Does the Royal Navy Still Need Aircraft Carriers?

Can The Royal Navy Make Do Without Aircraft Carriers?

Article Summary: The Royal Navy faces critical challenges with its aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales, particularly maintenance issues limiting operational readiness. Despite these struggles, aircraft carriers remain essential for projecting British naval power globally. Carriers enable quick responses to conflicts and humanitarian crises without needing foreign bases.

Key Points: Yet, their effectiveness depends heavily on escort vessels such as destroyers and frigates, which are also in short supply. While some question carriers’ vulnerability, they remain indispensable for Britain’s maritime strategy. Addressing maintenance and expanding supporting warships is vital for ensuring the Royal Navy’s global influence in an increasingly contested world.

The Royal Navy: Time To Dump the Aircraft Carriers? 

The Royal Navy built the British Empire. A small island nation ruled the seas for hundreds of years thanks to a robust shipbuilding industry, outstanding leadership, and generations of sailing expertise.

However, the British economy struggled after World War II, and the Royal Navy’s numbers and prestige dwindled in the decades that followed. The malaise did not hit Britain alone. Throughout Europe, since 2000, the number of European and NATO destroyers and frigates has shrunk by 32 percent, and submarine fleets have fallen by 28 percent. 

As of April last year, the Royal Navy can field just 40 surface combatants and submarines. The service has 12 Type 23 frigates, eight River-class offshore patrol vessels, six Type 45 destroyers, six Astute-class attack submarines, four Vanguard-class nuclear-armed submarines, two aircraft carriers—the HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales—and two amphibious assault ships, which could double as light aircraft carriers in an emergency. 

With a dearth of support ships for a carrier strike group, could the Royal Navy make do without its aircraft carriers? 

Britain’s Aircraft Carriers: Issues That Impact Readiness

No one is discounting the British carriers’ well-publicized issues. The propeller couplings on both the Queen Elizabeth and the Prince of Wales have given the Royal Navy fits. 

“My Lords, the material state of the Royal Navy’s aircraft carriers should be a national shame. Without these aircraft carriers being in a suitable state, the Navy cannot carry out its necessary defense duties,” Baroness Barbara Lilian Janke told Parliament in early 2024.

However, as the Royal Navy tries to fix the myriad issues that plague the carriers, they have worked out a system where one is at sea while the other goes through maintenance. Is it perfect? Not at all, but until they iron out the carriers’ issues, it will have to suffice.

The planned mission for 2025 will see Royal Navy carrier strike groups put to sea with 24 British F-35s and 12 American F-35s, for a full complement of 36 aircraft. On a wartime footing, the carriers can carry 70 aircraft. The British plan to purchase up to 138 F-35s, which will also be shared with the Royal Air Force, but budget constraints have held up the addition of new Lightning IIs.

Are Carriers Too Vulnerable?

Britain’s carriers face the same question as U.S. carriers: Are they too vulnerable to missiles, submarines, and drones? The strength of a CSG lies in its support ships, destroyers, frigates, etc. These warships are bristling with sensors and weapons. The Royal Navy could use more of them.

“The operational freedom of a carrier group relies on support ships providing munitions and stores where and when they are needed,” a House of Commons committee reported a few years ago.

Britain’s Aircraft Carriers Are Still Excellent For Power Projection

The aircraft carrier remains the best power-projection tool sailing the oceans. Carriers provide air support anywhere in the world without the need to maintain far-flung bases abroad. They offer vital humanitarian relief at a moment’s notice. And, for an island nation that does 95 percent of its trade by sea, carriers allow the United Kingdom to safeguard shipping just by showing up.

The Royal Navy’s Type 45 destroyers have done a great job of shooting down dozens of missiles launched by the Houthis, an Iranian proxy group, in the Red Sea region. While the Houthis were aiming for commercial ships in the area, the Royal Navy helped to keep the shipping lanes open. These are the type of support ships the Royal Navy needs more of for their CSGs. 

America’s staunchest ally in Europe remains the United Kingdom. For more than 100 years, the United States and Britain have been there for each other through thick and thin. However, the Royal Navy has entered rough seas because of leadership issues at the top of the government. 

Royal Navy Aircraft Carrier. Image Credit: BAE Systems.

They need to fix their carrier issues and get the vessels out to sea more often. The world is entering a dangerous time, with agitations from the Chinese, Russians, and Iranians against the West. Without its carriers, is the Royal Navy a true blue-water navy, or does it become a service restricted to homeland defense? 

That is terrible to consider, given the pride of the Royal Navy. However: “Desperate affairs require desperate measures.” – Horatio Nelson

Queen Elizabeth-Class Aircraft Carrier Royal Navy. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

About the Author: Steve Balestrieri

Steve Balestrieri is a 19FortyFive National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing for 19FortyFive, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in many military publications.