HMS Prince of Wales breaks down….

[Admiral Beez]

First the Type 45 commission with rubbish machinery,

Royal Navy Will Retrofit Type 45 Destroyers To Keep Them From Breaking Down

The UK Defense Ministry hopes contractors will be able to upgrade the gas turbines and generators on all six ships in the next five to seven years.

www.thedrive.com

And now the RN's newest carrier breaks down…. I jest, but let's hope the QE class is more reliable than the Admiral Kuznetsov. The latter could never have matched HMS QE world tour, so hopefully it's just something minor on HMS PoW.

Royal Navy HMS Prince of Wales breaks down off south coast - BBC News

The HMS Prince of Wales's departure from Portsmouth had already been postponed due to a technical issue.

www.bbc.com

 

[Airframes]

They overstressed the rubber band on the final drive ........................

 

[Admiral Beez]

They overstressed the rubber band on the final drive ........................

I remember those....

 

[GrauGeist]

It's been a while since I read the artical, but I recall reading that the Admiral Kuznetsov task Force included an ocean-going tugboat to assist the carrier when broke down.

 

[Admiral Beez]

 

[buffnut453]

I understand the problem is with one of her propeller shafts. That doesn't sound cheap, quick or easy to fix...but, then again, I'm not a fish-head and know nowt about boats.

 

[Denniss]

They just need to make sure that history does not repeat

 

[SaparotRob]

Well, this time POW has its own air support.

 

[Peter Gunn]

Not to be cheeky Beez but when I first saw the thread title I thought this was another of your "what if's" scenarios.

{Which I always look forward to BTW}

 

[Admiral Beez]

Well, this time POW has its own air support.

Actually not really, the Fleet Air Arm has no fixed wing aircraft whatsoever, and the RAF has about twenty F-35Bs to share amongst the two carriers and its own needs. When HMS Prince of Wales sailed a few days ago I believe she only had a few rotaries on board. At present, POW's air support is about as good as HMS Hermes was in April 1942.

The future is brighter though, with Britain expecting to have over one hundred F-35Bs within a year or so.

 

[WARSPITER]

Actually if you look you will see they got water on the plugs - that's what happens when you put the engine at the front and as is obvious from the photo
forget to shut the bonnet (hood for US readers).

 

[EwenS]

Actually not really, the Fleet Air Arm has no fixed wing aircraft whatsoever, and the RAF has about twenty F-35Bs to share amongst the two carriers and its own needs. When HMS Prince of Wales sailed a few days ago I believe she only had a few rotaries on board. At present, POW's air support is about as good as HMS Hermes was in April 1942.

The future is brighter though, with Britain expecting to have over one hundred F-35Bs within a year or so.

Oooohhhh I wish!
27 delivered to date with 3 early aircraft remaining in the US for trials purposes and 23 at Marham plus 1 lost in 2021 in an accident.
3 more due for delivery this year (1 flown so far)
7 more due 2023.
11 more on order for delivery in 2024/5.

That completes the deliveries against the initial order for 48. It was announced in April 2022 that funding was in place for another 26 with negotiations in progress. So the prospect at the moment is 73.

So far there is a front line squadron (617) plus a training unit (207) with a second front line squadron (809) due to stand up in April 2023.

Edit:- the FAA has 4 fixed wing Beech Avenger T.1 (Beech 350 CER) for Observer training and some Grob 115E trainers for pilot selection.

 

[buffnut453]

Oooohhhh I wish!
27 delivered to date with 3 early aircraft remaining in the US for trials purposes and 23 at Marham plus 1 lost in 2021 in an accident.
3 more due for delivery this year (1 flown so far)
7 more due 2023.
11 more on order for delivery in 2024/5.

That completes the deliveries against the initial order for 48. It was announced in April 2022 that funding was in place for another 26 with negotiations in progress. So the prospect at the moment is 73.

So far there is a front line squadron (617) plus a training unit (207) with a second front line squadron (809) due to stand up in April 2023.

Edit:- the FAA has 4 fixed wing Beech Avenger T.1 (Beech 350 CER) for Observer training and some Grob 115E trainers for pilot selection.

Agreed...although it's worth noting that there are FAA pilots already integrated into the RAF units at Marham. While we're still waiting for 809 Sqn to stand up, there are FAA pilots flying the F-35B today who will form the nucleus once 809 is reformed at Marham.

 

[EwenS]

Agreed...although it's worth noting that there are FAA pilots already integrated into the RAF units at Marham. While we're still waiting for 809 Sqn to stand up, there are FAA pilots flying the F-35B today who will form the nucleus once 809 is reformed at Marham.

And also that command of the squadrons has been rotating between RAF and RN officers. Command of 617 passed from an RN officer to an RAF officer in May 2022. Command of 207 transferred from an RAF officer to an RN officer in November last year.

 

[Dimlee]

English is not my mother tongue... Is it correct to say "ship breaks down" when it's just one (of two) propeller shafts? She is not sinking, she is underway under her own power, and all other systems are OK, hopefully.

 

[SaparotRob]

I use that expression myself for when a ship has developed mechanical issues.

 

[Peter Gunn]

So what would happen if the PoW breaks down standing out from Singapore?

You know I eventually had to ask...

 

[Admiral Beez]

So what would happen if the PoW breaks down standing out from Singapore?

If you're referring to 8 Dec 1941 when Force Z departed Singapore, I'd say it's a blessing for HMS Prince of Wales and likely the rest of Force Z. The entire force would have been turned around for Singapore, with the breakdown being assessed by the dockyard while under RAF air cover. Once temporary repairs are made I'd guess that on Dec 11, 1941 both capital ships (HMS Repulse as escort) and their four destroyers join the light cruiser HMS Mauritius (refitting at Singapore since Nov 6) for Ceylon or the Cape. Ideally the ships have taken the opportunity to evacuate any non-combat, non-essential British and CW civilians.

 

[pbehn]

English is not my mother tongue... Is it correct to say "ship breaks down" when it's just one (of two) propeller shafts? She is not sinking, she is underway under her own power, and all other systems are OK, hopefully.

No it isnt correct, in the modern world the headline of an article is rarely supported by the article it heads. They are written by different people to disclaim any responsibility.

 

[GTX]

HMS Prince of Wales, the £3bn pride of the Navy, grinds to halt over ‘failure to grease propeller shaft’

‘Embarrassment’ as new aircraft carrier's landmark mission to the US hangs in the balance over major fault

www.telegraph.co.uk