The Royal Navy is the principal naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Its assets include both commissioned warships and non-commissioned vessels. As of May 2024, there are 66 commissioned ships in the Royal Navy.
Of the commissioned vessels, nineteen are major surface combatants (two aircraft carriers, six guided missile destroyers, nine frigates and two amphibious transport docks) and ten are nuclear-powered submarines (four ballistic missile submarines and six fleet submarines). In addition the Navy possesses seven mine countermeasures vessels, twenty-six patrol vessels, two survey vessels, one icebreaker and one historic warship, Victory. The total displacement of the Royal Navy's commissioned ships is approximately 411,400 tonnes.
The Royal Navy also includes a number of smaller non-commissioned assets. The naval training vessels Brecon and Hindostan can be found based at the Royal Navy stone frigates HMS Raleigh and the Britannia Royal Naval College, respectively. Non-commissioned Sea-class workboats, procured under Project Vahana, are operated by the Royal Navy in various support, survey and training roles, replacing previous P1000 Class Picket Boat vessels.[1][2][3] This class of vessel also incorporates an autonomous minehunting variant (known as the Arcims-class),[4] while another autonomous vessel, Madfox, is employed in varied roles including as a testbed for autonomous combat operations.[5] Madfox and other experimental vessels, including XV Patrick Blackett and APAC-24 (a crewless Pacific 24 rigid-hulled inflatable boat), are operated by NavyX, a unit of the Royal Navy dedicated to developing, testing and accelerating the use of new high technologies.[6]
Besides the Royal Navy, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) and the Royal Marines operate their own flotillas of vessels which complement the assets of the Royal Navy. These vessels are not included in this list or the above figures. Nevertheless, combined, the Royal Navy and RFA have 79 vessels with a total displacement in excess of 752,400 tonnes, with the principal landing craft of the Royal Marines having an additional combined displacement of about 2,200 tonnes.
As a supporting contingent of His Majesty's Naval Service, the civilian Marine Services operate nearly 100 auxiliary ships (including coastal logistics, tugs and research vessels) in support of Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary operations.[7][8]
In the United Kingdom, the Royal Navy operates three main bases where commissioned ships are based: HMNB Portsmouth, HMNB Devonport and HMNB Clyde. A number of commissioned vessels, belonging to the University Royal Naval Units (URNU), are stationed at various other locations around the United Kingdom.
The Royal Navy's principal overseas base is HMS Jufair in Bahrain.[9] A general-purpose frigate and vessels belonging to the navy's 9th Mine Counter-Measures Squadron are forward-deployed there. Two fast patrol boats, together with a forward-deployed River-class offshore patrol vessel, normally form part of the Gibraltar Squadron and are permanently based there. Four other River-class vessels are also forward-deployed: one in the Falkland Islands, one in the Caribbean and two in the Indo-Pacific region. Additionally, the United Kingdom maintains a Joint Logistics Support Base in Duqm, Oman.[10]
All ships and submarines currently in commission with the Royal Navy were built in the United Kingdom, with the exceptions of icebreaker Protector which was built in Norway and survey vessel Magpie which was substantially built in Ireland. All commissioned vessels of the Royal Navy bear the ship prefix "HMS", for His Majesty's Ship or His Majesty's Submarine.
Ceremonial/Historic ship
editFlagship of the First Sea Lord | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Classic first-rate | |||||||
Class | Ship | No. | Commissioned | Displacement | Type | Homeport | Note |
Ship of the line | HMS Victory | — | 1778[N 1] | 3,556 tonnes | First-rate ship of the line | Portsmouth | [11] |
Submarine service
editSubmarine service | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Strategic | |||||||
Class | Boat | No. | Commissioned | Displacement | Type | Homeport | Note |
Vanguard class | HMS Vanguard | S28 | 1993 | 15,900 tonnes | Ballistic missile submarine | Clyde | [12] |
HMS Victorious | S29 | 1995 | [13] | ||||
HMS Vigilant | S30 | 1996 | [14] | ||||
HMS Vengeance | S31 | 1999 | [15] | ||||
Fleet | |||||||
