THE Royal Navy has no submarines at sea to defend its surface fleet.
HMS Anson arrived back at its Scottish base on Friday, leaving no attack subs currently on patrol.
It means the UK’s warships have no homegrown underwater protection against potential threats.
One former senior officer called it embarrassing and a shambles, brought on by years of poor planning.
The five Astute-class nuclear powered attack subs are meant to play a key role defending the Carrier Strike Group, currently in the Indo-Pacific, off Australia.
But it is understood the US Navy is providing submarine protection for our aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales.
Two other Astute-class subs have not put to sea for more than two years, and another is being refitted in Plymouth, where a fifth is also in dry dock.
A sixth sub, which is under construction, is unlikely to be operational for at least 18 months.
Britain’s four Vanguard-class subs, armed with long-range nukes, are not designed to attack other submarines or surface ships.
One is permanently at sea to provide a nuke deterrent.
Falklands veteran Rear Admiral Chris Parry said: “The whole nuclear enterprise is a shambles.
“It’s ridiculous we can’t send an attack sub on deployment.
“These submarines are the one thing the Russians and Chinese really fear.”
The Navy said its subs “continue to deploy globally on operations, protecting national interests and keeping us safe”.
HMS Anson has arrived back at its Scottish base Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
