UK Sends HMS Anson to Australia—AUKUS Rotation Tests a Stretched Royal Navy
The UK has sent the HMS Anson, an Astute-class nuclear-powered attack submarine – many times explained as stealth as a dolphin – to Australia as part of the AUKUS agreement.
Astute-Class Submarine. Image Credit. Creative Commons.
Astute-Class Royal Navy Submarine. Image Credit: Royal Navy.
Astute-Class Submarine. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
Astute-Class. Image Credit: Creative Commons.
Sending one of its few operational attack submarines to the Indo-Pacific is concerning, given that the Royal Navy is stretched very thin at present. The move has seen criticism from both UK citizens and lawmakers.
The HMS Anson departed Faslane on January 10, 2026, beginning a long-distance deployment in the Indo-Pacific via Gibraltar, where it arrived last week, while drastically reducing the number of UK attack submarines available for operations in the North Atlantic and European waters.
Warning To Russian Nefarious Activity:
Defence Minister of State Readiness Luke Pollard said last month that as part of the UK commitment to AUKUS, an Astute-class boat would join SRF-West based at HMAS Stirling, near Perth.
Pollard added that the deployment is “a core planning assumption for the RN under AUKUS” and said the government judges the commitment to be “both realistic and manageable within existing force planning.”
While the AUKUS agreements are important, many UK analysts believe that the move appears to be at odds with official warnings to Russia that “any threat will be met with strength and resolve.”
UK Submarines Tied Up In Maintenance And Sea Trials:
This is a difficult time for the Royal Navy. Their surface fleet has been greatly diminished. The UK’s strength for decades has resided in its submarine fleet.
However, the submarine fleet’s readiness at the present time is alarming. Only two of the ten submarines in the Royal Navy’s nuclear-powered fleet were able to go to sea immediately at one stage, with only one of the six Astute-class attack submarines currently at high readiness and four others assessed as being at low or very low readiness due to maintenance and refit cycles.
HMS Astute is scheduled to enter dry dock for a mid-life refit once another submarine completes maintenance. The HMS Ambush has reportedly been partially stripped of components to support other boats.
SSN-AUKUS Submarine. Image is Creative Commons Artist Rendering.
The HMS Agamemnon, although commissioned in September, remains many months from operational availability due to sea trials. If those go well, it should be operational later this year.
HMS Anson Rotation Helps Australia/AUKUS Pact:
Sending the HMS Anson to Australia, it serves as a rotational piece rather than a permanent part of the AUKUS submarine force.
The purpose of the AUKUS agreement (Australia, UK, US) is to deepen security and defense cooperation in the Indo-Pacific, primarily to counter China’s growing influence, enhance regional stability, and upgrade Australia’s military capabilities.
This is accomplished by providing Australia with conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines (Pillar 1) and by collaborating on advanced defense technologies such as AI, cyber, and hypersonics (Pillar 2).
This agreement allows Australian naval personnel to gain experience on nuclear-powered submarine operations, maintenance routines, and support requirements before Australia fields its own nuclear submarines.
It also provides Australia with an allied undersea presence in the Indo-Pacific during the transition period before future Australian Virginia-class submarines enter service.
Minister Pollard said, “The agreement that we have with our Australian and American friends is that there will be rotations between a UK Astute boat and the Virginia Class American submarine operating out of Western Australia. That will build the knowledge Australians need to operate those boats.
“In particular for the UK context, this is about understanding how they would operate a UK-designed and operated boat. Effectively, the SSN‑AUKUS will be a similar boat in terms of some of the design principles and operating style that you would see with an Astute Class submarine.
Worries Over Greenland, Belie The Cooperation of NATO:
Despite all of the handwringing going on, worrying about a forced US occupation of Greenland, the US isn’t going to fracture NATO over the issue.
The US Navy has taken up some of the slack in UK submarine readiness at a low point, but US and NATO partners patrolling the Greenland-Iceland-UK (GIUK) gap are foundational to security in the North Atlantic and have continued unabated.
For NATO allies, the GIUK gap is vital for barrier defense and protection of sea lines of communication. SLOCs are vulnerable in the North Atlantic, both in the gap and beyond, and the US and NATO rely on Denmark to help protect this critical infrastructure, including the vast number of seabed data cables.
However, the UK submarine fleet operating at a bare minimum is a concerning development and will bear watching in the coming years.
About the Author: Steve Balestrieri
Steve Balestrieri is a National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing on defense, 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.
