OUR £3bn ‘BEAST’ TO KEEP RUSSIA AT BAY
THE captain of the Royal Navy’s newest warship yesterday described the surge in Russian military activity in the past two years as “frightening”.
Jerry Kyd, who today is due to set off across the Atlantic in command of the 65,000-ton aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth, described Russian submarine activity as “eye-watering”.
This autumn the Queen Elizabeth, the first of two new aircraft carriers, will see F35 Lightning fighters land on its deck for the first time in sea trials off the US.
In a few weeks she will fly the flag for the UK by visiting New York, where she will be given a high profile anchorage in the harbour.
Signals
And Captain Kyd said the Russians will be watching the Navy’s biggest ever warship closely.
He said the build-up of Russian and Chinese military capabilities underlines the need to ensure Britain retains a credible naval force. He said: “The increase in Russian submarine activity has been frightening.
“For national security reasons it underlines why we have to maintain a strong capability.
“It has been quite eye-watering what we have seen over the past two years.”
Speaking on the bridge of the £3billion carrier, he added: “You can send a whole bunch of signals through your military. You can keep forces on the runway, back in harbour or on a base. But the more activity you see the more it reinforces your political narrative.
“We have seen a huge increase in Russian activity at sea. We need to respond to that. When you are as active as the Russians have been, to my mind you have to recognise that and make your own deductions.
“You do not spend all that money and do all this activity for nothing.”
He was backed by Commodore Andrew Betton, who will command the aircraft carrier strike group.
He said: “Russian submarines are more active in the North Atlantic than they have been since the Cold War and we take that very seriously. The ship will be well protected as she makes the transit across the Atlantic.”
Earlier this year the then head of the Army, General Sir Nick Carter, now head of the Armed Forces, warned of a growing Russian threat. And just three months ago Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson told military experts that Russian submarine activity has increased tenfold in the North Atlantic in recent years.
He told the Royal United Services Institute that last year the Royal Navy had to respond 33 times to Russian Navy ships approaching UK territorial waters, compared to just once in 2010.
Many of these encounters were Russian warships heading off to or returning from Syria – but the transits are used by the Kremlin to test UK and Nato defences. Mr Williamson, who is locked in a bruising battle with the Treasury in a bid to increase spending on the Armed Forces after decades of cutbacks, said at the time: “It goes to show the increasing aggression, the increasing assertiveness of Russia, and how we have to ensure we give the right support to our Royal Navy in order to give them the tools to do the job and keep Britain safe.”
HMS Queen Elizabeth will be accompanied on her first crossing of the Atlantic by the Type 23 antisubmarine frigate HMS Monmouth, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary supply ship RFA Tiderace and, almost certainly, a submarine.
Capt Kyd said: “We should recognise that the world remains a dynamic place.
“The actions we are seeing from the Russian military has pretty clear intent and is a pretty good
reminder of the UK obligation to Nato and also from a sovereign perspective to maintain sufficient armed forces – particular maritime – to do the job that is required.
“My personal view is that these two aircraft carriers maintain our credibility, particularly with our key ally the US. Without the aircraft carriers it would dilute it.
“Aircraft carriers alongside nuclear submarines are your two mainstay strategic assets…We remain an island nation with worldwide obligations.”
Capt Kyd said the UK – which axed its last aircraft carrier in 2010 – has regenerated its capability “in the nick of time”.
He said: “Without these two carriers we would be struggling to remain credible as a first class naval force. We are Tier One in terms of capability and in terms of mass we remain a medium sized navy. But in terms of standards and capability only the US Navy has more.”
Over nearly three months Capt Kyd will put the carrier and the F35s through their paces.
The two F35s will fly onto the carrier from the Integrated Test Force based in Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.
They will be flown over the course of the drills by three British pilots – a Royal Navy commander, an RAF squadron leader and a BAE Systems civilian – and one US Marine Corps pilot.
But the first landing is scheduled to be by a British pilot – probably from the Royal Navy.
Mr Williamson said: “HMS Queen Elizabeth is a true statement of our national power, and the whole country can be proud to see this magnificent symbol of our engineering prowess and international ambition leaving port to sail onto the world stage. Her voyage to America not only shows her global reach, but strengthens our special relationship with the US Forces.
“As she sails along the east coast of the United States, she will signal our determination to keep fighting alongside all our allies in all corners of an ever-more complex and uncertain world.”