Class | Boat | Pennant No. | Commissioned | Displacement | Type | Homeport | Note |
Astute class | HMS Astute | S119 | 2010 | 7,400 tonnes | Fleet submarine | Clyde | [16] |
HMS Ambush | S120 | 2013 | [17] | ||||
HMS Artful | S121 | 2016 | [18] | ||||
HMS Audacious | S122 | 2021 | [19][20] | ||||
HMS Anson | S123 | 2022 | [21] | ||||
Trafalgar class | HMS Triumph | S93 | 1991 | 5,300 tonnes | Devonport | [22] |
Surface fleet
editAuxiliary vessels
editSee also: Ships of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary and vessels operated by Serco Marine Services
RN auxiliary ships | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Survey | |||||||
Class | Ship | No. | Commissioned | Displacement | Type | Homeport | Note |
— | HMS Scott | H131 | 1997 | 13,500 tonnes | Ocean survey | Devonport | [83] |
— | HMS Protector | A173 | 2011 | 5,000 tonnes | Icebreaker & survey | [84][N 19] | |
Sea class 18 m variant | HMS Magpie | H130 | 2018 | 37 tonnes | Survey motor launch | [86] | |
Non-commissioned vessels | |||||||
Class | Ship | No. | In service | Displacement | Type | Homeport | Note |
— | XV Patrick Blackett | X01 | 2022 | 270 tonnes | Experimental vessel | Portsmouth | [87] |
— | Madfox | N/A | 2021 | c. 10 tonnes | Autonomous surface vessel | Portsmouth | [5][88] |
Hunt class | Brecon | M29 | 1979 | 750 tonnes | Static Training Ship | HMS Raleigh | [89] |
Sandown class | Hindostan (ex-Cromer) | M103 | 1992 | 600 tonnes | Britannia Royal Naval College | [90] | |
Sea class | 34 vessels:[91] * 8 x 15 m Officer Training Units; * 6 x 15 m Diver Training/Support Boats; * 4 x 15 m Survey/hydrographic Modules; * 3 x 13.8 m Passenger Transfer Boats (PTBs); * 10 x 11 m Standard Workboats; * 3 x 11 m Small Survey Modules |
— | 2018 to 2024 | 15 to 23 tonnes | Workboats | — | [N 20][92][1][93] |
ALN-139 class | Sea Harrier Buccaneer Sea Vixen Swordfish |
— | 2017 | c. 15 - 20 tonnes | — | [N 21][94] | |
Arcims class | RNMB Hussar | — | 2021 to 2023 | < 10 tonnes (five units); c.10+ tonnes (Hebe)[95][96] | Autonomous minehunting | Clyde | [97][98][99][100] |
RNMB Hazard | |||||||
RNMB Hebe | |||||||
RNMB Halcyon | |||||||
RNMB Harrier | |||||||
RNMB Hydra | |||||||
— | RNMB Apollo RNMB Abdiel |
N/A | 2021-22 | < 10 tonnes[96] | N/A | [N 22][101][102][103] |
Gallery
edit-
HMS Victory, Flagship of the First Sea Lord
-
Vanguard (Vanguard class)
-
Ambush (Astute class)
-
Trenchant (Trafalgar class)
-
Queen Elizabeth
(Queen Elizabeth class) -
Albion (Albion class)
-
Daring (Type 45 destroyer)
-
Northumberland (Type 23 frigate)
-
Forth (River class)
-
Hurworth (Hunt class)
-
Ramsey (Sandown class)
-
Raider (Archer class)
-
Cutlass (Cutlass class)
-
Scott
-
Protector
-
Magpie (Sea class)
-
XV Patrick Blackett
-
RNMB Harrier (Arcims class)
-
Madfox
-
Excellent
Silhouettes
editSilhouettes of major fleet units:
Silhouettes of all Royal Navy and RFA units:
See also
edit- Lists of ships operated by or in support of His Majesty's Naval Service
- List of active Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships
- List of active Royal Marines military watercraft
- List of ships of Serco Marine Services
- Related articles
Footnotes
edit- ^ Launched in 1765 and commissioned in 1778, making Victory the world's oldest warship still in commission.
- ^ Queen Elizabeth is the current Fleet Flagship as of 2021.
- ^ Albion in "extended readiness" (uncrewed reserve) as of early 2024;[27][28] to retire by March 2025
- ^ Bulwark entered 'extended readiness' in late 2016. Expected to complete long-term refit in 2024 but will now be retired from service by March 2025.
- ^ HMS Lancaster is forward deployed, operating from HMS Jufair in Bahrain.
- ^ HMS Northumberland is inactive and scheduled to be retired from service by March 2025.
- ^ HMS Forth is forward deployed, operating from Mare Harbour as guardship in the Falkland Islands.
- ^ HMS Medway is forward deployed as Atlantic Patrol Tasking (North) guardship in the Caribbean.
- ^ HMS Trent is forward deployed to Gibraltar for regional operations in the Mediterranean and Gulf of Guinea.
- ^ HMS Tamar is forward deployed to the Indo-Pacific region with her primary logistics hub at the British Defence Singapore Support Unit in Singapore[54]
- ^ HMS Spey is forward deployed to the Indo-Pacific region with her primary logistics hub at the British Defence Singapore Support Unit in Singapore[56]
- ^ HMS Middleton is forward deployed as part of 9 Mine Countermeasures Squadron, operating from HMS Jufair in Bahrain.
