New deal secures the future of HMS Warrior in Portsmouth

THE future of Britain's first iron-clad battleship has been secured in Portsmouth after a new deal was agreed.

Owners of HMS Warrior, the Warrior Preservation Trust, have merged with the National Museum of the Royal Navy (NMRN).

It comes 30 years after Warrior arrived at Portsmouth’s Historic Dockyard.

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The new arrangement will not affect any of the 40 jobs or 70 volunteers at the Warrior Preservation Trust (WPT).

Likewise, a spokeswoman for the group said all hospitality bookings will be honoured and the ongoing £4.2m upper deck conservation work will be completed by Easter 2018.

Chief executive of the WPT, and captain of the ship, Commander Tim Ash said: ‘We have worked closely with the NMRN as partners for many years, and feel that the time is right for us to align our shared expertise more closely.

‘Our new relationship will allow us to tell Warrior’s story more effectively, and merge our efforts in meeting better the needs of our great historic fleet of ships.’

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Professor Dominic Tweddle, director general at the NMRN added: ‘We will now work with the Warrior’s ship’s company to ensure a smooth transition and ensure that the ship remains afloat and dominating the city’s seascape for a further 30 years at least.’

The National Museum already owns HMS Victory, HMS M.33 in Portsmouth, and the Royal Navy Submarine Museum and Explosion Museum of Naval Firepower, in Gosport.