Royal Navy: HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Queen Elizabeth planned retirement dates set - when

Minister for defence procurement, Maria Eagle, confirmed the planned retirement dates for both Queen Elizabeth-class carriers - HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Queen Elizabeth. Responding to a parliamentary written question from Conservative MP, Ben Obese-Jecty, the politician said these were out of service dates - when ships are expected to be taken out of the fleet.

The Labour MP for Liverpool Galston said the out of service date for the Queen Elizabeth-class carriers is 2069. She added: “The Royal Navy constantly reviews out of service dates to achieve maximum availability of its platforms for operational tasking. For operational security reasons, the Royal Navy does not release the out of service dates of individual platforms.”

HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Queen Elizabeth are the most powerful assets the Royal Navy has at its disposal. The former is currently taking charge of the UK Carrier Strike Group (UKCSG) on an eight-month deployment to the Indo-Pacific region.

Contract signed for carrier operations

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has awarded a £20.5m contract to Northrop Grumman UK Ltd to cover in-service support of navigation and radar systems on both carriers and other naval platforms. The deal, announced via a transparency notice, covers the Integrated Navigation and Bridge Systems (INBS) of the carriers.

As detailed in the UK Defence Journal, the notice said in-service support includes safety management, spares provision, systems repairs, a range of supplementary support tasks and technical support. This allows for personnel to carry out more effective maritime operations.

HMS Prince of Wales recently completed Exercise Med Strike alongside the Italian Carrier Strike Group, which was headed by 27,100 tonne carrier ITS Cavour. She is now due to sail through the Suez Canal and the Red Sea to carry out military drills and port visits in the Indo-Pacific, working alongside Japan, Australia, and other naval forces.

HMS Queen Elizabeth has been in Portsmouth Naval Base and carried out a "marine evacuation system trial" earlier this year. A gun salute was held on the flight deck earlier this month to honour Coronation Day.