Half-inch hitch keeps £3bn carrier in dock
IT is the most expensive and advanced warship the Royal Navy has ever built.
But it has emerged that a propeller-shaft support on the HMS Queen Elizabeth is misaligned, leaving the aircraft carrier stuck in dock.
The warship has spent almost a fortnight at the deep water dock at Invergordon, Ross-shire, after engineers discovered the fault with a frame holding the propeller shaft in place.
Divers are said to have discovered a propeller was misaligned by barely half an inch (12millimetres). The fault is reported to have caused vibration and excess noise as the 65,000-ton vessel sailed in the North Sea.
The £3billion carrier began its sea trials last month after leaving Rosyth docks. It was to call at Invergordon for fuel and supplies but has now spent almost a fortnight there undergoing minor repairs.
The Aircraft Carrier Alliance (ACA), a partnership between the Ministry of Defence and arms manufacturers, said it hopes the sea trials will help them identify any ‘areas for improvement’ before the carrier becomes fully operational.
The 900ft vessel is expected to leave Invergordon within the next few days.
Adrian Miles, managing director of propeller firm Stone Marine Propulsion, said: ‘The fact they are to take it back out to sea in the next few days would suggest that whatever they found is not too bad.’
Other experts suggested the ship will run at low revs but may yet need to return to dry dock for more extensive repairs.