- ^ HMS Chiddingfold is forward deployed as part of 9 Mine Countermeasures Squadron, operating from HMS Jufair in Bahrain.
- ^ HMS Bangor is forward deployed as part of 9 Mine Countermeasures Squadron, operating from HMS Jufair in Bahrain.
- ^ Forms part of the Faslane Patrol Boat Squadron providing security to nuclear submarines entering and leaving the waters in and around HMNB Clyde.
- ^ Forms part of the Faslane Patrol Boat Squadron providing security to nuclear submarines entering and leaving the waters in and around HMNB Clyde.
- ^ Permanently based in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. Forms part of the Gibraltar Squadron.
- ^ Permanently based in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar. Forms part of the Gibraltar Squadron.
- ^ Deployed in Antarctic waters during the regional summer. Official role to: "patrol and survey in the Antarctic and South Atlantic, maintaining UK sovereign presence with wider regional engagement".[85]
- ^ Officer training units assigned to Britannia Royal Naval College; Diver support boats at HMNB Portsmouth (three units), Devonport, Clyde and Gibraltar (one unit each); Passenger Transfer units to HMS Prince of Wales; and two or more small survey modules to HMS Protector and HMS Scott.
- ^ Three assigned as passenger transfer vessels to HMS Queen Elizabeth
- ^ Pre-production units within joint UK-France MCM programme
References
edit- ^ a b "In focus: the versatile new workboats being built for the Royal Navy". Navy Lookout. 6 August 2018. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
- ^ Bush, Steve (2014). British Warships and Auxiliaries. Maritime Books. p. 119. ISBN 978-1-904459552.
- ^ "New lease of life for BRNC boats". Royal Navy. 29 June 2017. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
- ^ "Autonomous systems - the future of royal navy mine warfare". NavyLookout.
- ^ a b "Royal Navy launches missile from autonomous vessel in NATO exercise". Royal Navy. 14 October 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
- ^ "Royal Navy Launched Its First 'Crewless Pacific 24 Boat' USV". Naval News. 24 June 2020. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- ^ "Outsourcing giant Serco marks 25 years working with Royal Navy". BusinessLive. 12 August 2021. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
- ^ "Vessel Management". Serco Marine Services. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
- ^ "Navy's new Gulf home almost ready for first sailors". Royal Navy. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
- ^ Allison, George (30 July 2021). "British Littoral Response Group ships to be based in Oman". UK Defence Journal. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
- ^ Farmer, Ben (7 December 2017). "The Queen commissions the Royal Navy's newest aircraft carrier - HMS Queen Elizabeth". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
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- ^ "HMS Victorious". Royal Navy. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
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- ^ "HMS Ambush". Royal Navy. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
- ^ "HMS Artful". Royal Navy. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
- ^ "HMS Audacious". UK Parliament. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
- ^ Navy Lookout [@NavyLookout] (23 September 2021). "HMS Audacious commissioned in Faslane today. https://t.co/CiEgVDE7Er" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 24 September 2021. Retrieved 14 November 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ Edwards, Lucy (31 August 2022). "Boris Johnson visits BAE Systems in Barrow". CumbriaCrack.
- ^ "HMS Triumph". Royal Navy. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
- ^ "Aircraft Carriers - Future Flagships". Royal Navy. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
- ^ "HMS Queen Elizabeth". Royal Navy. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
- ^ "Commissioning day for HMS Prince of Wales". Royal Navy. Portsmouth. 10 December 2019. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
- ^ "HMS Albion". Royal Navy. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
- ^ West, Lisa (27 February 2024). "MOD confirm assault ships not to be 'scrapped or mothballed'". UK Defence Journal.
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- ^ "HMS Bulwark". Royal Navy. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
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- ^ "HMS Iron Duke". Royal Navy. Archived from the original on 28 April 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
- ^ {{cite web |title=HMS Northumberland |url=http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/our-organisation/the-fighting-arms/surface-fleet/frigates/hms-northumberland |website=Royal Navy |access-date=22 April 2015
- ^ "HMS Richmond". Royal Navy. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
- ^ "HMS Somerset". Royal Navy. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
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- ^ "HMS Severn Re-Commissioned Into Royal Navy After Nearly Three Years". Forces News. 1 July 2020. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
- ^ "HMS Tyne returns to service after being paid off in May". Save the Royal Navy. 31 July 2018. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
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- ^ Graham, Euan (19 October 2021). "Reflections on the Royal Navy's Indo-Pacific engagement". International Institute for Strategic Studies. Retrieved 20 October 2021.
- ^ "@HMS_Spey" on Twitter
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- ^ "Debut for UK Royal Navy's new experimental vessel". Jane's Information Group. 29 July 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
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External links
edit- Royal Navy (royalnavy.mod.uk)
- Royal Navy — The Equipment — Ships (royalnavy.mod.uk)