrier received a colorful send-off when it departed on Saturday afternoon. It sailed past thousands of music-lovers at the Victorious music festival on Southsea Common in Portsmouth.
Present in the Victorious music festival was pop favorites Sugababes. The crew lined at the flight deck when the giant ship sailed past the festival to get a view of it.
Alongside its sister ship, HMS Queen Elizabeth, the HMS Prince of Wales is part of the UK's carrier strike group. HMS Queen Elizabeth is set to deploy to the Baltic and Mediterranean this autumn.
The first exercise of the vessel is Cold Response 22, which was done in the Arctic. The ship is made to engage in various settings including providing humanitarian aid and disaster relief. It is also capable of high-intensity fighting.
The HMS Queen Elizabeth was made in 2017 while the HMS Prince of Wales was commissioned in 2019.
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